Some of the things she said were taken very seriously by Howard and Abbott. If they didn't take her seriously why did they go to so much trouble to have her discredited and made Australias first political prisoner.
Examples from her maiden speech:.
"I wish to comment briefly on some legal and social problems encountered by many of my constituents--problems not restricted to my electorate of Oxley. I refer to the social and famliy upheaval created by the Family Law Act and the ramifications of that Act embodied in the child support scheme. The Family Law Act, which was the child of the disgraceful Senator Lionel Murphy, should be repealed. It has brought death, misery and heartache to countless thousands of Australians. Children are treated like pawns in a crazy game of chess. The child support scheme has become unworkable, very unfair and one-sided. Custodial parents can often profit handsomely at the expense of a parent paying child support. In many cases the non-custodial parent simply gives up employment to escape the, in many cases, heavy and punitive financial demands. Governments must give to all those who have hit life's hurdles the chance to rebuild and have a future."
and
"Qantas when it sold 25% of its shares and a controlling interest to British Airways. Now this government wants to sell Telstra, a company that made a $1.2 billion profit last year and will make a $2 billion profit this year. First they want to sack 54,000 employees to show better profits and share prices. Anyone with business sense knows that you do not sell off your business assets especially when they are making money."
and
"I may only be a fish and chip shop lady but some of these economists need to get their heads out of the textbooks and get a job in the real world. I would not let one of them handle my grocery shopping."
and
"Immigration and multiculturalism are issues that this government is trying to address, but for too long ordinary Australians have been kept out of any debate by the major parties. I and most Australians want our immigration policy radically reviewed and that of multiculturalism abolished. I believe we are in danger of being swamped by Asians. Between 1984 and 1995 40% of all migrants coming into this country were of asian origin.They have their own culture and religion, form ghettos and do not assimilate. Of course I will be called racist but if I can invite who I want into my home, then I should have the right to have a say in who comes into my country.
and
" A truly multicultural country can never be strong or united. The world is full of failed and tragic examples, ranging from Ireland to Bosnia to Africa and closer to home, Papua New Guinea. America and Great Britain are currently paying the price."and
"Arthur Calwell was a great Australian and Labour leader. It is a pity that there are not men of his stature sitting on the opposition benches today. Arthur Calwell said: "Japan, India, Burma, Ceylon and every new African nation are fiercely anti-white and anti one another. Do we want or need any of these people here? I am one red blooded Australian who says no and who speaks for 90% of Australians."
and
"There is light at the end of the tunnel and there are solutions. If this government wants to be fair dinkum, then it must stop kowtowing to financial markets, international organisations, world bankers, investment companies and big business people. The Howard government must become visionary and be prepared to act, even at the risk of making mistakes."
and
"In this financial year we will be spending at least $1.5 billion on foreign aid. We cannot be sure that this money will be properly spent as corruption and mismanagement in many of the recipient countries are legend. Australia must review its membership and funding of the UN, as it is, a little like ATSIC. on a grander scale, with huge tax-free American dollar salaries, duty free luxury cars and diplomatic status."
and
"The World Health Organisation has a lot of medical experts sitting in Geneva while hospitals in Africa have no drugs and desperate patients are forced to seek medication on the black market. I am going to find out how many treaties we have signed with the UN, have them exposed and then call for their repudiation. The government should cease all foreign aid immediately and apply the savings to generate employment here at home."
and
"Abolishing the policy of multiculturalism will save billions of dollars and allow those from ethnic backgrounds to join mainstream Australia paving the way for a strong, united country. Immigration must be halted in the short term so that our dole queues are not added to by, in many cases, unskilled migrants not fluent in the English language.This would be one positive step to rescue many young and older Australians from a predicament which has become a national disgrace and crisis. I must stress that at this stage that I do not consider those people from ethnic backgrounds currently living in Australia anything but first class citizens, provided of course they give this country their full, undivided loyalty."
and
"The government must be imaginative enough to become involved, in the short term at least, in job creating projects that will establish the foundation for a resurgence of national development and enterprise. Such schemes would be the building of the Darwin to Alice Springs railway line, new roads and ports, water conservation, reafforestation and other sensible and practical environmental projects."
and
"Therefore I call for the introduction of national service for a period of 12 months, compulsory for males and females upon finishing year 12 or reaching 18 years of age. This could be a civil service with a touch of military training, because I do not believe we can go on living in a dream world forever and a day believing that war will never touch our lives again."
and
"The government must do all it can to reduce interest rates for business. How can we compete with Japan, Germany and Singapore, which enjoy rates of 2%, 5.5% and 3.5% respectively? Reduced tariffs on foreign goods that compete with local products seem only to cost Australians their jobs. We must look after our own before lining the pockets of overseas countries and investors at the expense of our living standards "
and
"Time is running out. We have only 10 to 15 years to turn things round. Because of our resources and our position in the world we will not have a say because neighbouring countries such as Japan, with 125 million people, China, with 1.2 billion people, India, with 846 million people, Indonesia with 178 million people, and Malaysia with 20 million people are well aware of our resources and potential. Wake up Australia before it is too late. Australians need and want leaders who can inspire and give hope in difficult times."
Surely SOME of this should be taken seriously