The Abbott Government

[Calliope]

Shock! Horror! Abbott does it again. The mysogonist pig.



I think that anyone who gets Grumpy Gloria on the Sex Line will be short-changed..

 

[basilio]

I think Knobbys comment on the budget and his total disillusionment with an Abbott led Liberal party should be a very real concern for the Government. I just don't think he is the only person to feel like that.

You don't need to be a Labour voter to recognise

a) The complete trashing of the Liberals pre election promises
b) The brutal unfairness of the budget.

I could see 2-3% of the stronger Liberal Party voters changing their votes in the next election. Be interesting to see any private research studies done on voters beliefs about their party after the budget.

___________________________________________________________________________
When is a gift not a gift ?

When it comes in the form of a $60k scholarship for your daughter from a company that regularly gives funds to your political party and works in a field that is determined to extract advantage from new Government policies

Liberal donor personally recommended Tony Abbott's daughter for scholarship

Les Taylor, the chairman of the Whitehouse Institute of Design who recommended Frances Abbott to be only the second recipient of the 'chairman's scholarship', has made donations of more than $20,000 to the Liberal party

• Tony Abbott's daughter given scholarship for $60,000 degree

Les Taylor, the chairman of the Whitehouse Institute of Design board of governors, personally recommended the prime minister’s daughter for a $60,000 design degree scholarship, and has also made donations of more than $20,000 to the state and federal Liberal party.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/20...bbott-degree-scholarship-tony-abbott-daughter

There is more detail about how the head of the private College expected to benefit from changes in Government policies in the following story.

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/fed...abbott-at-private-college-20140521-38olh.html

 

[sptrawler]

My niece has managed to get into medicine. She is a country girl from an average family with both parents working bringing in less than $100000 a year. Under the new budget she can expect to owe $180000 at the end of her degree. Baby boomers got free education. I think this is very unfair and I fear for my children.

I actually can't sleep. Now there are mooted super changes etc. I wish we could call another election. My only hope is Clive Palmer who seems to have more interest in the average person. I am truly disgusted by this government. The outright lies. The determination to act for the lobbyists. I wish I had never voted them in.

The determination to attack families to advantage the rich is terrible. Bring back the old party who use to help families. Raise the tax rates rather than destroy the aspirations of middle class families.

I will never believe anything Tony Abbott says again. I expect to be howled down in this thread but I truly have lost faith in the Coalition. The budget is a list of broken promises and should be blocked in the senate. We cannot let such deceit take place. The polls for the Libs will only get worse and this will be a one term government and I will become politically active to try to ensure this.

I was a big fan of John Howard and can't believe it has come to this.

Hey Knobby, don't let it get you down, firstly none of the budget has been enacted it has to get through parliament yet.
Secondly there is a hell of a lot of opposition to most of what is in the budget, especialy by the media, sooner or later the coalition will have to tone it down.

With the level of opposition, they may indeed be a one term government.

 

[CanOz]

Hey Knobby, don't let it get you down, firstly none of the budget has been enacted it has to get through parliament yet.
Secondly there is a hell of a lot of opposition to most of what is in the budget, especially by the media, sooner or later the coalition will have to tone it down.

With the level of opposition, they may indeed be a one term government.

I can understand the panic, the media is fueling this to no end. :frown:

 

[Calliope]

Ahh come on Knobby, don't be like that.... 'They've stopped the boats'

Come off it orr, Knobby has enough to worry about without you rubbing salt into his wounds. Like you, Knobby has never been a supporter of the Coalition's heartless policy of stopping the boats.

 

[trainspotter]

Julia Gillard was criticized and it was labelled sexism because she was a woman. It is important to recognise that as a woman, and especially as a childless, unmarried woman, the prime minister was subjected to more scrutiny than her male predecessors. Nevermind Gillard was a less-than-effective prime minister.

Tony Abbott is being critisized as a misogynistic, grubby dog whistling, welfare wrecking, nation destroying, university student kicking, lying to the voting public, back flipping, increased taxing, desperate Prime Minister. Nevermind it was very clear as to what we elected the Liberal Party to do. Effective leadership IMO.

You might remember the mantra - it was stop the boats, repeal the carbon tax, build the roads of the 21st century, and get the budget back under control .... which is exactly what they have done.

This situation reminds me of someone having terminal cancer and complaining that chemotherapy makes them sick. Sorry if this analogy is a bit strong for some but I am having a hard time comprehending that this country is borrowing ONE BILLION dollars a month just to pay our interest bill on the debt left by the LABOR government.

If I had the ear of the PM, this is what I would be forcing down the proletariat's throat right now. How can we borrow that much money to just pay our interest bill and not expect the debt to have to be repaid at some stage??

"Of the 17 top surveyed IMF countries, Labor left us with the fastest growth in spending of anyone in the world... and they left us with the third highest growth in debt of anyone in the top 17," Mr Hockey told RN Breakfast on March 6.

"So, the fact of the matter is they've left a whole lot of landmines in the budget. We need to carefully remove those landmines and put us back on a path that gets us away from $123 billion of deficit, and starts to pay down the logjam of $667 billion of debt."

Tax the banks more they whinge, tax the mining companies more they cry ... are you for real? The banks will merely increase rates or fees to cover the taxes imposed on them and the mining companies will downscale and shed jobs. But all you bleeding hearts and artists know all of this .... RIGHT ??? :frown:

 

[sptrawler]

The dopey media may well be playing into Abbotts hands. What if, down the track, Abbott falls on his sword?

The media have made it all about Tony and trying to get him, rather than focus on the real issues. The real debate about the economy and the budgetry requirements hasn't happened.

It is about attacking Tony eg, Tony doesn't front a rabid uni mob, Tony winked, Joe smokes a cigar. That's the garbage wasted day after day on the front pages, bloody woefull reporting.
No one has asked Bill what Labor would pass or want included.
No media has discussed the severity of the deficit and debt situation and what options and outcomes could be expected. No real experts, just giggling morning t.v hosts giving their opinion, which is about as usefull as asking my Jack Russell for his opinion.

Abbott doesn't look as though he is enjoying the P.M's job, he never has, so it will be interesting to see what happens. At the opportune moment he may take the bullet for the party.
Just a thought.

 

[banco]

The dopey media may well be playing into Abbotts hands. What if, down the track, Abbott falls on his sword?

The media have made it all about Tony and trying to get him, rather than focus on the real issues. The real debate about the economy and the budgetry requirements hasn't happened.

It is about attacking Tony eg, Tony doesn't front a rabid uni mob, Tony winked, Joe smokes a cigar. That's the garbage wasted day after day on the front pages, bloody woefull reporting.
No one has asked Bill what Labor would pass or want included.
No media has discussed the severity of the deficit and debt situation and what options and outcomes could be expected. No real experts, just giggling morning t.v hosts giving their opinion, which is about as usefull as asking my Jack Russell for his opinion.

Abbott doesn't look as though he is enjoying the P.M's job, he never has, so it will be interesting to see what happens. At the opportune moment he may take the bullet for the party.
Just a thought.

You are sounding an awful lot like the Labor party voters who complained that there was too much focus on Gillard personally and not enough on the "issues".

 

[trainspotter]

You are sounding an awful lot like the Labor party voters who complained that there was too much focus on Gillard personally and not enough on the "issues".

ZACKERY my point !!!!!!!!!!! The media needs to focus on the issues and not on the personality traits.

 

[trainspotter]

And now they go after his daughter

PRIME Minister Tony Abbott is strongly defending the career of one of his daughters after questions were raised over whether she had benefited from favours to her father by a friend.
Frances Abbott in 2011 won a $60,000 scholarship to the Whitehouse Institute of Design whose chairman Les Taylor is a longtime friend and supporter of Mr Abbott.
She graduated in 2013 with a bachelor degree, The Guardian reported today.
Frances, 22, is now working for Whitehouse in Melbourne as a teacher’s aide and aims to study for her masters degree later this year.
There is no evidence she did not earn her degree on merit or that she was not entitled to her current job. And Mr Abbott’s office said, in a statement to news.com.au, that Frances won the scholarship “based on her application and art portfolio”.

http://www.news.com.au/national/pri...r-frances-abbott/story-fncynjr2-1226925826517

But hey ... let's print this anyhow eh !!

 

[sptrawler]

ZACKERY my point !!!!!!!!!!! The media needs to focus on the issues and not on the personality traits.

Absolutely, news has been turned into a cross between a chat show a cheap monthly magazine and sensible political debate is a non event. Just the media trying to whip up public hysteria to boost numbers.

It really does need accurate debate, to tell if the coalition is overstating the problem, or the problem is indeed real.

 

[Calliope]

ZACKERY my point !!!!!!!!!!! The media needs to focus on the issues and not on the personality traits.

But TS, what if it turns out the wanker is a winker?

 

[sptrawler]

You are sounding an awful lot like the Labor party voters who complained that there was too much focus on Gillard personally and not enough on the "issues".

Again that is true, if there had been responsible reporting, the supposed issues facing us now would be common knowledge. Rather than having it shoved in everyones face, like the coalition is doing.
If the media was more focused on real issues, rather than trying to make news into a daily soap opera, the public would be much better informed.

I suppose the subtle difference, between the Gillard situation and what I am talking about with Abbott. During Labor's term it was more about giving the bullet rather than taking it.lol

 

[Knobby22]

Front page of the Age.

The poorest families pay most in budget.

The poorest 20 per cent of Australian families will pay $1.1 billion more into government coffers than the richest households as a result of the budget, highlighting the huge inequity in the government's four-year blueprint for fiscal repair.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-polit...st-families-20140521-38p4i.html#ixzz32PRNi6gg

 

[SirRumpole]

Abbott doesn't look as though he is enjoying the P.M's job, he never has, so it will be interesting to see what happens. At the opportune moment he may take the bullet for the party.
Just a thought.

The opportune time may be 18th September 2014. He would have been PM for a year and would be entitled to the famed gold pass and associated benefits.

 

[sptrawler]

Front page of the Age.

The poorest families pay most in budget.

The poorest 20 per cent of Australian families will pay $1.1 billion more into government coffers than the richest households as a result of the budget, highlighting the huge inequity in the government's four-year blueprint for fiscal repair.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-polit...st-families-20140521-38p4i.html#ixzz32PRNi6gg

That is a perfect example Knobby.
The poorest 20% to pay $1.1billion more to the government

The poorest 20% in all probability pay nothing to the government. What it is probably happening, is the welfare cuts will reduce the handouts by $1.1billion.
But that doesn't bring on the hysteria as much, better to let poor people think, they are going to have to pay more than a rich person pays in tax.

 

[trainspotter]

Front page of the Age.

The poorest families pay most in budget.

The poorest 20 per cent of Australian families will pay $1.1 billion more into government coffers than the richest households as a result of the budget, highlighting the huge inequity in the government's four-year blueprint for fiscal repair.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-polit...st-families-20140521-38p4i.html#ixzz32PRNi6gg

Let's get some perspective shall we .. they are paying NOTHING back to the government at all. The government has taken away $2.9 billion over four years thanks to changes to family benefits, pensions and other payments that they will no longer receive in "entitlements".

The wealthy are paying it out of their own pockets.

 

[SirRumpole]

The wealthy are paying it out of their own pockets.

After they avoid their taxes with super, employer/taxpayer funded cars, family trusts, avoidance schemes...

 

[CanOz]

After they avoid their taxes with super, employer/taxpayer funded cars, family trusts, avoidance schemes...

Whatever, you've got to get your head out of the "government needs to re-distribute the wealth" "I'm entitled to it" crap.

Work, save, invest...like everybody else.

 

[banco]

Again that is true, if there had been responsible reporting, the supposed issues facing us now would be common knowledge. Rather than having it shoved in everyones face, like the coalition is doing.
If the media was more focused on real issues, rather than trying to make news into a daily soap opera, the public would be much better informed.

I suppose the subtle difference, between the Gillard situation and what I am talking about with Abbott. During Labor's term it was more about giving the bullet rather than taking it.lol

The public isn't interested in the fine detail (or even the not so fine detail) of "issues". They are much more interested in which of Tony Abbot's daughters looks best in a dress etc. The media is just giving them what they want.