With JOSH GIDNEY
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Only the death of the heroic ant who dies saving the children from the nasty scorpion in Honey I Shrunk The Kids made me sadder than what happened to Kevin Rudd.
This guy brought Labor out of a 12-year slump, helped Australia survive the global financial crisis, appeared on Rove and was the most popular prime minister in Australia’s history, so what does the Labor Party do? They get rid of him, of course, before he’s even finished his first term.
What happened was nothing short of a coup, a violation of democracy.
Instead of Franco, Castro, Pinochet or Lenin, we’ve got Julia Gillard.
I can already hear people saying “but Rudd was struggling in the polls, he would have lost”, well those same polls said John Howard was going to be beaten by Kim Beazley and Mark Latham, but his party, knowing he had done the job for them in the past, stuck by him, and he went on to rout both Beazley and Latham.
Labor should have done the same thing, but instead they took the same approach as the NSW State of Origin team - panic, chop and change.
Now it’s going to be like this: you wake up in the morning hearing squawking bird noises, and you think it is a flock of cockatoos or crows outside your house, eating your plants, ripping up your outdoor furniture and dive bombing the cat, but instead, it’s the TV, and the prime minister is speaking.
Doesn’t Julia remind you of that teacher you were terrified of at school? The one who hated boys and pretty girls, and who would roast you in front of the class for something that she would let her pet Marjorie two desks away get away with? Yes, the one you hoped would strike up a romance with the nerdy economics teacher and therefore improve everyone’s quality of life.
I know people are saying ‘hey, we’ve got our first female prime minister’ but really, we haven’t elected a female prime minister, rather one has been appointed, and those enjoying the girl-power factor will be quite muted if Abbott rolls her in the election.
Most female politicians remind us of why we usually elect men. Let’s see, there’s Bronwyn Bishop, who formed the basis of the title characters in the Alien movies, Kate Ellis, who appeals to us until she opens her mouth, and Pauline Hanson, who wanted to sing “I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas” at Carols by Candlelight.
Let’s hope Julia can break this mould.
With Sally Foy
While I’m fairly cynical about the motivation of politicians vying for the top job, I admit Gillard had me cheering from the sidelines.
Similarly, I cheered for Rudd when he got elected. And, over the years to my parents’ never-ending dismay, I also cheered for Howard.
I like to think I’m a complex mix of cynicism and optimism.
That is, I have enough optimism to eternally think the best of people, but am also realistic enough to know when something is just too good to be true.
In other words, I’m a wishy-washy voter whose love can be bought for a nice smile and good values.
Right now I’m in the throes of a Julia-love affair.
Love the hair, loved the curtain dress that has been endlessly bagged, I love the fact she hasn’t moved into the Lodge, that she is a woman, and that she doesn’t have fake nails.
I admit I’m a girl who loves to dress up, but I take exception to the general population’s criticism of Julia’s attire. What about Howard’s bushy eyebrows, or Rudd’s baby face? You don’t have to wear designer threads to be in Government, because if you did, more than one head would be on the chopping block.
But have things changed?
Well, yes. Julia, unlike big-Kev, has learnt to listen to the people.
I don’t think Julie is untarnished by Labor’s mistakes, but she has something that Kevin never had, she talks Aussie.
Fair or not, Kevin’s “proper” ennunciation came across as arrogant and out of touch. This was easy to overlook when we were in the throes of honeymoon bliss, but once the glory days were over we were quick to pounce.
Have things changed? Cynically I don’t think we, the general public, will ever understand the workings of a politician’s mind, but the eternal optimist in me hopes Julia proves me wrong.