Monday, February 20, 2012

Turnbull's Little Friend

MANY Australians of a conservative bent decided some time ago that Malcolm Turnbull was unfit to lead the Liberal Party, quite rightly concluding a man thought by some to be Labor's best leader-in-waiting would do his party a favour by crossing the floor and staying there. From time to time, one still hears kind words for Turnbull's potential -- usually, it must be noted, from people who would not vote Liberal in a pink fit, even if Karl Marx were to be re-animated and installed beside the dispatch box.

That is why the video below should be compulsory viewing. It's not that Turnbull says anything particularly stupid, just that he is evidently prepared to squander a greasy afternoon shooting the breeze with Andrew Jaspan, the former Phage editor who made the paper what it is today. Jaspan, who now heads The Conversation is "a very distinguished journalist and editor" and "at the cutting edge of something really big", which is an interesting way to describe $6 million worth of suckling at the public teat.

Anyway, if you have a spare few minutes and a strong stomach click the link and observe a refutation of the axiom that two negatives make a positive.


Let us hope Turnbull did not take his interlocutor too seriously. He would not want to waste another day filling sandbags at Luna Park.

Hang on, it's already too late! According to the Jaspan-era Age, the amusement park was washed away some time ago.

17 comments:

  1. The Old and Unimproved DaveFebruary 20, 2012 at 10:00 AM

    What was it they said about the Wayne's World video ?

    "You'll laugh! You'll cry! You'll hurl!"

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  2. The member for Goldman Sachs is an insurance policy for the same elitists who puppeteer the ALP. Count on Turncoat to come out swinging... against his own leader... until someone more amenable to the no-choice political system takes over from Tony Abbott who is clearly a real man of principle.

    Turncoat is another pseudo-liberal mole like Hewson before him.

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    1. Spot on Tiger. The erstwhile Member for Goldman Sachs is the insurance policy for the real political masters - the global power elite - or as the Labor party, when it supported a national central bank instead of a privatised one - used to call it 'the money power'.

      Turnbull will turn the sword on Abbott at the first opportunity. Sadly, with poor old incompetent Joe as his Treasurer, that opportunity may be sooner than we all think.

      There is no escape bar revolution.

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    2. Thank you people. I was starting to wonder if I was the only one who saw it.

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  3. "at the cutting edge of something really big": presumably a reference to adult circumcision or alternatively just a very lazy and clumsy phrase from a self-absorbed and humourless person!

    Consuela Potez

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  4. It is unfortunate that Turncoat didn't cross the floor with Slipper. The Labor voters love Turncoat, they would elect him as their leader had he gone across.

    Flying Tiger is correct, Turncoat bends his knee to the same masters who control the Labor and Greenie slaves.

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  5. He suffers from George Clooney'ism: a pretentious air of concern based on a shallow understanding of the issues.

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  6. I have it. How about a complete luvvie coalition Govt with Malcolm and Kevni and Julia. They could ditch the spending on the rural and inner-city "independents" and spend the money on having a series of love-ins with Kate and her pals. Fairfax and the ABC would have their most forbidden wet dreams come to fruition. And then I woke from my nightmare!

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  7. Jaspan ex "The Age": - a "trust and quality content" warrior or a legend in his own pickle jar?

    It's not a multiple choice question.

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  8. I think it would be best for the Liberals if a Conservative Independant ran against him, and preferenced Labour - purely to get rid of him. The Liberals would be FAR better off losing one seat as the cost of getting rid of this self-obsessed rat.

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  9. The problem Turnbull has is the demographics in his electorate. Third is the uber wealthy eastern suburbs of Vaucluse, Dover Heights, Rose Bay, Double Bay where he has to appeal to real Liberals; one third is the uber gay Paddington and Kings Cross areas; and finally there is the tree hugging students and middle class of the beaches and Centennial Park area. While I have no time for him personally I can understand his predicament, ie he has to appeal to all, while not alienating the many. Having said that he knows he can ignore the true wishes of the Vaucluse et al areas knowing they will vote Liberal anyway.

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    1. Elizabeth (Lizzie) B.February 20, 2012 at 3:46 PM

      He'd appeal to a great many more in this electorate, including me, if he'd pedal back on his CO2 fantasy tale. Even Goldman Sachs must be running cold on this warmenista beat-up and want to write it off by now.

      He's actually quite a beloved local institution and I still have a lot of time for him, but I just can't hack the CO2 stuff. I fit more into category one, but category two is also friendship and action central for me, heterosexual though I most certainly am. The green swill that is around is mostly light green not watermelon. Property prices and rents too high for the watermelons.

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  10. I don't know how Turnbull got this gig, but I suspect that he soon thought 'how did I get into this' as the 'interview' (more like an advertisement) progressed. At the end, he struggled to get a word in. So I do not think less of him. I question too whether Liberal MPs voted him out because people hostile to the Liberals promoted Turnbull as an ALP leader. Those hostile people are indulging in humbug, designed to make trouble for the Liberals. To describe Turnbull as a puppet of the 'elite' or of 'global power' is silly. He has a fluent and mellifluous voice, and is thus a great media performer, and, more importantly, speaks sense (as in his recent talk of how Australia should position itself vis a vis China and the USA is just one example). He has great appeal to the young, and, as leader, would be better placed to deal with Rudd, and to offset the appeal of the Greens, who must lose Senate seats if a Coalition government could do anything worthwhile. I short, those of us who really want an effective (perhaps any kind of) Coalition government should hope that he stays with the Liberals, and be willing to accept that he could well be reinstated as leader if Abbott fails to deal with Rudd.

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    1. I well recall a strange lack of Opposition when old Mal was leader.

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    2. Deal with Rudd? Did you really say that Rafiki??? When old Turncoat was Lib leader, the Libs best result was 48% 2PP, but that was a rogue poll. Most of the time it was less, usually much less, than 46%. He was also well behind as preferred PM too. So the idea that he's that well equipped to deal with Rudd has no real basis. In contrast the decline in Krudd's standing came after Abbott took over and started actively opposing Krudd's policies (if you can dignify them with that term). Andrew L is right, Turncoat didn't really oppose Krudd's policies as such, merely quibble here and there whilst trying to find a personal angle to argue with. If you mean a Ruddlike ego, you may be onto something, but Turnbull never did gel with the bulk of the public, and don't let the fact that ALP supporters would love him back at the helm fool you about that. Yes he's clever, but he thinks he's even smarter than he really is, and that's a lot of the problem.

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  11. rafiki,

    The thought of Turnbull as leader of the Liberal Party is a real turn-off, mellifluous voice notwithstanding. I will not vote for any candidate who promotes the AGW agenda.

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  12. I curse the closet totalitarian whenever i change a light bulb!

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