Phoney Tony spent a lot of time this week demanding to know which was the real Julia Gillard. We might ask the same of him. No current political leader can chop and change like he does. Here are four Abbott quotes from yesteryear.

Tony Blair must be prosecuted, not indulged like Peter Mandelson. Both have produced self-serving memoirs for which they have been paid fortunes; Blair's, which have earned him a £4.6m advance, will appear next month.

from Crikey .....

meet a 'queue jumper'

by Y Dr Tanya Ahmed, a psychiatry registrar

Her brown eyes are blank. Her face is expressionless, her body motionless. She has no thoughts, no feelings, no purpose. She huddles in the corner of a stark hospital ward. She does not respond when her children kiss her. She hasn't drunk today, and hasn't eaten for days. If only she had the energy, she would find a way to die.

The respected economist and former Labor adviser Ross Garnaut has delivered a scathing critique of the political and economic records of the major two parties, accusing both of a failure of leadership over the past decade.

Neither party had a plan to deal with climate change and Australia's position on the issue was ''an extraordinary failure of leadership''.

Professor Garnaut said Kevin Rudd abdicated leadership by listening to advisers who rated lobbying by special interest groups and ''inchoate reactions'' from poorly informed members of the community above majority public support for action.

You have the right to remain silent, but only if you tell the police that you're remaining silent.

You have a right to a lawyer - before, during and after questioning, even though the police don't have to tell you exactly when the lawyer can be with you. If you can't afford a lawyer, one will be provided to you. Do you understand these rights as they have been read to you, which, by the way, are only good for the next two weeks?

from Crikey .....

By August 22, Joe Hockey could be in charge of the economy

Canberra correspondent Bernard Keane writes:

from Crikey .....

This is all your fault

Canberra correspondent Bernard Keane writes:

"To watch the courageous Afghan freedom fighters battle modern arsenals with simple hand-held weapons is an inspiration to those who love freedom. Their courage teaches us a great lesson-that there are things in this world worth defending. To the Afghan people, I say on behalf of all Americans that we admire your heroism, your devotion to freedom, and your relentless struggle against your oppressors." President Ronald Reagan - March 21, 1983

Climate change and water management are in a woeful state in Australia.

Australia is more vulnerable to water shortage and the ravages of climate change than any other place on earth.

All too soon we will hand over this brown land to our children: they will pass the bundle to theirs. My prediction is coming generations will jump up and down on our graves if the country is handed over in its present state.

Julia Gillard has revealed that her next Labor cabinet will include a Minister for Procrastination, with the job of ensuring that nothing controversial or unpopular actually happens over the life of the new government.

In a stinging repudiation of the frantic policy activism of her predecessor, the Prime Minister wants it known there will be no more of Kevin Rudd's great moral challenges of our time. ''People are tired of being told they should worry about the so-called big issues of climate change, or immigration, or the global financial crisis,'' Ms Gillard told an election rally of photogenic kindergarten children at Innisfail, in northern Queensland, yesterday.

Australia approved new sanctions against Iran in a bid to halt its nuclear program.

The new sanctions, announced Thursday by Foreign Minister Stephen Smith, follow similar restrictions issued by the United States, the European Union and Canada.

For the first time the sanctions include restricting business dealings with Iran's oil and gas sector.

"In adopting this package, Australia stands at the forefront of international community efforts to have Iran meet its international obligations in relation to its nuclear program, one of the most serious security challenges facing the international community," Smith said in a statement.

The United States is currently the world biggest weapons supplier - holding 30 per cent of the market - but the Obama administration has begun modifying export control regulations in hopes of enlarging the U.S. market share, according to U.S. officials.

President Barack Obama already has taken the first steps by tucking new language into the Iran sanctions bill signed in early July. His aides are now compiling the "munitions list," which regulates the sale of military items.

Many of the freedoms we enjoy here in the U.S. are quickly eroding as the nation transforms from the land of the free into the land of the enslaved, but what I'm about to share with you takes the assault on our freedoms to a whole new level. You may not be aware of this, but many Western states, including Utah, Washington and Colorado, have long outlawed individuals from collecting rainwater on their own properties because, according to officials, that rain belongs to someone else.

A U.S. audit has found that the Pentagon cannot account for over 95 percent of $9.1 billion in Iraq reconstruction money, spotlighting Iraqi complaints that there is little to show for the massive funds pumped into their cash-strapped, war-ravaged nation.

The $8.7 billion in question was Iraqi money managed by the Pentagon, not part of the $53 billion that Congress has allocated for rebuilding. It's cash that Iraq, which relies on volatile oil revenues to fuel its spending, can ill afford to lose.

Last night's episode of Q&A devoted a fair chunk of air time to the most extensive debate on climate change policy we've been treated to so far in this election. It was edifying to watch people getting agitated, raising their voices, arguing with each other.