TAKE NOTE of this date. 10 April 2013.

In my opinion that is the date the Coalition’s campaign started to crumble around them.

The much hyped release of their NBN alternative could hardly have gone worse. Tony Abbott and Malcolm Turnbull – or as Tony likes to call him, Mr Broadband – were clearly out of their depth at the awkward policy announcement of their “faster, cheaper and more affordable” broadband plan.

It was nothing short of cringe-worthy.

The content of the plan was thoroughly panned across the board and social media had a field day. Within hours, the tag #fraudband had been adopted on Twitter and memes decrying its lack of vision were springing up by the minute. Experts were quick to reject the idea that we shouldn’t take fibre to the home (FTTH) but rather to the node (FTTN) and then use the existing copper network, yesterday’s technology, to reach the home.

It will deliver much slower speeds than Labor’s plan and quickly become redundant as technology and demand outpaces its roll out. An outcome that clearly isn’t satisfactory for Australia’s data and technology hungry consumers.

Not the best of starts when trying to address one of their greatest weaknesses — credible costed policies.

http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/politics/tony-abbotts-shaky-campaign/

Eckersley: You recently declared that Tony Abbott is a dangerous politician, perhaps one of the most dangerous in Australia’s history. What did you mean by that?

Fraser: [He’s] unpredictable. He says what jumps into his mind. Let me give an example. When farmers were complaining about miners searching for coal or for gas on farms, he spoke almost as though he did not understand that under British law, Australian law, the Crown owns the minerals and the wealth under the ground and if a mining company can get a right to mine or investigate over your farm then that has always been in a sense too bad for the farmer.

You can try and oppose it but that is what the law has always said. Now Tony, in encouraging the farmers, really spoke as though he was quite unaware of that current and historic position. But it was expedient at the time to get the support of the farmers. It might be a bit harsh but I think in a month’s time he will have forgotten he said that.

Eckersley: Is the unpredictability the main reason you called him dangerous?

Fraser: The unpredictability.

Eckersley: Any other reasons?

Fraser: I think the whole party is very much on the extreme right. I happen to believe that the Minchin/Abbott duo to get rid of Malcolm Turnbull – who had actually won a couple of party room votes, even though narrowly – but then they said we’re not going to work with you anyway, we’ll walk out.

The minority was saying we won’t accept the majority and the majority just accepted it. It was an extraordinary occurrence and I believe that rather than being on the emissions trading scheme, it was because Malcolm was showing some significant signs of being a liberal and they didn’t want a liberal in charge of the Liberal party, they wanted a conservative in charge of the Liberal party.

http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/politics/malcolm-fraser-tony-abbott-a-dangerous-politician/

Mr Walker and Mr Wheeler.

TO LOOK AT Tony Abbott these days, you wouldn’t think butter would melt in his mouth.

He is a quietly spoken, baby kissing man for all seasons.

The angry, feral, dummy spitting mania is gone to be dramatically and bizarrely replaced by “Mr Nice Guy”.

Who would’ve thought?

Abbott has had many metamorphoses over the past three years –from truck driver, to fireman, to athlete, to snake oil salesman and many more – all the while frothing at the mouth and hysterically trying to bring the minority Government.

But this transformation into “Nice Tony” is his most dramatic of all.

Don’t be fooled.

This is a man whose natural tendency is to punch a wall rather than accept the status quo. A man who will never accept being beaten at anything by anyone — especially not by a woman.

http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/politics/mr-walker-and-mr-wheeler/

Most of the time, it's not butter that melts... or if it is, it's rancid butter that melts in Tony's mouth... but on most occasion it's s....