Perhaps the question voters ought to be asked by Neilson, Morgan, and Newspoll should be:

“Which do you prefer, big ears or big arse?”

Or:

“Should Abbott have his ears pinned?”

Or perhaps:

“Do you think Gillard has had a bum-lift?”

Surely not questions such as whether the government you vote for should have costed policies on the table?

Or policy directions regarding the fate of asylum seekers and the dubious ‒ and potentially diplomatically disastrous ‒ proposal of “towing back the boats”.

Policies regarding the future of our education system; or the fate of Gonski; the NBN; the NDIS; of potential funding cuts.

Policy about how we maintain our 9A rated economy.

What of the future? Is the future so well-guaranteed we can sit on our comfy sofa and watch the ensuing drama whilst dipping a biscotti into our Frappacino?

On the same episode of Q and A, Tony Jones asked  of Craig Emerson, “Why are you being smashed in the polls?” This in spite of the AAA rated economy and the positive, progressive reforms which will make future Australia, an even more enviable nation.

The answer could well be this.

We want a fight. We want gossip. We crave the soap opera.

After all, Neighbours has been running for almost 30 years…

read more: http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/politics/the-standard-australian-soap-opera/

How on earth is it fair game to ask a prime minister about her sex life over an open mic? It seems to be fair because women are judged and criticised and condemned on very different grounds than men, writes Lauren Rosewarne.

In a culture where it's apparently perfectly okay to talk about our PM's "box" in polite company, it's hardly surprising that shock jock wannabes will plunder ever new pits of depravity to insult a woman.

Howard Sattler is not the first simpleton to dream up the male-plus-hairdresser-equals-homosexual equation. Sattler and conservative commentators of his ilk are hardly renowned for being abreast of issues such as diversity, sexuality and the pitfalls - and grotesque pitifulness - of stereotypes.

Of course, Sattler's comment wasn't really about Tim Mathieson at all. Sure Tim's the "First Bloke", sure his profession sets him up as very low hanging fruit for lazy radio mouths, but the attack was never about him.

Male hairdressers can in fact sleep perfectly well tonight knowing that no-one is really demanding proof of their manliness.

Au contraire.

Asking the PM about the sexuality of her partner is in fact a question about the PM's sex life. It's a question about her sexuality, about her femininity. Sattler was asking whether she - in all her unmarried, childless, atheist glory - is in fact a woman according to the meaningless definitions of womanhood proffered by the Right.

http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/4753660.html

One troubling aspect of the current debate around offensive behaviour is the apparent assumption that it is only men who engage in such behaviour.

The well informed appreciate that it is people who engage in unacceptable behaviour: both genders, from all sides of politics, all religious groups, all ethnic backgrounds & all social levels.

I deplore the offensive & insulting behaviour directed against the Prime Minister, but I also deplore the same behaviour when it is directed against men, including the subtle, but equally offensive claim that the Labor Party ‘is the party for women’.

Whilst the Prime Minister’s persistent accusation of misogynist behaviour on the part of the Leader of the Opposition might have merit in the eyes of some, there are many others who would see it as being a version of the old trick question: ‘have you stopped beating your wife yet?’

Sure, John, but it's always a question of proportions... If 99 per cent of people go and vilify the female PM and one dude vilify the opposition leader like I do, the result isn't equal... The old man is still beating his wife whether he is a philanthropist or not...

---------------------

 

 

One thing no one can dispute about the prime ministership of Julia Gillard is the impact a woman's elevation to the top job has had on political discourse.
In the three years Ms Gillard has been in the top job we have managed to plummet to ever lower depths in the way we discuss the prime minister.
When she was first sworn in Ms Gillard probably thought the worst of it would be too much focus on her hair and clothes and endless requests for interviews with herself and partner Tim Mathieson about life at The Lodge.
Such a scenario seems almost quaint now given we inhabit a landscape where people feel it is okay to appear at protests holding signs calling the Prime Minister a witch, a bitch and a liar; where radio hosts feel it is okay to mock the death of her father; and where restaurant owners feel it is okay to produce ''joke'' menus referring to her body parts.

These are public events where people are either known or are visible and can, to some extent, be held to account for their actions.
Venture into the murky world of the internet and it's an even more vicious and revolting place.
If you don't believe me check out the widely circulated speech former Labor staffer and feminist Anne Summers gave last year in which she documented the unrelenting barrage of abuse that has come Ms Gillard's way.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/uneasiness-about-a-woman-in-power-unleashes-a-sexist-maelstrom-20130614-2o82e.html#ixzz2WACGtg9a
----------------------------
And of course, the little rat Abbott always distances himself from the fracas, while standing in front of signs that he "did not read"... The MAIN reason behind ALL the attack on the Prime Minister is that she is an atheist... I know people with a fair minded disposition who think that they felt alienated when Julia revealed this so publicly.

 

 

IN all the mud being thrown this week over 'menu-gate' the restaurateur apologised to Mal Brough, Mal Brough apologised to the public. No one thought to apologise to the Prime Minister.

Of all the disgusting things that get flung at our first female Prime Minister, the idiotic Kentucky Fried Chicken joke most media outlets considered revolting enough to require redaction was relatively tame.

Sneak a peek at what the Gillard haters say on Twitter, Reddit or try (unsuccessfully) to get published on mainstream media websites and your hair might go grey.

It's not just Gillard who cops it from anonymous grubs on the internet. The internet is an equal opportunity abuser. All politicians cop it. Most journalists cop it. Anyone with any sort of profile cops it. To survive they learn to block and report.

But years of moderating online comments has shown me that the abuse reserved for Gillard is particularly personal, extreme and relentless.

The proposition Gillard gets more abuse because she is a woman drives many of her detractors to distraction. It's not possible to measure it scientifically so we can argue about it indefinitely.

But it is entirely a different proposition when mainstream broadcasters venture into the territory Perth shock jock Howard Sattler did last night. The level of disrespect, discourteousness and dickheadery required to ask the nation's Prime Minister in a live interview if her partner is gay almost defies belief.

That Gillard didn't get up and walk out is a testament to her calmness under fire. She must have wanted to, but her storming out would have made it an even bigger story than it already is.

As someone wrote on Twitter last night, it's as if there's a competition to see who can make the Prime Minister lose her s--t first.

 

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/opinion/shock-jock-howard-sattler8217s-gay-jibe-shows-disrespecting-prime-minister-julia-gillard-is-now-a-national-sport/story-fnh4jt54-1226663729361#ixzz2WAUyZLpR

 

"The proposition Gillard gets more abuse because she is a woman drives many of her detractors to distraction. It's not possible to measure it scientifically so we can argue about it indefinitely.?????"""

Gus: Hell!!! Actually, the whole thing is measurable... And discounting all Gus' barbs against our little rat, Abbott, it's no contest... It's one hundred to one against Julia, on the raw data alone... I have tried to do my bit to reverse the trend, but when the raw insults are weighted with the numbers of listeners and viewers, my efforts and those of others against Abbott — even on the twittosphere and the dumbosphere — barely rise above zero.

 

From Andrew Bolt...

----------------

The Age editor says sexist and rude menus mocking Julia Gillard are vile: 

The Age has long campaigned against sexism and does not regard it as a trivial issue. The emergence, coincidental or not, of a vile example in the form of a menu for a Liberal National Party fund-raiser - supposedly a joke that never made it to the table - is evidence of a culture of sexism in some quarters.

In fact, the menu was not produced for the LNP fundraiser at all, as the editor should know.

It was a private “joke” between the restaurant owner and his son, unlike the sexist and rude menu mocking Tony Abbott which the Age editor distributed to every Age reader this morning in retaliation for something of which Abbott is entirely innocent:

http://blogs.news.com.au/heraldsun/andrewbolt/index.php/heraldsun/comments/the_new_scandal

 

Gus: I won't dare show you the Leunig picture...  nor mention Abbott's XXXXXX... In short there is a lot of stuff against Abbott out there... One Bolt reader goes back to 2006 to show how the "left" has been dishing crap... 

But the real punch comes when Bolt mentions Julia's attack on the front bench of the opposition back in 2006...

Julia Gillard to Tony Abbott and Joe Hockey, October 10, 2006: 

YELL as much as you like, mate, because you are not worrying me ... the ugly face of the Howard government is on display - the misogynist and the fat man.

 

Gus: Wow!... The fat man has gone on a twiggy-like diet in recent months and the misogynist is still a misogynist... Meanwhile I am impressed that Bolt believes the restaurant owner's private joke theory... I can see some pigs flying pass my window...

 

 

 

Gus: Meanwhile, Janet Albrechtsen is letting us know that the sacking of Howard Sattler has gone too far, though she thinks he was out of line.... But then she let us know that Julia Gillard was too soft, lying and did not believe in anything — or crap to that effect and that she let women down...

In fact Julia has been steady as she goes, with more impact on policies than any other Prime Minister since Curtin. But the way Julia Gillard does it is very low key for herself and decisive on the political front, from Gonski to NDIS and the carbon pricing... There is still work to do on some issues but wait for Tony who pledges that he will "turn the boats around"... For this we should make him captain of the ship and see how he handles the task of sinking boats that "do not turn around"...

 

 

 

Hi Gus.

You might be right, but it's also important to realise that it just isn't about Julia.

The sledging & offensive behaviour has been a feature of our culture since the Rum Corps.

I'm not saying it's right, but I do question Julia's manipulation of the issue at times.

Cheers,

John.

Compared to Tony's manipulation of stuff, Julia is a saint...

On her most celebrated attack on Abbott, I suspect Julia Gillard was correct and that Abbott is a closet misogynist, like many men I have met... That is to say they "love women" as long as they are a few paces behind men, in regard to power and influence. I hope I have never been so.

News Limited columnist Piers Akerman has breathed new life into outrage over Prime Minister Julia Gillard being forced to defend the sexuality her partner, Tim Mathieson, by suggesting rumours about Mr Mathieson had been doing the rounds of the Canberra press gallery since 2010.
‘‘A lot of people in the Canberra gallery have been saying the same thing [as Perth radio host Howard Sattler],’’ Mr Akerman said on the ABC Insiders program to the evident shock of co-panelists.
Insiders host Barrie Cassidy immediately denounced Mr Akerman’s comment, saying: ‘‘You’ve just done precisely what Howard Sattler did and passed on rumours and that’s just as pathetic, quite frankly.’’
Mr Akerman initially denied passing on baseless rumours. ‘‘I passed on the same question that people said initially when she moved in. And nobody took it any further and that’s why I’m saying [Sattler] was wrong Barrie,’’ he said.

Later, Mr Akerman delivered an apology to Ms Gillard and Mr Mathieson, who he described as a ‘‘blokey bloke’’. ‘‘If the Prime Minister is watching, as she usually does, I hope she hasn’t taken any offence at anything I’ve said this morning,’’ Mr Akerman said.
Twitter immediately lit up with calls for Mr Akerman’s suspension from the show. The ABC did not return calls.
Perth radio station 6PR, owned by Fairfax Media, sacked Mr Sattler on Friday less than 24 hours after he asked the Prime Minister to comment on rumours that Mr Mathieson, a hairdresser by profession, was gay.
In a statement, 6PR said the line of questioning was ‘‘disrespectful’’ and ‘‘entirely inappropriate’’.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/news-limited-columnist-ignites-sexuality-outrage-20130616-2obvp.html#ixzz2WNHY6UUu
An apology?... Piers Akerman should resign from his commentariatorationing — or whatever it is — position at the ABC... That would show a REAL apology... anything else is like saying a hail Mary to be absolved for murder...

Therese Rein says a comment by Shadow Treasurer Joe Hockey that he "should have drowned" Kevin Rudd when he walked the Kokoda Track with him in 2006 is not in keeping with the spirit of the undertaking.
Mr Hockey reportedly made the comment at a Liberal party rally in Melbourne, telling the crowd at Flemington Showgrounds that: "I've seen all the versions of Kevin - Kokoda Kevin, and I apologise to the Australian people, I should have drowned him when I had a chance in the mountains."

Amid laughter and applause, he continued: "In fact I did actually apologise to Julia Gillard on Wednesday before question time, and she said 'Yes you should reflect on that'."

Ms Rein, who returned to Brisbane overnight after a business trip to London, said: "I've walked the Kokoda Track and the Kokoda Track is about mateship and courage and endurance. That doesn't seem to hang together very well with those comments."

Ms Rein was attending a service to mark the 125th anniversary of St John the Baptist Anglican Church in Bulimba, in the Prime Minister's Griffith electorate.

Read more: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/pms-wife-calls-out-hockey-over-kokoda-track-quip-20130630-2p4wn.html#ixzz2Xg7ArAo5

Scott Morrison is poised to lose another minister from his election team, with Queensland frontbencher Steve Ciobo widely expected to quit federal politics.

Key points:

• Steve Ciobo resigned as Malcolm Turnbull's trade minister during the Liberal leadership spill
• The Minister for Defence Industry would become the fourth minister to quit ahead of the election
• His departure fuels speculation Peter Dutton could try to jump into Mr Ciobo's safe Liberal seat

Mr Ciobo, the Minister for Defence Industry, has repeatedly refused to declare to the ABC whether he intends to stand in the May election.

It is understood Mr Ciobo has recently moved into a unit along with his family, shifting from a home that has undergone two years' renovation.

His Liberal colleagues believe he plans to announce his retirement very soon, with a view to taking a job overseas.

But Mr Ciobo, who was trade minister under former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, has tweeted he would be travelling to Jakarta next week accompanying his successor, Simon Birmingham, for the signing of the Indonesia-Australia free trade agreement. 

He would become the fourth minister to call an end to their time in Federal Parliament in recent months, following Kelly O'Dwyer, Michael Keenan and Nigel Scullion.

 

Read more:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-01/steve-ciobo-set-to-retire-in-anot...

 

 

Read from top.

 

What do these guys know that we don't? And also to mention Julie Bishop, the Liberal (CONservative) Party of whom, was brilliantly lampooned by Sammy J.: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4H2-xyqYX4

BREAKING NEWS Sources have told the ABC that Defence Minister Christopher Pyne will announce his retirement from federal politics tomorrow

 

WOW!