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Blah-Blah Bar / Re: Shawny’s concerns about Victorian and Australian Governments
Last post by DJC -Without wanting to blow sunshine up your dot, David...
Your post is an astute and exemplary example of critical thinking, objectivity and cold hard facts with an intelligent conclusion. Great read old son. A lot better than any mainstream journalistic offering I've read.
Thanks Shane but you're a much easier marker than my year 12 politics teacher!
I worked in the system for a long time and with Labor, Liberal and Nationals Ministers. Regardless of party or ideological leanings, some were good, some were ordinary and some were awful, but only one ever had a whiff of corruption about him. He's still in Parliament and is a shadow minister.
Thinking back about those days reminded me of a story Hugh Delahunty told me. Hugh was the National Party MP for Wimmera and Lowan for about 15 years from the turn of last century and he was a good bloke ... for an Essendon footballer. Hugh's sister is Mary Delahunty aka "Scary Mary", former ALP Minister for the Arts, Planning, Education and Women's Affairs. She was elected at the same time as Hugh but only lasted until 2006. I dealt with her in her capacity as Minister for the Arts and she was very scary ... and borderline incompetent. Hugh and Mary's father was a farmer at Murtoa, a staunch National Party member, and not all that impressed with his daughter's political views. Mary was back in Murtoa for a visit and went to the pub for dinner. Hugh thought he'd stir their father and told him that the boys in the pub were giving Mary a hard time over her politics. Their father said, "Right Hugh, were going down to the pub to sort these bastards out!" Hugh had to fess up but I think that the story is a good example of how most Australians are able to compartmentalise politics and put it to one side, particularly for family.
Another example is Albo and Dutton who remain great mates despite the barbs they cast at each other in political life.
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Blah-Blah Bar / Re: Shawny’s concerns about Victorian and Australian Governments
Last post by Baggers -
Nice try at deflecting.
How people accept this absolute bloody disgrace corrupt bunch of criminals that just happens to be in charge of running our state - running it into the ground astounds me.
And my comparsion to US politics and the obsession with everything that happens on the other side of the world is very relevant and if comparing that to the corrupt government we have here just happens to trigger you well so be it.
Im fking triggered at the corrupt spending of 15 BILLION dollars of OUR money.
15 billion in case you didnt know is 15 thousand MILLION and yet not one comment about your thoughts on this situation.
i wonder why that is ?😏
I'm still waiting for you to have a crack at Chris Minns for the scumbag who kinghit Peter Dean being dealt with under the Young Offenders Act
If you're triggered by headlines, you probably should delve a little deeper, and I don't mean listening to influencer podcasts.
First of all the Allan Government doesn't "just happen to be in charge", they were democratically elected and, when you consider the rabble that's supposed to be the opposition, it's easy to see why. The opposition at national level is worse, if anything, and Malcolm Turnbull's description of their incoming leader as the “best qualified idiot” is spot on. It's funny how politicians often make more sense after they retire.
Secondly, the allegations, and that's all they are at this stage, were set out in a draft report by barrister Geoffrey Watson SC. The draft report detailed the results of an investigation into CFMEU criminality and corruption commissioned by CFMEU administrator Mark Irving KC. As I'm sure you know, Irving was appointed by the Commonwealth Government to clean up the CFMEU. The report isn't a public document and is the property of the CFMEU. When Irving read the draft, he directed Watson to delete two sections alleging that the Allan government knew of the CFMEU aggression and corruption, that Watson estimated cost Victorian taxpayers $15 billion, because he (Irving) was “not satisfied that they were well-founded or properly tested”. That's the opinion of a King's Council and one of the most senior and respected industrial relations lawyers in the country, not a half-baked politician or shock jock.
Watson is p1ssed off that his allegations have been discarded but he recently said the government “would be mad to get rid of Mark Irving" and “I’ve worked for Irving for two years now, and I’ve never met a more honest or decent man … I can tell you, everything he did was opposed to corruption and was in favour of fixing the CFMEU.”
I think that scuttles any suggestion that Irving's rejection of the $15 billion corruption allegations was politically motivated or in any way intended to protect politicians or CFMEU operatives.
It's possible that the CFMEU did cost Victorian taxpayers $15 billion, or perhaps even $30 billion. Heads should roll if the CFMEU cost Victorian taxpayers any funds above and beyond legitimate construction costs, and I don't just mean Allan and the relevant Ministers. There's a raft of people - bureaucrats, police, regulators, auditors, union officials, opposition leader, shadow ministers, etc - who should be taking action at the slightest whiff of misuse of public funds and union corruption.
For the record, I don't think much of our democratically elected State Government; they're tired, short on talent, running out of ideas and money and desperately need a spell in opposition. Sadly for Victoria and Victorians, the alternative government is no better after such a promising start by John Pesutto. While I admire him for taking on the fascists, he wasn't very smart in the way that he went about it.
Without wanting to blow sunshine up your dot, David...
Your post is an astute and exemplary example of critical thinking, objectivity and cold hard facts with an intelligent conclusion. Great read old son. A lot better than any mainstream journalistic offering I've read.
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Blah-Blah Bar / Re: Trumpled (Alternative Leading)
Last post by LP -Just after the travellers and business types have left the restaurant will be a ghost town, you can sit there alone at 9:30am and all of a sudden out of the kitchen will roll tray after tray full of bacon, scrambled eggs, tomatoes and breakfast sausages, jugs of watered down orange and melon juice, stacks of white bread and trays of croissants piled high. The staff will man the doors as the first RVs roll into the car park, it's like Boxing Day sale stampede where every shopper is 30 stone, but it is the 10am all you can eat breakfast buffet.
The staff had given me a polite warning of the pending doom, is was just a simple question not wanting to be rude, "Do you really want to sit here?" I ignored it, I should have taken the hint, now I know why!
Never again!
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Blah-Blah Bar / Re: Trumpled (Alternative Leading)
Last post by LP -Fume filled traffic jam intersections and Sizzler's everywhere!
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Blah-Blah Bar / Re: Shawny’s concerns about Victorian and Australian Governments
Last post by LP -For what it's worth regarding Victoria, things aren't so rosy in other Australian states either, claiming one is better is more an issue of cherry-picking than identifying better ways.
Crime is rife in WA, but just like the NT no media entity on the east coast gives a stuff to report it, and they don't have Bec Judd on social media as the town crier.
Sindney's organised crime makes the CFMEU in Vic look like amateurs, and it extends into parliament house and the police force.
Most in Qld are too drug f@3k3d to know what the f@ck is going on!
SA thinks Elon Musk is a good solid business partner, and that carbon emissions don't apply to all the green tech they import.
Tassie is the fraud capital of the country, half the multi-million dollar well to do homes overlooking Salamanca are occupied by NDIS welfare recipients!
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Robert Heatley Stand / Re: Jim Park Award 2026
Last post by rocky -68
Robert Heatley Stand / Re: Jim Park Award 2026
Last post by LP -69
Robert Heatley Stand / Re: Jim Park Award 2026
Last post by DJC -I'm happy to keep going as is but, if a change is needed, how about adopting the John Nicholls Medal voting system or similar. That is:
A maximum of 20 votes per game.
The votes awarded are shared among a maximum of eight players.
Voters don't have to award all of their votes.
The maximum votes any one player may receive is 10.
That system would put the kybosh on your preference to award votes to lots of players Crash but perhaps we could go to voting for a maximum of 10 players.
The extremes would be one or two players with 10 votes, 10 players with two votes each, one player with one vote, or no votes at all for a shocking loss.
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Blah-Blah Bar / Re: Shawny’s concerns about Victorian and Australian Governments
Last post by DJC -
Why do you insist on deflecting criticism of the senile narcissist in the White House with ill-considered complaints about Australian governments?
We have a thread devoted to the lunacy of the convicted felon and I started this thread to give you a platform to air what you believe are problems with our State and Commonwealth governments.
If you want to defend the indefensible, post in the Taco thread. If you want to bleat about Australian politicians, do it here.
Nice try at deflecting.
How people accept this absolute bloody disgrace corrupt bunch of criminals that just happens to be in charge of running our state - running it into the ground astounds me.
And my comparsion to US politics and the obsession with everything that happens on the other side of the world is very relevant and if comparing that to the corrupt government we have here just happens to trigger you well so be it.
Im fking triggered at the corrupt spending of 15 BILLION dollars of OUR money.
15 billion in case you didnt know is 15 thousand MILLION and yet not one comment about your thoughts on this situation.
i wonder why that is ?😏
I'm still waiting for you to have a crack at Chris Minns for the scumbag who kinghit Peter Dean being dealt with under the Young Offenders Act
If you're triggered by headlines, you probably should delve a little deeper, and I don't mean listening to influencer podcasts.
First of all the Allan Government doesn't "just happen to be in charge", they were democratically elected and, when you consider the rabble that's supposed to be the opposition, it's easy to see why. The opposition at national level is worse, if anything, and Malcolm Turnbull's description of their incoming leader as the “best qualified idiot” is spot on. It's funny how politicians often make more sense after they retire.
Secondly, the allegations, and that's all they are at this stage, were set out in a draft report by barrister Geoffrey Watson SC. The draft report detailed the results of an investigation into CFMEU criminality and corruption commissioned by CFMEU administrator Mark Irving KC. As I'm sure you know, Irving was appointed by the Commonwealth Government to clean up the CFMEU. The report isn't a public document and is the property of the CFMEU. When Irving read the draft, he directed Watson to delete two sections alleging that the Allan government knew of the CFMEU aggression and corruption, that Watson estimated cost Victorian taxpayers $15 billion, because he (Irving) was “not satisfied that they were well-founded or properly tested”. That's the opinion of a King's Council and one of the most senior and respected industrial relations lawyers in the country, not a half-baked politician or shock jock.
Watson is p1ssed off that his allegations have been discarded but he recently said the government “would be mad to get rid of Mark Irving" and “I’ve worked for Irving for two years now, and I’ve never met a more honest or decent man … I can tell you, everything he did was opposed to corruption and was in favour of fixing the CFMEU.”
I think that scuttles any suggestion that Irving's rejection of the $15 billion corruption allegations was politically motivated or in any way intended to protect politicians or CFMEU operatives.
It's possible that the CFMEU did cost Victorian taxpayers $15 billion, or perhaps even $30 billion. Heads should roll if the CFMEU cost Victorian taxpayers any funds above and beyond legitimate construction costs, and I don't just mean Allan and the relevant Ministers. There's a raft of people - bureaucrats, police, regulators, auditors, union officials, opposition leader, shadow ministers, etc - who should be taking action at the slightest whiff of misuse of public funds and union corruption.
For the record, I don't think much of our democratically elected State Government; they're tired, short on talent, running out of ideas and money and desperately need a spell in opposition. Sadly for Victoria and Victorians, the alternative government is no better after such a promising start by John Pesutto. While I admire him for taking on the fascists, he wasn't very smart in the way that he went about it.