First a check of the reptiles' tree killer edition, to make sure they're still taking Klive's kash in the klaw ...
Check. Oh and there's a funny snap of Albo with his tongue sticking out, and how long before the lizard Oz becomes a tabloid?
Yes, we're there already, and tongue snap was also top of the page in the lizard Oz digital edition, but there was another ghost from the past in the reptile revolving gate of hell ...
Why was the pond delighted to see Lord Downer out and about?
Well first of all, it allowed the pond to ignore simplistic Simon, saying nothing about his conflict of interest - how goes it with Bid, or can't you recall? - and secondly the pond was wondering how it might segue into this Crikey howler ...
Former immigration minister? Andrew Downer? The pond had expected it to be corrected by this early morn, but clearly Crikey likes to go home early ...
Still, the thrust of the yarn was a delight, because the notion of difficult women ruining things for great men reminded the pond that Lord Downer was most at home in Victorian England, or perhaps as a member of the Taliban ...
After that idle banter, it was time to check out the comments section ...
There's ancient Troy blathering on about the campaign, and they've dragged in Western Sydney University's star to compare Bill Hayden to Albanese, well done Andy, though surely comrade Bill is the obvious mark ...
Is it any wonder that the pond settled back for a traditional Tuesday with the bromancer and a jolly good groaning?
Dear sweet long absent lord, the bromancer began to sound like one of those whiners, with his talk of a bland, mediocre nothingness at the heart of Australian politics ...
Meanwhile ...
And so to a final bromancer gobbet wherein he confesses to complete metaphysical mystification ...
Ah the tanks.
You see Ray, if only you'd mentioned the tanks in your spray, you'd have had the bromancer on side ...
And so to a good solid groaning ... with the reptiles for some strange reason missing the chance to show the tongue stick again, but perhaps grinning like a village idiot will do ...
The pond had to slip that one in because there's an infallible Pope travelling, and it should arrive after the next gobbet of groaning gig goodness ...
Indeed, indeed, and in another country (paywall affected for the full yarn) ...
Sheesh, malcontents, that movie showed what a great job it was for grieving grey nomads, always wanting to be on the move, and not minding the odd pee in the bottle, and don't be surprised if you see Dame Groan hitting the road and gigging away in an Amazon warehouse between columns ...
And speaking of jobs, the infallible Pope was indeed on the case ...
The Saints! Chris Bailey! Ancient fond memories far removed from the groaning ... but there's still a gobbet of you've never had it so good to go ...
Yes, you've never had it so good and badly behaving employers certainly wouldn't be spending 500k on a secret settlement with a staffer if they weren't deeply good of heart, and very kindly and very concerned for their employees ...
And now, as the immortal Rowe is still plugging the AFR, the pond must approach cautiously via a couple of other cartoons ...
And so to Rowe keeping score ...
As usual the devil is in the detail, and that's enough this Tuesday ...
Oh dear - getting the flagship underway is a bit like the first day with a soccer team in their first year of primary. It takes several weeks just to persuade them NOT to all run after the ball when they are on the field.
ReplyDeleteLooking around recent YouTube of Sky Australia, I noticed a woman (well, on first appearances - perhaps I should have checked with Rita) - anyway, a talking head with a title, as I recall, of ‘Editorial Director’ for News Ltd. Whatever she does, there is no obvious evidence of it in the way the pack pursues, as a pack, whatever ball has been rolled onto the field.
Yesterday, of course, it was Albo and the unemployment rate. That should keep them in words for a couple more days, with multiple reviews on the weekend.
In her haste, Dame Groan has again shown how little she actually understands of the entire employment/pay/productivity nexus - the area in which she supposedly did higher-level studies, and recognised universities, and for which she was later appointed to a Productivity Commission.
Some interesting considerations include - companies being given several years of virtually free money for hero ceos to make all those investments in better technology - but, where they took up that money, it was for mergers and acquisitions with other firms, many of which had even lower productivity than they did.
Another consideration - many mid-level companies who pay well above the minimum (and have no trouble working out how much to pay) deliver profits well above the mean. Discuss.
While we are seeing more small businesses starting outside the capital cities (‘rural and regional’ is a distinction without real meaning), most need good communications, and the NBN still is not that.
Meanwhile - it is regarded as a self-evident ‘good’ that people stay with one employer, with no discussion of the range of reasons why that should be considered ‘good’.
You don't leave much needing to be said to, or about, the Groany, do you. But indeed yes, she's very able at just assuming whatever she needs to assume to support whatever 'identity politics' she's echoing today.
DeleteWell put, GB. The last observation about how long people stay with one employer demonstrates her, um, 'method'. Glance over employment statistics - ah, here is one that has increased in the time the LNP has been in national government - therefore, it must be a good thing, and hailed as such. There is a lot of useful observation from still-practising economists in the area that there are real benefits from employees being able to work with other firms, in other circumstances; some firms even encourage exchanges with other firms in their broader industry - the wine industry is famous for it.
DeleteI love the Bromancer when he's like this: "Our health system is one of the best. There is no better place to get sick than Australia. Having spent 40 years travelling the world, I assert that with no fear of contradiction." But then, you've no fear of contradiction with anything you "assert", have you Bro.
ReplyDeleteBut let's do a little bit of historiography:
"The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) began as a limited scheme in 1948, with free medicines for pensioners and a list of 139 'life-saving and disease preventing' medicines free of charge for others in the community."
https://www.pbs.gov.au/info/about-the-pbs
And who introduced it ? Joe Ben Chifley's Labor government. And what came next ?
"1976. The Australian Government establishes Medibank Private as a not-for-profit private health insurer, operated by statutory authority the Health Insurance Commission."
https://www.medibank.com.au/about/company/overview/history/
And who introduced it ? Bill Hayden in Gough Whitlam's Labor government. So that's 28 years between drinks for the introduction of "one of the best" health systems. During which time it was, until 1972, exclusively Coalition governments. And just to demonstrate what the Libs and Cuntry Party really thought of it, Fraser killed it in 1981 so that yet another Labor PM (Hawke) had to resurrect it in 1984.
Yeah, thanks heaps for our health system, Bro.
While I am unlikely to instil fear in the Bro. I will readily contradict him with two examples of national health care that come to mind straight off. One would be Singapore, which rather confounds bodies like WHO with how it provides extensive and high quality care for a low draw on GDP, the other would be Norway, where health care includes the entire range of dental care. Some citizens pay a user fee up to an annual limit of around $A400 equivalent.
ReplyDeleteOh - my family can vouch for the quality of Singaporean 'intensive care' - it truly saved the life of one of ours.
Maybe even the British NHS, Chad. Well at least until recently when the "Conservatives" have finally started to make inroads into it.
DeleteBut I'd bet that neither Singapore nor Norway have a 'Liberal Party' that's intent on destroying their health service.
Bromancer: "we've spent $300 billion on Covid and got nothing for it, certainly no new defence capability".
ReplyDeleteI don't need to point out how really stupid that statement is, do I.
Very sorry to disappoint you, Joe, but there's a great crowd of reptiles and other wingnuts out there to whom you will indeed have to point out how really stupid that statement is. Like the one who made it, for example.
DeleteAnd preferably at great length and in words of no more than one syllable.