richard.obrien's blog

"Comfortably adequate"
- Warren Truss, Acting Prime Minister Dec 9 - Dec 11, 2013.

The Who the Fuck is Warren Truss foundation is proud to have witnessed history in the making. Just 2 days ago the kid from Kingaroy rose from complete obscurity to the lofty office of acting prime minister.

With the safe return of Tony Abbott to our shores (Scott Morrison permitting), Warren has now returned to complete obscurity but he leaves behind a legacy few other acting prime ministers could, or would, hope to achieve.

Federal Environment minister Greg Hunt today approved 3 million cubic metres of dredging and dumping in the Great Barrier Reef. This follows yesterday's decision by the Abbott government to increase the quota for old growth logging by 35% (against the recommendations of scientists who advised a 10% reduction).

"By and by there was a result, and I think it may be called the finest thing in Australasian history. It was a revolution, small in size, but great politically. It was a strike for liberty, a struggle for principle, a stand against injustice and oppression."
- Mark Twain

Today is the 159th anniversary of the Eureka Rebellion, an event which directly led to the introduction of universal male suffrage in Victoria, kick-starting the growth of democracy in the Australian colonies and later the Australian Federation.

I posted this last year but as the point of Remembrance Day is not only about remembering the sacrifices made but also the reason such wars should never be repeated, I thought it was worth a rerun:

At 11am on Remembrance Day many of us paused for a minute to remember those whose lives were lost in war. While I consider this a noble and worthy gesture I think it important that we also remember the reasons these people died, especially when many of those deaths were unnecessary and avoidable.

Dear Prime Minister,

I am writing to apologise for recent comments I have made in relation to you and our newly elected government. I have in the past referred to you and your party as lazy, dishonest, arrogant, negative, opportunist, cynical, manipulative, divisive, mean-spirited, ignorant, boorish, compassionless, mysogynistic, homophobic, short sighted, reffo-bashing, borderline psychotic, anti-worker, Murdoch kowtowing, God bothering, climate change denying, socially regressive, economically illiterate, policy light weights.

Meet Chris Ellison. He's the latest billionaire mining magnate out of WA to start whinging to the media about how much he has to pay his employees.

According to Ellison, who is 88th on the BRW rich list, workers have had it too good in Australia for too long and have developed a sense of entitlement due to union regulations and first world wages.

Ellison claims his employees are working at 55% of capacity despite the fact that his company, Mineral Resources, increased in value last year by 15%.

Australia needs Tony.

Australia has forgotten its limitations, attempted to become a leader instead of a follower and has developed the dangerous notion that prosperity should benefit more than just the most privileged people in his country.

Who better to lead us back to our proper place in the world than the master of mediocrity, the Steven Bradbury of the polls, the captain of the Carlton Football club of the Australian political league, Anthony John Abbott?