On Sun, 9 Mar 2008 00:27:17 -0800 (PST), Sir John Howard
<pmjwhowardj@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>Terry ****wit wrote:
>> On Sat, 8 Mar 2008 05:27:52 -0800 (PST), Sir John Howard
>> <pmjwhowardj@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>>
>> >Terry the mad Hungarian ****wit wrote:
>> >> On Sat, 8 Mar 2008 03:07:00 -0800 (PST), Sir John Howard
>> >> <pmjwhowardj@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>> >>
>> >> >Terry ****wit wrote:
>> >> >> On Fri, 7 Mar 2008 17:31:40 -0800 (PST), Sir John Howard
>> >> >> <pmjwhowardj@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>> >> >>
>> >> >> >Green Lantern wrote:
>> >> >> >> "Sir John Howard" <pmjwhowardj@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
>> >> >> >>
news:9229c389-7484-49f1-9b26-9afd394bc24b@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> >> >> >> > Friday goes the same way as PM: it's cut out
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> >
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/friday-goes-the-same-way-as-pm-its-cut-out/2008/03/07/1204780065485.html
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> > LABOR'S lofty ambitions for parliamentary reform have
collapsed,
>> >> >> >> > victim of an old-style political blame game over an outbreak
of rowdy
>> >> >> >> > behaviour in the House of Representatives last month.
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> > In a major backdown, the Federal Government yesterday
dropped its plan
>> >> >> >> > to have Parliament sit for an extra day a week to give
backbenchers
>> >> >> >> > from all sides of politics more time to raise local issues
and
>> >> >> >> > introduce private members' bills.
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> > The Government's leader of the house, Anthony Albanese, said
he had
>> >> >> >> > written to the Opposition Leader, Brendan Nelson, cancelling
the plan
>> >> >> >> > because of deliberate disruption of the first Friday sitting
last
>> >> >> >> > month by Coalition MPs.
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> > Coalition MPs brought a cardboard cut-out of Kevin Rudd and
defied
>> >> >> >> > repeated warnings from the Speaker to highlight their
concerns that
>> >> >> >> > the Prime Minister would not attend Parliament on Fridays to
answer
>> >> >> >> > questions.
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> > The backdown came as the Opposition revealed it had been
about to
>> >> >> >> > start a High Court challenge to the procedures the
Government had
>> >> >> >> > introduced for the Friday sittings.
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> > Legal advice to the Opposition from Tom Hughes, QC, says the
>> >> >> >> > Government's move to defer quorum calls during the Friday
sittings
>> >> >> >> > breached the constitution and meant the sittings would have
been
>> >> >> >> > legally invalid. But Mr Albanese said the Government would
not allow
>> >> >> >> > the Opposition to bring the Parliament into disrepute with
its
>> >> >> >> > disruptive behaviour.
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> > He said the antics by Opposition MPs would have been
unacceptable in
>> >> >> >> > his son's year 2 classroom and the Government would go back
to a four-
>> >> >> >> > day sitting week with less time for private members'
business.
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> > In his letter to Dr Nelson, he accuses the Opposition Leader
of
>> >> >> >> > reneging on a personal assurance given during the first
Friday sitting
>> >> >> >> > that Coalition MPs would not engage in disruptive behaviour.
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> > "It is unclear to me whether that breach of faith was
unprincipled or
>> >> >> >> > whether you were simply unable to control your own political
party,"
>> >> >> >> > Mr Albanese said in the letter.
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> > But the manager of Opposition business in the house, Joe
Hockey, said
>> >> >> >> > the decision was a humiliating backdown for the Rudd
Government.
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> > "It illustrates that they would rather cancel a sitting day
than have
>> >> >> >> > proper scrutiny," he said.
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> > Labor's move to drop the Friday sittings suggests it may
have been
>> >> >> >> > concerned that the Opposition's accusations that Kevin Rudd
was a part-
>> >> >> >> > time parliamentarian had the potential to damage the
Government
>> >> >> >> > politically over time.
>> >> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> > It may also reflect the fact that some of its own MPs were
less than
>> >> >> >> > enthusiastic about the extra day of sittings.
>> >> >> >>
>> >> >> >> This is what happens, Sir John, when a bureaucrat becomes PM.
He tries to
>> >> >> >> run Parliament like a bureaucracy. KRudd is used to
bludgeoning the public
>> >> >> >> service because they work for the Govt. The Opposition,
however, doesn't
>> >> >> >> work for the Govt. KRudd therefore got a response that he
didn't anticipate,
>> >> >> >> although anyone with enough real-world experience could have
done so.
>> >> >> >
>> >> >> >That's right, Sir Green. Politicians are supposed to work for
us.
>> >> >> >Meanwhile, KRudd appears to be working for the Papua niggers.
>> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> The idea of Friday sittings was to give backbenchers more
experience. Maybe
>> >> >> >> this idea had merit, maybe not. The only way it could have
worked was to
>> >> >> >> have bipartisan sup****t. KRudd didn't seek this. Oddly enough
KRudd makes
>> >> >> >> decisions when he should consult others and forms committees
and gabfests
>> >> >> >> when he should be making decisions. Go figure.
>> >> >> >
>> >> >> >Yes, I'd noticed that too. Its the sign of a complete ****wit.
>> >> >> >
>> >> >> >> Albanese said the idea could be revisited at some stage. I
think it will be
>> >> >> >> revisited, but only as a cynical exercise in political
expediency - perhaps
>> >> >> >> not too different from the first time around.
>> >> >> >
>> >> >> >No, that's just a codeword for buried under the rug never to be
>> >> >> >mentioned again.
>> >> >>
>> >> >> Oh, shut up, you silly OverSeas person.
>> >> >
>> >> >Some day, you'll go far (possibly OS) and I hope you stay there.
>> >>
>> >> You're already OS. You can't get much further OS. Say hello to all
>> >> the other silly OS persons.
>> >
>> >Like your other mad Hungarian socks?
>>
>> We're not OS. That's you silly OS persons. We're Central Europeans.
>> Europe is the centre of the known world and we're right in the middle
>> of it.
>
>I thought so! Another mad Hungarian!
We have a long and honourable history, silly OS person. Unlike your
good selves.
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