The International Institute for the Incredibly Incompetent (known as Four-Eyes to us observers from the outside) must have had the ALP amongst its charter members. It is for this reason almost always a depressing experience to pick up The Australian of a morning but to start off the week as I did today with three such bizarre examples of our government in action just makes it harder to face the day. First there was the main headline story:
ALP seeks tighter China ties
Carr Plan would put Beijing on similar standing to Washington
And then to add to the carnage, there was this which was the lead story:
We didn’t want carbon tax: AWU
Well who did but you got it anyway along with the rest of us. But the headline that may be the pick of the bunch, even though placed off to the side, read as follows:
And it really was about government ministers genuinely intending to direct the media, and not in our interests either but in theirs! I suppose we take it somewhat in our stride because we are used to the Government always choosing to do the wrong thing. But still, this is a bit out of the ordinary although a long time coming. Here is the para that counts:
Communications Minister Stephen Conroy and Wayne Swan are leading a push for a stronger suite of reforms to curb the influence of media organisations, particularly newspapers, according to senior government sources.
At least if this legislation goes through I won’t have to worry about ruining my mornings reading headlines focusing on government incompetence ever again. The incompetence will still be there of course, just not the reporting.
Could someone please sack this moron before he does some lasting damage?
C.L.
8 Oct 12 at 8:34 pm
Direct the media? Seriously? These folks couldn’t direct a choko vine over a dunny.
Gibbo
8 Oct 12 at 8:42 pm
Too late, CL.
At least every regional nation knows we suffer these once per generation bouts of idiocy, and that adults are waiting in the wings.
Mk50 of Brisbane
8 Oct 12 at 8:42 pm
Gibbo – no insulting choko vines by comparing them to the ALP Ministry.
One choko vine’s more intelligent and far more useful than this entire lot.
Mk50 of Brisbane
8 Oct 12 at 8:43 pm
At its hour of greatest need, the Australian news media needed three human assets:
1. Business leaders who could take on the market-trashers at Google Adsense.
2. Editors who understood that the need had never been so great for high professional standards and exclusive journalistic content to attract new customers.
3. Skilled political operators to deal with fascist government tendendies in the event of an extreme leftwing government.
Yeah, right. The media is being run by incompetent fuck-up artists who have no idea what they’re doing. Government media has become au undisciplined radical feelgood leftwing political propaganda orgy. “Quality journalism” has become a downmarket online gossip titteration.
The Australia news media doesn’t deserve to survive. It will, but not before much more damage is done to democracy.
Tom
8 Oct 12 at 8:49 pm
Whenever something bad for the government is on the boil they trot out the “we’re going to crack down / direct / review” the media.
So the question is, what’s about to come out or what are they trying to sit on?
Or are they just down to bare thugish intimidation?
twostix
8 Oct 12 at 8:56 pm
The Gillard government wheels out the brains trust – Swan and Conroy.
H B Bear
8 Oct 12 at 9:13 pm
Greg Sheridan back on the crack:
Bob Carr delivers a masterclass.
He rolled up several times to trash Abbott as a sexist (for those who give a shit) and made fun of his wife on the weekend.
Been away on holiday, Greg?
And masterclass? From the man who hailed Dred Scott as one of the Supreme Court’s greatest decisions?
He concludes:
C.L.
8 Oct 12 at 9:30 pm
Is this Carr the Bob Carr (aka “Dred Scott”) that said that Margie Abbott “doth protest too much”? That one? Hmm.
dover_beach
8 Oct 12 at 9:38 pm
Sheridan also believed Rudd to be a fantastic Foreign Minister.
I can only guess he suffers dreadfully from jetlag because he’s usually sane and a good read.
Infidel Tiger
8 Oct 12 at 9:38 pm
My first post here – I love this blog!
I was rabidly against media intrusion by the Govt. until now, but I’ve just forced myself to sit through the vomitous Q & A (because Piers Akerman was on) and am now all for it if the incoming Abbott Govt. can spare me ever having to hear or see the pitiful Kate Ellis again. I waver but had finally decided Tanya was the MOST stupid and irrelevant of the Labor women but my God, how could I have forgotten Kate?
Tracey
8 Oct 12 at 9:42 pm
It’s almost as if the members of this dimwit brain dead government wake up each morning and wonder what plan next they can think of to piss off the Australian public.
Seriously, I’ve watched politics in this country for about 40 years, and I’ve never seen such a suicidally inept pack of wankers.
The problem is, that this level of stupidity in a government is actually dangerous.
James P
8 Oct 12 at 9:52 pm
Just when you think you’ve seen and heard it all in the Massive Incompetence Department, the inept bunch of deadheads passing itself off as our government pull another Stupidity Chicken out of the hat.
As James P points out, this level of stupidity is dangerous. Shame it’s not the perpetrators that are being hurt. In just over seven weeks we can start the countdown to that glorious day when we can take our baseball bats to the polling booth.
Megan
8 Oct 12 at 10:19 pm
James, Megan, I seriously agree with you. One wonders what is coming next, its a loooong way until next September for an election. What more damage, embarrassment and bullshit we have to listen to. I used to watch the news, the 7.30 report etc. Not now. Oh, I did watch Q&A tonight because Piers, Chris Pyne and Tanner were on. Bad news for them, the ABC must have organised a roomful of 17-20 years olds (nothing wrong with that but do you want to deal with that). Then of course, continue the torture to myself, Alberci and old Tony Windsor. He’s going to ask Slipper if the texts that were read out in court were true, or maybe they were made up. Oh God. Serves me right, should have used the turn off button. Goodnight folks.
delfino
9 Oct 12 at 12:20 am
The lunatics have not only taken over the asylum, but the entire health industry. They’ve convinced 90% of the SMH readership that public footings should be mandatory for Alan Jones and obviously anyone else that disagrees with the government.
And as for Carr, how does someone so ugly and of average intelligence get such a big ego? Either he’s going to share US secrets with China or he’s talking out of his arse. What a fuckstick.
Even worse, he’s spiked the water cooler at The Australian.
My mum told a young bloke the commies were taking over. He said we’d never allow that. Political blindness is dangerous, and well all pay the price. Freedom of speech goes out the window and half of Australia think that okay. We’re fucked, and I think Labor will win, especially if they nobble the media before the election.
Twodogs
9 Oct 12 at 1:06 am
Public floggings for fuck’s sake. Stupid iPhone spellchecker.
Twodogs
9 Oct 12 at 1:07 am