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That picture from The Age.
The Victorian Liberal Party has seriously lost its way. I suppose the point being that you cannot grow a backbone in office. So if you had no principles in opposition you’ll never find any in office.
Update: There are reports in the comments thread that Napthine may not be backtracking but this piece from the Herald Sun is a bit ambiguous.
There is no such thing as “a right to a job”—there is only the right of free trade, that is: a man’s right to take a job if another man chooses to hire him. There is no “right to a home,” only the right of free trade: the right to build a home or to buy it. There are no “rights to a ‘fair’ wage or a ‘fair’ price” if no one chooses to pay it, to hire a man or to buy his product.
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So we’re stuffed with Tony Abbott?
James
10 Mar 13 at 12:52 pm
Seriously? Napthine is going to try and get closer to the Gilliard government…. now?! Just like poor Ted, he’s reaching out to people who will never ever vote for him, and in the process, pi$$ing off his own conservative supporters. *sigh*
Greigoz
10 Mar 13 at 12:52 pm
Red Ted was a bad administrator and a bad communicator. Napthine may be an improvement on these fronts, but the question remains – what does the modern Liberal Party actually stand for.
It certainly doesn’t stand for classic liberal values of limited government and free markets. At best, it will not push the Green/Labor agenda as fast as the ALP, but it is generally heading in the same direction.
When will a Liberal leader do a Maggie Thatcher by declaring that big government/socialism DOES NOT WORK and repudiate the Greens/Labor agenda.
I doubt Tony Abbott is such a leader.
johno
10 Mar 13 at 12:52 pm
Dipshit Dennis is just warehousing the leadership chair until his former chief of staff Matthew Guy can organise his move from the Legislative Council to the Assembly. Dennis is a pleasant country vet who is a born political loser. Nothing personal, Farm Boy.
Tom
10 Mar 13 at 1:00 pm
Is there no one in Vic Libs with a backbone?
Gab
10 Mar 13 at 1:18 pm
Incredible, isn’t it. I was speechless when I heard that.
When are these fucking morons ever going to learn that the Left hate them and no amount of sniveling will ever change that.
They absolutely lack principles and ideological anchor. I truly despise them as much as I do the Left.
I went to a dinner last night and the subject of Red Ted came up. The usual crap came up about how Ted was a nice guy. The entire table echoed the same bullshit…. except me.
I told them that I didn’t find Ted a nice guy at all. He abused the trust of his voters and was a lazy slob with no ideological backbone and balls the size of atoms. That sent some of these people out to bat for him, but they didn’t score a jab. I won.
JC
10 Mar 13 at 1:19 pm
Heard Dennis talking to John Michael Howsan on the 3AW show this morning. He said the story in the Age was incorrect (who would believe anything published in that piece of toilet paper). Liked what I heard think he will be a big improvement on Red Ted.
Jo
10 Mar 13 at 1:49 pm
Does anyone know whether as a vet, Napthine specialized in dealing with vertebrates or invertebrates?
Maybe somebody should have asked the question before they awarded him the big chair?
Up The Workers!
10 Mar 13 at 1:59 pm
Sinclair, Napthine said on radio this morning that the story above was completely wrong. Victoria is committed to their own funding model and it’s own reforms, according to Napthine. They are wary of Gonski and centralising education.
Andrew
10 Mar 13 at 2:19 pm
excellent examples of the schumpetarian theory of political participation
Schumpeter’s theory of democratic participation is voters have the ability to replace political leaders through periodic elections.
Citizens do have sufficient knowledge and sophistication to vote out leaders who are performing poorly or contrary to the electoral majority’s wishes.
The incoming party has to pass some minimum standards and that is all, but it can be thrown out just as quickly, if they do not pass muster.
Jim Rose
10 Mar 13 at 3:26 pm
Latest from Broome and the Kimberley seat. In Broome polling booths, the vote for the Greens is almost 30% higher than the Liberal candidate. They may even win the seat. Result wont be known for a week …The Broome Community want no part of Barnett’s proposed LNG plant.
tom harley
10 Mar 13 at 3:28 pm
The Victorian Libs appear to have no guiding principles much less a philosophy. Like Chance the Gardener it’s all about ‘Being There’.
sfw
10 Mar 13 at 3:40 pm
More info on the Kimberley result.
tom harley
10 Mar 13 at 4:12 pm
Too bad. You’re getting it.
Infidel Tiger
10 Mar 13 at 4:25 pm
Even half-witted Broomeites know that with pearling and tourism buggered by high costs, it’s only the development of the Browse basin that’s putting bums on seats into the town. Selling soap, candles and mung beans at the Court House markets on Saturday mornings won’t cut the mustard. Diversify or die.
Ubique
10 Mar 13 at 4:55 pm
Fancy a bunch of nimby interlopers in some tiny tin pot town dictating to the rest of the Kimberley, an area as big as Victoria what industries they will tolerate.
Infidel Tiger
10 Mar 13 at 4:58 pm
There has been no change on the electoral commission for Kimberly, updated at 2.00 pm but no totals are changed.
Lib will win.
Helen Armstrong
10 Mar 13 at 5:06 pm
The high green vote was only in the Broome booths and did not constitute a majority in even them
http://www.elections.wa.gov.au/results/sg2013/la/KIM
Their is just over 1/2 the vote counted as I type this and all the Broome booths appear to be in.
Won’t hurt though if the Libs don’t get the seat, they have won a couple too many as it is.
I cannot understand why anyone in the regions would vote Lib or Labor. They must be rusted on.
Ripper
10 Mar 13 at 5:09 pm
Wait a minute, according to the Walking Dead (LP) the real story from the election is the vote for the Greens in the Kimberley…
Token
11 Mar 13 at 8:33 am