Vale Gough Whitlam

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Post by Lee Thu Nov 06, 2014 11:46 am

From the SMH.

Some of these policy achievements are astounding, given the times.

Many are still the basis of our society today.


http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/gough-whitlam-left-a-long-list-of-achievements-20141021-119cpu.html
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Post by Gingernuts Thu Nov 06, 2014 11:56 am

I think the thing I've taken out of the eulogising of Whitlam is that he was willing to sacrifice party politics and his chances of being re-elected in order to do what he considered was right for the country.

Citizen and country first, party second. Hard not to respect that, particularly in our current political climate.
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Post by UncleHuey Thu Nov 06, 2014 1:24 pm

Lee wrote:UH, that is correct for Rudd (GFC also), but Whitlam left no debt at all and had 2 surplus budgets out of three.  

Given that Julia Gillard's partner was the subject of so much publicity, why are the media totally silent about the absence of Margie Abbott for so long?

Tony campaigned with her and their daughters on family values, but Margie's nowhere to be sen now.

She is still working at the not-for-profit Child Care centre and doing charity work. Unlike Gillard's partner, Margie does not appear to want or demand tickets to events and functions or to travel the world at tax payers expense.
The left press and ABC would not publicise Margie's work as they refuse to publish anything that could possibly paint Abbott in a good light. Instead she is criticised for NOT being a tax payer funded bludger!

The hypocrisy is breathtaking
The sisterhhood who were rabid about sexist attacks on Gillard are silent about attacks on Tony's Abbotts wife, daughters and female head of staff.
Or Theresa Rein, who made millions of dollars for her company from government contracts was not criticised for working but Margie Abbott is criticised for putting her charity work ahead of being a figurehead at functions.
People hack into computers to access personal details about his daughters which the press release (in full knowledge they were illegally obtained) for no other purpose then to attack Abbott and his children.

Rudds kids were never attacked, even when they were put on the public payroll yet the left have no qualms about going after Abbott's family.

I lugh when people accuse the Murdoch press of bias when they believe the ABC and Guardian are balanced!



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Post by Lee Thu Nov 06, 2014 2:00 pm

Calm down, Uncle, I haven't said one word against Margie or read any attacks on her.

I think she seems a very nice person and I admire her for her work for charity.

I'm merely suggesting she left Tony a fair while ago and the media are keeping quiet about it.  If I'm wrong, I'll happily say so, but I think I'm right.

Keep sticking up for Rupert, his papers are completely unbiased and might write something slightly positive about 'The Left' in a decade or so Neutral
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Post by UncleHuey Fri Nov 07, 2014 1:47 pm

Lee wrote:Calm down, Uncle, I haven't said one word against Margie or read any attacks on her.

I think she seems a very nice person and I admire her for her work for charity.

I'm merely suggesting she left Tony a fair while ago and the media are keeping quiet about it.  If I'm wrong, I'll happily say so, but I think I'm right.

Keep sticking up for Rupert, his papers are completely unbiased and might write something slightly positive about 'The Left' in a decade or so Neutral

So you are suggesting that the reason Margie hasn't been seen as much as Tim, who by the way did attack her and was criticised for it (at least in the Rupert papers Smile ) is that they have seperated. Couldn't possibly be that she chose to keep her life as normal as possible and keep working at her charities. Must be they are heading for a divorce!

You could be right---or it could just be more anti-Abbott mud slinging.
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Post by Lee Fri Nov 07, 2014 2:55 pm

You could well be right, Uncle.

I'm just suggesting they may have split up and that's based on wide reading.

I haven't bashed Abbott at all.

As I said, if I'm wrong, I'm happy to say so.

And to repeat, Margie seems a very nice person and I have no problem with her at all.
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Post by Chambo Off To Work We Go Fri Nov 07, 2014 7:16 pm

Can't get the quote function working at the moment.
But in answer to Lee's comments below;

As someone who experienced the time, it's necessary to explain a little bit as to why it was such an exciting time to be young and politically aware.

Australia had been governed by the Coalition for 23 years. Bob Menzies was a fixture, a capable, but very patrician man, very attached to England, royalty and the trappings.

He governed capably, but nothing much happened, we rode on the sheep's back, families got thrown a dollar a week increase in 'child endowment' now and again and we did as we were told.

The Labor opposition was hopeless, the leader almost unelectable.


Not disputing any of that but there are a few angles to view what happened in the political world post WW2.

Australia like many other countries was in a period of consolidation and rebuilding just to the pre war levels. The Australian public echoed its ultra conservative leaders. You could argue this was the most conservative period in Aussie history. Pre WW2 politics was very volatile with both state and federal leaders resigning mid-term and even splintering away from their parties. Hell Menzies even did that.

Up until at least the mid-70s Australia was a good little monarchistic country living and breathing everything UK, both in social and political circles. There had not been change for such a long time up until the mid 60s when pop culture became embraced. And at that time we grew up a bit and did not just blindly follow the mother country.

The changing waves of social culture were bound to have an effect on politics too at some stage. Australia was not alone. Nixon had a hell of a time trying to keep the hippys at bay and ultimately failed badly.

Whilst Australia didn't have that sort of controversy, conservative forces had had their day and we were supremely ready to embrace change.

Gough just milked that in a very clever way to tap that groundsell of emotion. That is not to say he didn't have the mettle to back up the campaign. But it was new, catchy and he had the intelligence also to deliver what Australia was ultimately ready for.

This little treatise is not so much about competing idealogies of Liberal v Labour, but more putting into context what was occurring at the time.

If it wasn't Gough, then any leader of the time who embraced and harnessed this wind of cultural change was going to be on a road to success.

Once the mould of conservatism was broken, we were never going to go back to that. Although my perception is that Malcolm Fraser tried very hard to. I guess 23 years of Liberal ideals were probably hard to abandon.

You look back now and although we are still not a republic (maybe there are still enough monarchists who remember the period), we have embraced other cultural ideals. We are probably more like 'little USA' rather than 'little UK' these days. But with society ever becoming more multi-cultural (despite ISIL's attempts otherwise), that old conservatism seems so far far away.

"It's Time" was always going to be a winner.

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Post by Lee Fri Nov 07, 2014 11:14 pm

That's a very good summation, Chambo.


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