FROM MY CORNER .... with Ann Brunswick
Thankfully the dancing in the streets that accompanied the final decision of two federal independent MPs to announce their choice of party to lead our nation has now died down. Honestly, it was almost impossible for me to steer my trusty Land Rover home on that afternoon after being forced to navigate around and through mountains of ticker-tape, balloons, and empty champagne bottles.
It wasn’t that people particularly wanted Julia Gillard and her Labor Party to stay on the treasury benches, it was just a display of sheer public exuberance at the fact we now have a federal government at all. Yes, don’t worry, all that was a joke. In fact most of my acquaintances had become quite accustomed to having no federal government at all.
Many wondered why, if we could stumble along without one for the best part of three weeks, why not for the next three years? But that is now not to be.
Which brings me to the treatment the online news site brisbanetimes.com.au gave to the news last Tuesday that Julia Gillard would continue as our PM. As you are by now no doubt aware, NSW independent MP Tony Windsor was first to make a few brief remarks that signalled his support for a Labor government. He was followed by fellow independent Rob Oakeshott whose speech revealing his support for Labor prompted, according to usually reliable sources, a phone call from Fidel Castro urging him to get to the point.
But, as soon as Mr Oakeshott made his intentions clear, internet news sites splashed the result. In the case of brisbanetimes.com.au they accompanied their story with a graphic featuring scales and images of Julia Gillard and Opposition leader Tony Abbott (above).
Unfortunately, they didn’t seem to grasp the concept entirely, delivering a graphic that showed Abbott outweighing Gillard by a considerable degree. To my mind Gillard, as the winner of the independents’ support, should have outweighed Abbott. Or was it some subliminal embrace on the part of the Fairfax media group of Abbott’s continued assertions that the Coalition parties gained more votes and more seats at the August 21 poll and should have been entitled to first crack at forming a government?
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Speaking of websites, The Courier-Mail, like other news organisations is constantly in search of fresh content for its own site. But to my mind it seems they need to keep a closer eye on what they upload. Of course videos are a popular way to attract visitors to your site as well as keeping them there.
The more interesting videos you have on your site the more people will click on them and drive up the number of visitor numbers which in turn you can show advertisers to justify you ad rates.
Well the other night my eye spied a video on the Courier’s website about a new apartment development at Milton. So naturally a few clicks of my mouse took me to it. The video was obviously supplied by the property developer and was an animated flyover of a new high-rise apartment block being built next to Milton railway station across from the famous Fourex brewery.
It was quite short but mildly interesting because it gave me a fairly good idea of how the proposed new apartment block will loom 30 storeys over its neighbours. But there was also a vague sense in the back of my mind that something was missing from the video.
A repeat viewing soon revealed what it was – the huge chimney stacks that themselves have loomed over the suburb for decades. I guess the developer just forgot they were there. Just like they forgot they had promised to build their development over the railway line but were allowed to built it next to the station because it was cheaper. And our brave civic and state leaders let them.
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Back on the federal election briefly. Were you one of the people convinced by the commentariat to protest against the sacking of Queenslander Kevin Rudd as PM? Or for that matter, were you swayed by those suggesting it would be a fine idea to make your vote a protest one against the arguably lamentable Bligh government.
Well, guess what? You’ve woken up this morning with Anna Bligh still as Premier and hospital orderly. You’ve woken up and Kevin Rudd has still been sacked as PM – as the federal ALP caucus had every right to do under the laws of that party and the land, and a move which most sensible commentators say avoided a total rout of Labor at the polls.
If you voted against Labor because you seriously thought they hadn’t done a good job, I mightn’t have a single bone to pick with you.
But if you are one of those people silly enough to have wasted your federal vote in such a mindless way, for such stupid reasons, take a bow! You’ve still got Anna, Kevin’s still not the PM, you’ve wasted a vote you get only once every three years to make a difference federally, and most importantly, you’ve still got a Labor Government nationally.
One, I suspect, that will vehemently deny otherwise but who no longer gives a flying rat’s about the Sunshine State and its citizens.
