The meretricious fool

From: Greg Barns.
To: David Bartlett, Duncan Kerr, Lisa Singh, Melinda Maddock, Michael Field, Gwynn MacCarrick.
c.c. Wayne Crawford.

Saturday, February 04, 2006 12:37 PM

I don’t know if you any of you had anything to do with the organisation of the Fabian Society’s forthcoming event (on minority government (Field, Cheek, McCall, Crowley), but to invite Bob Cheek is insulting to anyone’s intelligence. This is a man who can barely string two words together, who’s book is a fantasy, and a defamatory and poorly written one at that, and who’s understanding of politics is ZERO.

Why didn’t the organisers invite someone like Wayne Crawford who has recently written an excellent column on minority government — albeit not one with which I agreed. At least then you would have four intelligent contributors and not three people with substance and prize FUCKWIT.

By turning Bob Cheek into a political commentator the Fabian Society is saying as much about itself as it about Tasmania’s most unsuccessful leader in a hundred years.

Greg Barns

Tuesday, 7 February 2006

I note that no one has bothered to provide an explanation on this issue, other than Michael Field — thank you Michael.

But then I saw it was organised by Richard Flanagan’s wife — need any more be said.

Wednesday, February 08, 2006 10:41 AM

Dear Greg,

I was a founder of the Fabian Society in Tasmania but have stepped back from its executive to become its patron. The Society is a leading left wing think tank with the liberty of not being affiliated directly to any party — so it can stimulate broader, less partisan debate.

The speakers for the panel were chosen by the Society from people outside the current day to day cut and thrust of Tasmanian politics who have interesting views about the subject of the forum — two are former leaders of the major political parties — who hold concerns about the risks of minority government … and two who are academics and commentators who are on the record with different views.

I reject the idea that inviting Bob Cheek is insulting to your intelligence.

Neither Bob nor Michael were invited as spokespeople for the parties they formerly led. They were invited because their views about the costs and benefits of minority government are likely to be interesting.

The Fabian Society, coming at this issue from the point of view of ‘adding value’ by encouraging thoughtful discussion, saw no point in replicating the partisan public election debates that will take place between the political parties in the lead up to the election — if it had wanted to do that it would have invited representatives of each of Labor, Liberal and Greens.

That would be enough to respond but I cannot leave without one more point. I am very disappointed with your personal attack on Mayda Flanagan — and your inference that Mayda acts as the alter-ego of her husband, Richard.

That barb was (or ought to have been) beneath you. Wives are not property. Mayda is not Richard’s mouthpiece. Mayda has been my electorate adviser for nearly 16 years. She is a member of the ALP. Richard, clearly, is not. Neither is Mayda my mouthpiece. She has her own views and is a strong and independently minded woman. Her role as a member of the Fabian Society is one held in her own right. The Society’s executive made the decisions on the forum — not Mayda on her own — but even if she had, your slighting remark was rude and, if I were in her shoes, verging on unforgivable.

Duncan Kerr
Duncan Kerr SC MP

Wed 8/02/2006

Duncan -politicians attacking people for making personal attacks is a little bit rich since your profession has turned it into an artform.

Mr Cheek’s book is defamatory and the shoddy work of a meretricious fool who is reinventing history at his former colleagues’ expense.

To give him airtime is, as I said, a poor reflection on the Fabian Society and I intend to keep making that point as far and wide as I need to.

Greg Barns