*Cartoon: Martyn Turner, used with permission: https://www.facebook.com/martynturnercartoons/ . http://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/martyn-turner
That odd ball conservative Donald Trump has bought new meaning to the concept of intellectual slobbery. Fake news perhaps his most illustrative effort means Trump is telling his fans/supporters that any news which does not make him appear marvellous is untrue. The question remains, who among the good old brainless US trumpites still believes him!
Naturally global conservative politicians are a little nervous, indeed jittery as Trump roars into greater and grander unbelievability. In the hallowed men’s clubs for conservative politicians, balding old fellows are probably muttering that intellectual slobbery which served them well, could be ended by the base stupidity of Trump’s efforts. So let’s inspect some classic conservative slobbery as appearing on the local scene.
Privatisation brings prosperity shouts this basic greedy mantra when in fact what Malcolm, Barnaby, Tony etc. really mean is that privatisation brings more wealth to their very rich mates who purchase taxpayer paid for government assets. These take overs can be assisted with further tax payer funded subsidies and hand outs so the rich mates don’t have to suffer too much in these ventures.
Hand smacking joy also ensues from the conservative pollies at the departure of these tax payer funded efforts as such assets frequently have a Unionised work force. Haha says the conservative chorus!
We don’t what any more people dying at sea say the sad faced pollies! Well actually we all know that stopping refugee boats is nothing more than an attempt to divide the Australian community and create fear and uncertainty. Given that a proportion of refugees paying people smugglers were Muslims, this presented a great opportunity for the conservations to add a further wedge of fear. Ironically the Howard fear mongering possibly gave Pauline Hanson the vapour for electoral opportunity which she certainly later grabbed!
18C curtails free speech clucks the conservative chorus. In effect this little gem really means that middle aged, middle class, conservative (generally) hetro males who have never experienced any kind of prejudice either very stupidly assume that no one else has or more likely want the opportunity to say publically what they say in private clubs about aborigines, women, the gay community, and non christian religions. Wonder what they do say in private recesses of their greying brains??
Free trade agreements are good chant the conservatives. But extra good for their rich mates who benefit from agreements whisper the LNP folk behind closed doors. Barnably (who increasing looks more like Barnie Rubbly) loves to shout for his rich farmers mates you know the blokes that loves those student visas where overseas young folk work on farms for a pittance!!
Trickle down economics that discredited old chestnut is popped out of the frying pan quite often by good old Malcolm. Looking for a vehicle for his massive business tax cuts prior to the last election, he pulled this one out of the tatty old conservative hat. Discredited by mainstream economists, the economic reality is that employed folk contribute more to Federal balance sheet than do businesses.
Clean coal is good! Wonder which wierdo in the conservative ranks dreamed this little phrase into the world? Suppose the rich mates in the coal industry hope their mega profits might continue into the foreseeable future on the basis of an impossible concept!
Malcolm’s elizabethian concept should be read as the words of a politician collapsing a long held belief, namely selling his political principles in favour of remaining PM.
My mother did it. It’s my mother’s fault said a contrite Matt Canavan when his duel citizenship issue emerged. Voter discussion on the issue appeared to conform that either Freud’s misogynist view of women as responsible for all the world’s ailments is pretty much lost a century later or Matt’s not all that bright and doesn’t know he is signing.
Finally an awful thought on the re-emergence of Tony Abbott in the next year. The polls are not great for Malcolm T and there’s some precedence in PM swap games. Tony, a strong member of the ultra right might just give a nighthood to Donald Trump on the grounds of his surpassing all other leaders in the use of intellectual slobbery.
*Josephine Zananiri lives in the Independent electorate of Indi in Germantown Vic and currently works in the manual labour arena tending native and exotic trees, so has plenty of time to think. Followed everywhere by her two dogs Percy and Fino who generally agree on all subjects, only occasionally deserting the conversation in the chase for samba deer! Slight differences in logic can therefore be attributed to the two woofers leaving their critical post!
