Terrible AUKUS deal, NSW criminal corruption and media behaving badly

03/17/23 • 47 min

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In this episode, we look at the AUKUS deal and what it means for Australia. It looks like it’s a bad deal, so why did Albanese agree to it? It’s complicated.
Paul Keating also attacked this AUKUS deal – and we things he’s right – but instead of looking at the merit of what he had to say, the mainstream media decided that Keating was impolite to journalists. So, he can’t be taken seriously. Wow, these journalists are so upper-class, they don’t know what’s good for them: let them eat cake and we say – all the way with PJK.
And we've been asked the question: why did the mainstream media avoid the Robodebt Royal Commission? Again, the answer to this is complex: dwindling advertising revenues, news editors and journalists who come from the upper echelons of society, so receiving a social security payment – or being forced to pay it back – is a totally foreign experience for them. That’s the long-term effect of journalism courses around Australia becoming stacked with graduates from private schools.
And more corruption in New South Wales, this time there’s a recording of former NSW National Party leader John Barilaro bragging about his pork-barrelling adventures back in 2021. If only there was a decent mainstream media that has the courage to reveal these details on the eve of a NSW state election instead of delivering silence. If only...

Previous Episode

Liberals withering on a flagpole, corruption in NSW and a war with China?

In this episode... we look at the week in federal politics: the Liberal Party is in contortions over a tatty flag on top of Australian Parliament House (the important things) and wants to repeal the government’s popular superannuation tax – in the unlikely event it returns to government in the near future.
Malcolm Turnbull appears at the Robodebt Royal Commission – with the same level of collective amnesia which afflicted many other witnesses – and there are also calls for Katherine Campbell to be sacked from the public service.
A call for the takeover of Liberal Party branches by right-wing Christian groups needs to be resisted, otherwise that will be the end of the party.
International Women’s Day didn’t have the dramas from the time of Scott Morrison, and we should be thankful for that.
And is Dutton really facing a #Libspill? It’s in the interests of the Liberal Party to keep him there as a placeholder, but who’s next?
The New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption finds that corrupt behaviour in New South Wales is not actually corrupt. John Barilaro landed the trade job that he created while he was a Minister in NSW Parliament, and wasn’t qualified for. But the ICAC ruled that it wasn’t corruption. And, by the way, where is the report into alleged corruptions by Gladys Berejiklian?
And we are going to war with China in three years’ time, so we’ll need to order our military fatigues and start practising our commando techniques. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, of course – this would have to be among the more irresponsible and foolish journalism of recent years. And it’s racist as well. So, put the guns away, return the fatigues to sender: there will be not war with China.
It’s all a media beat-up.

Next Episode

AUKUS, The Voice, anti-trans Nazis trouble and election time in NSW

In this episode: the week in federal politics; the AUKUS deal; the Voice to Parliament; and the safeguard mechanism for emissions control. The anti-trans agitators and Nazis getting an unwelcome reception all across Australia. And a final look at the New South Wales State election.
Federal Parliament returned this week: There were the remnants of the AUKUS debate from last week, where after the complete support provider to the deal by the media, there have been more voices calling for more scrutiny on AUKUS, how much it's going to cost and what it actually means. And this is on the 20th anniversary of the invasion of Iraq, which was based on weapons of mass destruction that were never found. The lesson is: on national security, never believe what the government is telling the public and it’s best to get a second opinion.
Neo-Nazis had been causing trouble again and this time it was the Nationalist Socialist Network who teamed up with the anti-trans rally organised by Moira Deeming, and Kellie Jay Keen-Minshull, who also goes by the name of “Posie Parker”. “Posie Parker” is a repulsive person and after mixing with the neo-Nazis in Melbourne, she went down to Hobart to organise another rally but was quickly shut down and hounded out of Tasmania. There’s no place for this kind of bigotry.
Election day in New South Wales election and it hasn't captured the imagination of the public – and who is to blame for this is hard to say, whether it's the inane coverage by the media or whether it's because of the relative performances of the two main sides of politics. NSW Labor does have to win 11 additional seats to win a majority government – the Liberal–National Coalition is governing in a minority position and has to win two seats to form a majority. That's unlikely to happen. The more likely outcome is a Labor government in a minority position, but with a good chance of winning a majority. The NSW Government does deserve to be dismissed but it might also be a case where NSW Labor hasn't done enough to convince the electorate that it needs to be returned to office.