bob hawkward

"Like most women, you probably don’t possess the necessary drive, determination and decisiveness that..."

theokaygatsby — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 21:27:51 -0400

“Like most women, you probably don’t possess the necessary drive, determination and decisiveness that men innately possess. It’s not a personal criticism; it’s a fact of biology. Where, for example, are the great female explorers, mountaineers, warriors, inventors, chefs? Blokes dominate most areas of human endeavour because Nature equipped them with something called testosterone.”

- Max Tomlinson, a senior advisor to Liberal QLD senator Ian Macdonald to feminist Carole Ford, in response to her piece criticising the lack of female MPs in the new LNP state government.

Tomlinson has stood by his comments in the email to the, in his words, “rabid feminist”, and insists she needs to just “get a life”, criticising her for not being a stay at home mum, like his own wife. (Read the full email, and Tomlinson’s further comments at Crikey)

progressiveauspol: Ex Prime Minister John Howard attempting to...

theokaygatsby — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 21:20:00 -0400

progressiveauspol:

Ex Prime Minister John Howard attempting to play cricket during a visit of Pakistan.

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theokaygatsby — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 21:20:00 -0400

tritanium:

Liberal president of the NSW Legislative Council, Don Harwin expressed his “strong support” for efforts to amend the Marriage Act.

Nationals MLC Trevor Khan wrote that the committee should consider people affected by the ban.

“The most compelling are the personal stories of individuals that have been shared with me since entering the NSW Parliament,” Khan wrote.

Former NSW premier Kristina Keneally wrote to the inquiry to back marriage equality despite the views of the Catholic Church.

Tasmanian premier Lara Giddings urged change, as did her coalition partner, Tasmanian Greens leader Nick McKim, on behalf of his party room.

The only submission from a state politician opposing marriage equality published so far has been from NSW Labor MLC Greg Donnelly, who claimed that most Australians do not support marriage equality and urged the inquiry to reject the idea of same-sex marriage “in the strongest terms”.

Clover Moore expressed her support in her capacity as Lord Mayor of Sydney, as did the former federal Australian Democrats leader Brian Greig.

pauljkeating: PJK interviewed by Phillip Adams for ABC Radio...

theokaygatsby — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 21:13:00 -0400

pauljkeating:

PJK interviewed by Phillip Adams for ABC Radio National’s Late Night Live in early December 2011. Hear the interview here: http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/latenightlive/paul-keating/3704506

the blog we had to have

theokaygatsby — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 11:28:36 -0400

Hello friends! Australian politics - what a subject! As the longest serving Labor Prime Minister this fair country has had (1983 to 1990) I consider myself to be somewhat of an expert on it.

This blog is a celebration of Canberra. Of those Labor rascals and conservative Liberal Party bastards. Of Bob and co, of Tony and Jules, of awkward ABC interviews, of articles in the Herald.

Submissions and comment welcome. Reblogs (or dorothy dixers, as we in the parliament game refer to them) too. Most of all, friends, I encourage you to challenge my beer drinking successes.

-Bob