There Aint no Sanity Clause

We thought that criticising the sunburnt country, the land of sweeping plains and gratuitously donned Akubras, when you were overseas used to be a hanging offence in the eyes of the recently Ratsaked Rodent.

Guess someone moved the goal posts when we weren't looking. Or could it be we're looking at a bad loser who still doesn't get it?

Cue the over used, but sadly apposite Talleyrand quote. “They have learned nothing, and they have forgotten nothing.”

And in other news we note that the Prime Minister has a soft spot in his heart for the lowly worm ...

... and a quick run around with the word "WORM" in Google image search comes up with a reason for his affection for the humble helodrilus caliginosus.

A damaging goof by Kevin Rudd, given his growing image problem of being a man of spin, not substance:

Visiting Queanbeyan today, Mr Rudd was asked by a journalist to name the tax rates and where thresholds kick in.

Mr Rudd replied: “Well, as of July 1, if you went through the four thresholds, I think the high threshold kicks in I think at $175,000, then I think it cascades down the spectrum.’’

Mr Costello seized on the blunder, attacking Mr Rudd in parliament and pressing him to release Labor’s tax policy.

This might be a small error of detail (of the kind John Howard would actually never make), but it suggests a genuine problem for Labor.

Astute observation courtesy of Bolta.

Mr Howard chose the first day of the campaign to unveil a surprise announcement of tax cuts worth $34 billion.

Last night on Channel Nine, there was another surprise, a slip-up from Mr Howard, when he was asked to name the official cash rate.

“It’s about 6.25,” he said, instead of 6.5 per cent.

In the same interview the Prime Minister also fluffed the figure for the average wage.

Again, let’s take a gecko at Bolta’s astute observation.

"This might be a small error of detail (of the kind John Howard would actually never make), but it suggests a genuine problem for ... "

Mike Willesee: “If I buy a birthday cake from a cake shop and GST is in place do I pay more or less for that birthday cake?”

John Hewson: ”...well, it will depend whether cakes today in that shop are subject to sales tax…or they’re not…firstly. And they may have a sales tax on them…Let’s assume that they don’t have a sales tax on them…then that birthday cake is going to be sales tax free. And of course it would be exempt…uh, the – then – of course – you wouldn’t pay…uh..it would be exempt…the – then…there would be no GST on it under our system. One with a sales tax on it today would attract a GST and…um…then the difference would be the difference between the two taxes whatever the…ahh…sales tax rate is on birthday cakes, how it’s decorated, because there will be sales tax perhaps on some of the decorations as well and of course the price….the price will reflect that accordingly.”

Willesee: “Just on the birthday cake, because I’m trying to pick up a simple example – you tell us in what you’ve published that the cost of cake goes down, the cost of confectionery goes up, there’s icing and maybe ice-cream, and then there is candles on top.”

Hewson: “Yes…yes…that’s the difficulty – that’s what I’m trying to address in the question. I need details on the cake to give an accurate answer. I mean if it’s just a cake from a cake shop – that’s not presently under sales tax – it will not attract the GST. If it is from a cake shop that falls under sales tax, with the candles, decorations as you say, then it will attract the – after scrapping the sales tax.”

Willesee: ”...okay…it’s just an example…If the answer to a birthday cake is so complex – you do have an overall problem with the GST, don’t you?”

Hewson: “Well, people don’t know how much tax they currently pay…”

Mr Howard has rejected Mr Rudd’s claim to be an economic conservative.

“You have got to be joking. He has been an economic conservative for about five minutes. I have been one all of my life.,” he said.

On the other hand John Citizen has rejected Mr Howard’s claim to be a supporter of reconciliation.

“You have got to be joking. He has been a reconciliation supporter for about five minutes. I have been one all of my life.,” he said.

Peter "Miss Haversham" Costello:- Elected to the House of Representatives for Higgins, Victoria, 1990, 1993, 1996, 1998, 2001 and 2004.

Ministerial Appointments

Treasurer from 11.3.96.

Phllip "The Cadaver" Ruddock:- Elected to the House of Representatives for Parramatta, New South Wales 1973.

Re-elected 1974 and 1975.

Re-elected following the 1977 electoral redistribution for Dundas, New South Wales, 1977, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1987 and 1990.

Re-elected following the 1992 electoral redistribution for Berowra, New South Wales, 1993, 1996, 1998, 2001 and 2004.

Ministerial Appointments

Attorney-General from 07.10.03

Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs from 11.3.96 to 26.11.01.

Minister for Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs from 26.11.01 to 07.10.03.

Minister for Administrative Services from 25.9.97 to 9.10.97.

Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Reconciliation from 21.10.98 to 30.1.01 and from 26.11.01.

Minister for Reconciliation and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs from 30.1.01 to 26.11.01.

ABORIGINAL reconciliation will be a key policy priority if the Coalition is re-elected, Prime Minster John Howard has just announced.

Mr Howard admitted he had struggled with reconciliation throughout his 11 years as prime minister.

He accepted his share of the blame for “low points” in relations between his government and indigenous people.

“The challenge I have faced around indigenous identity politics is in part an artefact of who I am and the time in which I grew up,” Mr Howard said

ABORIGINAL reconciliation will be a key policy priority if the Coalition is re-elected, Prime Minster John Howard has just announced.

Subtext? "Vote us back in or we shoot the reconciliation kid!"

Wonder what odds a friendly bookmaker might give the punters on John Dubya's election campaign starting out with these words, "I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

Exhibit 'A'

ONLY a re-elected Coalition Government can push forward reconciliation with Australia’s indigenous people, Prime Minister John Howard says.

Last night Mr Howard pledged to hold a referendum on whether the preamble to the Australian constitution should be amended to recognise Aboriginal people as the first Australians.

The Opposition has given it bipartisan support, but Mr Howard said today the Labor Party lacked the ability to unite the Australian community.

“I don’t believe Labor could unite conservative and progressive Australians on this issue,” he said.

Howard announces $1m for Xmas parade

Prime Minister John Howard has announced that the Federal Government will provide $1 million in funding for an inaugural Christmas parade to be held in Sydney.

The parade will be similar to Thanksgiving and Christmas parades held annually in America and will be held on November 25 this year.

In a statement, Mr Howard says that the parade aims to “strengthen a sense of community by encouraging people to join together to celebrate the holiday season.”

Howard sets sights on Bennelong seat

Prime Minister John Howard has announced that if he wins the election he will serve a full term in the seat of Bennelong.

(This message has been brought to you by the letter “Que?’ and the numbers provided by Crosby-Textor after polling in the seat of Maxine formerly known as Bennelong.)

“I have never run from a fight before, and I don’t intend to do so now” said the Prime Black Knight, Mr Hyacinth Bucket of Bennelong.

MPs rally behind Howard.

Prime Minister John Howard’s coalition colleagues are rallying in support of their leader as speculation intensifies that he could stand down before the election.

The latest AC Nielsen poll – published in The Age newspapers today – shows Labor leads the coalition by 14 points on a two-party preferred basis. The poll finds Labor would win the election, at 57 to 43 points.

But coalition ministers and backbenchers have hit the airwaves to show their support for Mr Howard.

APEC leaders have signed up to the ‘Sydney Declaration’ on climate change, which Prime Minister John Howard says forges a new international consensus on the challenge of global warming

The APEC consensus, said Howard, is “a very important milestone in the march towards a sensible international agreement on climate change.”

“This declaration does transcend a number of international divisions,” he said, noting it’s the first such gathering on climate change to include both China and the United States in endorsing “a long-term aspirational global emissions reduction goal.”

Prime Minister John Howard says many people who plan protests against this week’s APEC summit are hypocrites because the international meeting will help cut global poverty.

He said anti-globalisation protesters “hate” economic growth and capitalism.

“Stop and think for a moment. Are you really going to alleviate poverty by killing economic growth?” he said at a news conference in Sydney.

Some business owners at Sydney’s Circular Quay say they have suffered a drop in trade of around 75 per cent because of the security measures that have been put in place for the APEC summit.

“Are you really going to alleviate poverty by killing economic growth?”

A five-kilometre fence surrounds most of the north of the CBD to protect delegates at the meetings.

There is also a noticeable police and security presence in the city, with squads of uniformed officers patrolling declared zones.

The owner of a Circular Quay cafe, Nick Svinos, says he has already lost thousands of dollars and is considering closing until after APEC.

“Are you really going to alleviate poverty by killing economic growth?”

“If it’s going to cost us money to stay open, paying staff and the rest of it, we’ll just wear the cost of the rent and electricity and every other running cost we can’t avoid,” he said.

“We’ll just close the doors.”

“Are you really going to alleviate poverty by killing economic growth?”

Mr Svinos says he is angry with the Government because people are avoiding the area.

“Thanks very much boys – you’re doing a great job. What can you say?” he said.

“There are so many other places that could have had [APEC] and it wouldn’t have affected so many people but they want to show the city off, I suppose.

“Are you really going to alleviate poverty by killing economic growth?”

“That is more important than looking after small businesses and people that are struggling and trying to make a dollar.”

“Are you really going to alleviate poverty by killing economic growth?”

Troop weapons first class: Howard

John Howard says the troops he has visited have never complained about their weapons.

“Their weapons are okay. In fact more than okay and I asked them that and I can tell you my experience is that if an Australian soldier’s got a gripe about something, he’ll tell you,” he said.

“In fact it’s a great tradition of the Australian army that you seek out anybody in authority and tell him what you think and that’s exactly what they do and they’ve told me that their equipment is first class.”

PM rejects bid to cut cancer drug cost.

PRIME Minister John Howard has refused to support a push by asbestos disease sufferers to subsidise the only drug available to treat mesothelioma.

Mr Howard has instead told the Asbestos Diseases Foundation that mesothelioma sufferers should go to their state governments for help to buy the drug, which costs $20,000 per treatment cycle.

About 600 Australians are diagnosed every year with mesothelioma, a fatal cancer caused by exposure to asbestos.