Caucus catastrophising

 Image: Keepcalm

He's leaving.  She's leaving. It's a shambles. It's going to fail. He's an idiot. She's an idiot. Now look what he's done. Now look what she's done. It's useless. It's hopeless. Well, that's done it now. We are all doomed. Okay - Simon says, "Do this!" and you will all feel better.

You have got to be joking. I am so fed up with the moronic, asinine media commentary on parliamentary change. Yes, there is change. It's 2013. Things change. It's called life. Someone does this and then someone does that. Surprising , isn't it? It's not all cause and effect. If you work in some service organisations then you often see a change of personnel along with a change in leadership. It often is the time which gives people a chance to assess their current situation - AND MOVE ON. A lot of people  these days work gruelling days and the politicians in a hung parliament have not had an easy time of it. It has been a tough call with a big agenda , often a lack of pairing and then a requirement to just be there because it has not been business as usual. It has been an intense 3 years where everyone has had to put in. It means they have grown, they have learnt a lot and that probably they want to do something different now. There should be some fresh faces. There should be some opportunities for others to learn the ropes and get used to what it is like on the next rung of their career ladder. Some people are lifetime politicians. Some will use that parlimentary training ground to move into other service areas like Brendan Nelson has with great success and Malcolm Fraser. Some organisations have a change of leadership and personnel on a regular basis. Try working in a big supermarket. Try retail. Long, arduous hours,  practically no notice of when you will be shifted to another store. A new boss on a regular basis. Know what? Australians have learned to manage this and they have learned to adapt. They have also learned you cannot stop people from making decisions about their lives nor can you stop some organisations from playing musical staff. On the one hand it means you have to be professional and learn to honour the position and work with anyone. On the other hand it creates exit points for staff and  leaders alike. Then there are those who just stay. They keep a sense of perspective but you don't need many of those. You do need mentors and old hands to enable the fast tracking of the younger ones. I feel  no sense of things falling apart. At the end of a parliamentary session before an election these people who have some fine skills will look at their options. Good on them.  Good luck to the ones who will come in and offer their skills maybe at the next level or from other areas of expertise. The one thing we don't need is stagnation. We need to keep moving because we have sustained ourselves , hung parliament and all through a very trying global time.

Blood sport thriving in Australia

The Federal Opposition has failed in a bid to force the Prime Minister to give a statement to Parliament about the issues surrounding crossbencher Craig Thomson.

I actually congratulate the ABC site for managing to report what happened in parliament today and get it all in perspective. I listened to the parliamentary session and question time today because I could.  Anna Burke held a ridiculous question time together really well but she must be fed up and exhausted. The ploy of constantly blocking standing orders must be well in excess to requirements by now and it's a pity we have no mechanism to shut it down. It wastes valuable time and energy and interrupts a positive flow...as does any disruptive influence. In other arenas people are not allowed to be disruptive and constantly negative. We have ways of managing their behaviour. Parliament seems to have to put up with it. Prior to question time there were some really interesting and well thought out speeches delivered which showed just how far we have come and how well we can do. I have to thank the commentator on Radio National for ensuring we were all able to follow the stuff and nonsense of question time and were in possession of adequate knowledge of the regulations, rules, policies and we knew who was speaking. I do  thank also the hung parliament for being the only parliament which has taught me so much about parliamentary and legal procedure. This seems to be our tragic sticking point at the moment. The delineation between the law, legal proceedings, legal entitlements and then parliament. There have been politicians and members of the press who have descended on Craig Thompson like a pack of hounds on the hunt and it has been relentless as a hunt is , and beyond endurance, as a hunt is. It is worthy then, that the ABC article raises the issue of our duty of care to other human beings. There are processes in place which are being followed and we need to follow them. We do not have the right to hunt people down. Or do we? The "hate mail " - what a glib term that was to fob off what Craig Thomson was reading as emails he had received - was deeply disturbing and no one should have to put up with that. It was scary just listening to his reading of it. These were people who were welcoming his suicide, his death, his end. Mal Washer is right to air his concerns about the way politicians treat each other and the way they are treated when things are not right. We know it would be good for the Liberals to get Craig Thomson so they can upset the balance of power but when it comes to being a blood sport then the disruptive, disturbing ugliness of  it is something we need to promptly reject. Being above the law is wrong. Being outside of our sanctioned experts is wrong and if it is just about holding up all the other politicians who can speak so well, contribute so well and move our country forward - then that is wrong too.