Conservatives sweep to Australia election victory

[louis-t]

Source: Associated Press

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia's "unelectable" and gaffe-prone political leader, Tony Abbott, confounded critics Saturday by becoming the country's latest prime minister, leading the opposition to a sweeping election victory and ending six years of Labor Party rule.

Abbott, the leader of the conservative Liberal Party-led coalition, rode a wave of public bitterness over a hated carbon emissions tax, worries about a flagging economy and frustration over government infighting to win the election.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/conservatives-sweep-australia-election-victory-120331850--finance.html

---

This is a little confusing, but this guy sounds like a tea-party wet dream. Poll numbers showed him behind (correction: I was confused, he was not behind). It says he is not very popular.

[hrmjustin]

1. How did Assange do?

[iamthebandfanman]

3. Since conservatives did well,

and he aligns himself with some of their politics...

one would guess okay.

[louis-t]

5. Article says Assange is not expected to win.

I didn't even realize he was running.

[hrmjustin]

7. He ran for the senate.

[MrModerate]

28. He lost to some guy from . . .

From a fringe party.

[hrmjustin]

29. Thanks for letting me know.

[struggle4progress]

37. Outpolled by Help End Marijuana Prohibition Party and Brick with eyes

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/09/07/assange_fails_in_bid_for_election_to_australian_senate/

[SleeplessinSoCal]

2. Could it be the result of manditory voting?

I wonder how many right wingers would rather pay a fine than vote for middle road candidates . . . ?

[Posteritatis]

16. I, uh, *seriously* doubt that. (nt)

[Rebellious Republican]

4. Food for thought, its a global thing.....

[GoneOffShore]

6. Condolences to our Australian DU'ers and Australian friends.

Good luck with the pernicious Abbot.

[iandhr]

8. Was this a throw the bums out type thing?

Labor had been in power for six years.

[Kennah]

9. Warning! NSFW!!!

[uriel1972]

27. Forget people smugglers, get rid of the Budgie Smugglers!... nt

[Kennah]

10. Love child of Dubya and Crocodile Dundee

[iandhr]

11. I guess the squabbling between Gillard and Rudd over the years...

... hurt labor in a bad way.

[ForgoTheConsequence]

12. I don't get it.

Didn't labor help them pretty much avoid the financial meltdown felt in the rest of the Western world?

[Ash_F]

22. Blacks and Muslims

Getting real unpopular over there.

[golfguru]

23. I don't think there are many Africans in Australia

are there? Unless the aborigines are considered blacks. Although from what I have observed they are well assimilated. As for Muslims, in which non-Muslim country are they popular? So why single out Australia?

[uriel1972]

26. 'Cos the article is about Australia...

And the indigenous people of Australia are not "Well Assimilated". Mostly out of sight and out of mind and discriminated against when noticed. Enormous social problems in health and living standard. It is a national disgrace.
And with the Coalition back in power it isn't likely to get better.

[golfguru]

31. That reminds me of South Africa Apartheid era

In my university in the 1960's there were more than a dozen students from South Africa. They were all of India ancestry. Every one of them had rich parents. They had the best clothes and plenty of spending money. Yet Indians were not the favored "white" category in S. Africa. How did those Indians manage to climb so high and prosperous while being officially discriminated? I have always wondered.

[Ash_F]

32. Keep wondering

4.4k posts already on a Democratic site. Disappointing.

[golfguru]

33. It is not complicated

I only deal with facts & logic. Overwhelming posters here are intelligent and can deal with facts and logic.

[uriel1972]

40. I have delayed responding, because I felt your argument deserved a calm and measured response...

Your argument seems to be, "I know some well off (insert marginilised group here), therefore there is minimal discrimination and poverty in (marginalised group)."
In order to demonstrate the paucity of that argument, I will use an example.

Because The President of the United States of America and a number of other African Americans are well off, there is little or no discrimination against, or poverty amongst African Americans.

Take that wisdom to the African American group and you will probably be eaten alive and justly so.

Your fact is some people in minority groups can be well off or even wealthy, I agree.
Your next step is faulty, that is the idea that that means most or all people in that minority are doing fine. Your sample size is too limited.

Study after study, report after report, details the grindining poverty and discrimination that most indigenous people deal with everyday.
Lower life expectancy, infant mortality, morbidity, endemic diseases (that do not affect the more affluent of society), incarceration rates, deaths in custody, a history of forced removal of children from families, lack of access to social, health and education services and facilities, extremely high unemployment, lack of oppurtunities and so on and on and on and on.

I prefer to deal with facts and logic too. Anecdotes aren't evidence, how many times do you need to hear that?

[vinny9698]

38. The Donald Trump and Mitt Romney method

Just have rich parents bankrolling your future, with money and connections.

[golfguru]

41. You did not catch on to point I was making

I never met Indians from Apartheid era in South Africa who were not doing well financially. How did they do that with discrimination in full force against them?

I am not prejudiced against rich people rewarding their kids with university education. My own parents were not rich by a long shot, yet they spent more of their meager savings on my education than their own needs. That is what good parents do. I am trying to do the same for my kids.

[DissidentVoice]

35. Kevin Rudd made an apology...

...even if it was only symbolic, I give him some credit for that.

[valerief]

13. WTF? Electronic voting machines? I don't get it. nt

[silvershadow]

15. Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain? I don't either. nt

[Posteritatis]

17. The xenophobe vote plus Murdoch owning a large share of the media. (nt)

[DissidentVoice]

18. Murdoch is a U.S. citizen...

...which he became to avoid U.S. law on ownership of the media.

However, he sure didn't give up his Australian nationality or return his Order of Australia to the GG/Queen...I think there's a nice little stipend that comes with that particular gong.

[iamthebandfanman]

14. will this have any effect

on gun control laws down under?

[onehandle]

21. No. A conservative there is like a moderate Democrat here. nt

[DissidentVoice]

19. I wouldn't quite say a tea party wet dream

Australians wouldn't stand for dismantling the social welfare sector (including universal health care) that the Tea Party wants gone.

[Posteritatis]

20. Yeah, there's definitely not a global conservative monolith. They're still pretty vile though

It depresses me that a federal election was largely fought there on the idea that the government isn't being bigoted enough.

[uriel1972]

24. Gah. The whole thing was one of those race to the bottom thing.

With Labor (I am sad to say) doing its part in seeking to dehumanize refugees.
On the plus side we may see Labor get back to at least a centre-left party. I voted for the local Green because I seem to agree with the part's platform, but Labor in the senate, because I didn't want Mr. Rabbit to have it all his own way.
KRudd was a painful person and maybe we could see some leaders with a conscience and a spine emerge.
Oh well we'll see.

[DissidentVoice]

34. Has ALP gone "Third Way?"

It certainly seems like it.

Both Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard seemed to me to try to sound as "centrist" as possible, despite the ALP's social democratic origins.

The DLC here...Tony Blair's "New Labour," the New Democrats in Canada...are they all into this "triangulation" bullshit?

[uriel1972]

25. I would like to hope so... nt

[MrModerate]

30. The Liberals (aka Coalition) . . .

Are center right (kind of like moderate Democrats). Labor is center left (kind of like mainstream Democrats). Abbot himself is a secular pollie with deeply Catholic beliefs that are outside the Australian mainstream and a bit disquieting (he also has a fiery temper).

That having been said, he's no Teabagger. The policies he intends to institute are regressive, and I predict Aussies are going to regret their votes sooner rather than later, but let's not paint him worse than he is.

And also, Labor -- despite its solid performance during the GED of 2008-2010 -- has been divided against itself in recent years and has lost people's confidence that they can govern.

[SylviaD]

36. I'm sick at this. Australia has just taken a *huge* step backwards.

...and don't tell me how Abbott is not "that bad" or how he's not as right wing as some of our Rethugs. That's what the Canadians thought about Stephen Harper and he has been worse than anyone imagined, shutting down democracy, accelerating the tar sands environmental destruction, and pulling that nation out of Kyoto and ignoring climate change totally. Abbott is going to be a disaster for Australia.

What the world does NOT need is more right wing governments who aren't "that bad" when compared to the worst examples in Congress here.

[blkmusclmachine]

39. Who (count)ed the votes?

Hmmm???

[Tseko]

42. They don't need electoral fraud, they have Murdoch's media

[url=http://postimage.org/][img][/img][/url]

[Theyletmeeatcake2]

43. I wish your theory was true but alas I'm afraid

After years of negative press(thanks Rupert !!!!) that demonised the boat arrivals ,overplayed the effects of the carbon tax,criticised initiatives such as as the roof insulation scheme and the school halls scheme people start to believe. It's goebbels ? with the "repeat a lie enough and it becomes truth" effect. FYI , most power increases were the result of privatised companies going the gouge,the roof insulation was taken up by huge numbers of people but had some deaths but not being callous but at a much lower rate than that industry normally had,the school halls was just that where many hundreds of schools had halls built and there was some waste due to some builders and consultants overcharging .But overall the effect was to pump money into the society to help negate the effects of the GFC. GUESS WHAT IT WORKED! As usual Labor does the heavy lifting and the Liberals(by name only!) cruise and do their typical slash and burn policies. I guess it saddens me but there are a lot of Dummies in Australia with their heads up their own arses!!!
P.S. we are still quant down here in Oz and use leadpencils and paper to vote which ensures that it is very hard to cheat.Electronic voting you have is so suspect, and our results are done in a few hours as well by supervised electoral officials and votes counted with scrutinisers from all parties present. sounds too simple but it's the way to go. BTW GO BLUES!!!!!