Trumpet of patriots Palmer's latest stunt party

[Litespeed]

The world gets nuttier by the day.

 

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/feb/19/clive-palmer-trumpet-of-patriots-ntwnfb

[Grumpy Old Nasho]

50 minutes ago, Litespeed said:

The world gets nuttier by the day.

We already know that, it's nothing new, been like that since the 60s, through to the present day.

[Marty_d]

What an idiot.

[old man emu]

1 minute ago, Marty_d said:

What an idiot.

A fool and his money are soon Partied.

[Marty_d]

I can understand that having billions would put you out of touch with the ordinary person, but for a lot it seems to drive them batshit.   Clive and Gina have come out with some truly insane stuff.  Mike Cannon-Brooks seems ok at the moment but give him time.

[onetrack]

Clive doesn't need a Golden Lion blowing a Golden Trumpet, he can blow his own trumpet pretty loudly, on a regular, and nauseating basis. I'm hoping Gabriel blows a trumpet for Clive pretty soon, I don't know how such a grotesquely obese turd can live so long!

He's certainly a Gold Worshipper, just like Trump! "More Gold for Clive", should be his Party motto!

[facthunter]

Clive is consistently BAT$#!t Crazy. . I hope the fire ants get him.. His adds make Rupee rich.. Nev

[facthunter]

He tried to buy Pauleen's party for 8 mill but SHE wanted the Be the Lifetime president.  Clive is going to mimic Trump. You couldn't make up this stuff.. That's stealing Dutton's thunder Boo Hoo..   Nev

[Grumpy Old Nasho]

That was a big surprise, who expected that in Australia? A far right party to counter the far left policies of Labor, providing balance in the political arena. The scales are leveling out, at last. 

[octave]

16 minutes ago, Grumpy Old Nasho said:

A far right party to counter the far left policies of Labor, providing balance in the political arena.

What exactly do you consider the far-left policies of today? Can you give examples?  Do you believe today's government is further left than the Whitlam government? Please be specific.

[Grumpy Old Nasho]

Labor is by nature leftwing, but they've gone even further to the left with their "Progressive Humanism" policies, evolving into "politically correct" socialist censorship commissars. Backed up by the Coalition who see votes in aspects of the Labor party's socialist policies, like no need to integrate multiculturalism, and undemocratic mass indiscriminate, non discriminatory immigration. 

 

What is the obvious conclusion of leftwing philosophy if it's given free rein? It's a type of communism that we end up thinking is normal by the time it comes around. We already think their current far left socialist policies are normal, they have crept up on us, starting in Whitlam's time.

 

Nature is now providing a balance to this all this far left socialist policy making. The far right is fighting back. You should be grateful for the balance the human mind endows us with. There are two cerebral hemispheres to every brain, not just one. One is leftwing, and one is rightwing. If one becomes too dominate, the other will tell you, "Hey wait a minute". 

[Jerry_Atrick]

What a load of tosh

 

[octave]

12 minutes ago, Grumpy Old Nasho said:

Labor is by nature leftwing, but they've gone even further to the left with their "Progressive Humanism" policies, evolving into "politically correct" socialist censorship commissars.

As usual, this is pretty vague. What specific policies or pieces of legislation are you referring to?  How do these policies negatively impact on your day-to-day life?

[old man emu]

2 hours ago, Grumpy Old Nasho said:

communism

Define "communism".

 

I doubt if you know what the term actually means. 

[Jerry_Atrick]

First of all, the far right is not fighting back. If you think about the people who tend to gravitate to the far right, it is because the progressive governments have sort of "failed" and properly implementing their progressive policies. Most of the people who gravitate to the far right are usually of the lower socio-economic demographic with not much prospects for the future. Progressive policies are not hand outs to immigration, etc.

 

Let's look at some of those right wing agendas that seem to give GON a warm, fuzzy feeling.

• Immigration. Australia had a conservative government from 2009 to 2022. Take a look at this net migration graph for Australia: https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SM.POP.NETM?locations=AU Notive anything unusual? Net migration came down in the first year and then steeply climbed back up. In fact, the conservative government actively promoted met migration on those 412 (or whatever they were) visas, which were designed to allow unskilled workers into the country and drive down wages (and the tax take as a result to provide things like services you rely 0n). There is a sharp drop towards the end of their reign thanks to the lock down of the country. Despite the claimed meteroric rise under Albo, it was a backlog lof already approved migrants that came once the doors openeed. In the time since, it has stabilised at levels well below that of the cconservative. But, the right wing are against migrationj, right? Nope they aren't; they actively pursued policies that would allow unskileld cheap labour in, while blocking high end professionals.
• The economy: Have a look at ths graph: https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.KD.ZG?locations=AU. Australia's economy has been in decline for some time, but during the Conservative's reign the median declined steepened despite a sustained resources boom that should have led to a steep increase in the economic activity of the country. There was a steep decline during covid, followed by a bounce back. Now, despite global headwinds and a cost of living crisis, those darned lefties with their socialist and communist agendas (although you haven't yet given and concrete examples of what they are), preiding over a higher level of output than pre-covid, despite a slight reversal after the initial bounce from coming out of Covid. 
• Those horrible taxes: The Australian Tax to GDP ratio has not changed much since 2000. But there was a noticeable drop in 2007.: https://www.oecd.org/content/dam/oecd/en/topics/policy-sub-issues/global-tax-revenues/revenue-statistics-australia.pdf. Remind me who was in government in 2007? I'll save you looking it up.. It was Kevin Rudd. Yeah, another leftie communist massive increase in taxes to supoort their woke agenda. It has had a slight increase lately, but someone has to pay for the debt, right.
• Money Managers: https://www.ceicdata.com/en/indicator/australia/national-government-debt. Aggain, those pesky lefties... the national debt kept on climbing at an increasing rate since 2013 (and what is to show for it), until COVID, when it spiked, and yeah you can't blame them for that.. but their coorproate welfare handouts and other wastage certainly didn't help. And now, those pesky lefties have started to get a grip on it and have started nrining it down.

 

@Grumpy Old NashoNothing you say adds up to a left wing agenda - in fact, you have been hoodwinked - like most of the population by listening to sound bytes from a MSM media hell bent in getting governments that do their advertisers' bidding and stuff you..

 

The old adage is that you should be careful what you ask for - you may get it. I would counsel you to take heed of that adage.

[onetrack]

Whitlam must have had a serious about turn to the Far Right, then - because he cancelled conscription, and gave GON the freedom from those Commo Govt decisions to conscript him against his will!?

 

Oh hang on, wait a minute - conscription was introduced by the hard right wing Menzies Govt! - and continuing hard right wing Liberal Govts kept up conscription! I'm really getting confused here, over who is more likely to take my personal freedom away from me!? - a Leftie Govt, or a right wing Liberal Govt??  

[Marty_d]

7 hours ago, Grumpy Old Nasho said:

That was a big surprise, who expected that in Australia? A far right party to counter the far left policies of Labor, providing balance in the political arena. The scales are leveling out, at last. 

You truly are off the rails.

Labor has been lurching to the right in a misguided attempt to get coalition votes by acting just like them.

Look at their treatment of asylum seekers (which you must love).  Still sending them anywhere else but here.

Yet somehow you see them as far left.

Face it mate - the vast majority of bad policy comes from the right wing.

You may want to live in a fascist state or a kleptocracy, both of which the USA is becoming, but I don't.

[rgmwa]

Where is the evidence that this equilibrium and balance that you talk about actually exists to either produce some kind of middle ground or cancel each other out? It seems to me to be just an abstract, meaningless concept. 

[facthunter]

Clive Palmer treats his workers like $#!t. He's a Crook.  Nev

[Grumpy Old Nasho]

13 hours ago, rgmwa said:

Where is the evidence that this equilibrium and balance that you talk about actually exists to either produce some kind of middle ground or cancel each other out? It seems to me to be just an abstract, meaningless concept. 

It's all about eliminating extremes. Given that there will always be left and right, why not keep the gap narrow between the two? At present, they are miles apart and prone to engage in ugly verbal stoushes and potential violence. New laws are coming into being for just those, when all they have to do is narrow the political divide by taking steps to reduce the number of politically disenfranchised constituents. This can be done by listening and acting on their complaints instead of pounding them into the ground. A typical far right constituent would more than likely be quietened if only a quarter of what they're asking for is met. The left would need to concede some political territory - give and take.

 

Our problem is a lack of democracy, our democracy is the reserve of the strongest, with the most money, and now made worse by public funding changes that apparently favor the major parties, the very same parties who designed these new funding rules. We are going backwards, instead of moving forward by including everyone in the the democratic process. The amount of money a political party receives shouldn't be the determining factor for who is listened to, and who is reviled. Everyone needs to be listened to, and complaints acted upon in a positive and unselfish manner.

[octave]

28 minutes ago, Grumpy Old Nasho said:

It's all about eliminating extremes.

 

Once again Grumpy you make this vague sweeping assertion that we are living in some left-wing hellscape but you don't give practical examples.  I would suggest that our present government is pretty centre. Give us clear practical examples of left-wing legislation.  

[Grumpy Old Nasho]

18 hours ago, onetrack said:

Whitlam must have had a serious about turn to the Far Right, then - because he cancelled conscription, and gave GON the freedom from those Commo Govt decisions to conscript him against his will!?

 

Oh hang on, wait a minute - conscription was introduced by the hard right wing Menzies Govt! - and continuing hard right wing Liberal Govts kept up conscription! I'm really getting confused here, over who is more likely to take my personal freedom away from me!? - a Leftie Govt, or a right wing Liberal Govt??  

Menzies & Co were still fighting WW2, I reasoned much later when I'd put a few more years on. My mum and dad were the same. Menzies read the oldies right, but failed to read the 20y/olds right. We were cannon fodder and numbers, you should remember that. I was out before Whitlam come in, but even then, I sensed that his govt was too extreme, how long did he last? Frazer was another extremist before softening, but he softened the wrong way, he really didn't know what he was doing, he tried to side with Whitlam's policies, and got turfed out. They were moving to the left inexorably, with that union thug Hawke telling us all to shut up while he pretended to appease the business sector. The business sector fell in line with the new "Progressive Humanist" philosophy, as did the media. He wasn't a Rhode Scholar for nothing.

[Grumpy Old Nasho]

5 minutes ago, octave said:

 

Once again Grumpy you make this vague sweeping assertion that we are living in some left-wing hellscape but you don't give practical examples.  I would suggest that our present government is pretty centre. Give us clear practical examples of left-wing legislation.  

Taking a neutral stance would help to understand what I'm saying. Stand back and look at the whole picture.

 

For one thing, ask yourself why there is a bipartisan policy on immigration that cuts out all conversations on the subject. We can talk till we're blue in the face, but nothing changes, much to the frustration of those who speak in a reasonable and an intelligent way, expressing concern for the problems that mass non discriminatory immigration causes. What is mass immigration for anyway? For more tax income? To fill all the habitable land right up? No one seems to know. Can you offer a sensible reason, or would you say "It's just what the major parties want, and therefore we shouldn't interfere".

[octave]

9 minutes ago, Grumpy Old Nasho said:

For one thing, ask yourself why there is a bipartisan policy on immigration that cuts out all conversations on the subject.

Is it bipartisan?    I think whilst there are areas of agreement there are many differences. You know I think a lot of what you say is imagined or exaggerated. Perhaps this is why is "grumpy"

 

 

Australian immigration policy has historically had elements of bipartisan support, but there are significant areas of disagreement between the major political parties—primarily the Liberal-National Coalition (center-right) and the Australian Labor Party (ALP) (center-left).

Bipartisan Aspects

There is general agreement on:
✅ Skilled Migration: Both major parties recognize the importance of skilled migration to support economic growth and address labor shortages.
✅ Family and Humanitarian Visas: Both parties support a mix of family reunification and humanitarian intakes, though they may differ on numbers and processing priorities.
✅ Border Security: Both support strong border protection, particularly against unauthorized boat arrivals. The policy of offshore processing for asylum seekers began under a Labor government and was later expanded by the Coalition.

Areas of Disagreement

🔴 Asylum Seekers & Refugees:

• The Coalition has taken a hardline stance, including policies like "Operation Sovereign Borders" and indefinite offshore detention.
• Labor has supported offshore processing but has at times proposed a more humane approach, such as increased refugee resettlement.

🔴 Migration Caps & Temporary Visas:

• The Coalition has historically favored temporary visas (e.g., for skilled workers and international students) over permanent migration.
• Labor tends to prioritize permanent residency pathways and is more open to increasing the permanent migration cap.

🔴 Citizenship & Pathways to PR:

• The Coalition has tried to make citizenship harder to obtain (e.g., tougher language and residency tests).
• Labor has generally opposed such restrictions and supports easier pathways for long-term visa holders.

 

 

Current Trends (2024-2025)

Under the Albanese Labor government, there have been policy shifts, such as reducing the reliance on temporary visas and reviewing Australia's migration strategy. However, bipartisan agreement remains strong on border security and the need for skilled migration.

Would you like insights on any specific aspect of immigration policy?

 

 

 

 

 

Edited 7 hours ago by octave

[rgmwa]

1 hour ago, Grumpy Old Nasho said:

It's all about eliminating extremes. Given that there will always be left and right, why not keep the gap narrow between the two? 

That is why we have a democracy. Most people are middle of the road and vote that way. That’s why someone like Pauline Hansen is not running the country even though she has a seat in Parliament. That’s also why we currently have so many independents. The gap between extremists will never be narrow because if it was they wouldn’t be extremists.