Diary of our stinking opposition

[village_person]

Labor frontbencher Andrew Leigh shifts position on previous support for a GP fee

Labor's shadow assistant treasurer Andrew Leigh was once a strong supporter of a compulsory fee for visits to the doctor - a policy now slammed by the opposition as a “GP tax” that would hurt the community’s most vulnerable.

But in a 2003 Sydney Morning Herald article Dr Leigh, then a PhD student in economics at Harvard University, argued a Medicare co-payment was “hardly a radical idea”.

“As health researchers have shown, cost-less medical care means that people go to the doctor even when they don't need to, driving up the cost for all of us," Dr Leigh and co-author Richard Holden wrote.

“But there's a better way of operating a health system, and the change should hardly hurt at all.

“As economists have shown, the ideal model involves a small co-payment - not enough to put a dent in your weekly budget, but enough to make you think twice before you call the doc."

Dr Leigh argued the fee should be enough to deter “frivolous GP visits”, but not enough to limit genuine preventive care. The fee should apply to everyone, including pensioners, except those who are chronically ill, he wrote.

Dr Leigh, who has opposed the proposal in media appearances over recent weeks, told Fairfax Media: "Since 2003, a lot has changed in the health care system, and I've changed my view on co-payments.

 “A GP co-payment was originally a Hawke government proposal led by Brian Howe, a member of the Left faction,” he said.

“As long as it is applied fairly across the community, a co-payment is a perfectly valid policy measure. If Andrew Leigh, before he had to toe the party line, recognised that then I welcome his contribution to the debate. I respect Andrew Leigh as a sensible economist.”

On Saturday, Dr Leigh, a former professor of economics at the Australian National University, distanced himself from an article he wrote in 2004 supporting fee deregulation for universities – another policy opposed by Labor.

http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/labor-frontbencher-andrew-leigh-shifts-positio...

Yes, it’s the very well respected ALP whey-faced Dr Andrew Leigh who virtually declared his previous books and speeches as mere works of fiction. This brings into sharp focus Dr Leigh's economics degree.

[tezza2844]

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@idlewhile wrote:

Shorten running off at the mouth saying Tony Abbott will increase the GST,  full knowing this is a bare faced lie.

What a disgraceful liar he is, he gives Gillard a run for her money in that dept.

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[icyfroth]

From Craig Kelly's Facebook Page:

Here they go again, as they squeal with faux outrage twisting and contorting Tony Abbott's words on improving Aboriginal welfare, and attempting to paint him as a racist.

But what's "racist" is the professional moralists of the left that are now attacking Tony Abbott, whom are happy to see groups of Aboriginals living in remote communities where there are no jobs, no school...s and no medical care - perpetuating them being trapped in poverty, living in squalor, social isolation and welfare dependent.

To claim it's acceptable to bring children up in this environment, (just because they are of aboriginal descent) denying them opportunity and dooming them to permanent welfare dependency is what is truly racist.

If we are committed to the improvement of Australians of aboriginal descent, to close the gap, as Tony Abbott is as PM (like no PM before) we need to be discussing how to rescue Australian children of Aboriginal descent from these remote unsustainable communities and give them equality of opportunity in education, health care and employment.

But for the moralists and go-gooders, it's more important to bash Tony Abbott than to give opportunity to our most impoverished and disadvantaged.

The best things we can do for these Aussie kids is to not incentivise these unsustainable welfare dependant remote communities.

[icyfroth]

Veteran Wayne Swan should go, says long-time friend Cameron Milner

Wayne Swan's decision to renominate for another term in Parliament has sparked fear amongst his colleagues about his leadership intentions and prompted one long-time supporter to publicly call for the former Treasurer's immediate resignation.

Several Labor insiders have told Fairfax Media they fear Mr Swan is attempting to engineer his own return to the frontbench as well as helping install Tanya Plibersek as leader in the long term.

Labor sources accused Mr Swan and Milton Dick of working to oust long-serving member Bernie Ripoll from his seat of Oxley.

Mr Swan also recently supported former ALP state secretary Anthony Chisholm instead of his long-time friend and Labor strategist Cameron Milner for the Senate vacancy caused by Joe Ludwig's retirement.

Mr Swan confirmed last week that he would be recontesting the Queensland seat of Lilley meaning he would be seeking a total of 24 years in Parliament if successful. He has served as the deputy prime minister and treasurer but became heavily embroiled in the leadership wars between former prime ministers Julia Gillard and Kevin Rudd.

"The hardest thing in politics is knowing when to leave," Mr Milner said.

"Sometimes the decision to move on has also got to be done for the good of the party.

"And that's the case federally with Wayne Swan," he said

Entire Article Here

"Labor MPs who declined to be identified said Mr Swan's continued presence was undermining current Treasury spokesman Chris Bowen's work in restoring the opposition's economic credentials which took a hit when Mr Swan failed to deliver the budget surplus he promised hundreds of times.  "His presence in question time just gives [Liberal Treasurer] Joe Hockey an easy escape," said one MP."

[icyfroth]

THE Anzac legend has been found wanting because it is too militaristic, too white and lacks gender diversity, according to what passes for the intelligentsia in Australia.

On the eve of the 100th anniversary of Gallipoli this week, leftist cultural warriors have been upping the tempo of their attacks on the “Anzac myth”.

■ Historian Joan Beaumont declares Anzac is “the last ­hurrah of the white Australian male”.

■ ABC Radio National presenter David Rutledge claims there are “strong parallels” ­between the Anzacs who left for Gallipoli in 1915 and the ­jihadists who leave Australia today to join ISIS in Iraq and Syria.

■ Marxist historian Humphrey McQueen describes Anzac Day as merely “celebrating slaughter”.

■ Peter Stan­ley, War Memo­rial se­nior his­to­rian-turned Aus­tralian Na­tional Univer­sity academic, declares the Anzac tradition is an “es­sen­tially ­­­­­­min­or­ity in­ter­est” that ex­cludes “non An­glo-Saxon Aus­tralians”.

■ Carolyn Holbrook, a Monash University research fellow, links the “triumphant nationalism of the Anzac myth” with Nazi atrocities and a “belief in the superiority of the British race” in her book Anzac, the Unauthorised Biography, published last year.

■ Another attack tome What’s Wrong with Anzac? The Militarisation of Australian History, edited by historians Marilyn Lake and Henry Reynolds, denigrates the Anzac tradition as a socially divisive “cult”, and “White Australia’s creation myth”.

These insults can be found in historian Dr Mervyn Bendle’s excellent new book Anzac and its Enemies, to be published this week by Quadrant Books. (Disclosure: I sit on the board of Quadrant Magazine).

The former James Cook University senior lecturer has painstaking catalogued the escalating attacks on Anzac over the past century and explained why they have all been such a stunning failure.

Entire Article Here

[cherry*135]

Miranda Devine, Daily Telegraph.. that's enough to push the back button.

oops.. I read a few comments though.

Corey18 hours ago

please your face makes me sick !! please take down your photo

Vitas1 day ago

So this Miranda's faux outrage of the week. Dig around and find something that a small minority of people are saying or doing, then make it out to be a huge movement. Thankfully, no one really pays attention to her

[icyfroth]

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@am*3 wrote:

Miranda Devine, Daily Telegraph.. that's enough to push the back button.

oops.. I read a few comments though.

Corey18 hours ago

please your face makes me sick !! please take down your photo

Vitas1 day ago

So this Miranda's faux outrage of the week. Dig around and find something that a small minority of people are saying or doing, then make it out to be a huge movement. Thankfully, no one really pays attention to her

I guess that's who she's talking about when she says "the so-called intelligentsia of Australia"

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[cherry*135]

Those were  two of the most intelligent (and truthful)  comments.

[cherry*135]

Odd how posters who post C&P's from Bolt or Devine, never show in the opening post that is who wrote the articles. A link in the above post, but have to open it first to see the source of the article.

Are they afraid to admit who wrote the articles?

[pct001wine]

I presume from posting this opinion piece that you agree with the author.

Why is it that the "Anzac legend" is apparently not open to scrutiny ?  Why can't others write their opinions about it without being howled down with the usual epithets ("leftie" etc.) ?

Surely the sign of a mature and confident nation is that differing viewpoints are allowed to be expressed - even about so-called "sensitive" issues like Anzac.

Interestingly enough Ms Devine has taken a tiny snapshot of each author's contribution - possibly taken out of context or at the least misleading - but enough to get the usual suspects baying for blood.

Having differing viewpoints/opinions are healthy - aren't they ?  It's not like they are forcing their views down your throat - if Ms Devine had not publicised them then they probably would have slipped beneath the waves with nary a ripple.

[gleee58]

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@am*3 wrote:

Odd how posters who post C&P's from Bolt or Devine, never show in the opening post that is who wrote the articles. A link in the above post, but have to open it first to see the source of the article.

Are they afraid to admit who wrote the articles?

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And everyone of those who look to see who wrote the article adds to the hit count. 

If we knew the author in advance there would be no need to click on the rubbish writers.