Newspoll hands Gillard more bad news

[mellie]

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/nationa ... 6567758147

[ramrod]

Gillard says: "It's all a conspiracy bwahaaaaaaaa. Timmy where's my tampys!"

[mellie]

Timpon even?

[Rorschach]

Nappy-wearing leakers in Labor's nanny state
* by: TIM BLAIR
* From: The Daily Telegraph
* February 10, 2013 7:09PM

PRIME Minister Julia Gillard recently warned Labor's caucus to stop leaking to journalists. Naturally, this was immediately leaked to journalists. The speed and accuracy of Labor's apparatus for leaking is truly something to behold.

There's no actual government Department of Leakage, which is probably one reason why it's so brilliantly efficient. Add the usual layers of bureaucracy and officialdom to the current system and it would be months before anyone learned about Julia's latest outburst. And the information would be wrong.

Compare Labor's world-class leakage delivery service with, say, the Department of Education. A couple of weeks ago Education Minister Peter Garrett claimed the government scheme to provide high school students with laptop computers had been "delivered on time and within budget". OMG.... on time and within budget, on time and as promised.... the lies just keep a comin'

As the excellent website Catallaxy Files pointed out, by "within budget" Garrett meant 957,805 laptops had been bought at a cost of $2.4 billion - or $2505 per unit, about four times as much as you'll pay at Harvey Norman.

That's Labor efficiency for you. By contrast, this government leaks like Osama bin Laden's head, and all for a taxpayer outlay of absolutely nothing. The only cost-effective unit within the ALP is the one bringing down the ALP.

Canberra sets an enviable standard for leakage, and it isn't limited to government.

Earlier this month a car was observed performing burnouts in a Canberra suburb.

Police were at a loss to track down the offender, until he obligingly leaked video of the stunt to his own Facebook page. He faces court next month. Someone give that bloke a cabinet post. He's evidently well-qualified, and his future licence-free status will be covered by the provision of a government vehicle and driver.

Leaks are a continual source of governmental problems. For the rest of us the problem is government itself. yep While Labor has been in self-destruct mode for the past two years, it has also managed to pass reams of meddlesome legislation.

According to the Institute of Public Affairs, in 2012 the Gillard government passed the second-most pages of legislation in Australia's history, meaning that each and every citizen is now subject to more than 100,000 pages of federal law. Anyone who doubts the crushing effect of these rules should try opening a business.

The website of Labor's Anthony Albanese boasts: "As of December 2011 the government had passed 254 bills through the parliament compared to just 108 bills in the first year of the Howard government." The numbers are bad enough, but consider the shambolic, leak-prone, dollar-tossing outfit responsible for all of these bills. With this government, passing legislation is a like a drunk driver surviving the trip home. Instead of celebrating the outcome, we should gasp at the risk. And at the smothering of initiative beneath tonnes of regulation.

Eighteenth century essayists John Trenchard and Thomas Gordon once wrote: "The privileges of thinking, saying, and doing what we please, and of growing rich as we can, without any other restriction, other than that by all this we hurt not the public, nor one another, are the glorious privileges of liberty." Bill by bill, we're losing those privileges to a government that, as John Stuart Mill said, has a "taste for making others submit to a way of life which one thinks more useful to them than they do themselves".

(Both of those quotes are from Niall Ferguson's The Great Degeneration, by the way, which in its study of European and US economic decline has more than a few warnings for us in Australia.)

If a Coalition government is elected on September 14, as seems likely, Prime Minister Tony Abbott should make it his business to make things easier for business. Labor's leakage technique could serve as his guide: minimal paperwork, no administrative complexities, quick results. For once, government is showing the private sector how to slash through the red tape.

Abbott's critics are demanding the Coalition supply costings for its various proposed policies. They're looking at the wrong side of the ledger. Abbott should instead supply the amounts his government will save by cutting existing policies and reducing our legislative load.

We'll know the next government is on the correct course when it boasts not of passing hundreds of bills through government but of striking hundreds of bills aside. Rather than look to the usual measures of how a government is performing, how about we take those 100,000 pages of Australian rules as a guide with the aim being to reduce them every year.

Should need be, the Coalition might even appoint some Labor leakers to get the job done. Those guys don't mess around.We can read about it next day with no need for a government press department.

[Super Nova]

Surely this must look bad. Out of 450 promised only 14 have been placed.

Gillard's school plan a costly failure
A $16 million federal Labor commitment to stem the shortage of maths and science teachers by fast-tracking bankers, accountants and engineers into classrooms has been an expensive failure with just 14 participants recruited.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced the Teach Next scheme during the 2010 election, promising that Labor would recruit 450 mid-career professionals into teaching over four years.

Teach Next was supposed to play an important role in addressing teacher shortages in regional and hard to staff schools and reduce the number of teachers teaching outside their subject areas.

However just 14 participants have been placed in schools after two intakes and every state and territory except for Victoria and the ACT has either not participated at all in the scheme or pulled out.

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/politi ... z2KrQOFz5A

[AnimalMother]

Surely this must look bad. Out of 450 promised only 14 have been placed.

Gillard's school plan a costly failure
A $16 million federal Labor commitment to stem the shortage of maths and science teachers by fast-tracking bankers, accountants and engineers into classrooms has been an expensive failure with just 14 participants recruited.

Considering that most of those in such professions are men, this isn't surprising.

With the feminist-supported media campaign of portraying all men as potential paedophiles, and the disastrous consequences for men of false accusations - few males will be willing to take jobs as teachers.

The entire community will suffer as a result, for many years into the future. The Gillard government has contributed to this problem.

[Black Orchid]

Why would Bankers, Engineers and Accountants want to take a significant reduction in pay to teach a bunch of adolescents in a classroom?

It was a ridiculous idea. They would be better off recruiting and enticing school leavers to want to enter a teaching profession. Build them up from there. Same with nurses and young people wanting to enter trades. It's very hard for young people to enter an apprenticeship now yet the government continually brings in overseas workers to fill the gaps.

They have it ass backwards. They always have and always will.

[Super Nova]

Considering that most of those in such professions are men, this isn't surprising.

With the feminist-supported media campaign of portraying all men as potential paedophiles, and the disastrous consequences for men of false accusations - few males will be willing to take jobs as teachers.

The entire community will suffer as a result, for many years into the future. The Gillard government has contributed to this problem.

That is just a terrible position men find themselves in. I can understand this fear. I would never have such a job and I will never be left alone these days, unless really necessary with other parents kids. Even if you are innocent, just one accusation sticks to you for the rest of your life, even when false.

I don't know if paedohilia is on the increase, I suspect not but the Jim Savell case here in the UK has high profile celebs running for cover everywhere. Some Corination Street actor, been on it for 30 years was charged today. (don't remember his name, it's a shit show, hated it from the moent I saw it years ago as a kid)

Do you really think a feminist-supported media campaign is trying to portraying all men as potential paedophiles?

I have not seen this in the UK.

[Super Nova]

Why would Bankers, Engineers and Accountants want to take a significant reduction in pay to teach a bunch of adolescents in a classroom?

It was a ridiculous idea. They would be better off recruiting and enticing school leavers to want to enter a teaching profession. Build them up from there. Same with nurses and young people wanting to enter trades. It's very hard for young people to enter an apprenticeship now yet the government continually brings in overseas workers to fill the gaps.

They have it ass backwards. They always have and always will.

I guess you would consider it if you were crap at your job, couldn't get a real job and this would be a good back stop.

Remember the golden rule, if you aren't good enough to do it, apply your skill in industry where someone is prepared to pay good money for it, then teach it. (there are some who are perfect teachers)

[Black Orchid]

(there are some who are perfect teachers)

Whilst this is true there are many who aren't. Far from it in fact.

I just can't see how perfect teachers could be pulled from other better paid professions. Teachers need to be passionate about teaching for them to succeed. They know what to expect and really want to walk that road. A perfect teacher would be unlikely to be found in someone who had chosen another career path but resorted to teaching as a second to last choice due some some idiotic government initiative.