Comments on: Telstra’s too cool broadband bid http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/12/16/telstras-too-cool-broadband-bid/ now with extra source Sat, 11 Feb 2012 22:03:37 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Venise Alstergren http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/12/16/telstras-too-cool-broadband-bid/#comment-1172 Venise Alstergren Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-1172 You may call me a conspiracy theorist-and in this case I plead guilty. I believe the whole sorry deal was brought about by Stephen Conroy and his interference in, and the desire to have censorship of the Internet. I may not be able to give an iron-clad case to prove my point. A lot of my evidence could be called circumstantial. But I am prepared, Bernard, to shout you the mother of all dinners (don't charge me for you partner too) at your favorite Canberra eatery, if ever it is proved that I'm wrong. <br />The wish to have censorship of the Internet-always for the sake of our children, of course-. by both Senator Conroy, and PM Kevin Rudd; the fact that both Senator Conroy and our beloved Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd MP, Prime Minister, are both religious fundamentalists who see nothing wrong in imposing their religious beliefs onto a Secular State, Australia are merely the latest link in the chain of evidence.<br />In the comment I wrote to Bob Gosford, I draw a parallel going from the late, unlamented Bartholomew Santamaria; the ex-Senator from Tasmania, Brian Harradine; the ex-minister for health in the Liberal, John Howard, government Tony Abbott, the behaviour of Stephen Conroy, Labor MP; and the God-bothering Labor Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, and drew what seemed to be a fairly persuasive argument.<br />If you can prove that no such parallel could be drawn, I will a) Grovel. b) As I said above there is a meal in it for you. Only for you, I don't see that I shout your partner a free meal. And I don't think you should go to the most expensive eatery in Canberra, just a place where you think the food is v acceptable. I will send you my credit-card number, when and if you prove I'm wrong-to my satisfaction.<br /><br />Cheers<br /><br />Venise You may call me a conspiracy theorist-and in this case I plead guilty. I believe the whole sorry deal was brought about by Stephen Conroy and his interference in, and the desire to have censorship of the Internet. I may not be able to give an iron-clad case to prove my point. A lot of my evidence could be called circumstantial. But I am prepared, Bernard, to shout you the mother of all dinners (don’t charge me for you partner too) at your favorite Canberra eatery, if ever it is proved that I’m wrong.
The wish to have censorship of the Internet-always for the sake of our children, of course-. by both Senator Conroy, and PM Kevin Rudd; the fact that both Senator Conroy and our beloved Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd MP, Prime Minister, are both religious fundamentalists who see nothing wrong in imposing their religious beliefs onto a Secular State, Australia are merely the latest link in the chain of evidence.
In the comment I wrote to Bob Gosford, I draw a parallel going from the late, unlamented Bartholomew Santamaria; the ex-Senator from Tasmania, Brian Harradine; the ex-minister for health in the Liberal, John Howard, government Tony Abbott, the behaviour of Stephen Conroy, Labor MP; and the God-bothering Labor Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, and drew what seemed to be a fairly persuasive argument.
If you can prove that no such parallel could be drawn, I will a) Grovel. b) As I said above there is a meal in it for you. Only for you, I don’t see that I shout your partner a free meal. And I don’t think you should go to the most expensive eatery in Canberra, just a place where you think the food is v acceptable. I will send you my credit-card number, when and if you prove I’m wrong-to my satisfaction.

Cheers

Venise

]]> By: mikey http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/12/16/telstras-too-cool-broadband-bid/#comment-1173 mikey Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-1173 Simply more proof of the inadequacy and political expediency of the decentralising of the peak telco. Services and infrastructure should have been split as part of the privatisation. Competition is severly hamstrung by Telstras monopoly of infrastructure hardware, this has grave implications for this tender process. Simply more proof of the inadequacy and political expediency of the decentralising of the peak telco. Services and infrastructure should have been split as part of the privatisation. Competition is severly hamstrung by Telstras monopoly of infrastructure hardware, this has grave implications for this tender process.

]]> By: Roger http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/12/16/telstras-too-cool-broadband-bid/#comment-1174 Roger Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-1174 I suspect the real reason that Telstra did not submit a correct tender bid is because it would have, by comparison with other bidders, exposed their management incompetence.<br /><br />Roger I suspect the real reason that Telstra did not submit a correct tender bid is because it would have, by comparison with other bidders, exposed their management incompetence.

Roger

]]> By: Chris Johnson http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/12/16/telstras-too-cool-broadband-bid/#comment-1175 Chris Johnson Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-1175 Could Telstra have shafted its bid because it didn’t want to participate in a project it deemed was stuffed and over-priced back in the heady old days of Howard. All when Telstra set a course of working against the government and not with it - to put it more bluntly when it thought greater profits could be made from the mistakes of federal policy than under it. No wonder Minchin feels sorry for Conroy. Telstra is a renegade player submitting incomplete bids for major communications projects, without prior market disclosure and after the deadline. Was it a last minute decision to ask Conroy for extended time to include its SME plan after the closing date or did it just get late advice that it should? In other words the communications giant must have known its original offer was flawed when it submitted it. And that makes the $13.4 million paid to Sol Trujillo the worst investment the Telstra board ever made. Could Telstra have shafted its bid because it didn’t want to participate in a project it deemed was stuffed and over-priced back in the heady old days of Howard. All when Telstra set a course of working against the government and not with it - to put it more bluntly when it thought greater profits could be made from the mistakes of federal policy than under it. No wonder Minchin feels sorry for Conroy. Telstra is a renegade player submitting incomplete bids for major communications projects, without prior market disclosure and after the deadline. Was it a last minute decision to ask Conroy for extended time to include its SME plan after the closing date or did it just get late advice that it should? In other words the communications giant must have known its original offer was flawed when it submitted it. And that makes the $13.4 million paid to Sol Trujillo the worst investment the Telstra board ever made.

]]> By: JamesK http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/12/16/telstras-too-cool-broadband-bid/#comment-1176 JamesK Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-1176 Well to be fair..... The Coalition had very strained relations with Telstra whilst they were in government and I seemed to recall Conroy and co making equally silly assertions to those Minchin is making now.<br /><br />I have to say that Minchin in opposition is patently a pale shadow of the performer as Finance Minister. Having said that Tanner has a much larger public profile now than Minchin had in the same office and Tanner impresses greatly. Well to be fair….. The Coalition had very strained relations with Telstra whilst they were in government and I seemed to recall Conroy and co making equally silly assertions to those Minchin is making now.

I have to say that Minchin in opposition is patently a pale shadow of the performer as Finance Minister. Having said that Tanner has a much larger public profile now than Minchin had in the same office and Tanner impresses greatly.

]]> By: Alex http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/12/16/telstras-too-cool-broadband-bid/#comment-1177 Alex Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-1177 Completely agree with you Bernard. I'm stunned by how arrogant Telstra has become. Seems that arrogance has turned to hubris and they are rightfully being chucked out of the process. <br /><br />Nick Minchin, what a disgrace. If anyone has the time and the stomach you should check out his website http://www.liberal.org.au/Shadow%20Ministry/Nick%20Minchin/ which is basically one pro-Telstra press release after another. They should call him the Minister for Telstra. How can our politicians be so blatantly biased with no care for the facts and what is good for the country or for democracy. Completely agree with you Bernard. I’m stunned by how arrogant Telstra has become. Seems that arrogance has turned to hubris and they are rightfully being chucked out of the process.

Nick Minchin, what a disgrace. If anyone has the time and the stomach you should check out his website http://www.liberal.org.au/Shadow%20Ministry/Nick%20Minchin/ which is basically one pro-Telstra press release after another. They should call him the Minister for Telstra. How can our politicians be so blatantly biased with no care for the facts and what is good for the country or for democracy.

]]> By: hando http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/12/16/telstras-too-cool-broadband-bid/#comment-1178 hando Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-1178 Sol may be a prick but he's not dumb<br />Consider.<br />We tie the building ot nbn up with court challenges ad infinitum .<br /> While this is going on we must continue to "move forward" so we roll out our own ell cheapo high speed net work using whatever we can cobble together from the old fibre optic and copper set ups, to all the major population centers[dont forget Aust has the most urban based population of any developed county] and we clean up. Stuff the bush. Stuff the remote areas. let the market rule Sol may be a prick but he’s not dumb
Consider.
We tie the building ot nbn up with court challenges ad infinitum .
While this is going on we must continue to “move forward” so we roll out our own ell cheapo high speed net work using whatever we can cobble together from the old fibre optic and copper set ups, to all the major population centers[dont forget Aust has the most urban based population of any developed county] and we clean up. Stuff the bush. Stuff the remote areas. let the market rule

]]> By: arty http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/12/16/telstras-too-cool-broadband-bid/#comment-1179 arty Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-1179 Looks like standard monopoly strategy.<br /><br />Don't submit a complying tender.<br /><br />Get the Chairman to tell the world that Dolly did it, and the dog ate the missing part of the tender.<br /><br />Then challenge the rejection in the Courts.<br /><br />Keep challenging everything and anything.<br /><br />Delay the project start for years.<br /><br />.... and the winner is --- Telstra.<br /><br />Why am I not surprised? Looks like standard monopoly strategy.

Don’t submit a complying tender.

Get the Chairman to tell the world that Dolly did it, and the dog ate the missing part of the tender.

Then challenge the rejection in the Courts.

Keep challenging everything and anything.

Delay the project start for years.

…. and the winner is — - Telstra.

Why am I not surprised?

]]> By: Ev http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/12/16/telstras-too-cool-broadband-bid/#comment-1180 Ev Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-1180 JamesK, well done. Thanks for some genuinely insightful comments. Must be some Christmas cheer creeping into your life?<br /> JamesK, well done. Thanks for some genuinely insightful comments. Must be some Christmas cheer creeping into your life?

]]> By: Richard McGuire http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/12/16/telstras-too-cool-broadband-bid/#comment-1181 Richard McGuire Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-1181 Posession being nine tenths of the law, Telstra will not be outside the tent for long. To build a broadband network any successful bidder will need access to Telstra's infrastructure, unless they intend to hang their cable off power poles, as happened with cable TV. The great Telstra privatisation experiment is getting interesting. Don't miss the next exciting episode. Be careful the chickens don't poop on you as they come home to roost. Posession being nine tenths of the law, Telstra will not be outside the tent for long. To build a broadband network any successful bidder will need access to Telstra’s infrastructure, unless they intend to hang their cable off power poles, as happened with cable TV. The great Telstra privatisation experiment is getting interesting. Don’t miss the next exciting episode. Be careful the chickens don’t poop on you as they come home to roost.

]]> By: Venise Alstergren http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/12/16/telstras-too-cool-broadband-bid/#comment-1182 Venise Alstergren Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-1182 Bernard,<br />Oh well, at least I offered.<br /><br />Cheers<br /><br />V. Bernard,
Oh well, at least I offered.

Cheers

V.

]]> By: Bernard Keane http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/12/16/telstras-too-cool-broadband-bid/#comment-1183 Bernard Keane Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-1183 Venise, as much as I enjoy a good conspiracy theory, I put the onus (LOL, sounds like, you know, something rude) on you to back it up, as appealing as the mother of all dinners sounds.<br /><br />Nevertheless, thank you for your season's greetings the other day, they are heartily reciproc... recipor.... um, returned. Venise, as much as I enjoy a good conspiracy theory, I put the onus (LOL, sounds like, you know, something rude) on you to back it up, as appealing as the mother of all dinners sounds.

Nevertheless, thank you for your season’s greetings the other day, they are heartily reciproc… recipor…. um, returned.

]]>