And the nominees are … too many to fit into a headline
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Craig Thomson. Well, that’s done then. And yet, there’s so much more this week. We strongly advise you suck down some anti-nausea tablets before reading on … 2GB broadcaster Alan “this is the most disgraceful thing that has ever been done to democracy” Jones’ assertion that the Convoy of No Confidence had been blocked at the ACT border — a statement utterly rejected by police — and his very public attack on a journalist; Kevin Rudd on the beach, the general shenanigans — actually that word is too kind — in question time; the ALP talking points doing the rounds (see tips and editorial) … We can’t actually write through this. The fatigue is paralysing our typing fingers. So let’s throw to our readers first. Their thoughts this week on who should win top Sideshow honours (drum roll please): The Coalition’s stance on pairings has not impressed:
Neither has Jones’ behaviour:
Just to recap, The Sydney Morning Herald’s Jacqueline Maley wrote her account of being heckled and verbally abused by Jones with the help of the Convoy crowd for daring to ask he had had been paid a fee to attend the rally. Read the full rundown here. It’s stirring stuff. Seems readers are pretty put off by Parliament high jinks (along with the rest of the press gallery):
Then there’s the litany of Craig Thomson related offences:
In short order, the Senator George Brandis’ move to refer the Thomson matter to the police, and Liberal Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells’ inquiries around whether Thomson and fellow MP Darren Cheeseman had revoked their New Zealand citizenship … Hey, it was worth a shot. Meanwhile, on a beach in Queensland … Kevin Rudd is watching the latest season of Mad Men. And Modern Family. And reading Henry Kissinger On China. So News Limited tabloids around the country declared on Sunday. The Sunday Herald Sun even splashed the scoop on the cover, pointing to a two-page spread inside:
There was the former prime minister — “fighting fit” after heart surgery — strolling wistfully along the Noosa foreshore. “Relaxed and self-deprecating,” reporter Renee Viellaris wrote, “Mr Rudd, 53, spent Saturday chatting happily with locals and holidaymakers in Noosa.” Rudd was certainly in fine form. There were jokes about the op — “You’ve got more tubes coming out of you than the NBN network.” — about his new zipper — “I’m basically a single monorail. It [the scar] does [fade] but I’m looking for some Austin Power chest hair to stick on.” — and the cow valve now pumping blood through his healthy heart — “I promise not to ‘moo’ in public.” Then there’s today’s op-ed/talking points/press release from opposition leader Tony Abbott in The Daily Telegraph in which he argues that no one really won the election. There might be a few constitutional lawyers who have something to say about that …
And let’s sup on the tale of two butters to round off this litany of sins against politics, public discourse, democracy and all round decency:
* Each week Sideshow Alley will nominate the latest offerings to the service of dumbing down politics by journalists and/or politicians, and at the end of each month we’ll be asking former finance minister and author of Sideshow Lindsay Tanner to write through his pick of the best/worst example. But we need your help — send your picks to boss@crikey.com.au with “Sideshow Alley” in the subject line or use the #sideshow hashtag on Twitter. |
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11 Comments
How did I miss those fascinating Rudd spreads?! Oh, that’s right, I don’t read newspapers.
So, let’s get this straight: it’s Alan Jones’s word against an official statement by the ACT Police force? No wonder ABC’s ‘Media Watch’ can’t resist him.
By denying Simon Crean a pair they also prevented Malcolm Turnbull from attending Margaret Olley’s memorial service. So Abbott got to give them both one in the eye via his creature Pyne. Isn’t it going to be a lovely time when they become the government and get into some really serious retribution.
A difficult week … so many contenders… so few pills.
Loved the butter stunt …. took me right back to Last Tango in Paris. My goodness they’ve drawn some talent haven’t they?
I have never seen and heard so many losers in the same place.
It’s enough to make a former drunk go back on the grog after 24 years sober.
What goes around, comes around, Abbott. Wait till you need a pair. Hopefully the Labor party will deny it.
The apparent title of this column, sideshow alley, is innapropriate. It denotes that there is a big top somewhere with a real show going on. There isn’t, it’s all sideshow.
Turnbull and Crean should have thumbed their noses at Abbott and gone to Margaret Olley’s funeral anyway, hand in hand if they had to.
What a freaking disgrace, there is no good in this man Abbott whatsoever.
hhmmmm, that should be ‘inappropriate’. Damned fingers.
Abbott said: “”This week marked the first anniversary of the election that no one really won. Julia Gillard was ultimately chosen by the Greens and the independents, not by the people.”
In which case, why did the interviewer not ask how Abbott’s minority govt would have had the legitimacy that Gillard’s lacks?
shepherdmarilyn said:
It’s enough to make this lifelong tee-totaler turn to hard liquor.
DF said:
That’s totally different, and you know it. Because… it just is. :p
Australian journalists seem to spend a good part of their time asking stupid, patronising, repetitive or irrelevant questions, so pardon me for failing to support the Herald reporter, even if it was on one of the occasions when she did not deserve being attacked.
Alan Jones? If that smarmy little weasel came out in favour of apple pies, I would never eat another one.
Can we have the option of “neither of the above” please?
Alan Jones is not a politician and doesn’t sit in parliament and he doesn’t hold a cabinet portfolio, so the fact he gets annoyed by a journalist’s question (which was probably intended to annoy him) is really a bit a side show. The interesting part was Albanese labelling the Convoy participants of ‘no consequence’. I found that more rancorous than anything Jones has to say.