One thing that the world of Twitter has taught me is that, if the Liberal Party is a very broad church, as someone or other is always saying, the Left is simply a place without walls or windows or doors. It is bound by nothing. But it took Twitter to make this clear.

If you’ve followed politics throughout your life, as I have, then you will know about how things have ‘developed’.

I became interested in politics as a young Adelaidean during the 1972 ‘It’s Time’ campaign. I hadn’t realised that my parents were Liberal Party voters until they cheered on Fraser’s crimes against democracy in 1975. This made me start to realise my sense of "right and wrong" was separate to theirs. Each of us 'individuates' like this or, at least, we damned-well should.

Constitutional crisis?

That was a week, that was. Question, Mr Speaker: If the lying, cheating, rorting, corrupt, secretive, racist, child-molesting, rapist, murderous, incompetent, hypocritical (and I use these words advisedly) buffoons in Canberra offer you a "referendum or a plebiscite?", do you reply "please sir, I want some more?" or is it a Constitutional crisis?

Change of State Boundaries - Really?

Again we have talk of new States in Australia, as key people in the Northern Territory raise arguments for statehood.

On Friday 20 March, 2015 Australia lost an important voice. The voice of Malcolm Fraser. Here is a personal account of this moment.

Looking back: the siege mentality

Coming events

Early September, I knew the Sydney siege was on the agenda; I just didn’t know what it would look like or where or when it would happen. But Abbott appeared to be promoting a siege mentality (for his own reasons) and for me, this sort of thinking usually leads to nasty outcomes.

A more personal reflection of the Whitlam days and other similar irrelevancies

Here is a personal note by an old leftie looking back on Whitlam's 3 big years from Remembrance Day 11th of the 11th 2014

Looking back: Anzac Day marches in a small country town

For the first few years of my life, watching Anzac Day marches each year in the small country town of my birth, I was convinced they ended every public statement of honour and respect for the Diggers with the declaration:

“We will remember them (unless we forget)!”

Broad overview of evaluations via MSM & Social Media

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V

There are at least 100 things to take a look at at this point in the cycle.

Introduction

Abbott's mandate? Yes or No

We are suddenly in new unknown territory with "passage of the money bills by the Upper House" uncertain.

A useful overview of current state of play from Latika Bourke  where Abbott asks Clive Palmer to respect his mandate: