Only in Queensland

Written By: - Date published: 7:22 pm, January 25th, 2015 - 13 comments
Categories: australian politics, climate change, International, making shit up, science, the praiseworthy and the pitiful, you couldn't make this shit up - Tags: ,

From the party that brought you attacks on freedom of expression at the time that Charlie Hebdo’s cartoonists were assassinated because they exercised their right of free speech comes a new low in a political campaign, making shit up.

In particular the Liberal National Party is now alleging that Queensland Labor is being funded by bikie gangs.  From the ABC:

Queensland Premier Campbell Newman said criminal motorcycle gangs were backing Labor because Labor had opposed to the state’s Vicious Lawless Association Disestablishment (VLAD) laws.

At the leaders’ debate on Friday night, Mr Newman suggested “dirty” money from criminal gangs could be financing Labor’s election campaign though its union donors, specifically naming the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU).

What evidence are the Liberals relying on in making this claim?  Well a trade union boss said something nice to gang members a few years ago.

The LNP’s new 40-second advertisement titled “The Labor movement links to bikie gangs” featured Peter Simpson from the Electrical Trade Union (ETU) addressing a rally outside State Parliament, was posted on the LNP’s Facebook and YouTube accounts on Sunday morning.

The advertisement claimed unions were proud associates of bikie gangs, who brought “wads of cash” to support them.

“Some people are a bit nervous about being associated with bikies, I’m proud to say the Electrical Trade Union aren’t,” Mr Simpson said in the video, which was originally posted online in full in 2013.

“So stand tall, do more of this s**t and let’s get out on the streets and show them.”

What is the claim of financial support being based on?  People told Queensland Premier Campbell Newman so.

At a press conference on Sunday, Mr Newman said he was basing his claims on conversations with the general public.

“As I go around the state, people say to me ‘Campbell, we know that the unions and criminal gangs have a close association’,” Mr Newman said on Sunday.

“They’ve seen that and they know that and they also know that bikies are backing the Labor Party and they’re saying to me, ‘be strong’.”

It is a shame that he does not show such a robust approach to climate change policies.  It appears that he is still waiting for absolute proof before committing to doing anything let alone shutting down Queensland’s coal industry.

Campbell Newman you really are a pillock.

Update:  The ETU has issued the following response:

“The Electrical Trades Union has never: –

  1. Received monies from any criminal organisations;
  2. Received monies from any Outlaw Motorcycle Groups;
  3. Received monies from the Liberal National Party;
  4. Received monies from Buddhists;
  5. Received monies from NASA;
  6. Received monies from Soul Pattinson;
  7. Received monies from Newcrest Mining;
  8. Received monies from Acland Coal.

We will not be conducting any further media on this most ridiculous of issues, it is a sign of sheer desperation from an out of touch, out of time Government.

Now that that’s been clarified, let us get back to the job of ensuring that this Government is kicked out on the 31st January 2015.”

13 comments on “Only in Queensland ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. Murray Rawshark 1
    25 January 2015 at 7:50 pm

    Campbell Bjelke-Newman is really, really bad. He has absolute contempt for the law and parliamentary procedure. The LNP stinks of corruption and they have neutered the bodies that investigate it. He reminds me a lot of Simon Bridges. He has the same level of arrogance and the same propensity to bullying behaviour. He makes me think short man syndrome could be a real thing.

  2. Lindsey 2
    25 January 2015 at 9:45 pm

    And here we were, thinking that this kind of stupid is only found in “Red State” America. It is closer than we knew!

  3. les 3
    25 January 2015 at 9:50 pm

    Ex army Major I believe. ‘Little toot’ was chosen as Lib/Nat leader after being Brisbane mayor,even though he had played no role in party politics .His public popularity came about because of his handling of the severe flooding in Queensland a few years back.The comparison with Bjelke -Petersen is apt.Newman and his henchmen practice crony capitalism and love introducing draconian laws based on emotional appeal.Law and order is their favourite platform.Ex army and Police figure prominently in the judiciary as well.Real Police State in the making.

    • Murray Rawshark 3.1
      25 January 2015 at 10:09 pm

      Bjelke-Newman was actually one of the politicians least seen during the 2011 floods. Both Anna Bligh and Kevin Rudd really got stuck in, which was not reflected in the Murdoch Courier Mail, Brisbane’s only newspaper. During his tenure as Lord Mayor, he mainly built tunnels. These lose money and are then sold super cheap to LNP donors.

  4. swordfish 4
    26 January 2015 at 11:56 am

    Queensland State Election = Too Close to Call according to latest Roy Morgan

    In the two-Party-Preferred, the Coalition is just 1 point ahead of the ALP among Queensland voters. And ALP leader Annastacia Palaszczuk leads Campbell Newman by 3 points in the Better Premier ratings.

    All of which probably explains the Coalition’s desperate tactics.

    • tc 4.1
      26 January 2015 at 1:10 pm

      Newman may not even win his own seat so the final week will be a doozy with Murdochs outlets cheering him on by running with this in all likelihood amongst other themes.

  5. greywarshark 5
    26 January 2015 at 12:07 pm

    I like the photo with tongue hanging out. Does he get called ‘Mad Dog’? They seem to have lurched on from Joh Bjelke-Petersen with a right wing stance to the present and not sharpened their political acumen.

    Is it the heat? Does it enervate the body and mind so it’s too much trouble to rouse oneself, or move from one’s air conditioned nest to actually see what’s going on and then think about it all when back in one’s own personal climate controlled nirvana?

    • tc 5.1
      26 January 2015 at 1:18 pm

      As the old tourism slogan became known:
      Queensland, beautiful one day, fascist dictatorship the next.

      State politics is quite the nest of vipers across the flat brown land.

      • greywarshark 5.1.1
        26 January 2015 at 1:50 pm

        tc
        Musing on state politics. I wonder if states which federalise actually can work. As I look at Australia and the USA it’s not impressive. Having autonomy and then being wrapped up with others in a comfort blanket of a country, isn’t that open to the chain being as strong as its weakest link, that the weak, ineffective and corrupt ones drag the rest of the country down.

        The United States isn’t the paragon of Unitedness that we would look to for a template. It’s not the only place with states uniting, and to my mind makes it seem an idea of doubtful worth. There are states within the USA that are execrable. How can others feel proud of their country with such stains on its bib. It considers itself still young and evolving but I think it is spiralling down. Digging a hole to China as we used to say? Now it’s possibly through the whole world.

    • Murray Rawshark 5.2
      26 January 2015 at 3:57 pm

      He gets called Noddy. He runs around everywhere and jumps up and down like the Energiser Bunny. He and his wife grope each other in an unnatural manner at public appearances. It is all quite revolting.

  7. Michael who failed Civics 7
    26 January 2015 at 5:32 pm

    I wonder if Crosbie Textor are on the Queensland Fascists’ payroll? Looks that way.

  8. repateet 8
    26 January 2015 at 8:25 pm

    “… Can you detect the scent of hypocrisy?”

    The scent of hypocrisy? The absolute smell of idiocy.