Is the Senate real? Have you touched it? Have you licked it?
Sure, there’s an edifice, a room draped in a loud, garish red decor but does the institution itself exist? Perhaps more to the point, should it?
These existential puzzles have arisen after four politicians this year – two from the Greens, one from Pauline Hanson’s One Nation and one from Family First have been sent packing. They are persona non grata. If they thought they were senators they now know they were not and their representative careers have been or will soon be stricken from the record.
Section 44 of the Constitution stipulates the following of any person wishing to take a seat in the federal parliament:
Any person who:
(i) is under any acknowledgment of allegiance, obedience, or adherence to a foreign power, or is a subject or a citizen or entitled to the rights or privileges of a subject or a citizen of a foreign power; or
(ii) is attainted of treason, or has been convicted and is under sentence, or subject to be sentenced, for any offence punishable under the law of the Commonwealth or of a State by imprisonment for one year or longer; or
(iii) is an undischarged bankrupt or insolvent; or
(iv) holds any office of profit under the Crown, or any pension payable during the pleasure of the Crown out of any of the revenues of the Commonwealth; or
(v) has any direct or indirect pecuniary interest in any agreement with the Public Service of the Commonwealth otherwise than as a member and in common with the other members of an incorporated company consisting of more than twenty-five persons;
shall be incapable of being chosen or of sitting as a senator or a member of the House of Representatives.
Full column here.
I don’t understand how an adult can become a citizen of another country without signing a piece of witnessed paper..
If he did, he should follow the others out the door
Milton says: July 25, 2017 at 7:38 pm. The figures used come from the ABS and the Live Exporters Corporation. the article goes to on to describe the conditions and reason for the trading variations. But is was already too long of a post to put any further information in. Yes it is very sad people chose to take their own lives. But to continue to run spurious information to justify outcomes is not helpful or healing to anyone in fact it probably prolongs bad situations..
Milton and Boa,
Read my 9.42pm. Explains what happened. Crikeys snalysis was penned for people who do not know what a big wet season is or the difference between store cattle and fat cattle.
Yvonne says: July 25, 2017 at 5:13 pm. They are facts and data from the ABS and the Live Export Corporation. Are you saying they have falsified the numbers? do you have any other setting than blaming the other side and questioning facts because they do not suit your continuous outrage setting? Open your eye.
“Open your eye” New meme from your echo chamber Dismayed?
How cute – you really are amusingly childish.
Now roll out the very predictable “victim” and “obsessed” stuff to make yourself feel really important.
HAHAHAHA. Ever heard of Neuro Linguistic programming? Oh maybe I forgot the “S” or maybe not.??Thank you for proving the cons are always hard done by persecuted According to them that is. HAHAHAHA. Are you taking note? or that notes? HAHAHHA.
This is interesting Dismal…….
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/labors-nbn-triple-the-costs-and-glacial-speeds/news-story/6699c4a288dc2a402efda86cf93153d2
Not interesting at all .It is a rehash of his opinion piece from last week full of false information. You have again been proven wrong and refuse to accept it.
Geoffrey Gurumul Yunupingu has sadly passed away in Darwin at the far too young age of 46. Australia has lost a marvellous talent. Blind from birth, and left handed, he mastered a right handed guitar by playing it upside down. His songs in the Pingu language were the sweet laments of a man who described his world with sounds. Sleep in peace Gurumul. You enriched us.
Vale Gurumul, a wonderful talent. No posts from me today. Day procedure beckons.
Best wishes to you Mr Insider. Cheers.
Best of luck JTI
🙂 hope all goes well Jack
This should not be shown Wissendorf….the family have requested no images.
Go Jack go go go Jack.
And in my enforced viewing of the Today Show, no mention whatsoever. Although we know what happened in Ninja Warrior.
Breakfast television is worse than garbage. I can’t bear it.
Neither can I but I’ll be a hermit if I don’t make an appearance!
Me neither Bella!
I used to watch Virginia Trioli on ABC News Breakfast until Michael Rowland started to channel Karl Stefanovic. Why is it male breakfast presenters need to act like smartarse bogan oafs? Why does the ABC feel the need to chase they same audience who watch the commercial crap?
Today with Steve Liebmann and Tracy Gramshaw looks like a golden age of TV
I think that Michael guy was just an old school nerd who finally came out of his shell and was probably asked to try and at least offer some sort of personality as Virginia has it in spades some days.
Only breakfast TV Bella?
Throw in most news and current affairs shows as well.
He did indeed enrich us mate.
Lovely post too.
Hear hear Wissendorf.
A Yolngu man and a warrior through voice not the spear.
I am currently travelling by vehicle between Townsville and Brisbane and listened to his music today. Another aboriginal man who has died young via kidney and liver problems. A stain on this nation.
May he rest with his ancestors, the original Australians and owners of this land.
Agree Razor…
Regarding a catch-up Penny already in Brisbane so can get a coffee there if you are around.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi has accused the Liberals of reneging
on the USA-Oz refugee deal. He is a fool. It is well known Dutts is a serial liar and anybody who does not carry a tape recorder when speaking with Dutts deserves to cop it. Trump is correct. It is a dud deal. We should look after our own refugees or pull out of the 1951 refugee convention club altogether…at least we will be showing our true colours and not be shamed when we travel the world and are asked why we perpetuate such cruelty. Some of these poor buggers have their wife and kids in Oz and Dutts has decreed they are never to see their families again! SHAME!
Funny there is not even a diary note or email the UNHCR can produce. Ever thought why that is Bassy?
Of course mate TRUST, HONOUR…things totally foreign to Plod Dutts.
We will soon be receiving refugees from South America under the “deal”.
The refugees we are receiving from South America will probably be much more dangerous than the ones we are sending to Trumper……that is if it EVER happens.
The cruelty of our government toward asylum seekers is absolutely shocking & having a bitter ex law-enforcement officer in charge of the fates of even one refugee leaves me deeply ashamed of my own country.
I’m ashamed of the antics of the Greens sometimes Bella. It doesn’t make me love my country any less.
Well good for you Razor.
A hateful ex-cop like Dutton won’t ever speak for me either.
You are blinded by your ideology. You are part of the fear mongering divisive mob.
I remember thinking when Matt Canavan was first elected to the senate – “Is this bloke a Queenslander? Hell, he reminds me of Leonardo da Vinci”.
I actually though he may have been the MONA Lisa Pete tie.
Matt Canavan’s the third Senator in doubt over dual citizenship – http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-07-25/matt-canavan-citizenship-crisis-resigns-from-cabinet/8742702. His mama’s done a Warnie on him and supposedly applied for Italian citizenship on his behalf without his knowledge.
Where’s the screaming outrage from the conservatives here? Aren’t all politicians who hold dual citizenship called ‘frauds’ & worse, then sent packing immediately or is there one rule for Greens & no rules for the Coalition? But what’s new really.
Please don’t give me that bullshit defense about a grown man who didn’t have to SIGN ANYTHING to become an Italian citizen & worse, let his poor mum wear the fallout.
If the Judge rules in Canavan’s favour, it must follow that Scott & Larissa are given the same deal and reinstated.
Bella,
You are raving about this. Read what happened in all three cases. There is a difference.
Do you actually think they would go to the high court if they knew paperwork would prove him false?
They found out on the 18th. What do you think they were doing between then and yesterday. I will give you a hint; It relates to ducks and lines……
I’ve no idea what you’re alluding to Razor so go on treating me like a two year old & spell it out.
Tell you what, don’t bother, lately you’re just rude.
Sorry if I insulted you Bella. I get a bit carried away sometimes.
No Bella, they are all morons and thought that no one would notice. In my case I’d have to personally front up to the high commission in Sydney and sign a witnessed declaration. But that will never happen.
There uws a difference from the others in that he was born in Oz , Bella. All that has to be produced by someone is his signed and witnessed request for Italian citizenship one would think.- and he’ll be gone too.
Very true Bella, selective outrage at its silliest. In all three cases, the unwanted surplus citizenship was not obtained voluntarily. But _intent_ to be a multi-citizen is not the test under s44. Those crying incompetence and fraud in the earlier cases, but silent now, are giving themselves away. You know who you are!
Of all the s44 casualties, our Rod probably had the best argument, if only he’d let professionals make it for him. Does a quashed conviction exist at a time before it is quashed? I seem to recall that similar issues were explored in the “Back to the Future” movies.
JOH,
Nice try. I agree Rod had a case if well argued but, on the evidence at this stage, Canavan thought he was Australian, having been born here. The Greens knew their birth circumstances. Subtle but important difference. You’ve been out of law school long enough to know Brandis wouldnt be going to the High Court unless the Ducks were in a row.
Gotcha!
Do you know anything about cattle and Northern Australia?
1 & 2./ The reason the amount of exports in the first half of the year were down was because people couldn’t get their cattle to market because of the big wet season you drongo! Cyclone Yasi and a few others! Things were ready to go again just as Labor intervened in the market.
Decks upon decks of cattle, that could be moved, were escorted by police, in convoys of road trains to Southern markets to try and get some money moving. The problem was the cattle exported to Indonesia are not those favoured by your latte sippers but they had to do something so they sold at drastically reduced prices. Check the price of beef for that period. Particularly Coles and Woolies ‘Budget Cuts’.
For those properties still drought effected they couldn’t move them north, to fatten as they would normally, because of the big wet so instead of watching them starve they sold them below cost south at terrible prices. Some graziers who had places South left them there until they could again get them North to get rid of once the ban was lifted.
3./. The reason the industry improved by the end of the year was because the wet was over and they could get their cattle to market and had to get rid of some. Dependent on their geographic location and situation many graziers lost entire herds. Many cattle starved to death because once cattle could be moved North to be turned off there was nowhere for them to go because the paddocks were full because of the ban.
Some fine men turned to their trusted friend the lever action 30-30 to solve their problems and do not deserve pigs swill like you, that grub Ludwig and the mob from Crikey, who wouldn’t know the head of a beast from the arse, to denigrate their names and what happened back then.
You are an idiot.
The above is in reply to Eddie the now Cattle experts 3.19pm
Again you refuse to let facts get in the way of your one eyed view of the world. It appears you are letting your emotions run your views of the world. In your rant above you actually defeat your own argument but you are to hysterical to see it. What those people who chose to leave their families with questions that cannot and will not ever be answered do not deserve, is people like you trying to blame other people for their choices. The only one doing any “denigrating ” is you. You are an angry old man who refuses to see things as they really are because you do not like the facts.
Read what I about the conditions in the North at the time. Nothing and I mean nothing can move in the wet season. Show me where my explanation is wrong. You cannot because I lived it you didn’t!
By the way idiot most of the cattle leaves from the North.
Another piece of homework is to google ‘drought destocking’.
My emotions do run riot when I see people who have no idea what they are talking about pull rubbish out of their arses. An analysis done without comparimg the numbers against the environment at the time, the diverse geographic locations and cattle breeds is no analysis at all.
The analysis clearly indicates the drought and wet season issues. In fact the whole point of the article was to highlight the conditions environmental and trading which then proves your claims are misleading. As above your first statement clearly defeated your own misinformation efforts. As usual you are trying to obfuscate every angle because the facts don’t suit you. You are trying to use very sad personal choices of people to push your ideology over everything view of the world.
Well, well well. If the greens walked so should canavan. At 25 I didn’t know my mum did it? Come off it? oh the hypocrisy of the con. But wait the man who has gone missing on ensuring the Murray Darling basin plan is not being corrupted is to take over as the utopian minister for the Northern Development fund or is it infrastructure fund or is it just a slush fund.
Circumstances different as reported. Certainly worth getting the High Court’s verdict. Imagine what Canavan’s mum is going through.
I love the way she (allegedly) didn’t tell him at the time but has now (allegedly) brought it up. Nice work Mum.
canavan stated he was/is a dual citizen at the time of his election. His excuse is ridiculous and an affront to the Australian community. He might as well have run the Bart Simpson “i didn’t do it” episode. Brandis attacked Ludlum personally when he resigned. He stated they have been working on this for some time. canavan said he knew about it since last Tuesday? This is hypocrisy of the usual conservative type. Hope the treatment goes well.
It will be adjudicated on by the High Court so if he’s lied or omitted facts we’ll know soon enough.
Well I’ve been one of his underlings since March and now he’s gone, replaced by … Barnaby Joyce. What did we do to deserve this?
(now expecting to relocate to Currabubula before Christmas)
If he ever comes in the office the department could save a packet in lighting.