I like Stephen Newnham‘s dirt unit. I like Pike.

LOL.

From the people who brought you Senator Steve Fielding comes Brian Walters, the State Member for Melbourne.

Srsly.

Much to the (presumed) chagrin of Bronwyn ‘I like Stephen Newnham‘s dirt unit’ Pike.

The article notes, inter alia, that Walters is a barrister, who makes (lots of) money from providing legal representation for his clients, including a coal mining company. It also notes that Walters invests his money in property.

ALP state secretary and campaign director [and law-talking guy] Nick Reece said Greens voters would be surprised to hear that Mr Walters had such a client. “In life, it is not what you say, it is what you do,” he said.

“The Greens party always talks about dirty coal, but it is obviously not dirty enough to stop Mr Walters seeking to profit from it.”

Melbourne MP and Education Minister Bronwyn Pike also branded Mr Walters a hypocrite.

“It’s no wonder the voters of Melbourne can’t pick the difference between the Liberals and Greens,” she said.

“This appears to be typical behaviour of the Greens political party – say one thing, but do another. They grandstand a lot, but don’t put in the hard work to deliver results on education, climate change and social housing.”

There’s a few obvious–like, really obvious–rejoinders to Labor’s criticisms, but the main problem is not the rather weak nature of the attack so much as its ineptitude. Michael Danby, “a Jewish MP, said it was acceptable to look at Mr Walters’ past as a barrister, during which he defended SS Nazi auxiliary Konrads Kalejs”. Which is a factually correct statement: Walters did defend Kalejs. It’s what defence lawyers do. But unless Danby is implying that Walters chose to defend Kalejs because he’s anti-Semitic, or that Walters has systematically defended the interests of accused Nazi war criminals to the exclusion of others, it would seem somewhat unremarkable. Jack Fajgenbaum, QC, another Jewish lawyer, described Labor’s attempt to paint Mr Walters as anti-Semitic as ”offensive” and ”not true”.

Beyond that, both the Greens and the ALP are dominated by middle-class professionals, especially lawyers (the ALP, for example, has 19 lawyers sitting in the Federal parliament), who in their working lives have represented a range of corporate and state interests. And if it’s true that in life, it is not what you say, it is what you do, that’s important, then Walters is hardly the only one to have some explaining to do…

Obviously, there’s some very odd thinking going on at Victorian ALP headquarters. Uncle Rupert has made his preferences clear, and so have his papers. But readers of the Sunday Herald Sun are unlikely to be key players in the Melbourne electorate, so, like…

See also : Socialism @ the 2010 Victorian state election (October 28, 2010) | Stephen Jolly for Richmond (September 5, 2010) | What happened to the Left? (February 27, 2010) | Melbourne : ALP ~versus~ Greens (August 24, 2009).

About @ndy

I live in Melbourne, Australia. I like anarchy. I don't like nazis. I enjoy eating pizza and drinking beer. I barrack for the greatest football team on Earth: Collingwood Magpies. The 2024 premiership's a cakewalk for the good old Collingwood.
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5 Responses to I like Stephen Newnham‘s dirt unit. I like Pike.

  1. And then there’s the whole “First cab off the rank” principle.

    Now that is going to be dug into the ground.

    I hope not.

    And then Danby said something about The Age.

    Did he say: “The people who read The Age are an increasingly limited demographic who live on the north side of the Yarra?”

    Labor’s first-day distraction: comes with video

    An ill-directed attack

  2. Pingback: This is lucky Phil Cleary… | slackbastard

  3. I read that thing in print.

    Peter Faris not being part of The Bar may or may not say it all.

  4. Pingback: Australia’s Best Political Blogs | slackbastard

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