- See also : The Melbourne Cup field of the next Bradfield preselection, (former Bradfield Liberal Preselector) Irfan Yusuf, Crikey, February 18, 2009.
A man named Brendan Nelson (did you know he is a DOCTOR?) has decided to retire from his comfy chair in the Federal Parliament.
This is News.
Other News is that various Tories are jockeying to become his replacement. According to a source in a corporation owned by foreign billionaire (Sir) Rupert Murdoch:
DOCTOR Nelson was elected to federal parliament in 1996, the same year the HoWARd government came to power. He entered parliament after serving three years as the president of the Australian Medical Association. DOCTOR Nelson experienced a meteoritic [sic] rise through the government ranks, taking on the role of education minister in 2001 and defence minister in 2006. His time in office will be be remembered for overseeing the bungled return of soldier Jake Kovco’s body, the introduction of voluntary student unionism and as opposition leader, polling only seven per cent as preferred prime minister.
Big (medical) shoes to fill, obviously. Note that the The Devine Miss M disagrees with this rather harsh assessment of DOCTOR Nelson’s career as a politician (Dare not sip this poisoned chalice, Sydney Morning Herald, August 27, 2009):
[DOCTOR] Nelson is one of the best. As a minister, he was admired by his staff for his ability to inhale information quickly and distil its meaning. He is mocked for his empathy but that was his greatest strength. As education minister, for instance, when advocating a more rigorous phonics-based program for teaching reading, or strategies to support excellent teachers, he never forgot the 12-year-olds he met who had never been taught properly to read. In every portfolio, he identified the essential moral dimensions and had the ability to achieve consensus through arguments based on logic.
LOL.
According to William Bowe:
By all accounts the two front-runners will be Arthur Sinodinos, legendary [sic] former chief-of-staff to John HoWARd, and Tom Switzer, former opinion page editor for The Australian. However, other names were recently put forward by Phillip Coorey: Menzies Research Centre executive director Julian Leeser; Paul Fletcher, director of corporate and regulatory affairs at Optus; and David Coleman, an executive with the Packer family’s Publishing and Broadcasting Limited (last I heard) who is associated with the Left faction and the other side of the town, having run for the federal Cook preselection and been mentioned in connection with the state seat of Cronulla.
Well, that was Tuesday (August 25). Since then, Arthur has been scratched from the race. Now, supposedly, “Up to 20 Liberals are expected to slug it out for preselection for [DOCTOR] Brendan Nelson’s north shore seat of Bradfield” (Scratching brings more for Bradfield preselection, Phillip Coorey, Sydney Morning Herald, August 27, 2009).
The seat of Bradfield is full of Aussie battlers. Christian (The Christian) Kerr reports in another publication owned by foreign billionaire (Sir) Rupert Murdoch — called, ironically, The Australian — that one battler lining up to sit in the comfy chair is John Hart, CEO of Restaurant and Catering Australia (Rudd IR critic John Hart launches Bradfield bid, August 27, 2009).
John is renowned for his efforts to protect innocent bosses from greedy, elitist workers and their thug unions.
So:
DOCTOR Brendan Nelson;
Arthur Sinodinos;
John Hart;
David Coleman;
Paul Fletcher;
Julian Leeser;
Tom Switzer;
and perhaps as many as 15 other businessmen and law-talking guys may be expected to nominate for pre-selection for the seat of Bradfield.
Back to The Devine Miss M:
[DOCTOR] Nelson sees his successor as a necessary injection of fresh blood for a party in a rut, and the field of eight or so candidates mooted is impressive.
The two best are my friends. Tom Switzer, 37, is Nelson’s former adviser and the inspired former opinion editor of The Australian and the Financial Review, a fearless journalist and thinker, with a master’s degree in international relations. Unlike Simon Berger, another Nelson adviser in the running, Switzer did not squib the emissions issue last year. He urged Nelson not to take the pragmatic but irresponsible route of blindly supporting the Government and has written clearly about the costs of the new energy tax.
Then there is Sophie York, 42, barrister, author, lieutenant-commander in the navy reserves, mother of four sons. She is part of a new breed of conservative feminists, generous and warm but with courage and a steely intellect. Each is successful, normal and fun, with a fine mind, good judgment, loving family and clear moral compass.
Sophie also has the rare distinction of being a Dame of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem — which is completely awesome, in my book, despite being rather ‘old breed’:
The Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem can trace its origins to Godfrey de Bouillon of the first Crusade, who gathered around him a group of knights who were entrusted with the protection of the religious Chapter of Canons who were present at the Holy Sepulchre of Christ. For twenty years, these knights, and those who came to join their number, protected the Christian presence at the Holy Sepulchre, taking as their banner the red Jerusalem cross popularized by the crusading knights. By 1113, Pope Paschal II officially recognized their existence and purpose. It was not until 1122 that Pope Callistus II issued a bulla establishing them as a lay religious community with specific responsibilities of guarding the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre and the city of Jerusalem in defense of Christianity against Muslim attack.
So that’s John Hart + David Coleman + Paul Fletcher + Julian Leeser + Tom Switzer + Simon Berger + Sophie York + maybe one dozen more (whose potential candidacy is known only to their families).
Andrew Landeryou nominates law-talking guy Mark Speakman and “local council figure Adrienne Ryan”… making it John Hart + David Coleman + Paul Fletcher + Julian Leeser + Tom Switzer + Simon Berger + Sophie York + Mark Speakman + Adrienne Ryan + 10 or so others.
As for slackbastard, in my opinion — and despite the many sterling qualities of his opponents — there is really only one choice for the Tories of Bradfield — and that is yours, mine and The Devine Miss M’s friend, Man of the People and Man of Letters, the Battler from Struggle Street, the inspired, the fearless, ladies, gentlemen, businessmen, businesswomen, law-talking guys and law-talking girls, I give you:
Tom Switzer!
See also : Bradfield by-election, William Bowe, The Poll Bludger | Nelson to Retire., Possum Comitatus, Pollytics | Nelson resigns, triggers Bradfield by-election, Ben Raue, The Tally Room | NELSON GONE NOW FOR WATERLOO: The Doctor’s revenge sets stage for bruising preselection struggle in Bradfield, Andrew Landeryou, VEXNEWS.
PS. Did you know that Brendan Nelson is a DOCTOR?
Bonus!
Adrienne ‘Sweary’ Ryan!
Swearing row: Ryan apologises
Darren Goodsir
The Sydney Morning Herald
August 25, 2004Bowing to unrelenting public outrage, the Mayor of Ku-ring-gai publicly apologised last night for having used a string of expletives at a motivational high school address…
Michael Speakman! Youngest ever law-talking guy to be made a Senior Counsel in NSW, victim of extreme-right wing in Cook!
Simon Berger! A Ronald Reagan fan, “who also happens to be a (not so) young, feisty, colourful, agnostic, heavy-metal-loving homosexual” who breaks moulds — and the machines that manufacture them!
As a conservative, Reagan broke the mould, by: using humour, charm, analogies and anecdotes; being the first president to popularise the practice of inviting everyday people to be guests at major addresses and building speeches around their experiences, and; invoking America’s Founding Fathers more times than the previous nine presidents combined, linking their vision to one of the future which painted a picture and told a story, for which he was the curator and narrator. The result was the transformation of conservatism from a balance sheet into a romance. ~ ‘Coming Out As A Conservative Liberal’, the conservative, No.2, February 2006 (emphasis in original) [PDF]
See also : On Reagan’s Legacy, Noam Chomsky interviewed by Amy Goodman, Democracy Now, June 7, 2004 | Resurrecting Reagan, Robert Flynn, July 21, 2009.
Julian Leeser! Intellectual! Scholar! Editor! Don’t Leave Us with the Bill!
See also : Anthony Scrinis : another hard-working political adviser facing persecution (June 19, 2009) | Bad BAD Blogger: When Tories Attack! (May 13, 2008) | Tory! Tory! Tory! (November 22, 2007) | Young Tories: Recruiting now! (January 31, 2007) | I Was A Teenage Tory : John Hyde Page (December 13, 2006) | Many Young Liberals are racist, sexist, homophobic nerds. And proud. Who knew? (July 19, 2006).
