There was an election in one of Australia's states -- Queensland -- and it caught the entrenched big-government by surprise. They got a good shellacking.
Their Liberal National Party is small-Government conservative, their Australian Labor Party is progressive big-Government nanny state. Labor has had the majority of both houses of the Australian Parliament since 2010.
The Australian Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, was surprised.
From The Australian:
Julia Gillard surprised by dimensions of Labor's defeat in Queensland
The Prime Minister today admitted she was surprised at the extent of the Queensland result - which has left Labor with as few as six MPs in the state - but she said the poll was overwhelmingly fought on state issues.
This is the same person that is setting up Internet Censorship through a News Media Council :
Censorship comes to Australia
Reposting from Menzies House email from Timothy Andrews:Late yesterday afternoon, I read something that sent chills down my spine.
Mr. Ray Finkelstein QC, a left-wing former Federal Court Judge with no media experience, at the request of the Gillard Government, issued a 400 page report which calls for a Big Brother Super-Regulator to 'regulate' political speech and - among other things - impose new laws with the power to stop climate change realists from speaking up.
Its 'recommendations' will sicken every single Australian: They actually call for a Big Brother Super-Regulator to censor not just the newspapers and TV, but websites, personal blogs, and even what you say on Twitter!
This is a proposal that would seem right at home in North Korea or Zimbabwe. I never thought - as dark as things seemed- we could stoop this low here in Australia.
And Justice Finkelstein is a real piece of work -- from Kangaroo Courts of Australia:
Justice Finkelstein and a fist full of dollars. This is the clown running the Australian Media inquiry.
Raymond Finkelstein QC, better known as The Fink will go down in history as one of the greatest fools to ever be appointed a judge, an absolute legend. This is a man who tried to hear his own case which was before the court. It does not get much worse than that.
Justice Finkelstein was eventually forced to stop hearing the case because not only did he have a financial interest in the case but he was in fact one of the parties to the class action against a company called Centro Properties via his own private super fund.
The Fink retired as a Federal Court of Australia judge on June 30, 2011 and has recently been appointed to head up an inquiry into the Australian Media focusing on codes of conduct for both print and online.
Anyway, back to the election -- from the Australian Broadcasting Company:
New era as LNP takes power in Queensland
A new political era is dawning in Queensland, with the Liberal National Party poised to take the biggest parliamentary majority in the state's history.
Labor suffered a crushing defeat at the polls and has been reduced to just a handful of seats in the 89-seat Parliament.
Campbell Newman has achieved the impossible - becoming Premier from outside parliament, and leading the LNP to an unprecedented victory.
Mr Newman thanked Queenslanders for placing their trust in him, and has promised to lead a humble and dignified government.
"I pledge to you that we will conduct ourselves with humility, grace and dignity. We will work for all Queenslanders regardless of their vote," he told supporters in his victory speech last night.
"We're determined that Queenslanders will walk tall."
So right about now, you are thinking -- Gee DaveH, this is cool but this is just one state.
Australia is the sixth largest nation in the world, following Russia, Canada, the USA, China and Brazil.
Australia is 7,741,220 sq km in size.
The USA is 9,826,675 sq km in size.
Australia has a population of 22,015,576
The USA has a population of 313,847,465
Numbers from here: Australia USA
The USA has 57 fifty states, Australia has six. For a nation of this size and scope, with only six states, this is big.
Andrew Bolt has this wonderful observation:
Dilemma
Labor denies the Queensland disaster had anything to do with the Gillard Government. And it must say that publicly to protect itself from damage. But it must admit it privately to protect itself from annihilation.
I suspect this is an issue that will allow you to check which journalists are selling Labor and which describing it.
Good to keep in mind -- like some people say: you don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows. This time, it is blowing for sanity and clear minds...
