Gen X Journey

I am a constituent of Brisbane electorate where there is still no result. Did my vote matter? Well, yes it did and I am so pleased I did not treat my vote as something to be squandered, thrown away on a whim because a failed buffoon told me to do so. Six per cent of the population did though. They should be ashamed of themselves.

I had the joy of attending two polling stations on Saturday. After not moving for ten minutes while lined up in a 10m unmoving line outside the polling station door I heard one of the how to vote card people say that the school in the next suburb was very quiet. I was out of there. I drove there, voted and was back home in 10 minutes.

I know the reason why though. There were only two people (average age 70) checking people’s names off the roll and handing out ballot papers. Bizarrely there were three for the absentee voters. Obviously there are clean lines of labour division for employees in charge of the vote.

Anyway, no matter who wins my electorate we are will have a hung parliament. Is it a good thing? Depends whether or not you have an independent or Green member now doesn’t it.

We had a hung parliament in Queensland for Peter Beattie’s first government. It was a good thing for the independent member Liz Cunningham, who held the balance of power, and her electorate. That electorate was the Labor Government’s favourite child–for at least three years anyway. After that the ALP got in with a clear majority and it was Liz Who? I’m not sure that a whole lot of governing will be done though. Politicking yes, just not governing.

Because I am a political tragic I watched the election on five channels while also watching a taped episode of City Homicide. How’s that for multitasking?

 I was getting awfully confused though because they all had different figures for their outcomes. I cut it back to four, abandoning SBS because, well nothing was really happening. I also abandoned the Sky News broadcast about 30 minutes later because they looked quite dazed and confused and some senator bloke was brandishing white papers and then they cut away from him. The directors of that program obviously aren’t very good at their job, because that looked like something interesting might have been going to happen, but we didn’t get to see it. Oh and Bob Hawke gives me the shits.

So I was back to Channels 2, 7 and 9. So these were my election highlights.

• The Channel 9 reporter who was interviewing NP leader Warren Truss, who dropped him like a hot potato when Bob Browne started talking. It was very unprofessional and rude, yet funny at the same time.
• Minister Stephen Smith on ABC who got progressively sicker and paler as the night progressed. Everytime he took a call or a text on his phone, he went a lighter shade of pale. It was like watching a living Dulux whites paint chart.
• Maxine McKew and her dummy spit. You would think a journalist with her experience would choose her words more carefully. I see no safe Labor seat in your political future Maxine.
• Barnaby Joyce looking like he wanted to hit Mark Arbib every time he looked at him.
• Kevin Rudd, gloating, despite a 10% swing against him. Where were all the Labor posters and banners, Kev?
• Julia Gillard, who looked like she had been crying when she appeared on yesterday’s news.  It’s her party and she’ll cry if she wants to.
• Bill Shorten and his clever quips.  I’m sure they sounded good in his head, they just didn’t come out that way. More media training for you, Bill, you sounded like a simpleton.

 The next few weeks will be interesting times. Image