Pure theatre from Howard and Costello

Prime Minister John Howard performed the "best" PR stunt of the election last night by appearing with Treasurer Peter Costello on Today Tonight. It was almost as good as his donation of $500,000 to save the orangutan (complete with YouTube video and sick child).

Suddenly voters are supposed to believe all is well in the House of Liberal between these two, after two years or so of tension about the leadership. Sure.

It was a cosy setting. More interesting was that it was on Today Tonight, a pretty "low-brow" infotainment program (it long ago ceased to be about current affairs or news). I imagine it's the Liberals' attempt to reach the "masses", seeing as though Howard isn't disposed to using the fm stations to push his messages.

This morning there was another interesting "sideshow. The Liberals' used a garbage truck, featuring a poster of Howard and Costello and some other politician. I couldn't make out who, as I was driving back from the beach, and I usually don't look at garbage trucks.

Not to be outdone, my son then got a text/voice/viedo message on his mobile from Kevin. This was actually an excellent use of the medium. You could also enter several areas of policy and read the details. The only drawback was that it is unsolicited. But then again, so have been the pamphlets appearing in our letterbox over the past two weeks.

Election a PR bore

I’ve refrained from too much comment on the forthcoming Australian election. But as we near the end, with six days of campaigning remaining, I’ve faltered. I’m fed up and bored.

Following Labor’s campaign “launch” (again) today I could not help but feel how uninspiring it all is – and not just Labor. Kevin Rudd was monotone (bla, blah, blah). So was Howard.

There is nothing visionary about either Party. It’s simply come down to a series of daily pork-barrelling promises, accompanied by the ritual PR photo opportunity. Stock-standard and boring. Does anyone remember what Howard promised yesterday.

It’s all simplistic spin – fairy floss for the masses. Where is the substance and the leadership? It’s just about spending, in turn fuelling inflation (there goes your tax cuts, folks). Come to think of it, where's the imagination?

Despite this lack of lustre, and our ability to radically change our direction, we will continue to vote as lemmings – Labor or Liberal.

Into the election

We're just finishing week one of six in the federal election campaign, highlighted by John Howard's promise of tax cuts and a negative advertising campaign. Opposition leader Kevin Rudd has shown nothing, except a nice wardrobe.

I would have thought Rudd could have matched Howard's $34 billion "promise" with a counter plan to spend the equivalent on government services, such as health, education, water, roads (well, maybe rail).

People have indicated they would rather the government spend money that way. Rudd should be pushing the line that by the time the tax cuts start next year (and end in 2011), they will be eaten by inflation.

Tax cuts are really a simplistic offer to a mostly gullible public, who can't remember what Howard promised before the last election.

Let's have some real vision. What about de-politicising the Public Service?

TV media polls way off the mark

Channel Nine's A Current Affair, a national program, tonight promoted yet another of those ridiculous polls. This time, who would you vote for in the federal election: John Howard or Kevin Rudd?

These type of polls, where viewers simply dial a number to register a vote, are a scandal. The results are meangingless, as anyone can ring in multiple times. In other words, the result is probably biased.

The Liberal Part is renowned for marshalling its members to ring talk radio shows and vote in these pointless pseudo polls.

Unfortunately, as I previously mentioned, most of the country gets its information from television. So does a loaded result have the power to persuade voters? If the result is biased in favour of the government, will this cause people to rethink their support one way or the other?

Meantime, the broadcast goes unpunished. Idiots. My advice: read more newspapers.

Howard calls election at last

It took him long enough. After months of fake campaigning and pork-barrelling, John Howard has called the federal election for November 24.

Now we'll really start to see and hear some spin ... though it's more likely to be seen, as elections these days are fought on our television screens.

The media maniuplation will be (hopefully) interesting to watch/see/hear. Every day a new photo opportunity and plethora of sound grabs. The same methods will be employed by Labor.

However, I detect that voters are wise to the tactics and have already cast their ballots. Certainly the polls have been consistently predicting a Labor victory for months.

As they say: "watch this space" (and lots of others).