Last Words From Internet Land

This post will be full of quotes from various blogs. Final pitches, if you will.

musewhipped:

There is a definition of insanity which goes something like this: Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. It's time for a change, Australia.

six months off for bad behaviour:

36 hours until polling starts. This feels like a referendum on the sanity of the Australian people.

tim:

What the fuck is wrong with our country? How do we counter the stupid perception people have that Labor will make interest rates go up and that we need Howard to manage the economy?

Latham's fake blog:

So kids, if you care about the future of this country like your Uncle Latho does, vote for me, knuckleheads, and if you don't, I'm sure there's a nerf bat with your name on it around here somewhere.

Greens blog:

Now that everybody who counts has released a forest policy, how about we talk about it? I'll start: the Liberal Party sucks.

There Ain't No Sanity Clause:

Some in the blogosphere are gnashing teeth, weeping, wailing and sighing as they contemplate the polls. (No names. No pack-drill. But you know who you are, and you ought to be ashamed of yourselves - the whole lot of you!)

All is not doom and gloom for the forces of enlightenment and milk and honey flowing in the streets. Nor is it all plain sailing for the forces of darkness and bread and circuses.

She Sells Sanctuary:

No, it's not about "choice". Nor is it about "the philosophy of free will" as the Herald's sub put it in the headline of the edited version of the transcript. (Though, in fairness, it's Howard who talks about "the philosophical divide".) The philosophy of free will, huh? When was it ever about that? Non-Liberal voting Australians can still believe in free will, surely.

ausculture:

I've said it before and I'll say it yet again. Labor isn't perfect. Mark Latham isn’t perfect. But he hasn't blatantly lied to the country yet. He hasn't led us into a war based on false information. He hasn’t tried to manipulate the public with fear. He hasn't insulted us with the notion of "core" and "non-core" promises. Is it worth risking the country's "interest rates" on L-plater Latham? You're damn right it is. To me, it's a safer bet than risking the country's morality (and no, I don’t mean "morality" in the same way Family First, Fred Nile & Co mean it) and conscience on John Howard.

I know I sound like a naive, impractical, over-eager preacher and the above is devoid of all possible laugh value, but sometimes this gal just needs to get serious.

Web Diary:

There is a much better world and a much better country within our grasp. All the elements are there. We just need to work at it. Occasionally, as Robert Frost did, we need to take the road less travelled. Let's face it, the old ways aren't working. Believe otherwise and you are kidding yourself.

Australia and the world are at the crossroads. Do we do as we always have, or do we take the road less travelled?

That's going to be the difference. As individuals, as a country and as a world.

The Daily Flute:

We are told to be alert, not afraid while the government is frightening the bejesus out of us. Howard wants us to feel secure as Australians while sticking a fire cracker up our clackers. The only reason I can think of is that the fear of America has spread here just as all other cultural exports, I wish I could offer something more intelligent. But then I wish the government could too.

Psephite:

I have been feeling that Labor will not make it. I feel they may improve on their last efforts but Little Johnny rat will make it to a fourth term and a sizable chunk of the population will move to New Zealand. I have been overwhelmed into submission by the Coalition bias shown by the News Ltd media, as comicstriphero earlier mentioned. Little Johnboy has constantly aimed at the lowest common denominator both in his time as PM and in this election campaign and it is hard to struggle against the feeling that this country has become the lowest common denominator. That this denominator is valued and questioning, intelligent public discussion is dismissed as elite. As such, idiotic and blatantly untrue platforms like "higher interest rates under Labor" are believed without question. Teflon-John is going to get away with it again.

Well, this is how I was feeling until about 1pm this afternoon. A chat with a colleague revealed some high-level research she had been doing this week. Every cab she got into she asked the cab driver their opinion on the election. And the answers? Overwhelming in favour of a Labor win. Perhaps there is just a shred of hope...

Suki Has An Opinion:

Let's care about truth...

Truth about why we are in Iraq.
Truth about the mental health of people in detention centres.
Truth about Medicare from the perspective of health care providers.
Truth about the dangerous stupidity of Ministers.
Truth about renewable energy projects.

Is It Wrong To Wish On Space Hardware?:

See you all the other side of the Howard-ite era. I've got a strong gut feeling that this is it. By midnight on Saturday, we'll all be pissing away the last eight years into the dustbin of history. When the hang-over dies off, we'll get stuck into correcting some very serious wrongs committed in our name.

As Liam Gallagher sang upon the demise of the British Tories: Some might say, we will find a brighter day.

Let's hope Mark Latham doesn't become another Tony Blair.

Stay beautiful, stay strong (Kia Kaha) and as Michael Franti says, stay human.

It's time people!

It's time.

Reasons You Will Hate Me:

And you know what, you fuckers? I would still not vote for John Howard. Because despite whatever either party can offer me personally, I give a fucking shit about this country and its social and emotional growth. And I would deal with losing my fucking job and would just campaign and bitch to whoever was in power to get my industry back on track. And I would do that knowing that I hadn't thrown my weight behind the racist scum-sucking conservatives set to screw us into the ground.

Hello? Is This Thing Switched On?:

Don’t forget the Tampa. Don’t forget the mandatory detention of legitimate refugees escaping human rights violating atrocities. Don’t forget equal rights for our gay and lesbian communities. Don’t forget that apologising to a race of indigenous Australians has been too difficult for our current government. Don’t forget the cultural identity of this country is being bartered around like a valueless 5 of Diamonds in the Free Trade Agreements. Don't forget all the lies.

I can’t go on. Please, please, please but Liberal as your last preference!

The Road To Surfdom:

Honestly, do you want to wake up on Sunday morning resigned to another three years of the perpetual dullness of the clotted mind or would you prefer to be looking forward to what the future might hold as Latham and Costello battle it out?

This is an historic election not least because a change of government now is going to be more than a change of who controls the treasury benches. It is going to bring a complete turnover of personnel in the liberal Party too, and God, don't they need it?

So we face the prospect of two relatively young, reinvigorated parties vying for our attention and our votes. It'll do us all good.

I know a prime minister Latham is a risk, but so is bloody life.

It's a time for a change. It's time for a system overhaul. It's time to face the threats and challenges of the future with the confidence that comes from renewal. It's time to slip out of the straightjacket, as snug and secure as that might be, pull on the Speedos and catch the next big wave.

Young and free, girt by sea, here comes a Latham victory!

Back Pages:

First, '04 is not, and does not feel like, '01. There has not been a horrific terrorist attack on New York City on the eve of the campaign. There was no Tampa during the campaign. Nor has Labor made itself into a small target. After beginning this campaign in an anti-Howardian stance, Back Pages has moved more and more into a positive stance for Latham and the ALP. Heading a list of useful promises, the schools policy, Medicare Gold and saving Australia's ancient forests are three big positive reasons to vote Labor. In sum, measured in terms of campaign composure, substance and atmospherics, this is not '01. I therefore expect the Labor vote will be more than a mere two points above the last national vote. Two points is all Labor needs.

Counterspin:

If you want an Australia that looks outward toward the future, as opposed to an idealised impression of social conservatism expressed by John Howard, the decision on October 9 is clear.

Australia is at a crossroads.

That's all for now.

I hope that the past 127 or so posts on Completely Biased have made you care enough to do something, have helped swing an undecided mind, or have helped you destroy any blind Liberal Party arguments.

Yes, argue. Kick and scream. Challenge uniformed viewpoints. Don't sit there quietly.

Money is not everything.

Tomorrow will be one of the most important days in Australia's history.

Don't be apathetic.