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OBEY THE MANNE
Throw a few clichés Robert Manne’s way and he purrs like a kitten:
Because we are now balanced between Howard’s neo-liberal and his own social-democratic future, where the value of freedom is balanced against equality, and the animal energy of the market is tempered by the virtue of compassion, Rudd believes we have reached what he famously called a “fork in the road”. Because for him the ugliness of the neo-liberal future is symbolised by the Howard Government’s new anti-family workplace laws, he believes we have already crossed what he called “a bridge too far”.
Just for Robert, let’s repeat Rudd’s finest use yet of his brilliant fork/bridge formulation:
This fork in the road has emerged because John Howard has taken a bridge too far — a bridge too far on industrial relations, a bridge too far when it comes to Iraq, and a bridge too far on climate change by not going far enough.
Intellectuals love that sort of crap, evidently. In fact, Manne loves it so much he’s called for a crushing of dissent:
For those who long to see Australia change direction, Rudd deserves, in my opinion, not the customary carping of the intelligentsia but our wholehearted support.
Cease your criticism, intelligent carp! Meanwhile, John Howard maintains a narrow lead in this crucial poll.
(Via Doug Cox)
UPDATE. Joe Hildebrand reports live from the Fork in the Road Tour.
Bridges, carp, forks - what’s a metaphor?
Posted by AlburyShifton on 2006 12 11 at 06:30 PM • permalinkThe bridge too far by not going far enough was a wonderful piece of complete garbage.
I really wish he would stop invoking what is an excellent WWII movie.
Bittrich’s Aide: [Walking across Arnhem Bridge with a white flag]
Major Harry Carlyle: That’s far enough
Bittrich’s Aide: My General says that there is no point in continuing this fight and is willing to discuss terms of surrender.
John Frost: [in the background - sotto voce] Tell them to go to hell!
Major Harry Carlyle: Sorry, we don’t have the proper facilities to take you all prisoner… Sorry, We’d like to…
[Bittrich’s Aide turns away confused]
Major Harry Carlyle: [Carlyle to Frost] Rather gracious of me don’t you think?
Posted by attilathepun on 2006 12 11 at 06:56 PM • permalink#3 - a meta is phor confusing the layman, makes us
inteligenziasmart bastards look good.Posted by surfmaster on 2006 12 11 at 07:27 PM • permalinkOoh goody - I found out how to use strike. Next step, italics!!!!
Posted by surfmaster on 2006 12 11 at 07:29 PM • permalinkcustomary carping
Hey, I thought that carp - especially European Carp - were a noxious feral species in Australia’s ecosystem.
They can’t be eaten and they eat everything, but they can be caught and chopped up to make fertilizer.
Now that’s a good idea…
Posted by Apparatchik on 2006 12 11 at 07:48 PM • permalinkTalk about no cliche left unturned! Is this what passes for intellectiual debate in the Politics Department at LaTrobe?
“Hansonisation of Australian politics”: does this mean we can expect to see more pollies ballroom-dancing on TV?
“Sexual puritanism”: nothing like throwing in the odd sexual reference when the argument is getting a bit mind-numbing.
Manne-watchers will recall that the Perfesser postulated that if Beazley made an iron-clad promise to tear up Howard’s IR laws (which he did) he would win in a landslide. Now we will never know. Will Ruddy make the same ironclad promise? Manne, after all, is the genius who screamed long and loud for an ALP victory in the last election, and then, as soon as they lost, published an op-ed saying “Well, of course, I always knew they were going to lose.” Y’see, the Prof is never wrong.
I think it was Darryl Zanuck who said “When you come to a fork in the road, take it.” That sounds about right for the ALP.
They would be wise to cut down on the excessive emphasis on equality. It is a very bad idea to elevate a single political or philosophical good to absolute status (a mistake most libertarians make too). As Lord Acton noted about the French Revolution: the passion for equality made vain the hope of liberty. Since that time the socialists have all but abandoned liberty and exalted equality to the single desirable good, with appalling results even in the West. Dumbasses.
Posted by Michael Lonie on 2006 12 11 at 08:27 PM • permalinkManne: ‘The economist Maynard Keynes once famously remarked: “Ideas are more powerful than is commonly understood. Indeed the world is ruled by little else. Practical men, who believe themselves to be quite exempt from any intellectual influences, are usually the slaves of some defunct economist.”’
#13
Manne, after all, is the genius who screamed long and loud for an ALP victory in the last election, and then, as soon as they lost, published an op-ed saying “Well, of course, I always knew they were going to lose.”Q. How do you get 5 opinions?
A. Lock 4 economists in a room together.Would someone remind Mr. Rudd that forks are for kicking?
Jaysus, he ain’t even run yet and already I’m tired of the fool.
Posted by richard mcenroe on 2006 12 11 at 09:11 PM • permalink“...a bridge too far on climate change by not going far enough.”
I hope that some responsible party will make sure that this quote is archived in The Museum Of Quintessential Lameness.
Posted by Harry Bergeron on 2006 12 11 at 09:26 PM • permalinkIf Manne is capable of parrotting Rudd correctly (which is not a given) what he has done here is reveal Rudd’s intellectual shallowness, enthrallment to simiplistic ideological nostrums and general conceptual inadaquacy - no consciousness revealed of the fact that Australia is NOT a laissez-faire society but actually has a great deal of regulation, or that it is quite highly taxed. No concept, either, of the fact that under Howard’s moderate liberalism standards of living have increased dramatically for all.
Of course, the Howard-hating brigade like Manne lost all their credentials to be taken seriously as people of intelligence or perception when they supported Mark Latham to be Prime Minister of Australia - as we should never cease to remind both them and the public!
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Not exactly the love fest that occured when Latham was elected but a love fest all the same. I voted for Howard in the poll, had to…he’s my hero.