We can all breathe a sigh of relief: the VOICE is dead and buried although Labor may claim the corpse is not dead but only sleeping. To make absolutely sure that the corpse stays buried, we had better make sure we also bury Labor when their three-year term finishes in 2025.
A friend emailed that he had heard some ABC-type explain that the YES-vote was highest in areas populated by higher-educated people. So why then did the A.C.T., which is populated by dim-witted public servants, vote overwhelmingly YES?
Another friend remarked, "What a bloody tragedy: with the backlash we are now really going to see the racial divide increase exponentially! And what a bloody waste of money: with the $450 miillion spent on this unnecessary referendum - plus the chartered RAAF flights and all the other lobbying costs - they could have built three or four schools in remote areas to enhance the indigenous learning opportunity. That would have really helped to close the gap!"
Following this resounding defeat, Albanese is now a dead man walking. He was first elected to parliament as the federal member for Grayndler in 1996, which means he is covered under the old defined benefit scheme and will be on a huge indexed pension when he retires.
The maximum pension any retired MP can receive is currently $337,185. Mr Albanese’s current entitlement is about $250,000. This pension is of course funded by the taxpayer, is indexed each year and never runs out. Add the taxpayer-funded office, Com car, staffers, allowances, and free air travel, and the music never dies for our former prime ministers.
