Since there’s been a bit of discussion on the open thread and a tangentially related one about the appointment of Queensland Governor Quentin Bryce as Governor-General, it might be a good idea to open a thread related particularly to this event.
92 Responses to “Governor-General Bryce open thread”
Leave a Reply
Please read the comments policy. If you would like an icon beside your comment, please register a Gravatar.
There is a Comments Preview function below the typing box which activates when you start typing.
How many more Quincelanders can Kevin appoint before people start getting edgy?
Mindy, it appears to be -1 more quincelanders before Rudd is accused of parochialism. However, adding to the massive numbers of NSW and Vic appointees wouldn’t raise a single eyebrow. Strange.
I, for one, welcome our new Queensland overlords.
We’re here to help, after all, David.
As I was saying on the other thread, the fact that Bashir but not Bryce was mentioned in dispatches suggests to me that a lot of folks down South don’t even have Qld on their radar. I don’t see any political minuses for Rudd in recognising talent outside the Sydney/Melbourne/Canberra triangle and there’s certainly going to be a political plus for him up here in Quinceland.
Bryce, by any measure, though, is an outstanding appointment.
Queensland has over the last 5-10 years had arguably the most effective and as a result popular government in Australia. Why not use people with demonstrated efficacy. Indeed, while every appointment like this inevitably has some politics to it, this seems to be as efficacy based an appointment as we could hope to expect.
Congratulations to Bryce and kudos to Rudd.
Time will tell if a woman can live up to the twin responsibilities of Australian Governor-Generalship: one, sinking ludicrous amounts of piss in public, two, mouthing off ignorantly on difficult subjects, and three, failing at the most basic responsibilities of office.
It’s all about leadership by example. Can Bryce out G-G Kerr, our nation’s most revered vice-regent?
Yeah, triple responsibilities. Triple.
Well, Devil Drink, how long before you start agitating for the union jack to be replaced with the smiling visage of Mr Fourex? That’s also something I’d support, even though I’m from New South Wales.
I’d never heard of Quentin Bryce before yesterday. Mind you I’m not from Qld so that is hardly surprising.
I wish her well and hopes she does a good job representing all of us. But please, I’m sick of hearing from Ms Bryce, and Joan Kirner, and Eva Cox, and Julia Gillard, and Anna Bligh, and others about what “a great day this is for Australian women” or how Australian girls and women can be do anything and be anything.
She is an Australian first and foremost and represents everybody. It just gets a bit boring to keep hearing all this gender stuff. Let’s just celebrate the appointment of a fine Australian first and foremost.
Oh I think the union jack has quite a good enough history of globalising alcohol and drug use already, David.
It’d be nice to have David Boon and Ben Cousins in heraldic form (rampant) on the Commonwealth crest though.
I would have preferred Quentin Crisp.
[link]
Now that would have been a courageous appointment.
I only hope all this late morning commenting from The DD is a prelude to a long sleep recovering from a “lost” weekend .
Sober comment and analysis at noon on a Monday morning - tell me it ain’t so DD please!
I wonder whether Bryce’s tenure will be as colourful as that of her immediate predecessor, whatsisname?
There’s some fitting symmetry amid all the proud posturing here. The ALP made Kirner and Lawrence Premiers in the dying days of their respective VIC and WA governments. Now they give Bryce the last Governor-General post.
A lot of people are quickly jumping to conclusions about Bryce being the last Governor-General. I know Rudd has said the Republic’s not a first-term priority but I’m not so sure that Rudd will push so soon into his second term as well. Mid second term is probably a good time to push for it, Turnbull will probably be leader after whichever poor sod faces Rudd in 2010/11 gets smashed (even if it’s Turnbull himself) and can lend support. Hopefully, Downer and the remainder of the Old Guard will be out of parliament by then and we can have some forward looking people in the Liberal Party who aren’t still clinging to Menzies’ last great outpost of the British Empire.
I think PM Rudd will probably hold a plebisite at the same time as the 2010 election, then a Referendum by late 2011. If passed it’s not out of the question that we could be a republic by 1/1/2013.
It all depends on the Republic model proposed to the people. It is quite likely that Bryce will be the last GG.
Mindy asks:
blockquote>How many more Quincelanders can Kevin appoint before people start getting edgy?
Prime Minister’s personal jetliner: over the Pacific
Kevin R: Well, that all went really well until the bloody China thing on the last day. We got nothing there, really.
PR Director: Some good coverage of you looking ‘tough’ on Tibet and the Chinese students cheering you looked great, very ’statesmanlike’.
Kevin R: Yeah, but the bastards running the place gave us nothing. And now the Maoists have got control of the refugee camps in Nepal. We need something else before I touch down in Canberra. I don’t want questions about the China thingy. The speech in Chinese looked good, though, hey? I spent all night practicing the bloody thing (laughs). But I want nothing on Tibet or BHP Billiton. Effing’ catastrophe, that.
PR Director: What if you drop in on the Youth Summit un-announced the moment we touch down? Listening to youth? “You are the future of this great land.” That sort of thing? Boy and girl, one on either side? Two best sorts there? Little speech about the “leaders of tomorrow”?
Kevin R: Maybe. But that’s what? Fifteen seconds into the evening news? Then what? I’m not taking questions on China, okay?
PR Director: We could announce the ‘Quentin Bryce as Governor General’ decision? ‘Historic moment for women’, blah, blah?
Kevin R: It’s terrific, I know. But shouldn’t we save it for something really special? And I’m worried about the ‘Queensland’ thingy coming up again?
PR Director: Sure, but Cate Blanchett’s not for another week, and if you feel you really need something now?
Kevin R: Fair enough. Cate will look terrific, won’t she? We can stick Quentin on now, looking positively regal and gorgeous, maybe some more really cute kids. You know? the ‘Ahhhh’ factor’?
strong>PR Director(laughs): Then roll out Cate next week? By then Tibet and will be old news. And Cate’s not from Queensland?
Kevin R: And looks even better in pink than Quentin.
Neil says:
Actually, it all depends on whether the people reject the proposal again, as previously. Still, you could dismiss the people and elect a proper one if they don’t see ‘reason’.
Thank you Your Majesty for a very good appointment. I don’t care about the Quinceland angle, though it’s reassuring to hear that “Quincelanders are here to help”. Yes, even Joh was always ready to lend a hand, and let the buck stop with him. Deary me.
It’s the gender aspect that chuffs me: I’m a Victorian bloke and I say, about bl**dy time.
Natasha S-D and the others (Cox, Kirner etc) are so stupid with “herstory” - I just get so sick of people who can’t be bothered to do anything really radical, so instead they randomly misspell words or are ignorant about etymology.
Woman did not derive from man, history comes from a language where his is suus, and human is about as much to do with man as Panamanian.
You sure you’re on the right thread, Marta?
On behalf of humen everywhere, I welcome our new huwoman GG.
Last time i was at a government house do, there *was* one rather bizarre moment that kinda left everyone in the room rather awkward and bewildered. Wasn’t sure i should post it here but i guess its gonna come out soon enough:
[link]And Quentin is a bloke’s name, which should make it easier at the rowdier, less informed end of the ‘ConMon’ minority.
Certainly does, Neil. What a shame it’s still so necessary.
Helen:
Natasha S-D used “herstory” in her statement about Bryce’s appointment so this is the right thread. I’m just disgusted with the (accidental or deliberate) etymological ignorance.
As for QB - congratulations and may the G-G after you be just as groundbreaking - an Aboriginal or non-European G-G.
FDB @ 18, huw-myn.
Marta, I think you’ll find that when it was coined it was meant to be a pun, and that Natasha S-D, who is very very intelligent and literate, would have been using it in that spirit.
You know, a joke. A very old one, and I agree not very funny. But basically a joke.
“As for QB - congratulations and may the G-G after you be just as groundbreaking - an Aboriginal or non-European G-G.”
Marta - I for one am still holding out for a non-existent one.
And as Crikey pointed out: we’ve actually had a woman head of state since June 1953.
Canada is on it’s third female Governor General……just sayin’.
The etymology of ‘history’ has nothing at all to do with ‘herstory’, any more than the etymology of ‘chairman’ and ‘woman’ has anything to do with people choosing to use ‘chairperson’ or ‘womyn’. It’s about a plain english reading of gendered terms in a patriarchal society and herstory is to emphasize that history consists of men writing stories about other men and women’s stories have been ignored. I’ve never come across anyone using as a joke (as opposed to *treating* it as a joke) and the people who use those terms do so as a explicitly political act.
d
Gee, more quincelander bashing. When will quincelanders be loved?
“I, for one, welcome our new Queensland overlords.”
Drink that XXXX, David; we have ways of making you drink it.
Ms Bryce is a very impressive woman. She’ll do a fine job.
Herstory:
[link]
Language is not set in concrete.
Should my cousin Herman change name? and if so, to what?
only if he’s having his jewels removed, steve maaaate
Would a name change still be required for Herma if it was the muslimels or hinduels that were being removed?
Herman already has “her” in it, so it’s fine.
Sorry Darryl, I was taking it for granted that people knew that already. Perhaps ‘joke’ wasn’t quite the right word — how about ‘play on words’?
Of course, Eliot you’ve chosen chosen to patronize and trivialize two women in your post. The implication is that the only reason you’d appoint women to anything is to get publicity. More a reflection of your mind-set than Rudd’, Id say.
I think Rudd has made a point by appointing someone whose career has had a key focus of combatting discrimination against women. I think there’s an extra little message in there above and beyond appointing a woman. Might be why there’s blokey angst on display.
Sublime Cowgirl
>
What have I ever done to you that you would so horrid as to remind me that Rick Astley existed?
Methinks you maketh too much an assumption.
A jolly good move. Ms Bryce is a good choice. I think she represents Australian women. She is no snob, but always look smart and she has poise. Ms Bryce is a family oriented lady, has nice husband, and a good working background. I feel she is our Queen and we should be proud of the choice. Who will get to be Governor of Queensland, well, that remains to be seen! Hopefully it will be someone like the judge.
Speaking of which: the patented Rick Astley graph. [link]
Okay but does she need to be on a tax free income?
steve @ [34]: I made no religious reference, you excessively religious publican! I referred to the “family jewels”. Herman could become Hermione, or Wasmann, or Hermanita. So many choices!
But this is OT is it not SATP?
the new G-G is a very fine choice by Her Madge the Queen.
I agree with Mark: the PM is noticing her advocacy for women - and also for aboriginals on tonight’s TV news.
sublime cowgirl: you think that’s an awkward moment? Back in the early days of the internet, we heard plenty about this…
The above “story” used to be a perennial amongst the slashdot geeks.
Gah. Rickrolled on LP. This day can’t get much worse.
Never mind Ambigulous, you’ll catch on sooner or later.
I’d like to see a tranny as the next GG
jew-el, hindu-el, muslim-el, catholic-el, quaker-el
hairg-el, steve!
In what sense could a transistor radio be appointed G-G, Peter Wood? Surely it has to be a human organism?
Does anyone know her surname before she married Michael in 1964?
She was around U of Q when I was there in the early 60s, but I can’t remember her name then.
Strachan, Brian.
At least that was her father’s name, according to the SMH, so I guess it was hers before she got married.
[link]
Question for Quincelanders: that last link of Kim’s to the long article in the SMH refers to a Qld ‘media campaign against’ Bryce. Was there? What was the story?
That’s an exaggeration, Dr Cat. The Courier-Mail (which more or less is the Brisbane media) used to run stuff obviously leaked from staff about how she was too big for her boots or something and breaking established Gubernatorial protocol. It appeared that there was resistance to her attempts to overhaul the staffing and functions of the Governor’s Office.
It’s the sort of shit that too often makes it into a lazy paper in a one paper town. The perspectives of personally affected disgruntled folks with no attempt to put them in any broader perspective. She can’t really defend herself against this stuff either, but as the story says, Beattie did.
With all due respect, Ms Bryce’s time in the anti-discrimination business does yield an interesting detail of herstory:
[link] refers to the incident. It’s not mine, and I take no responsibility for the layout, sentence structure or capitalisation.
The meat of the matter? (Cap-corrected by me)
“Alex Proudfoot is a civil servant based in Canberra. In 1991-92 he launched a challenge under sex discrimination legislation concerning the lack of gender specific men’s health centres in view of the presence of so many women’s health centres.
[elision]
After the failure of his initial case, Dr Proudfoot obtained information pertaining to his case which seemed to show blatant sexism from the then Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Ms Quentin Bryce. This was in the form of a memo concerning Dr Proudfoot’s case on which Ms Bryce had written “another example of a male wasting our time with trivia”.
Quentin Strachan. That rings a bell. Thanks Kim. I never met her, but she was one of several law students who were making a name for themselves even then and who later had distinguished careers.
Lefty E says:
Yea, but we didn’t elect her, did we?
Oh, wait…
Actually, there are several reasons why we should adopt a Republic:
• It’s been tried successfully in several other Commonwealth member states (Zimbabwe, Pakistan, Uganda, South Africa, etc)
• Only stupid Commonwealth member states still have the Monarchy (Canada, New Zealand, the UK, etc), and why would we want to be like them?
• Don’t let sleeping dogs lie, that’s what I say
• The Queen is not elected to office, unlike a President (eg Robert Mugabe)
• A future Australian President will be appointed by Cabinet, unlike the unwieldy system we have for appointing Governors General
• The Queen and her minions hardly ever set foot in this country and seem merely content to do pretty well whatever the Australian government tells them to do. Shame.
• A President would have his/her powers strictly defined in law (to be discussed at a later date)
• Discussion about the Republic can take over where the 20.20 Summit ends off - filling the gaps in the evening news usually devoted to discussing things like unemployment, poverty, Aboriginal life expectancy, the environment, housing shortages and such stuff
I mean, you’d be a fool not to support the Republic.
Thank God for the monarchy eh Eliot? The only thing standing between us and martial law, barbarism and food queues.
The mere discussion of a Republic precludes giving a damn or doing anything about more worthy issues, and, ummm… if it ain’t broke blah blah blah.
Compelling stuff.
Thanks, Kim. Naturally here in Adders we have the same problems with the Advertiser, which is a shocker in other ways as well.
Ryno, if you read that link from Kim’s post at #55 it tells the Proudfoot story in some detail, gives some background and sheds some rather different light. Or perhaps you have something invested in telling it the way you told it. Personally I would be inclined to trust the SMH over some ignorant and viciously antifeminist ‘men’s movement’ site.
Eliot, from your various tortured comments you apparently believe that there ought to be a Governor-General and he ought to be a boy, so why don’t you just come out and say so, without all this cor and strewth and would you believe it?
Thanks, Pavlov’s Cat. In the light of the link in #52, the comment does seem to be spinnable by apologists for or agin Ms Bryce. The link I gave was the only source Google supplied to supplement my faint recollection.
Whatever reason or provocation may have given rise to the annotation in question, it still seems to have been quite an injudicious note, whose wording was unsuited to its author’s position.
FDB says:
Okay, FDB. Give us the “compelling stuff” on why we should have some kind of Republic as opposed to the quite serviceable system we have now.
What would be the practical benefits - apart from yet another picture opportunity for Kevin Rudd?
For a start, should the new President be elected? And what should his or her power entail? Let’s hear the “compelling” reasons…
strong>Fine says:
Only in LeftWorld can you “patronize and trivialize” two women by calling one “an
oustanding feminist, scholar and healer with valuable connections to the Lebanese Australian community,” and “perfect”; and the other “beautiful” and capable of doing a “great job” as Governor General. See link.
Well, you do apprently when you chip Dear Leader on his patronising women, I suppose.
If Australia becomes a republic - that will be the end of the lifestyle we know of. It will cost Australia a lot, like it does in USA. They have to have someone to watch a President (i.e. Clinton). We won’t have a Queen to go to. God knew what he was doing when he appointed Kings!
Bring back Flinty!
We need a monarchist around the joint with some style and verve.
Pavlov’s at 10.07 am,
The strange antifeminist website may say what it likes, but I still think the Proudfoot case deserves some attention. Medical funding inc prevention should be decided first on medical grounds - mortality, preventability, etc; then on costs.
I reckon that now with much more attention given to PROSTATE cancer as well as BREAST cancer, the “balance” may be better than it was, but then the concept of “balance” is not really applicable…. [young male hoons wiping themselves out with car smashes or booze - now that’s a police & road safety issue as well as a medical issue]… “triage” may be more applicable than “social balance”. Whaddayousereckon?
I reckon it’s ancient history. So Quentin Bryce made a snarky comment at work almost two decades ago. OMG! She’s human. And the context is the extreme hostility that existed then to even the existence of the position of Sex Discrimination Commissioner.
Eliot Ramsay, calling a woman ‘beautiful’is often a perfect way of patronising her. Your adjective ‘great’ is then immediately undercut by the phrase ‘whatever that means’. And the two women I was referring were Bryce and Blanchett.
Ambigulous @ #66: this is a very old one in feminism generally, lately argued chez moi (see discussion in comments thread) about the most recent woman-oriented literary prize but also applicable here. The female-specific enterprises (in health and the arts inter alia) dating from the 1970s and 80s were there to redress the perceived imbalances arising in a society that consists, as Simone de Beauvoir once put it, of two kinds of adults: human beings and women. Here in 2008 this applies a great deal less than it did 20-30 years ago. Take it from one who has lived the changes.
‘Young male hoons wiping themselves out with car smashes and booze’ — well, as one of my legal friends would say, there is a certain element of contributory negligence there, unlike with, say, ovarian cancer. Personally, and ironically, my own suggestion for a solution to this hoon/smash/booze problem would be an attempt to raise gender awareness, viz to detach this kind of reckless behaviour, in the young male public mind, from notions of proud masculinity. Or, to put it another way, the application of feminist theory, the birthplace of gender studies. If Proudfoot had really wanted to improve men’s health he would have co-operated with Bryce’s approach, not tried to destroy it.
The issude of gender-specific services is in any case a separate question (as you suggest) from the Proudfoot tale, which reads very much like an example of an anti-feminist vexatious-litigant type pursuing a particular agenda relentlessly and with a view to destruction — something of which, as I’m sure you will agree, there has been a great deal, most of it exercised in bad faith claiming only to want gender equity. *Laughs joylessly*
The SMH article’s report on this incident uses the phrases ‘a mountain of legalese’, ‘the doctor pursued Bryce through the system’, and ‘four years’. If you have ever been on the receiving end of someone else’s hostile and obsessive campaign, you will know it can drive a person to much greater extremes than writing one annoyed sentence.
Sorry, that was a bad link to the gender-specificity discussion — it’s here.
Quentin’s home town race track at Ilfracombe, I was there in . . a long time ago.
My only complaint (and its not really a complaint, as it would be silly if it was) . . is, why did she have to be a Quentin? Only Quentin I ever knew was a boy. I wonder if she gets called Qunnie for short? So far I’m loving all the symbolism its important and its good.
I agree with Carrie - the whole “boys names on girls” thing sends a *terrible* message
So people deconstructed the significance of Zelman’s name, did they? Michael’s? Peter’s? Bill’s?
This fascination with minutiae has nothing whatever to do with Bryce’s gender, I suppose.
Caroline and Marta, your questions re Ms Bryce’s name should probably be directed to her parents.
After reading the link provided by Kim @#55, the thing that stuck me was that women’s health outcomes were better than men’s because they went to the doctor more often.
So men’s health outcomes would no doubt be better if they went to the doctor more often, instead of ignoring health problems. In which case gender specific men’s clinics would be a waste of time and money without a fundamental change in men’s attitude to their health.
Perhaps Dr Proudfoot should have addressed that issue before throwing a hissy fit about a comment Ms Bryce is supposed to have written.
Certainly if you were lumbered with the name Ninian you’d have to be destined for a bookish life as a child, spent in seclusion and devoted to scholarship, followed by a career of eminence in the law and ultimately the Governor-Generalship.
I’m assuming that Quentin Bryce will now become Chief Scout of Australia ?
Speaking of which found this video of her as Qld Governor and Chief Scout.
[link]
Thanks Pavlov’s Cat at 3.10pm on 15th.
Your post makes a great deal of sense; I’m glad conditions have improved in the last 20-30 years. My wife and I still recall with some annoyance that in 1976 a (major, national) bank refused her a small mortgage, because “as a married woman she might fall pregnant and cease working.” Bunch of dills!
Yes, if we could get the young hoons to display their manhood by playing guitars or excelling at surfing or excelling at long distance running, rather than drunken high-speed driving, a good outcome for all: Master Hoon, his girlfriend, and all other drivers. Point taken on “contributory neghligence”. I was attempting to indicate a more contemporary case of unnecessary death/injury that seems to be heavily weighted by gender.
Young girls taking up smoking in their droves worries me too.
Eliot:
We should be a republic because we are capable of making our own decisions as a nation, and in fact do so already. I’d be happy with a head of state, whatever their title, being exactly what the GG is. Appointed. Reserve powers only to be used in case of emergency. Actual functions - diplomatic, symbolic. Successful cantidate will have the following qualities and skills:
1) Ability to hold their piss at high-level functions, and their tongue at all times
2) Capacity to eat odd foreign foods and feign convincing pleasure
3) Steady hand with ceremonial ribbon-shears
That’s all, that’s it. No threat to our time-honoured traditions or mostly-functional democracy. Just a symbolic move to independence - part of that being a recognition that a tremendous and increasing number of Australians have no loyalty to or interest the Crown.
Pavlov’s Cat :
Fine says
What rubbish.
I have repeatedly stated that Quentin Bryce is a person of obvious talents and qualities - but it’s fairly obvious too that that alone is not why she was the centre-piece of Rudd’s latest PR stunt, any more than Cate Blanchett has been recruited for her ability as a social and cultural policy strategist for Rudd’s next PR stunt.
Kevin Rudd is so obviously a child of the Sixties, because he’s obssessed with spactacle and gesture as substitute for policy and outcome.
If we don’t appoint a Governor General, then we either:
• abolish the post altogether
• rename the post ‘President’ and appoint one, meaning nothing changes of any substance (the preferred Repblican froth and bubble ’stunt’ alternative
• elect a President (which entails a revolutionary transformation of Australian political culture along the Zimbabwe/Pakistan/Kenya models’ lines
By voting for Presidents , you’d confer on them some sort of mandate. They’d be expected to do something, not nothing.
People who support the Republic have little idea how radically de-stablising creating the role of President is. How it shifts power away from Parliament into the hands of the President.
People in Zimbabwe and Pakistan and Kenya who have tried to turn their Westminster system into some kind of Presidential republic are paying the cost of that sort of nonsensical experiment, that utter failure to appreciate how a President shifts authority and power away from Parliament, how de-stabilising that is.
That’s not because Zimbabweans or Pakistanis are less intelligent or less educated than we are - it’s because they were seduced by the “liberationist” rhetoric of the de-colonisation process which fancied that a “Republic” somehow mean you were “more free”. Gesture. Spectacle. Symbolism. Stunt.
Now look at them.
Our republicans are also obsessed with gesture and symbolism. They neither know what they’re doing in practical terms, nor can say why in terms of practical benefits.
They love a good stunt, and Kevin Rudd obliges them daily. Take last night’s meaningless Community Cabinet stunt at Penrith. Or the meaningless petrol watchdog stunt today. Or this weekend’s facile 20.20 Gabfest stunt with that leading political scientist and policy director Cate Blanchett.
Wait for the picture opportunities this weekend - they’ll come thick and fast. And the dupes will suck them up.
“That’s not because Zimbabweans or Pakistanis are less intelligent or less educated than we are - it’s because they were seduced by the “liberationist” rhetoric of the de-colonisation process which fancied that a “Republic” somehow mean you were “more free”. Gesture. Spectacle. Symbolism. Stunt.
Now look at them.
Our republicans are also obsessed with gesture and symbolism. They neither know what they’re doing in practical terms, nor can say why in terms of practical benefits.”
See above. The reason Zimbabwe and Pakistan have fucked-up systems is because they wanted MUCH MUCH MORE than gesture and symbolism. They wanted to remake their world.
Eliot, can you name someone whose appointment as GG you would not have regarded as ’stunt’, ’spectacle’ and ‘gesture’, or are you simply using every single public event involving the government to vent your spleen about the government?
Pavlov’s Cat asks:
I think Linked textSupreme Court judge Lex Lasry would be a very good Governor General.
Oh Eliot, don’t be such a silly-billy. He was very rude to the Singapore Government over their death penalty policy.
Eliot, for once I have to agree with you wholeheartedly. Lex is a fantastic person. I just don’t know that he’d want to be G-G. And it would probably be very controversial. Lefty, human rights lawyer. Could cause some trouble.
I too agree that Lasry would be good, though frankly I think Eliot may be pulling the collective LP chain with that suggestion, given some of his other views as expressed here.
But what I want to know is this: exactly why is the Bryce appointment a ’stunt’, ’spectacle’ and ‘gesture’, but the appointment of Lasry wouldn’t be, in your eyes?
It’s not just Queenslanders, it’s BLOND queenslanders.
Jim Schembri did himself prouder even than usual on the subject with this ill-thought out piece of rant: [link]
Schembri is a prize tool. Just ignore him and hopefully he’ll disappear one day.
I’ve been reading Schembri on and off (mostly off, happily) for a bloody long time now and I think the problem with his writing has always been the same, no matter what he’s actually writing about, and it’s this: when you’re being ironic, or even when you’re just being sarcastic, your intended ‘real’ meaning does actually have to be clear to the people who are reading your stuff. Because otherwise you just sound like an incoherent dickhead.
That’s true. Most of the time he’s just a pain. But I remember leading up to Van Nguyen’s execution in Singpore he wrote an appalling. ‘ironic’ article about how Van’s problem wasn’t that he didn’t watch enough trash tv, or something like that, and he deserved to die because of his pop cultural ignorance. I was very much involved in the case and it was an extremely painful thing to read. I was just glad his Mum was in Singapore and wouldn’t have read it.
So if I understand it correctly, Q.Bryce admitted ‘on the record’ to referring to a doctor’s concerns about men’s access to health care compared to women’s as ‘trivia’…
Agreed, there is ‘contributory negligence’ operating here, i.e. men contribute to their own adverse health outcomes by not visiting the doctor as often/ readilly as women. But to suggest that a logical conclusion following from this is that there’s no point creating male-focussed health centres goes beyond being counter-intuitive, and is actually ludicrous. It’s like suggesting that because 1st generation Australian immigrants tend to find it difficult/ shy away from learning English, there’s no point trying to get them interested in learning it.
Well, your opening phrase is the operative one, isn’t it. The article Kim linked to at #52 tells the story, but of necessity does not enlarge on what was actually in the case file about which Bryce wrote the note that started all the trouble; obviously it would be protected. But personally I have no doubt that it was, erm, just another male wasting their time with trivia.
I suspect, Sick Man (!), that you have no idea how much women’s time was wasted over the 1980 and 90s by resentful antifeminist campaigners trying to stop us from doing our jobs and get us back into the kitchen by waging stupid, hostile ‘Gotcha’ campaigns. Or perhaps you do.
It’s very easy to deduce from that article that throughout her time in that job Bryce was harassed by vexatious antifeminists out to make trouble for her and hinder her from doing her job, and they seem in the end to have succeeded.
To be fair to Eliot, Pav, he’s not calling it a “spectacle” at all:
because he’s obssessed with spactacle
“Spactacle”: n. A spectacle which is laid on so thickly it’s like laying on spackle; one who goes spacko.
There’s a dictionary somewhere for this.