And as Geoff observes, Nelson will be adequately quarantined and minded by professionals during his more sensitive engagements. As an actor manque, he should take direction quite well.

And big Kim is the perfect appointment to reassure the US establishment (if not the Administration) that we’re still onside with our big brother – especially when it comes to picking up a job lot of over-ordered F-22s. I bet the Senator from Lockheed is already planning his “Welcome the Thunder from Downunder” barbie.

Let’s face it, the Coalition are fucked for the moment. Labor has cheerfully and ruthlessly occupied the slightly centre right middle ground. The Coals are only left with going further right – which most of their Parliamentarians don’t want to do, both out of personal principles and not least because of the current GOP train wreck as they’re wrenched wingnut whacky right by what’s left of their base.

It’s a bland centralist technocratic political theme park for most developed economies now. Technology and demographic demands now triumph over ideology. I’m down with it.

“Nelson is an appalling piece of work”

Why? Just because he gave his final address to the Parliamentary Liberal Party on the need to stick to their principles after he had just accepted the Governent’s shilling to lounge about on the Euro cocktail circuit, without telling his colleagues that he had done this?

They must be cursing him tonight. But I doubt that Brendan cares. He is now His Excellency, feted in the Qantas Chairman’s lounge, served canapes in first class, collecting his ambassadorial salary and his parliamentary pension.

What more can a man ask for?

He might even pop in to the Copenhagen climate conference in December, to argue for Australia’s position of course.

Another angle: You want as your representative either someone who’s a team player and knows all the teams and fields inside and out, who knows the history of the past battles and can think on their feet when things are getting sticky, or you want someone who, no matter how choppy the waves, will take their orders and stick to them, never letting external matters like their own opinions or logic get in the way of selling the message they’ve been given.

EU and NATO? Is that the 21st century version of Ireland and the Holy See?

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Apply Occam’s Razor. Nelson has been appointed as Ambassador to tne EU, Belgium, Luxembourg, the WHO and NATO. There are already Ambassadors/High Commissioners n place for really important ‘heavy-lifting,’EU posts like London and Paris. He won’t have a lot to do and certainly nothing to do with climate change. Nelson is an appalling piece of work with enormous self-regard but he’s moderately presentable and does a reasonable line in small talk.

For the PM it offers the opportunity to consolidate his bi-partisanship credentials defence line while offering an unbeatable Turnbull shiv-sinking moment.

Rudd is an awful human being but – unarguably – he’s bloody good politically.

There I was thinking ETS was Rudd’s key platform, which he would defend right up to a DD if necessary…

And Rudd takes an outspoken skeptic onboard, practically on the eve of heading to Copenhagen – is he kidding us? Something doesn’t sit right there.

Did Rudd suggest that Nelson should put a cat amongst Turnbull’s pigeons, as a parting jesture to help Rudd’s cause along? Or did Nelson think that up all on his own? Which part of diplomacy 101 does this belong to?

Yes, Grace! What about Turnbull’s egregious tones when talking about Nelson’s appointment. I thought he was just being determinedly gracious through gritted teeth. Perhaps not….

Anyway perhaps we’d better just keep our speculations to ourselves. Wouldn’t want to give the game away prematurely to the “Oz dolts”.

I rarely criticise your commentary, Grace, but is “debrain” the right word in the context of the Liberal front bench?

My bet is that Tones will take up the position of Ambassador to the Holy See when Tim Fischer returns to the family farm in Wodonga.