The one thing Liberals need to do to their image is to show the emotion that has been a part of their decision making all along. When Brendan Nelson shows this emotion by choking up when he is elected leader what does Turbull his main opponent do? He strides into his office and berates him on his first day as leader.
Turnbull talks of softening the Libral image. He might like to start with his own.
If Turnbull wants to act like a bully I suggest he go join a union. If Turnbull wants to invade other people's offices and verbally abuse them he should join a union. If Turnbull wants to trespass into the bosses office and use his large physical presence to intimidate he sould join a union. Preferably a construction union. He'll find plenty of friends there. He'll be able to disrupt progress really well there.
Turnbull's behaviour is a bad look. He has, like Costello, vindicated the party's decision not to back him. He is an opportunist and only in it for his own ambition. He would rather see the whole thing go down than accept the party's judgement and play second fiddle. Turbull wants to bury Howard by riding the wave of media condemnation. He wants to sacrifice th progress we have made for his own ambition. His selfish lack of consideration is now on display for all to see.
The thing that boggles me is the Turnbull would think showing emotion is so bad. Nelson showing emotions will do alot more to convince people that Liberals are people too than tagging along behind the Mardi Gras like Turnbull.
Being PC does not make you a good person. Rudd's wholesale acceptance of Howards cultural approach is the final nail in the electoral coffin of the PC agenda. Only the media still go on about it. Soon the media will move on to the next story. We need to resist the tempation to joing their bonfire of the vanities.
John Howard and the Liberal Party are not evil. We are the staunch supporters of individuals freedoms and virtues like individual responsiblity. We are the defenders of democracy, which is not the ALP model of a tyranny of the majority, or the media. We are ready to make huge sacrifices and suffer long for what we think, believe, know is right - not that I want to measure the value of a person by the amount they have sufferred as the Left do.
We do all this because we have deep, strong powerful feelings. Does anyone suggest that we do it make money? Any or all of us have lucrative careers beconing in the private sector we could have gone for if we wanted money. Instead we wanted to make a difference. To make the world a better place.
Do you think we do it for the Glory? There is precious little glory handed to conservatives in the modern world. We endure the lack of glory because we know what we are doing is right in our hearts.
I am a staunch Liberal and am proud of my emotions: the highs and the lows.
I am also proud of the empathy I feel towards other people. I have musicians, preachers and psychiatrists in my family tree. I know my own feelings and those of others.
I am writing a book about feelings, and how much bullshit is written about them.
The the Labor party to whoop and holler in the tally room at the suffering of the liberals and then to turn around and accuse us of lacking empathy simply shows their self-delusion and hypocrisy. They think they are empathetic but they empathise most with others that share their resentment of an outside group, namely the privaledged.
We have been portrayed by the media and the not-so-intelligencia as being heartless. Howard was the focus for all that venom. It was all bullshit.
Hooray for Brendan Nelson showing that Liberals are real people that suffer in defeat. Sportmen, the most most macho of all people, cry when the lose a final because they put every last drop of their blood, sweat and tears into the game. They had no reserves left in defeat because they fought with all their hearts.
It is not half-time as Turnbull suggests. We just lost the world cup and have 3 years to go before we get a chance to win it back. Introspection is good and necessary at this time. Hastily adopting other team's cynical playing style is not. Let us feel as well as think ourselves out of this sad situation.
If this is all too woosy for you, then think of it like Bruce Lee. In Enter the Dragon he instructs his student to punch as hard as he can by saying,
"What we need is emotional content."
Let's deliver the ALP a big whack of serious-ass emotional content.
Love,
A Liberal
