Two Christians who I admire have given a bit of a Eulogy on Kevin Rudd's term as PM
Mark Connor gave a bit of a nice summary which I pretty much agree with, except of this bit ::
Over time, his popularity declined and he didn't deliver on a number of his promises. Was this due to an inability or lack of discipline to implement change or did he lack internal support for his change agenda?
I'd say he is right but I'd also say that the opposition since Abbott was highly antagonistic in letting legislation through.
Tim Costello was the other resposne which I thought was really generous.
Unlike others who mocked him as out of touch, I liked having a prime minister who read theology and had a hero called Dietrich Bonhoeffer. I detected echoes of Bonhoeffer in his penultimate speech last Wednesday night in calling the ballot on. He spoke of not letting the party lurch to the Right in harshness to refugees and asylum-seekers.
Also this which I didn't know from Costello,
Unmentioned in his list of achievements at his final press conference was one that I think is his finest legacy. He lifted our overseas aid program by more than $1 billion to date because he saw development and achieving the Millennium Development Goals of halving poverty as something that was right. Against the Howard government's refusal to budge, he took an electoral risk. He promised to lift our aid to 0.5 per cent of gross domestic product by 2015 or 50c in every $100 because this would help cut the number of hungry and absolutely poor.
It is with interest that I've been reading the relationship between Mr Brumby and Mr Paker of late. One the state premier and the other a casino magnate. Today, suprise, suprise I spotted this quote in The Herald Sun today by Mr Brumby"John Brumby says more tables at Crown Casino will not impact on problem gambling, before the Victorian Commission for Gambling Regulation even looks into the social and economic impact of more tables.
The Government has been forced to seek more advice on the impacts of its deal with Crown Casino that will give the gambling giant 150 more tables."
One of my heros, Tim Costello had to say this about the deal a few months back, in The Herald Sun... the government had "blown a chance'' to make Crown pay for the damage it does to gambling addicts.
"Any other major monopoly that is acknowledged to be doing social damage at the level Crown is would not be treated in this way,'' Mr Costello said.
"The state government exists to act in the interests of the community and instead it does a secret cozy deal that is not transparent.''
He welcomed any move to block the deal in parliament.
"Let them go back and do a deal with Crown that is in the public interest and in the interests of problem gamblers.''
I liked what Paul Keating had to say on QLD politics about the racing industry, "It smells like a dead kangaroo in the middle of the road"