大象传媒

My name is Nick and I fear I am in danger of becoming an Australian political junkie. I find myself boring friends with the swings needed to win obscure marginals, which, up until six weeks ago, I never knew existed. My mind is cluttered with useless information, like how the South Australian seat of is named after a post-war Australian ambassador to Washington.

Had you asked me 18 months ago, I would have hazarded a guess that was a type of Dutch cheese. Now I can quote the land mass of this all-important bellwether seat.

While we are on the subject, how come there isn鈥檛 a seat named ? Or Lillee? Better still, ? Imagine the pre-selection contest for that one.

On Wednesday night I not only watched a 30-minute television interview with John Howard, but discovered that I rather enjoyed it. Twenty-four hours later, I did the same thing with Kevin Rudd. Ditto. And then there are those 90-minute lunchtime debates at the in Canberra (for those Australian readers who have shared this experience, have you noticed how the moderator always seem to have a very large glass of red wine, which never seems to empty?).

True, there are times when this blog has been a bit of a slog. Mid-way through, a couple of you launched into a debate about whether this campaign was like watching grass grow or paint dry? But for the most part, I have found it rather entertaining and educational, even if it does feel like we鈥檝e been listening to the same sound-bites, statistics and smears for the best part of a year. No more talk of 鈥渨orking families鈥�, please.

On this, the final day of campaigning, I was going to try and write something deep and meaningful about how I reckon Australian elections can be strangely prescient, partly because they come round so often and partly because there is so much government in this country that is has become something of a laboratory for public policy ideas and reforms. In 2005, the Conservative Party in Britain recruited , one of the Liberal Party鈥檚 prime strategists, in the hope he could make 鈥渄og whistle politics鈥� work for Michael Howard in the same way it had benefited John Howard.

If you鈥檙e interested, here are the some possible themes to have emerged this time round.

鈥� The obvious importance of green issues, and their impact, crucially, as vote-shifters. John Howard鈥檚 salutary policy announcement during the focussed on climate change. The all-important seat of Wentworth has almost become a referendum on green issues.

鈥� Housing affordability. Targeting first-time buyers and possibly the parents who are still providing a roof over their heads, Kevin Rudd kicked off his campaign on this very issue.

鈥� Broadband speed is looming larger as a political issue (which is not surprising in Australia, the land of the sluggish internet connection).

鈥� Ditto the availability of hi-tech teaching materials to schoolchildren, like lap-tops (or the 鈥渢ool box of the future鈥�, as Kevin Rudd calls it).

鈥� Water shortages have featured, but, in this , not as much as you might have thought.

鈥� This election has been less about big ideas than managerialism: essentially, who is most capable of running the economy, and, arguably, finding practical solutions to meet the challenge of climate change.

鈥� Does Kevin Rudd鈥檚 fluency in Mandarin herald the day much later in this century, or perhaps the next, when it鈥檚 a much more common diplomatic language?

鈥� This is not Australia鈥檚 first internet election but it is its first YouTube election. Is the reason we are seeing politicians ambushed so frequently now because within a few minutes the material can be uploaded onto the web? Political performance art is here to stay.

I am sure there are others, but I had better go. I missed the debate the other day between Treasurer Peter Costello and Labor鈥檚 deputy leader Julia Gillard, and I鈥檓 hoping to catch the re-run. Honest.

• Bookmark with:
• |
• |
• |
• |
• - What's this?