p!ss off AFL

ffs

You need to get your name down for the next Melbourne Comedy Festival, wombleoz

Your a fkn kack!

More spin than a ferris wheel -  News Limited

There are more publicly-paid spin doctors in Victoria than MICA paramedics, orthopedic surgeons and forensic police.

And the State Opposition argues the number of public sector communications staff is as high as 964.

The Government and its agencies intially put the number at only 72 when asked how many media advisers, directors, assistants, workers and support staff they employed.

The figures do not include sub-contractors, public relations teams and external consultants brought in for specialist projects or spin doctors employed by the state's public transport services.

Mr  Brumby and his ministers have 23 media advisers at their disposal, plus another 46 employees in the Department of Premier and Cabinet charged with promoting the Government, including 12 staff whose sole purpose is media monitoring.

The Department of Industry Innovation and Regional Development has a "Sydney PR manager" and "destination communications manager" as well as a strategic communications manager, online communications manager, adviser, information officer and communication manager.

The Department of Health, including the much-maligned former Department of Human Services, has a media unit with five spin doctors, but a total communications staff of 111.

And the Department of Primary Industries employs Melbourne communications staff in roles "to be confirmed" and "yet to be defined" as well as a "media and issues analysis adviser", "corporate reputation" department and web writers.

Opposition scrutiny of government spokesman David Davis said the time and money invested in spin should be put to better use solving the state's health, public transport and public order problems.

"This is incredible, the size of John Brumby's propaganda unit is the largest anyone has ever heard of," he said.

"John Brumby is so arrogant he has built the biggest propaganda unit outside of North Korea.

"The Opposition have four media advisers, John Brumby has almost 1000."

There are at least 650 people employed as public affairs officers across the main federal public service departments and hundreds more are employed in dozens of smaller agencies, according to answers received directly from departments and responses to Senate committee inquiries during the last term of government.

A further 44 ministerial media advisers headline the Gillard Government's spin effort.

The NSW Government admitted to employing 156 spin doctors.

Queensland had 350 department media advisers and 51 ministerial advisers, WA had 265 in total, SA had 228 and Tasmania had 123 in 2008.

A handful of federal government departments were willing to reveal how much they spent on spin, but an Opposition estimate, based on figures released to the Senate over an 18-month period from 2008, put the cost at more than $50 million a year.

Overall, the bill across the states, territories and Federal Government totals at least $250 million a year.

The average salary for public relations and communications personnel in Melbourne is $75,623, but with sweeteners such as superannuation, payroll tax, long service leave, workcover and recreational leave, the average Government wage for the role is estimated at $90,000.

The Department of Justice last week advertised a "communications, marketing and media" role in the newly-formed Office of the Fire Services Commissioner with a salary range of $93,740 to $125,443.

Documents obtained by the Sunday Herald Sun through Freedom of Information show five casual media interns hired by the "Government and corporate group" between January 28, 2008 and June last year cost $203,165.

The spin revelations come as Labor elder statesman John Faulkner launched a stinging critique of the party's lack of substance, warning that cunning was overtaking courage.

State Government spokeswoman Sarah Dolan said communication staff delivered a range of important public information to Victorians.

She slammed the Opposition for criticising their role.

"Ted Baillieu needs to immediately come clean about how many public servants he'll sack if elected," she said.

Settle down Jez, no one will care about the election until after Cup week - VERY confident the Greens will do well and poll over 10%, Labor to hold on to power thanks to Green preferences - Libs no show

Where's your thread on the US elections, I reckon you'd be a Tea Party man

not of mine AP, not of mine

Wombleoz.

Hang your head in shame.

Our troops and allied forces are protecting you, me and every other Australian in addition to millions of other innocent people across the globe from the horrors of terrorism.

When the going gets tough, you don't just throw in the towel Wombleoz.

Sometimes, and I know this will come to a shock to you, but tough decisions need to be made, nobody likes war (as we've discussed previously) but we all have a vested interest in Afghanistan being able to stand on its own two feet.

Make no mistake.  We leave and we not only leave our allies in the lurch, but we concede to the brutal b*stards - that is the Taliban.

You read about the way women are treated by the Taliban?

You seen the numbers on education that have filtered out of Afghanistan for young people (especially females) as mentioned by Julia Gillard in her speech to parliament on this matter - I don't say this very often, but I when it comes to this conflict, I am 110% in support of the Prime Ministers position.

I paused to watched Kevin Rudd's speech to parliament today.  Food for thought.
There are near-misses we will never know about in this country......

The horrors of Bali and 9/11 may feel like distant news but the risks and threats remain very real - we must not back down, we must not give in and we must back our allies.

As tough as it is and don't get me wrong, it breaks my heart when we lose an Australian soldier - but some things are worth fighting for - this is a freedom fight.

What gets me is that leaders of nations rode into battle ( Kings and Queens) of old -  can u picture the current parlimentarians doing that except for Abbott. Easy to stand in parliment beating the drums of war

Jez. Just wondering how exactly having Australian troops in Afghanistan is fighting for "our freedom" when we have no threat of losing it?

The Feds have foiled a few attacks on Aussie soil in a nick of time the last couple of years

Head in the sand stuff Wombleoz - you continue to surprise me.

Usually you lefties are the disaster-specialists.

Lefties love a good catastrophe, eg the greatest swindle ever, Climate Change.
Something you lot can get your teeth into...............................

Womble, you only have to listen to forum debates such as Insight on SBS at times .... the drums get beaten for Muslim/Islamic state and you hardly here denoucement of Islamic terrorists from the believers who hush it up with spin.

Bottomline is that the interpretation of the Koran currently by powerful factions is a "war on the infidels"

If people seriously contend sleeper cells are not already here , it is a worry.

Of equal concern is the way democracy and political correctness is manipulated to the point where citizens who stand up for something simple as , if you immigrate here , you abide by our secular way of life with seperation of church and state gets met with argument

Would like to see the beleivers Go to China and argue and see how they go

You bleet climate change as gospel........
yet terrorism seems to be a long gone myth.......

Fair dinkum.

Bit of a over-reation Judge sending missles into a cave the size of a surburban house Judge

Alright for you to joke when you feel like it judgey.

Your not keen on others doing similar when it suits?

Thats fine.

What should we do then Judge?

By all means, tell us the way forward.

I don't think the Taliban's once off faith-fuelled anti-drug campaign 10 years ago really exonerate them.  But thats just me.

you too

best of luck

hopefully a profitable day
[:D]

Islams not doing too much harm in our Melbourne Cup entries over the last few decades.  Bit early to be hiding under our beds yet.

Spot on Monday Mike - there's no point hiding under the bed and there's no point wasting our brave soldiers lives on foreign battlefields with what appears to be no plan, you can't win a war if you on;t know what victory looks like

Simple question for you Jez, if you're so keen on chasing down terrorists when do we invade Pakistan, that's where they've all moved to???

PS - back on topic now with Labor

...and I am loving the massive grab for power from the Greens - dictating the Gillard Government's agenda.  I hope it continues, it will spell disaster for Gillard's Prime Ministership.

Gillard needs to be careful of just drifting with the Green's pushing the direction of this government - she is beholden to this extreme left-wing faction of the Labor Party.

Wombleoz will say the public will accept and welcome this.
  Yes mate, alrighty then.

What have we seen to date:

Euthanasia....the War in Afghanistan....

Whats next?  I expect to see same-sex marriage, then the Carbon tax.....I know these topics have already been mentioned

Lindsay Tanner made these comments earlier this year:

"The Greens are the posturing party, they're the flag wavers who come along like snake oil salesmen and say 'vote for us and magically your view of the world will somehow become a reality'.

Hits the nail right on the head.  He was one of the decent blokes within the Labor Party.

It is crystal clear: I think the difficulty is this is a Government, a Labor Party, that has lost its way. The only convictions that this Government seems to have are Bob Brown’s.....

Expect to hear this line, over and over and over and over....

"Labor is in Government but the Greens are in power."