Scene: A counsellor’s office.
Counsellor – I’d like to welcome you both and start by saying that this is a great first step…
David – I’d like to point out that this was her idea. Now, I’m not saying that I’m not open to trying to make this work, but it was her intransigence in the first place that led to the breakup.
Counsellor – Let’s not call it a breakup just yet. One of the reasons we’re here is to see if we can prevent that from happening.
David – Too late. I’ve announced it to all our friends and family and I’ve told them that it was because I had certain principles and there are just some things that I’m not prepared to back down on.
Counsellor – And they are?
David – Well, I want a certain amount of money that we spend on projects that I decide, such as rewarding my friends for sticking by me. And she has to agree with me about no solar panels on the roof and I get to decide on which grocery stores we use. And my mobile phone… it doesn’t work now that they’ve switched off the 3G network…
Counsellor – Why didn’t you get a new one before that happened?
David – I was too busy.
Counsellor – Sussan, you’re very quiet. How do you feel about everything that David’s said?
Sussan – Um, I really want to make this work but I just can’t agree to all those things without having time to digest…
David – Look, we agreed on them a few months ago and I don’t see what’s changed.
Sussan – A lot’s changed. For a start, I have this new job which I consider a promotion and as for the solar panels…
David – We looked at them and decided that they were too expensive!
Counsellor – Try not to interrupt, David. She’s not an ABC presenter. Go on, Sussan.
Sussan – We said they were too expensive, but they’re coming down in price and I looked at the last bill and it seems like we need to do something.
David – You agreed to my plan of building a generator and having our own energy source…
Sussan – I just think we should get a few more quotes so that we can make a fair comparison.
David – How are we going to watch 7:30 if the sun goes down?
Sussan – We can still be connected to the grid. Look, I’m not saying that we can’t do all the things that David wanted. I just need time to discuss them with my friends.
David – Well I’ve discussed them with my friends and they all think I’m right, so I’m not prepared to budge.
Counsellor – Not even a little bit? You’re not prepared to compromise?
Sussan – I told him that I could possibly accomodate all his demands but I couldn’t allow the one where his friend, Bridget, just comes into the kitchen and tells me what’s wrong with what I’m doing. If she wants to do that, she can stay outside.
David – A number of us felt that you’re too controlling about what we can and can’t say and…
Sussan – I’m not restricting what you can and can’t say. I’m just pointing out that if you want to disagree with what we’ve all decided is going to be on the menu then people shouldn’t be in the kitchen when we’re trying to get it ready…
Counsellor – You’re saying it’s a case of too many cooks?
David – If Matt isn’t allowed to insist that we make the broth exactly like his mother wants it, then what’s the point of him?
Counsellor – You’re not the only one to wonder that…
Sussan – All I’m saying is that it’s long been a principle that we stick together and help each other and we can’t do that then stay outside.
Counsellor – David?
David – That was never the issue. Bridget made that very clear.
Counsellor – Sussan seems to think that it was.
David – Well, Sussan’s wrong about a lot of things.
Sussan – So’s Bridget!!
Counsellor – But you’re prepared to meet her on that?
David – I guess if it keeps the marriage together.
Counsellor – And you want to keep the marriage together?
David – Yes, particularly after some of my friends pointed out that she’d get to keep her job and she’d get to make all the decisions and she wouldn’t have to give any of the jobs and offices to any of my mates.
Counsellor – And Sussan, you’re prepared to meet David’s requests?
Sussan – I’m prepared to consider them.
Cousellor – Are you happy with that, David?
David – No, but I guess it’s all we can do for now. I mean, it’s going to be difficult to work things out but we do have the kids to consider.
Counsellor – My understanding was that the young ones had all moved away.
David – Well, yes, but we think that they’ll probably move back once they realise that we can offer them something that their current lifestyle doesn’t give them.
Counsellor – What’s that?
David – Security and stability.
Counsellor – I see. Well, I think that’s a good start and we’ll pick this up again next session. When are you both free?
Sussan – I’ve got to meet with my friends and talk about this, but after that, any time.
Counsellor – David?
David – Whenever Sussan’s prepared to give me everything I want, I’ll make myself free because this is my number one priority for the next few weeks.
Counsellor – The floods won’t be taking up your time?
David – What floods?
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Many use “lay” and lie” poorly.., they are tricky of use, but Ms. Ley can lie easily (that’s politics, folks) trying to catch up to Mc Kenzie, a champ, and Littlepod, a rising star. They have FAILED and do not comprehend that. So, what hope is there? What do we want? What can be achieved? What went wrong? But do not ask these dunces…
Sussan has just taken the leadership of h Libs and went home to be with her dying mother to be harassed by Littleproud to engage in sone heavy negotiations.
Surely, with parliament not meeting until July a brief time to grieve the death of he mother may have been a reasonable thing to do. At least until after the funeral…. or is the manly thing to do to hit hard when the opponent is down.
Bert, I think you have the bull by the horns! Sussan threw the coalition to the wind by opening up debate on all policies. This gave the National’s no option but to point out Sussan had reneged on conventional practice. As for her mother dying, this did not stop Sussan taking the leadership did it?
No it didn’t.
But the leadership question had a greater sense of urgency that the negotiation regarding coalition becasue there was no leader of the party, Dutton had been dissed .
The coalition negotiations, will run for a while yet, with the nationals lining up to undermine Littleproud So that is far less urgent.
They’re all digging in (one way or t’other). The sandpit has reached the water table, and regardless of their efforts, the sides are slumping in on them all. When they man / woman the pumps, and cement the base, what will they have left?
An empty sandpit – same old same old.
Exactly Clakka.
Liberalism was able to provide an illusion of stability and incremental progress, (something everyone is comfortable with) while favourable economic circumstances gave the illusion an armchair ride.
Now that access to resources and markets has tightened, they find that the water table rise (I love that, thanks for that one) seems unstoppable and their ideology has no foundation from which to rebuild.
Because liberalism thrives on stealing resources.
Those days are over.