ideas: on government
Fielding inept, no matter spelling
Steve Fielding is an incompetent legislator, blinded by personal prejudice and laughably ignorant of some of the very weighty issues he must sit in judgement of.
But of course, criticism of the man who puts Family First is never taken as read. It is dismissed as an ideological attack from the agnostic purveyors of individualism on the Left. Or as bitterness that Fielding managed to slip into Parliament House as a Victorian senator with a few thousand votes on the back of a web of preference deals and political stitch-ups.
Now Fielding is off-limits because he has “lifelong learning difficulties”, an admission he revealed in grappling for an explanation to his embarrassing attempt at spelling ‘fiscal’. As in fiscal policy, not the “physical” policy to which Fielding first mistakenly referred.
Which leads us neatly to my all-time favourite excuse for political ineptitude – that of elitism. To knock Fielding, the argument goes, is to dismiss the contribution of those not blessed with tremendous intellect or afforded higher education. Merely bullying from the nasty latte-sipping intellectuals who think they’re better than everyone else.
David Penberthy – that’s ‘Pembo’ to his beer-swilling mates at the pub, where he goes in his Commodore SS to watch the footy, maybe chat up a few broads, just like you average Aussie blokes, okay maaate? – is at pains to point out just how much of an everyman he is. So naturally he used his soapbox at The Punch to leap to Fielding’s defence.
“He is not a stupid person,” Penberthy assured us; with “more front than Myers”. Criticism of Fielding, he suggests, is simply “teasing from the intelligentsia”.
Fielding is a friend of The Punch. As Penberthy told us on day one, his blog would not be a “fancy, la-di-dah site aimed at people with three university degrees”. More aimed at people like Fielding (he only has two degrees), apparently, wilfully ignorant of most issues.
It’s the sort of populist anti-elitism Penberthy cultivated at The Daily Telegraph. You sell more papers in the egalitarian spirit of playing to the prejudices and misguided fears of Joe and Jane Average.
The stance infuriates me. It is everything that is deeply wrong with politics and media all wrapped into one. I’ve written about this previously: the implicit charge in dismissing legitimate criticism of public officials as elitism that education and intelligence is not as valued over some sort of ubiquitous commonness.
Politics is not the sort of meritocratic playing field we may hope for. But nor is it exclusive to the political establishment, the educated, the academically gifted. Everyone can and should take part. Every reasoned view is valued, and every political ploy open to scrutiny.
Fielding has repeatedly hijacked debates – refugees, climate change, alcopop taxes, etc – with stupid stunts and stupendous ignorance, demanding – and often receiving – a ransom for his own personal hobby horses.
Let’s be clear: Fielding is a pathetic excuse for a politician. Not alone in Canberra, but perhaps the worst. Which goes not to his background or religion or opinions or mandate or spelling or dyslexia, but simply to qualification. He is simply not up to the rigors of public debate.
Surely, Penbo, a straight-talker like you can accept that without making ideological excuses.
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13 comments for “Fielding inept, no matter spelling”
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[...] Jason Whittaker rebuts Fielding and Penbo. [...]
I can never forgive Fielding for his instrumental role in passing the Work Choices legislation. He is not a dummy, he’s a puppet.
First class comment Jason. the awful Steve Fielding is a mindless, witless creature who encapsulates all the mendacious mediocrity of the so-called Ocker syndrome. Not to mention the proverbial beer swilling no-hopers-footy lovers and cannon-fodder, to a man.
Neil Mitchell of 3AW was weeping tears of blood for Steve Fielding this morning. Absolute gut-wrenching muck. A let’s be one of the boys mind-set as David Penberthy.
Senator Fielding’s ineptitude is so gross and his ability to drag a comment right out of context makes a laughing stock of the Australian electorate. Indeed, one could be forgiven for thinking he must be an American senator from one of the rust-bucket states.
You might not agree with Steve Fielding but writing a blog that is nothing more than a personal attack on the guy does not seem like a terribly bright idea. You are an ideas guy right?
I would suggest you read some of the mindless babble the media push out via Twitter during Question Time. Their 5th grade humour is more immature than any of Fielding’s antics.
By the way, how exactly has he hijacked the climate change debate? Is it because he dared to ask questions that some people did not like? How many other Senators paid their own way to find out more about climate change theory?
People who really have disabilities find people like Fielding who play at “poor me I have a disability” totally distasteful and opportunistic. He had better come up with some ideas for those who really have disabilities to face every day without a parliamentary salary.
[...] Whittaker’s post today nailed it in highlighting the problems of this kind of anti-elitism that is the oh-so-common [...]
I hope you vehemently prosecute the ineptitude and incompetence of Swan with the same rigour as you have with Fielding.
Never forget that the Fielding dope voted against raising the tax on alcopops. He vetoed a sensible proposal that would have made the products (which are immensely popular with young people) more prohibitively expensive, thus deterring use/abuse by the young. How he can call himself Family First when he voted to keep this much-abused product cheap for the kiddies is beyond me!
[...] the condescension. At Cricky, Jason Whittaker simply says that Fielding, excuses aside, is incompetent and not up to the rigors of public debate, [...]
Steve Fielding, firstly did not cry poor me over his learning disability, and has been blamed by sections of the media for “keeping it a secret” Cant say I have seen his “antics” that some of you have talked about, but then the way all politicians seem to behave is quite unbelievable at times, but I did read the questions Sen. Fielding posed re climate change (man made that is) questions that came from reputable scientists, and I did see where Al Gore left the country without answering them, and I did notice that Penny Wong and the Chief Scientist could not answer the questions. as for his learning difficulty he is in good company, if you look at the history books you will find plenty of people there who have contributed to the world in positive ways, that have learning difficulties. No I am not a Sen Fielding voter. However I do believe he has shown great courage, even if it is political naivety in questioning the all powerful lobby re man made climate change.
Just to correct Dave (and I won’t say you’re a dummy), Steve Fielding did not vote for workchoices. The Howard Gvt had a majority in the senate and did that all by itself
Fielding’s position is vindicated after what was the debacle in Denmark.
It won’t surprise you to learn, Senator13, I think that’s absolutely nonsense.
The opposite in fact. Every major world leader was in Denmark working for a solution to global warming. Fielding simply looked a joke.