Comments on: In a pinch http://hoydenabouttown.com/20090622.5458/in-a-pinch/ Acting Out For No Reason Thu, 18 Mar 2010 11:46:40 +0000 hourly 1 By: tigtog http://hoydenabouttown.com/20090622.5458/in-a-pinch/comment-page-1/#comment-131997 tigtog Tue, 23 Jun 2009 02:11:37 +0000 http://viv.id.au/blog/?p=5458#comment-131997 <a href="http://sarah-hanson-young.greensmps.org.au/content/speech/debate-standing-order-respect-visitors-senate-floor" rel="nofollow">Sarah Hanson-Young's own account</a> of events last Thursday. Sarah Hanson-Young’s own account of events last Thursday.

]]> By: tigtog http://hoydenabouttown.com/20090622.5458/in-a-pinch/comment-page-1/#comment-131980 tigtog Mon, 22 Jun 2009 20:57:19 +0000 http://viv.id.au/blog/?p=5458#comment-131980 Mindy, I dived into reading the thread at LP, and you're quite right. So many people just weren't listening about what the actual facts of the incident were: the division wasn't expected to happen until after 5pm, Hanson-Young was using the time to say goodbye to her child before Kora flew home to Adelaide, the division was suddenly called at 4.45pm when the nanny was organising something else and Hanson-Young had no other options. <b>The division should have taken only five minutes</b> - they go in, their names are crossed off a list according to the party line voting strategy, votes are tallied and handed to the Senate President, the result is announced and they all go out. There should have been no problem at all with having a child there for <i>5 minutes.</i> And for all the people saying "why couldn't she just get a staffer to look after the kid?" (a) the division was only supposed to take <i>5 minutes!</i> (which the 2 year old was expecting to spend with her mother, and not a stranger), and (b) that's probably against the rules for how one uses the staff that are paid for from one's electoral allowance - I wouldn't be at all surprised. Taking the child into the chamber for <i>5 minutes</i> probably seemed like the least controversial alternative. A tiny amount of flexibility for a parent caught <i>in a pinch</i> seems, as bluemilk points out, to be the least we can expect from our government leaders, really. It sets an absolutely appalling example to not show this miniscule consideration. I'm glad John Hogg apologised, at least. Mindy, I dived into reading the thread at LP, and you’re quite right. So many people just weren’t listening about what the actual facts of the incident were: the division wasn’t expected to happen until after 5pm, Hanson-Young was using the time to say goodbye to her child before Kora flew home to Adelaide, the division was suddenly called at 4.45pm when the nanny was organising something else and Hanson-Young had no other options.

The division should have taken only five minutes – they go in, their names are crossed off a list according to the party line voting strategy, votes are tallied and handed to the Senate President, the result is announced and they all go out. There should have been no problem at all with having a child there for 5 minutes.

And for all the people saying “why couldn’t she just get a staffer to look after the kid?”
(a) the division was only supposed to take 5 minutes! (which the 2 year old was expecting to spend with her mother, and not a stranger), and
(b) that’s probably against the rules for how one uses the staff that are paid for from one’s electoral allowance – I wouldn’t be at all surprised. Taking the child into the chamber for 5 minutes probably seemed like the least controversial alternative.

A tiny amount of flexibility for a parent caught in a pinch seems, as bluemilk points out, to be the least we can expect from our government leaders, really. It sets an absolutely appalling example to not show this miniscule consideration. I’m glad John Hogg apologised, at least.

]]> By: Jet http://hoydenabouttown.com/20090622.5458/in-a-pinch/comment-page-1/#comment-131967 Jet Mon, 22 Jun 2009 08:24:24 +0000 http://viv.id.au/blog/?p=5458#comment-131967 I have been absolutely godsmacked at the public reaction to this story. I really was under the impression that my country was kinder. Andrew Bartlett has a good post on it up at his site <a href="http://andrewbartlett.com/?p=7215" rel="nofollow">here</a>. I have been absolutely godsmacked at the public reaction to this story. I really was under the impression that my country was kinder.

Andrew Bartlett has a good post on it up at his site here.

]]> By: Mindy http://hoydenabouttown.com/20090622.5458/in-a-pinch/comment-page-1/#comment-131952 Mindy Mon, 22 Jun 2009 05:09:46 +0000 http://viv.id.au/blog/?p=5458#comment-131952 Yeah, I've been following the discussion at LP, but I haven't contributed because people seem to be arguing past each other and not listening. But hey, what's new? The attitude towards children seems to be a bit scary at times. But then I've never worked in Parliament House so I don't know what it's like. I suspect some of the commenters don't have children, and some of them have said as much, so I think they don't really understand what dealing with a two year old is like either. Yeah, I’ve been following the discussion at LP, but I haven’t contributed because people seem to be arguing past each other and not listening. But hey, what’s new? The attitude towards children seems to be a bit scary at times. But then I’ve never worked in Parliament House so I don’t know what it’s like. I suspect some of the commenters don’t have children, and some of them have said as much, so I think they don’t really understand what dealing with a two year old is like either.

]]> By: tigtog http://hoydenabouttown.com/20090622.5458/in-a-pinch/comment-page-1/#comment-131944 tigtog Mon, 22 Jun 2009 04:33:04 +0000 http://viv.id.au/blog/?p=5458#comment-131944 I think we're all too busy watching the circus playing out in Parliament today to comment on this happening last week, Bluemilk! At first I thought oh well this is just Senate procedure, but the more I read the more I realise that the child's removal was unusual rather than the normal rule. The comments I've read online since have been disheartening, to say the least. I think we’re all too busy watching the circus playing out in Parliament today to comment on this happening last week, Bluemilk!

At first I thought oh well this is just Senate procedure, but the more I read the more I realise that the child’s removal was unusual rather than the normal rule. The comments I’ve read online since have been disheartening, to say the least.

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