Thursday, December 18, 2008

UPDATE: Was he drunk?

ABC AM Programme today, interview with Intrepid Kev, Man of International.... um, Man of International... ahhh.

Exposure, that 's it. Exposure.

Kevin's overexposed!

I'll put the link here as soon as it's avilable on the net...

Australian troops harnessing the kinetic energy of their shooty-bang thingies.
... and stuff. (paraphrased slightly.)

Here's the quote:
MICHAEL EDWARDS: Australia's special forces contingent in Afghanistan has seen some heavy fighting in recent times but this display of firepower wasn't aimed at the Taliban - it was aimed at impressing the visiting Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd.
KEVIN RUDD: You know that was a very impressive display of firepower and an impressive display of what you do when you harness the kinetic force of this operation against an enemy.
Link to transcript and you can listen to him, too. I'm sure he sounds tired and emotional.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

listen to him?

Why punish us kae?
What have we done?

Mark

kae said...

Sorry Mark

But it's a free choice thing.... I take no responsibility!

Skeeter said...

In the immortal words of Paul Keating, Mr Rudd is "simply a shiver looking for a spine to run up".
It was bad watching it even on the ABC where they had edited out the worst bits. But watching the more complete versions of his naive and insensitive speech to the troops on the commercial channels, was indeed punishing.

Anonymous said...

Dear Leader is about as popular as a pork chop in a synagogue with the troops, but to be fair, Kevni took the trouble to go to the 'Ghan and talk to them.
That will be appreciated by the diggers, and the TV grabs and the "ha ha look at the dork in the flak jacket" comments back here in Oz don't really count for much in their world where guns, helmets and flak jackets are as much a part of daily life as the inner city luvvie's morning latte.
Morale is important to soldiers, and the fact that their PM took the time and effort to visit sits well with most of them and, in particular, their families at home.
Call it PR, spin doctor BS, or whatever, but at least Rudd made the effort.
I will bag him as much as the next RWDB, but I also give him credit where credit is due.

mythusmage said...

Kevni is a prime example of what happens when you rely entirely on a dictionary to expand your vocabulary.

Skeeter said...

Pedro, I agree that the PM's visit was important for the morale of troops. But I doubt his telling them about all the military funerals he had attended, what a vile place Afghanistan was, and that he would be going home to civilised Australia to spend Christmas with his wife and kids, did much for the soldiers' morale.
In great contrast to Mr Rudd's pejorative remarks about Afghanistan, there was a diplomatic and urbane response to those remarks from an Afghanistan official, who made Mr Rudd look positively uncivilised in comparison.
I realise that Mr Rudd was talking to the troops, but he gave the impression that he was enjoying his chance to posture on the world's stage and he was aware that what he was saying would be broadcast around the world.
Obviously he has learnt nothing from his Bush/G20 gaffe.

kae said...

Hi Mythus
Yeah, that's a good explanation.

I think the delivery is lacking, too. He just sounds insincere.

Yuck. Just yuck. Parroting what he has learnt to say. Inflection and tone is all wrong.


Are we sure he's not some kind of android? Puppet? Hmmm?

Egg said...

Did Kevni regale the troops with stories of the severe paper cut he got in the orifice back in '83?

kae said...

That'd be his only war wound, Egg.

Although when the Heiner stuff hits the fan, as I'm sure it will, he may wish something worse than a paper cut had happened to him.

Anonymous said...

The poker faces were enough to say what had to be said.

The fact that this issue is still being talked about in the military also says what needs to be said