I hope the public bring the Democrats “back from coventry” – they’ve worked pretty hard the last few years

It would be a good result for Queensland and Australia if Andrew can hang on to a senate position. That would keep the Democrats alive and functioning, providing choice and a more balanced political imput than some. Besides, the Democrats are needed now more than ever to keep the bastards honest….there are now far more bastards in parliament than ever.

We’ve been punished enough!!!! People need to seriously consider the importance of the Democrats.

Yes, you’re right, we are glaring by in our absence from the media. In the Victorian State election, the Press Council found that there was no bias against any party, except one – the Democrats. Not that it’s something the Democrats can talk publically about because that would lead to more blacking-out – the media DO NOT take criticism well.

Abolishing the States isn’t exactly a policy we will be able to enact within the next 30 years, it’s a vision.

MGK:

“I yet keep hoping for a renaissance of the Democrats”

So do I — despite their neglect of, and hostility towards, Australian war veterans several years ago.

That renaissance won’t be allowed to happen until we get a free and pro-democracy press.

So long as we continue to put up with the garbage dumped on us by the “news”[?] media, including the ABC, nothing will change.

So long as we are too timid to demand real news instead of infotainment and party propaganda, we will continue to get that anti-democracy fraud, the “Two Party Preferred”, and all the other rubbish.

The “news”[?] won’t reform itself and asking a parliament to pass laws that encourage democracy would be like asking the burglars to become the police …. so what can we, as individuals, do?

Greens, Democrats agree on preferences swap

The Democrats and the Greens have announced a preference deal for the federal election.

They will put each other before all other major and minor parties.

They say the agreement will give Australia the best chance of ridding the Senate of the major parties’ dominance. […]

GetUp‘s attempt at getting the Senate out of Lieberal control…

the Democrats sold out badly over the GST, then there was the 2004 election where they preferenced family first over the Greens, maybe a little time in the “sin bin” isn’t such a bad thing.
I voted Democrat in the senate for years, even when I voted ALP in the lower house (this was in the days before Greens lower house candidates or maybe just before I knew better). I’ll be voting Green this time around too, but you can bet I stood up for the Democrats getting our preferences. It’d be a sad old day in parliament if the Democrats weren’t around.

Yeah, the pref deal which sent control of the Senate to HoWARd deserves a lotttttta sinbin time, no doubt- but the Greens have no small amount of culpability in that 2004 debacle.

I think I’ll be voting Green 1, Dems 2 and ALP 3, though. Balance of power has to land with Die Grünen.

Bartlett is running against Pauline Hanson– to whom Family First, the party of homophobes, pervy wankers and consensual adult incest, have ‘disgracefully’ directed preferences over the Democrats. I can’t see any way FF could disgrace themselves much further, can you?