Cinderella, Sunshine Coast Style

  1. This is a story about the struggle to become one of the elite by doing their dirty deeds, collecting damaging information to hold power and getting rich along the way.  The moral of the story is : there are none, no morals that is. The lesson is: If you are not one, an elite, you will never be one. Better people have tried.The players: 1. Peter Slipper, long term initially National, then Lib federal MP in the seat of Fisher on the Sunshine Coast, QLD.
  2. @geeksrulz v strong hunger for money. See spending patterns. Taxpayers should not be happy with this MP.
  3. Player 2. James Ashby, one time radio announcer with attitude, strawberry farm PR, Slipper PR staffer, political grub.
  4. http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/familiar-with-politics-of-contention/story-e6freon6-1226335292876
  5. @marxdeane strawberry farm connection is intriguing. Just haven’t worked it out yet.
  6. Gowinta Strawberry Farm in liquidation and on the market as one business or 11 properties: http://www.weeklytimesnow.com.au/article/2012/11/27/550825_property.html
  7. @sloughly @independentaus Just for good measure, the farm now with caravan park ripe for rezoning to res ie Big Bucks: news.com.au/national/sunshi…
  8. Player 3. Mark McArdle, longtime State Lib, now LNP member for Caloundra, wife was employed and ‘let go’ by Slipper. Evidently a different faction, perhaps different interests. Maybe lack of trust.
  9. @sloughly @independentaus And guess who has history in ‘losing’ investors money: laborview.blogspot.com.au/2…. BTW Slippers wifes family are in R/E.
  10. Player 5. Bronwyn Bishop, longtime Federal Lib MP At a fundraising event at the strawberry farm in better days. Spruiking to the old folks about that nasty carbon tax.  It’s not over til the fat lady sings, as they say. 
  11. @sloughly @independentaus Glasshouse Country News http://pic.twitter.com/cbyuoIfk
  12. Player 4. Mal Brough, onetime federal member for Longman (now held by Wyatt Roy, the youngest Lib  and somehow associated with Gowinta Strawberry Farm). Member of John Howard’s government as Aboriginal Affairs Minister responsible for implementation of the NT Intervention. Initially rejected the amalgamation of the Lib and National Parties in QLD but now accepted back into the fold and endorsed as LNP candidate for Fisher.  Believed to have been involved in the Mayoral campaign for the Sunshine Coast cleared of misconduct on the grounds of not enough evidence.
  13. http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/brough-accused-of-interfering-in-sunshine-coast-mayoral-race-20120426-1xmb4.html
    http://www.news.com.au/national/lnp-candidate-mal-brough-cleared-of-misconduct-during-sunshine-coast-mayoral-election/story-fndo4ckr-1226433008575
  14. Act 1 : http://www.independentaustralia.net/2012/politics/the-tragedy-of-ashby-and-slipper-act-one/Acts 1,2,3,4 and 5 are one level, the national level, a story about the anti social nature of politics at it’s worst.
  15. A sordid tale so far and nothing has been achieved for most of us.
    http://www.independentaustralia.net/2012/politics/the-tragedy-of-ashby-and-slipper-act-five/
  16. @independentaus The only part of interest to taxpayers is the part Slipper played getting more access to allowances.
  17. Have toyed with the idea the rest is a big distraction from this very important issue for taxpayers.  It needs more air, this little fire.
  18. @independentaus The rest of seems to locally about factional power and money making and nationally about democracy. It needs illumination.
  19. @sloughly @independentaus The local intirgue and money making is development and real estate and guess who loves that? dailytelegraph.com.au/money…
  20. @sloughly Correct. Ray White Maroochydore is key to this aspect of the story.
  21. Brett Grahame from Ray White Maroochydore put his hand up early for the position of Mayor of the Sunshine Coast Regional Council but withdrew for ‘personal reasons’. Real Estate agents are not popular as local councillors. Not here, not anywhere, really, though they do get in with help from the local papers who make money out of R/E advertising. It’s good money, but you can sell on ebay and Gumtree without the $1000 up front cost agents seem to be asking.
  22. There is no doubt Federal money and other money is expected to flow into this region. Who will benefit financially? The in-crowd. Who is the in-crowd? A few, from one side of politics or the other, doesn’t really make a difference to most people. Most peoples’ future is determined by the spending policies of the ruling class. Most people are here to form the Big Society of volunteers to prop it all up for them. Pick up the environmental and socila mess created by corrupt and secretive government.
  23. $5b economic boost to the Sunshine Coast’s development industry.  A hospital amongst other things.
    http://www.hutchinsonbuilders.com.au/2012/09/sunshine-coast-project-to-create-45000-jobs/
  24. Government spending on infrastructure can certainly add to the value of a development. There’s money to be made here. Silly thing is the traffic jam for commuters occurs much further south and that should be relieved somewhat with a new rail line.
  25. While Minister Albanese announces an upgrade to the Highway to facilitate Stocklands and perhaps the (Wyatt) Roy Strawberry Farm, Pelican Waters canal estate and Caloundra Racecourse but not the hospital, not yet anyway….
    http://aap.newscentre.com.au/cpsucsa/121220/library/other_issues/30124384.html Note the status of this announcement is not clear.
  26. Jeff Seeney, QLD Minister for State Development knows nothing about the upgrade.
  27. Why are plans for stretch of Bruce Highway in Fisher not on ‘priority list’? couriermail.com.au/news/que… via @couriermail
  28. Meanwhile Newman’s favourite son, Caltabiano, appointed to head up the Department is still on leave pending investigation.
  29. Earlier, residents concerned with a planning study for regular Main Roads business ie to upgrade highway safety hotspots were thrilled to have so much attention…..from the factions. This might be better for the hospital, incidentally.
  30. Cinderella may dance for now but what will become of the three ugly sisters; secret business, politics and money. The ending to this tale will unfold in 2013.
  31. 2013 Election Year and the money flows into Fisher
  32. First the University gets a boost. Mind you it is taxpayers money to provide engineering skills for the mining industry. Yep, those companies who don’t want to pay a bit more tax for the greater good.  I wonder if they will be campaigning as hard against Labor’s Carbon ‘tax’ this year. Or perhaps they might add a few $m to the university expansion.
  33. http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/news/uni-scores-37m-govt-boost-treasurer-thrilled-at-bo/1704572/
  34. Back to the new City, Caloundra South, near Pumicestone Passage, which Stockland say will begin in the first half of 2013. As a new development, it will be blessed with NBN from the very start thereby, according to smh an attractive investment.
  35. RT @margokingston1: Our newspaper’s Top Story: Property buyers now look for high-speed broadband access smh.domain.com.au/real-esta…, see more tweetedtimes.com/margokings…
  36. @margokingston1 How govts incentivize big developers and urban sprawl and what comes with that….for some.
  37. The taxpayers bill for Fisher so far: A new hospital, a new engineering school at the university, a new city with NBN, a new highway interchange.  A cynical person might think someone was trying to buy that electorates votes.
  38. Fisher, incidentally is adjacent to Pumicestone Passage which has been classified by the UN as a Ramsar Wetland, protected migratory bird habitat. Environmental issues include farming and development :  http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/news/maybe-it-wont-be-right/850094/

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