Assange Stands 'Real Chance' of Election In Australia

Okian Warrior writes "Various new sources are reporting the results of a recent Labor Party poll, indicating that Julian Assange would be elected to the Australian senate, should he choose to run. From the Sun Daily article: 'Controversial WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange stands a real chance of winning an upper house seat in his native Australia if he presses ahead with plans to stand for election, a poll showed Saturday. A survey conducted by the ruling Labor party's internal pollsters UMR Research and published in the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper showed 25 percent of those polled would vote for the whistleblowing website chief.'"

Comments

If Julian Assange gets elected

[FudRucker]

i will sell everything i own and move to australia because it is the last western nation with a little redemption left in it

Re:If Julian Assange gets elected

[Asic Eng]

Well, Germany now has the Pirate party represented in it's fourth state parliament (Berlin: 15 seats, Saarland 4 seats, North_Rhine-Westphaliav 20 seats, Schleswig-Holstein 6 seats). They are polling at 11% for the federal elections.

One senate seat doesn't seem like all that much...

Re:If Julian Assange gets elected

[overbaud]

"Few koalas live outside Australia, but the U.S. government designated the animal as endangered in response to a petition filed by animal-protection groups. The Australian government, which bans hunting and commercial use of koalas, sees no scientific evidence that it is likely to become endangered anytime soon." http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/05/0510_020510_TVkoala.html So basically the US who have no idea what is going on in Australia BOW DOWN TO SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS and list it as endangered. Meanwhile in Australia in certain areas Koalas are so prolific they are hurting their environment. As for the rain forrest MASSIVE amounts of Australian rainforest is protected. I can only guess what the BS in PBS stands for. You're a dick. If you really want to get pissed about something try the Japanese hunting wales for 'Research Purposes'... or better yet fix your own country first.

Re:If Julian Assange gets elected

[Anonymous Coward]

We have Drop Bears Sir, nothing comes close to the terror. Not even the most poisonous snake or spider in the world nor the largest white pointer can come close to that. Even the military run screaming should one of their own be taken in some desert exercise, shredded in a few vicious slashes to be eaten and regurgitated to it's young. Drop Bears strike fear into our very community and on a daily basis. http://australianmuseum.net.au/Drop-Bear

Re:If Julian Assange gets elected

[Anonymous Coward]

You are obviously American as the significance of the parent comment has completely escaped you.

1: Being "crushed" is completely immaterial. If the US got into a war with Russia or China or France then it too would cease to exist within 30 minutes, except as a radioactive hole in the ground. The only Asian power that could militarily threaten Australia is China..the rest would have their asses handed to them on a plate if they tried anything. If the US attacked Australia then it would win, but at heinous cost. It wouldn't be any walk in the park like Iraq. The lamentations of American mothers over the piles of their dead children would rise into the night. No European country would dare attack Australia as it does not lie within their capability to do so and they're not foolish, unlike the Americans. They know their limitations.

2: Australia is a Middle Power, globally influential in mainly keeping foolish powers like the US in check. In that regard it excels and punches well above its weight.

3: Africa is universally recognised as the poorest continent in the world, yet if it suddenly disappeared the global shakedown would ensure that Americans are begging by the roadsides in short order. So what's your point?..answer: You don't have the wit to understand that you don't even have a point.

4: The Soviet Union was a great power and when it disappeared everyone noticed, yet it was still a shithole. The US is a great power, if it disappeared everyone would notice, and yes, you guessed it....it's a shithole. So again your point means nothing.

Imagine it this way..... there is a sprawling ramshackle house housing 100 members of the same family. One of the family members is wealthy, but the rest are either poor, to very poor. They have poor teeth, are not educated, are dirty, can hardly hold a decent conversation and can't afford their electric bill. Down the road is a smaller house, with a family of 6. They have no debt, they all work in good jobs, they have two cars, a house full of the latest gadgets, good health, nice teeth, tertiary educations, money in the bank, their house is clean, neat, peaceful and paid for.........and sometimes at night the yokel family up the road gets drunk and yells out 'Goddamn we're gawna kick yer asses ya goddman edumacated rich people down thar!" as they swig their moonshine, take drugs and shoot each other.

One day the large family moves out....gone forever and everyone in the community really notices their passing, but not for the right reasons............meanwhile the smaller family are nice and comfortable, and everyone likes them...they don't start trouble, the police aren't at their house every day and they're just happy doing what they do. What incentive could there possibly be for the smaller family to start living like the large one ?

Now, I don't expect you to really understand, as you're one of the yokels, but do try.........it's not hard and it might even just change your life for the better.
.
Now, off you go boy....... I'm sure your $7/hr job is beckoning you...I mean, you ARE employed, even in a menial capacity, right ? Sorry for asking but when dealing with Americans one never really knows.

Immunity

[koekebakker]

Would this grant him political immunity? ;-)

Re:Immunity

[Intrepid imaginaut]

Sad really when you think about it. Citizen Assange can be set up, framed and generally gone after with impunity. Politician Assange, dearie me no, he's important! Might cause an international incident!

The system is so broken.

Re:Here comes the begging for campaign donations

[TapeCutter]

Pauline Hanson was the last ideologue to mishandle campaign funds, she was jailed for it. This is not the US, the guy with the most money is not the automatic winner here. Our politicians benifit greatly by pointing out fraudulent behaviour by their enemies to the federal police, if they are not prepared to take it to court then they are simply preaching to their own choir and nobody else takes it seriously.

Having seen the bombardment of political ads in the US I was stunned as to how nasty they get. At least the politicians here put some effort into their bullshit and attempt to make a reasonably civil and coherent argument in their advertising. I look at some of the attack ads in the US and think to myself; "the attacker must think I'm an idiot", I thought the same thing when they put Palin up for VP. Republican's treated their suppoerters as morons by selecting a village idiot as a VP candidate, they deserved to lose.