Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose

It seems we’re back to where things were after 2007, with all sorts of media gushing about wall-to-wall governments of the same hue. I remember the thunderous amount of agreement in the political journalist class that with the co-operation of a complete sweep of Labour governments in Canberra and the states there would be a new age of consensus and progress. Somehow, it just didn’t materialise. Instead, the rabid Tory branch of the commentariat swung into action to poison the well on any worthwhile social policy, aided by Kevin Rudd’s need for a win in every day’s political television cycle. Along with this came all the spittle-flecked raving about anything centre-of-right as the thin end of a leftist wedge. Now it looks like we will have (almost) wall-to-wall Liberal-National Party governments. Once again we can hail a new age of consensus and progress. Once again we can end up scratching our heads and asking why the expected Utopia didn’t come about. And still, the rabid Tory branch of the commentariat will swing into action to poison the well on any worthwhile social policy, aided by Tony Abbott’s need to avoid meaningful scrutiny and his handlers’ collective need for him to be seen to win each day’s political television cycle. Along with this will come all the spittle-flecked raving about anything showing a hint of humanity as the thin end of a leftist wedge. Sometimes it seems that the more things change, the more they stay the same…