Waleed Aly’s impassioned editorial on Islamic State and the Paris attacks was perfect. Yet how good would it have been if such insight had come from our national leaders rather than a TV presenter, writes Terry Barnes.
The latest opinion poll results will make Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull very happy. According to the Fairfax Ipsos poll published on Monday, the Coalition leads Labor by 48 per cent to 29 on primary vote; by 56 to 44 on two-party preferred, and Turnbull himself has a net approval lead over Opposition Leader Bill Shorten of a whopping 81 points.
The last time a PM enjoyed such a huge net approval lead over his opposite number was back in 2009, when Kevin Rudd ran rampant over the then hapless Liberal leader, one Malcolm Turnbull.
Watch Aly’s full speech here:
The Ipsos poll was taken, in part, over last weekend, after news broke of Friday’s dreadful night of terror in Paris. Fortuitously, Turnbull was in Berlin as the French capital endured one of its darkest nights. His response was correct and businesslike. He called on the French embassy in Berlin to express the horror and condolences of all Australians. He worked through the night, and the weekend, to ensure Australia’s national security response was sound, and sought to reassure Australians every possible precaution was being taken to protect us at home and abroad.
He then went to the G20 summit in Turkey, consulting with US president Barack Obama, French foreign minister Laurent Fabius and other world leaders.
To his great credit, Turnbull also pointed out to Insiders’ Barrie Cassidy that the hideous atrocities in Paris have counterparts in Turkey, Lebanon and the suspected downing of a Russian jetliner over Egypt by the Islamic State terror group. He grasped that Paris was not just a huge attack on the West and its way of life, but part of a wave of terror reaching across the civilised world.
In other words, Turnbull followed meticulously the political leadership textbook. He responded, he reassured, he acted. He looked decisive and in charge, just as Abbott did in July last year when Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 was shot down by Ukrainian rebels. It’s what prime ministers do.
In times as grave as these, it is not enough, however, to apply the mechanics of leadership. What’s also needed is someone who can inspire a worried nation, to show passion beyond the bureaucracy exterior and bring people of all backgrounds, and faiths, together in common cause against a shared shadowy foe.
Top Comments
Paul Murray was sensational on PM LIVE last night (Thursday) as he expertly tore Waleed Aly's rant to shreds.
Magnificent!
It was an interesting segment, although clearly biased and somewhat flawed.
Waleed's summary of the situation looks pretty silly given the latest developments in Paris. His DIY comments are plainly wrong given the extent of what has now been discovered in the raids......perhaps he is not that RIGHT after all.......gasp.......
So you would suggest fear, anger, out-casting of Muslims as the response? That will alienate them, make them angry, afraid, and open to recruitment. That will lead to more terror cells and more attacks.
Please explain to me how this is a good thing?
Yeah so let's just roll over, pee on ourselves and give them everything they want so as to not offend....what a joke......
No, the answer is to focus on the real enemy. No one said anything about rolling over an peeing on ourselves. Our armed forces are over there fighting the real enemy. Our police forces are working their asses off chasing shadows to find and stop attacks before they happen.
Getting angry when you have no clue who you are getting angry at is achieving nothing but making the jobs of our armed forces and police harder and more dangerous. You are part of the problem. You are feeding the enemy by validating their message.
If you are tolerant and accepting you take away their power. You stop them growing. Remain vigilant, keep your eyes and ears open, but do not assume every Muslim is intent on killing you. There are 382,000
Muslims in Australia. If they were all terrorists we would have a huge problem on our hands. There would be attacks on a daily basis.
The fact is that only a tiny percentage are extremists. They want you afraid and they want you to think they are bigger than they are.