So here's the thing

Each day I get an email from President Obama - not a personal email mind you - but one from his campaign office seeking my support for his re-election next year. Basically these emails follow a well worn path. They tell a moving story involving some injustice - explain that they need my involvement to make things better - and then ask for my financial help.

It’s a sophisticated fund raising process. And the reason they target me is because I have previously donated - thinking that Obama would be good for the world. Or at least better than junior Bush and his party could ever be.

But this time he is on his own - I won't be donating a red cent.

Mainly because of the way the US are behaving with Julian Assange and Wikileaks. While things appear to be goodness on the surface - behind the scenes they are doing their best to close him down. I wouldn't be surprised if they sent in the Seals to do a job on him.

Because what Wikileaks has done is exposed the lie that is US Foreign Policy. And their incompetent war mongering. The USA is known for it’s out of control military/industrial complex for a good reason Virginia.

Which brings me to another thing. I won't be donating to the re-election campaign of the Australian Labor government either. In fact I will be working hard to get them replaced - not re-elected.

Some of my friends and colleagues dislike our government and its behaviour with a passion but they dislike the alternative even more. And that stops them from taking real action. But I don't see things like that.

I want to see a competent and effective government providing and delivering strong and capable leadership and real policy and programmes - all from a social democratic perspective. And if we happen to end up with a government that is scared of its own shadow and is unable to do that then we need to replace them and find one that will.

And if that means that we need to install a Coalition government then so be it. It's my view that we will never end up with a competent Labor government until they get to spend a lot of time in opposition reflecting on what they did wrong. And it may even mean that we need to wait out an entire generation or more - while they go through renewal.

But don't ever imagine that it would mean that Mr Abbott would be Prime Minister - because that just wouldn't happen.