They have us by the short and curly's

The most distressing thing about our polity is the knowledge that it is a failure.

And the most obvious feature of that failure is how a few people who are bereft of a moral compass get to play at being leader.  While a few dozen others stand behind them bleating away like the sheep that they so obviously are.

Our current Labor Government is such a big disappointment on a number of levels.  Leaving aside the issues around the leadership and the personalities involved - what about the rest of the parliamentary members?  Most are invisible and they seem destined to stay that way - right up until the moment when they get moved on at the next election.

I don't want to pick on anyone but where has the *passion and drive* gone - with people like Peter Garrett and Craig Emerson and Simon Crean?

Why aren't they rampaging through their Departments and the Parliament, rooting out the bad policy and standing up for the people and the nation?  They had some passion once - but that seems to have gone the way of the dodo.

How is it possible for seemingly intelligent people to sit back and allow their party and the Parliament to degenerate into a bad circus?  And to be a part of it?

That tells you what is wrong with our polity.

And then we have the Liberals and Nationals.  The conservatives never seem to attract many smart or capable thinkers - but what have their members been doing to prepare themselves for government since 2007?

Short answer - nothing.

And the worst thing about all this - none of us can change it.  They have us by the short and curly's.