Friday, August 13, 2010

When testosterone attacks

Everyone already knows that the judgement of former Labor leader Mark Latham isn't super flash (though it's better than that of the Labor blokes who put him in charge), but even Latham sank to new lows of error in choosing to confront Tony Abbott yesterday -- thereby hijacking a function for old soldiers; stay classy, Mark -- and ask him more stupid, irrelevant questions in his "job" as a "journalist" for the ever-reliably-scummy (speaking of sinking to new lows) Channel Nine, who seem to be doing an excellent job of keeping themselves in their own news. As you would, having had that amount of practice.

Because Latham may be a big hulking boofy bloke who can break cab drivers' arms and try to yank little old deaf dudes in glasses off their feet and rip their arms off while pretending to shake their hands, and he may be four years younger than Abbott,  but Abbott is a zillion degrees fitter, and he's a trained boxer with just as much, though far better controlled, natural aggression. And he would have known that had he lost his temper and beaten the bejesus out of Latham, at least three-quarters of the population would have cheered. And probably voted him in. Don't even think about it.

13 comments:

Link said...

What a delightfully wicked thought! Abbott decking Latham!? Geez, I think you might be right about the election outcome in that instance. He'd think about it though, Latham has a weight advantage. I think Latham is destined for the shrink's chair only someone with NPD could be so brazen, so indulgent and so sure of himself.

skepticlawyer said...

Yes, this. And I say that as someone who knows (and can do) quite a bit of martial arts.

paul walter said...

For heaven's sake get a grip people.
It's called "ambush advertising" and this election, where we have leadership debates sidelined tabloid telly, there should be no surprise that the tabloids are using the event for viral downloading of thought worms and the like.
It was nasty when he heavied Gillard, but this time he looked a goose, a kid trying to score an autograph off a burly, sportsy Abbott, who unlike Latham, is also "organised", as to pathology.

Kerryn Goldsworthy said...

SL, just as well! Did you figure out a way to get the blood out of your hair?

I wonder if Abbott knows any martial arts. The only thing I know about martial arts is a couple of sneaky ways to use someone else's weight and momentum against them -- Latham would be a sitting duck for any such manoeuvre.

Kerryn Goldsworthy said...

PW, I'm not surprised, just bemused. And, occasionally, amused.

skepticlawyer said...

PC: Boxing is also a martial art; indeed, it was Sensei Enoeda's view that some of the hand techniques in boxing (especially the jab and uppercut) are better than anything developed in the orient (which depend heavily on foot techniques and grappling).

I eventually got the blood out, but my scalp clearly DID NOT LIKE. A lot of my hair fell out. This isn't visible to casual observers (I have a lot of hair), but I know what I left behind in the shower stall.

paul walter said...

SL, hope you did not leave your hair in the cubicle, blocking the down pipe, ready for the next occupier...
KG, the only reason you laugh sometimes is 'cos, otherwise you would cry.

Anonymous said...

There was footage on ABC News 24 of Abbott trying to discreetly ask a staffer if Latham was about to pounce - he looked a little rattled, but more importantly he KNEW Latham was lurking. There was no surprise in this buffoonery at all. Unlike the PM's moment with him.

Link said...

I wondered that Gillard seemed to have no 'security' as such or none that was alert enough to see Latham approaching. And while he would have kicked up an almighty stink if he'd been blocked from reaching his target, they might have been able to slow his progress or something.

Alexis, Baron von Harlot said...

Q&A audience member last Monday (I'm paraphrasing him): "On a scale of irritating to bloody annoying, how much of a tool is Mark Latham?"

Gillard: "There are some things that can't be measured."

Lard, she'd be good to have round for dinner.

Emily said...

Are you sure you meant "martial" arts. I'd be querying his "marital" arts. Since he has no hesitation in using the sublimal image of sexuality suggested by the budgie-smuggling tag, and seems inordinately proud in a smirking kind of way to have this attributed to him; also bearing in mind his opposition to abortion and Catholicism,we could be forgiven for asking why on earth doesn't the man have at least seven or eight children as many "good Catholics" have?

Kerryn Goldsworthy said...

Theoretically, Emily, yes we could. But if we did, we'd be prying into someone else's sex life, which is really very unsavou ...

Oh, wait.

Helen said...

Emily, I think that's why he spends so much time on muscular-Christian Manly Sports. 130K/day on the bike in hilly country and he's the one pretending to have a headache.