Is Parliament broken? Why will the Prime Minister not answer one single question that's put to her? Our Westminster system is under attack by this gaggle of myopic power-driven Gillard supporters. "I've dealt with this before both in the house and outside the house in marathon press conferences". Is that an answer? Why isn't the Speaker calling the PM to answer the questions directly put to her? Are we now a pseudo-dictatorship? I fear for the future of my country.

Oh God, I'm watching Parliament and can't do it without a glass of red. Normally I only indulge after 5, but need extra fortitude just to watch it. This government is out of control with an ever shrewish Prime Minister at the helm of the sinking ship.

@Winston You hit the nail on the head in many respects, particularly Australia's (impotent) role in the UN (my take). And you're also right about Carr, he doesn't have a clue. In my first post I should have gone on to say that Palestine = Hamas = Muslim Brotherhood = terrorists. The Muslim Brotherhood is being spun as a legitimate and responsible steward of calm between Hamas and Israel. It should come as no surprise that the MB could exert such substantial influence over Hamas given Article 2 of the Hamas charter, which reads, “The Islamic Resistance Movement [Hamas] is one of the wings of Moslem Brotherhood in Palestine.” Israel is being set up and the noose is tightening. It will be a zero sum game. Tomorrow, the Palestinian Authority will submit its resolution to the General Assembly asking for its upgrade to a non-member observer state from mere observer entity status. As you point out, the resolution is virtually certain to pass by a large margin. Conveniently, the US has no veto power in the General Assembly as it does in the Security Council. So yes it will go through with Australia abstaining. Just a reminder that the purpose of this resolution is not just symbolic for the Palestinians. It is intended to codify, as part of what is known as customary international law, the UN General Assembly’s recognition of a Palestinian state based on "pre-1967 borders". One practical effect (there are many more) of this will allow Palestinians to leverage General Assembly recognition of their statehood status to obtain standing as a "state" in the International Criminal Court (ICC) and other international forums. Specifically, the Palestinian Authority will be in a position to demand prosecution of Israeli officials, who are defending Israeli citizens against terrorist attacks, for alleged war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. Any civilian casualty in Gaza, including of women and children deliberately put in harm’s way by Hamas as human shields – will be presented as evidence of such crimes. While it seems like a benign action to elevate the Palestinian observer “state”, it means the Palestinian Authority will be able to join the ICC by signing the "Rome Statute" of the International Criminal Court. The ICC will have jurisdiction to hear Palestinian complaints regarding attacks by Israel occurring on Palestinian “state” territory, even if Israel itself is not a member of the ICC and is only defending itself. The legal effect of this is that arrest warrants would be issued to Israeli officials and soldiers all over the world. If that's not another significant nail in Israel's coffin I don't know what is. And its all done by words and so-called diplomacy through the UN. Don't you feel safer knowing the UN is in control and the Muslim Brotherhood is gaining ascendancy? By the way, here's the reference to those 20 messages that Israel sent to the UN in case anyone thinks I'm making this up (http://www.unwatch.org/cms.asp?id=3614958&campaign_id=63111) Apologies this is long, but you can tell my other interest is ME and world politics when I tear myself away from the local sideshow. And yeah, keep the debate going!

Great synopsis Michael, especially the bit about Bruce waiving legal privilege. Bring it on!!

I think there is much more to this issue than meets the eye. Obama is no friend of Israel. In fact, Barack Obama pressured Israel to accept the current ceasefire agreement with Hamas that was devised by Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood President Mohammed Morsi. You know the same Muslim Brotherhood which has sworn to wipe Israel from the map and continues to push for an Islamic Caliphate. Over the past year Israel wrote at least twenty messages to the UN, asking for support in defending itself against rocket attacks from Gaza. Typically there was no response from the UN. But when Israel defended itself, the UN ramped up and demanded Israel stop its campaign. Eight days later, they succeeded, courtesy of Barack Obama. When Israel’s defensive actions began, Obama's WORDS clearly lent his support for the Jewish state’s right to defend itself. Contrast this with his ACTIONS that when Israel does defend itself, he will pull out all the stops to prevent it from doing so. Mixed messages mean this is not simple and there are many other agendas at play. I don't believe for a second this is a straight forward overrule of Gillard's position, and that her leadership was threatened by this issue. There is much much more to it.

Well put Winston. I totally agree, Prime Minister Gillard is now toxic and her position is untenable. I could not believe Wilson's denials, the clanger being: CARO MELDRUM-HANNA: How much did you benefit financially from the operation of the fund? BRUCE WILSON: I didn't benefit financially from it at all. Really? Then where did all the money go? Wilson, by claiming Ralph was the only beneficiary seals his fate as the liar in chief. Ralph buried the cash in the backyard, had a stamp and organised the purchase of the Kerr St property. Yeah right. Even when it was put to him: CARO MELDRUM-HANNA: Why was the house then put in Ralph Blewitt's name? BRUCE WILSON: It was just an easy... Ralph put his hand up for a start and said, "Just put it in my name." In the process of sitting around saying, "Oh look, might need to go there, do this", we discussed various options and Ralph put his hand up and said, "Just put it in my name if that's going to be the easiest thing to do." Fine, do that. I didn't want it in my name. CARO MELDRUM-HANNA: Why? BRUCE WILSON: I just... he was happy to put his hand up, I was happy for him to do it. It just didn't get a... it wasn't like let's flip a coin or anything like that. He put his hand up, fine, do it. CARO MELDRUM-HANNA: What was Ms Gillard's role in relation to the purchase of that property on Kerr Street? BRUCE WILSON: Um... to the extent that she was involved, she signed a power of attorney - and as I understand it that was about the extent of it. Wow, that's really telling Bruce! All the other claims by others about your involvement in the AWU WRA and indeed other bank accounts must also be sheeted home to Ralph. So if Ralph was the mastermind, why didn't you go to the police? And more telling, why did YOU get sacked by the AWU and told to disappear? Is Ralph going to counter these statements by Wilson? Irrespective of Ralph's response, for Gillard to be directly and intimately associated with this outright liar will lead to her ultimate destruction. The fallout from this seedy sordid affair is terminal for Gillard. Even those who are not up with the intricacies of this scandal, it has a bad feel about it. Keep up the fantastic work Michael, it is getting very close now.