Miner's Advocate: Suicide Sophie

13 October 2011

Suicide Sophie

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Sophie Mirabella is a barrister, Member for the Federal electorate of Indi in rural Victoria, and a highly committed person.

When she judged that the ABC was biased against the conservative side of politics - her side of politics - she did not send a complaint to the ABC; she sent hundreds of what she considered examples.

Recently she was "exposed" in The Age as having had a long relationship with a professor in Melbourne, beginning when she was an undergraduate. He was 40 years her senior.

The be fair to the woman, she remained committed to the professor until his death, and the Advocate does not complain about a commitment as genuine as that.

Where she seems to have lost her commitment - or her temper - was her performance in the House of Representatives the night before the House was to vote on setting a price for CO2 emissions.

Her wilful petulance saw her expelled from the House for 24 hours, reducing the Coaltion's vote. Had she kept her performance in check, the vote would have been lost by the Government, 73-73 (a tied vote is not a successful vote). Instead, the Government had its legislation passed 74-72.

That the Coalition lost is its own fault. Its Members and Senators have known long enough what she can do. And when she was speaking that night, it seems nobody warned her to rein herself in because of what loomed the next morning.

Neither, when the Acting Speaker warned her, did anybody tug her sleeve and get her away from the diaptch box.

Sure, that would have been unseemly but her irresponsibility resulted ultimately in a boost in support for the Gillard government which can say now that it is getting its legislation through successfully and fulfilling its role as a goverment.

One suspects that Coalition minders will keep her under a tighter rein now - a kamikaze mission, if ever there was one.

13/10/2011 2:38:33 PM

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