And not only that, a new look for this blog! I’m not totally happy with it – blue codes right wing in Australia and even if it didn’t, I’d prefer red or purple – but it’s ridiculous to buy a premium account just so that I can have a pretty colour scheme! (Also, of course, if I make my blog too pretty, there’s the risk that some people will dismiss it without reading it. Bizarre thought. But I’m pretty sure that pink and purple stripes do not shriek “serious political blog!” to those passing by. Alas.)
So. 2014. The first full year under the Abbott Government.
Look, I’m not going to re-hash all the things that Tony & Co did to make me weep or gnash my teeth in rage last year. If you’ve been reading this blog for more than a couple of months, you already know what they are – and if you don’t, there are hundreds of blogs out there that have already summed up this first year, with greater or lesser degrees of delight or woe. No useful purpose is served, I think, by depressing ourselves further on this score.
Instead, I’d like to look at a few things that gave me hope in 2014. Hope for Australia, hope for the state of politics, and just generally an increased sense of hope in my fellow Australians.
