mark lawrence: "I cannot tell a lie, it was I"

Sunday, March 19, 2006

"I cannot tell a lie, it was I"

No, it's not Chinese whispers, it's not pass the parcel, and it's not about getting good advice. The main game of the Howard government seems to be ensuring ministers can deny they were actually told that the sky was falling down around them.

Brisbane blogger Phil posted a excerpt from a New Matilda article on how government ministers are or aren't given information in the business of government:

From children overboard to AWB and all stops between, John Howard and his ministers have been accused of perfecting the art of not being told what they don't want to know. Now a former insider has spilled the beans on how it happens.

Go take a look. Thanks to David for the tip.

By the way, do you know the source of the quote in this post's title?

5 Comments:

At March 19, 2006 11:35 pm, Anonymous said...: Adapted from "I came, I saw, I conquered". According to Plutarch , the words by which Julius Caesar succinctly described one of his victories.
At March 20, 2006 10:27 am, Mark Lawrence said...: Yes, I recognised the source of Phil's blog name, and thought it rather clever. But I was hoping readers would know the source of the quote for this post or entry on my blog.

Ideas?
At March 24, 2006 8:35 pm, Anonymous said...: George Washington, after chopping down an apple tree as a child. Or was it a cherry tree?

Thanks to Miss Punch, my Blackburn East Primary School Grade 6 teacher who was on exchange from the USA (30 years ago!).

If George Washington had been a member of the Howard Gaovernment, then of course the response would have been: "There is no evidence that I was informed of the demise of the tree".
At March 27, 2006 10:42 am, Mark Lawrence said...: Bingo! And, it was a cherry tree. According to the story, Washington was asked by his mother what happened to the cherry tree, to which his replied is now famous.

And, on the evidence thing, now the government would be saying, "There is no evidence that I read what I was given... therefore I didn't know..."

I wish I had an exchange teacher at school. We didn't even have an exchange student.
At March 27, 2006 8:48 pm, Anonymous said...: It is hard to keep up with the "evidence thing". Now its more like "what happened to the cheery tree is a security matter that cannot be disclosed", or to take today's Tony Blair line "you may not agree with me for cutting down the cherry tree, but to critisise me for it now is to side with terrorists".

Miss Punch was ace! She kept in contact with one of my class mates, who gave me her contact details (She was no longer Miss or Punch) when I was 18 or so. Of course I promptly lost the details and contact.