Grow up! Double-barrelled tantrums are creating a narrative of chaos

Jacqui Lambie’s attack on One Nation and, by extension, everyone concerned with making the jab mandatory, is only going to drive many into the anti-vax camp, writes James Morrow.

If Big Pharma was honest about the side effects of vaccines, they’d come with a huge warning label that would read something like this:

“Danger: This product make lead to severe outbreaks of shrillness, self-righteousness, loss of IQ, forgetfulness particularly around separation of powers, and cause those nearby to suffer from drowsiness and fatigue,” it would read.

“It is also important to note that patients do not actually need to take this product to suffer from these ill effects.”

How else to explain the double-barrelled tantrums over vaccines we have seen in Canberra these past 24 hours?

Senator Jacqui Lambie today. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

First let’s have a look at Jacquie Lambie’s spray at One Nation’s Pauline Hanson and her vaccine discrimination bill, which took in vaccines and a lot else besides before building to a crescendo just made for the 6pm news: “”Being held accountable for your own actions isn’t called discrimination, it’s called being - you wouldn’t believe it - a God damn, bloody adult!”

As they say with just-so stories on the internet, “and then everyone clapped.”

In any case, Senator, good to see we are taking a nuanced view about a complex issue.

The last thing we would want to do in a complicated, dangerous situation like a global pandemic with huge ethical and medical pitfalls is lose our empathy or ability to talk to people with other points of view and hash through the issues to reach the best outcome.

But before we get too ahead of ourselves, there is plenty of blame to go around.

Pauline Hanson via video conference in the Senate Chamber in Parliament House. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

Because in the case of senators pledging to thwart the Coalition’s agenda in the Senate until he does something about states’ vaccine mandate rules are suffering from a severe case of constitutional amnesia.

“National Cabinet” may have wound up as wobbly as an Ikea bookcase on its fourth move, but outside those areas where it has jurisdiction (think international borders) the feds don’t have a lot of say over state mandates.

Which is not to say that there are not plenty of problems with mandating jabs.

Outside certain very specific areas, as much as possible vaccines should be mandatory, and the vaccinated should not fear the unjabbed sitting at the next desk or café table.

But the gripe is with the premiers, not the PM.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison during Question Time yesterday. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

Is attempting to hold the federal government to ransom, demanding they fix a problem that is not even theirs to solve, the way to fix them?

Not on your life.

But in both cases, senators are playing right into the hands of their opponents.

Sen Lambie’s frankly shrill attack on One Nation – and by extension, everyone who is concerned with making the jab mandatory even if they are perfectly happy to be vaccinated themselves – is only going to drive people into the anti-vax camp.

George Christensen. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

If the jabs are so good, many will say, why are we being hectored and forced into taking them?

At the same time, the senators – and now renegade MP George Christensen – making life difficult for the government are only contributing to a narrative of chaos that could see them all turfed out at the next election, though if he is canny about is Scott Morrison can use the kerfuffle to insulate himself from attacks from the left.