Anti-postal-vote plaintiffs pack it in after High Court drubbing, now barracking for Yes
Here we go. The Australian online, yesterday:
The High Court has ruled for the federal government in two challenges over the postal survey on same-sex marriage. In unanimous decisions the court found for the government and ordered the plaintiffs to pay costs.
Human Rights Law Centre director Anna Brown outside the High Court in Melbourne, Tuesday:
This postal plebiscite is completely unnecessary; it’s costly, divisive, and already causing harm to our community
Brown outside the High Court, yesterday:
Vote Yes for love.
Andrew Wilkie pushed this challenge. News.com.au, August 10:
Marriage equality advocates — including Tasmanian MP Andrew Wilkie — have lodged an application asking the High Court to stop the federal government’s postal vote on the issue.
And that may partly be the reason the same-sex advocates lost. The Australian, Wednesday:
Wilkie benefited from a special advance of $4 million for an arts centre in his Tasmanian electorate in 2012, but is now challenging the use of the same technicality to fund the postal ballot on same-sex marriage.
Victorian MP Fiona Patten has fallen out of love with sex — same-sex or not. Herald Sun, August 22:
The Australian Sex Party will officially deregister this week ... The Reason party will launch today, replacing the well-known minor party nationwide.
Despite her long association with it. Herald Sun, August 25 last year:
She talks about drugs, has an open relationship with her partner and could charm anyone ... She herself dabbled in the taboo trade.
Patten now wants to run a centrist political movement. The Reason Australia leader in the Herald Sun, August 22:
This is not about rebadging. It is about a new movement. It is not left or right, it is running on what is pragmatic.
Cut and Paste received a press release from Patten’s office yesterday:
Victorian MP Fiona Patten has welcomed the findings of the parliamentary inquiry into the Medically Supervised Injecting Centre (MSIC) Bill.
We couldn’t help but notice the name attached to the email. Patten’s press release email, yesterday:
Robbie Swan …
That would be Patten’s long-time partner Robbie Swan. The Age, February 13 last year:
She used to write letters to The Canberra Times, which were noticed by Robbie Swan, a colourful journalist who was then an Adult Video Industry Association lobbyist.
The Robbie Swan who co-founded the Sex Party with Patten. The Age, continued:
The party was widely assumed to be at best a dirty joke or at worst a front for the Eros Association, a longstanding lobby group formed by Patten and Swan on behalf of the “adult industry”.
New name, same old sex industry lobbyists. Was the rebrand just to stop people sniggering? Herald Sun, August 22:
Ms Patten said the Sex Party name continued to be a hurdle among business and medical communities, which partly prompted the decision.