Australian gay marriage plebiscite derided as just an opinion poll

Peter FitzSimons lumbers on to the anti-plebiscite wagon in Fairfax Media yesterday:

What a lot of nonsense this is about holding a non-binding plebiscite — making it no more than a glorified opinion poll — on same-sex marriage. Why go through the whole draining nonsense, all the scaremongering, all the vilification of one section of the community, all the expense, when the whole thing can be accomplished by the parliament itself?

Fitzy recently in support of letting the people have their say in Ireland:

I mean, gay marriage, I’m very passionate about the virtues of gay marriage. I think that will probably go ahead of us ... look to Ireland. When they normalised gay marriage or same-sex marriage, what a celebration it was. That was the people of Ireland who had gone door to door, house to house and they changed the country and nobody can doubt that it’s a better country for it.

After a Federal Court finding went against News Corp Australia columnist Andrew Bolt in September 2011, Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young was moved to write a letter to The Australian (30/9/11):

Diddums, Andrew Bolt, diddums.

But Hanson-Young showed her ­maturity on ABC radio after being dumped as Greens spokeswoman on immigration on Thursday:

I don’t agree with it, I don’t accept it. I don’t really understand Richard’s (Di Natale) decision, but I have to accept it’s the decision of the leader.

New Greens immigration spokesman Nick McKim was publicly sympathetic in Hobart at the weekend:

Look, I understand Sarah’s disappointment. She’s given her heart and soul to this portfolio for a long period of time and I would have been disappointed in Sarah’s position too ... my relationship with Sarah is very good.

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton was having none of that simpatico stuff on Sydney’s radio 2GB:

What Sarah Hanson-Young is about is publicity. She loves the camera and she loves to see her own name in the paper. That’s the start and finish of Sarah Hanson-Young.

Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore held a fundraiser in June — all proceeds were in support of the Clover Moore Independent Team:

Our special guest speaker is Elizabeth Farrelly, whose incisive columns for The Sydney Morning Herald underscore the need for the Independent Team to continue defending our city and planning its future.

Farrelly left no room for doubt about what she thinks of Moore in the SMH on Saturday:

People accuse Clover of arrogance but I have only admiration for her purposeful and principled leadership, her capacity to surround herself with and hear staff of the highest calibre — this is huge — and her demonstrated ability to make a good plan, like Sustainable Sydney 2030 and stick with it. I can’t think of another Australian government ever, possibly including Whitlam’s, of which you could say that.

Khadijeh Mehajer, younger sister of former Auburn deputy mayor Salim Mehajer, tied the knot in an Islamic ceremony last week:

A Ben Hur-style reception on the scale of Salim’s August 2015 extravaganza to Aysha, from whom he is now separated, is being planned.

The Sunday Telegraph yesterday noted the Ben Hur style:

Every table was loaded with beer, wine and vodka.