Everybody scares somebody sometimes but some more effectively than others

THE Greens favour apocalyptic fearmongering, but have they cried wolf too often?

Scary. Greens deputy leader Christine Milne on her blog on March 4:

This summer we've seen a terrible warning of what climate change-fuelled disruption will look like. With scientific projections of more frequent and severe droughts, floods, fires and storms already coming true, climate change will not only drive prices for food, water and insurance through the roof but it will risk the lives and livelihoods of millions of people around the globe including here in Australia.

Scarier. Wayne Swan on Channel 9's Today on Sunday:

Well, I accept that there has been a tremendous amount of misrepresentation about the carbon price. But what we've got to do is get the facts out there and not the fearmongering from Mr Abbott and some of those people that have been so extreme about this.

Not scary. Minister for Climate Change Greg Combet on ABC online on Monday:

The Liberals are running a rather absurd scare campaign and they shouldn't be believed.

Scarier than I thought. Combet on Radio National Breakfast yesterday:

Fran Kelly: What does this poll tell you about what Australians think about a carbon tax?

Combet: I suppose it tells you that Tony Abbott is a pretty good wrecker and a scare campaigner, but we knew that.

Bad bank. Treasurer Swan on March 23 last year in The Sydney Morning Herald:

"This kind of behaviour by Westpac is exactly why people don't like the big banks," Mr Swan said. "Unfortunately, this bank seems like it's becoming a serial offender when it comes to taking its customers for a ride."

Westpac chief Gail Kelly on ABC1's 7.30 on Monday:

[A carbon tax is] a first step, hopefully it'll move as quickly as possible to an ETS which we believe is the right longer-run outcome.

Good bank. Combet yesterday in an address to Westpac:

I'd like to acknowledge that it is International Women's Day and it is appropriate that I am speaking at an institution led by Gail Kelly who is one of the most capable business leaders in Australia. I'd like to welcome the comments by Gail yesterday in support of action on climate change through a market mechanism.

Carbon tax for dummies. Combet yesterday:

A carbon price will price in economic terms, the externality of pollution into the cost of production. It means that high-polluting goods and services are going to have a different price structure compared to low-polluting goods and services.

Kevin Rudd for dummies. Neil Mitchell on 3AW, July 10, 2009:

Something you said a couple of days ago, what is programmatic specificity?

Rudd: It means specific programs. Specific programs is what I was talking about, I think it was in relation to the sorts of outcomes we could expect from this G8 summit on climate change or it may have been a reference to other elements of the global charter on, as proposed by the Germans on the economy. I can't recall the specific reference, but it would have been about specific programs.

Insider information? The Courier-Mail's Dennis Atkins on ABC1's Insiders on Sunday:

Quite a few people in the Coalition are getting excited about Tuesday's Newspoll. Some wiser heads in the Coalition are warning not to get too excited. In Tasmania, Victoria and South Australia Julia Gillard's leadership is still working for Labor.

The Australian yesterday:

Julia Gillard's carbon tax plan has reversed public support for action on global warming, damaged her leadership and delivered Labor its lowest primary support on record. The Coalition's primary vote [is its] highest since March 2006.