Day 38: The Martyring of Saint Bernardi

So, Cory Bernardi finally pulled the pin from the Liberal party today, in order to start his own "true conservative™" party. As I listened to him answer questions from the press pack, one thing stuck out at me: He talked about the waning support for the major parties, as punters go in search of some sort of alternative; and he insisted that he had never—and would never—be a populist; instead he would continue to adhere to "true conservative™ principles".

Now, I may just be a stupid old slag from the sticks, but to my way of thinking, there's a bit of a flaw in that logic. See, I don't think people are leaving the major parties because they're looking for a party with "true conservative™" values … or true progressive values for that matter. I don't think there's any great hunger for ideological purity on either the left or the right side of the electorate. In fact, I think just the opposite is true. In Trumpsylvania, we've just had a "conservative" candidate get elected after campaigning on a platform of economic protectionism—essentially, the exact opposite of what I think Senator Bernardi would call "true conservative™" principles. Back at home, the three biggest players we've had emerge to fill the void left by the shrinking major parties has been, Palmer, Hanson, and Xenophon; none of which I would describe as being stringent proponents of any particular ideological principals. In fact, I think all of them have sold themselves as being common-sense pragmatists—responding directly to the needs of the average commoner … in other words—populists!

Politicians are notorious for saying one thing and doing another, so it'll be interesting to see what Saint Bernardi will do if his quest for "true conservative™" purity fails to attract meaningful support. Of course, I could be completely wrong about all of this, and in four or five years time, he might have amassed a "true conservative™" force to be reckoned with; and if that happens, heaven help us all; however, if I'm right, this might just be the day that he nailed himself to his own cross.

I was planning on doing a caricature of "Saint Bernardi", but five months off has evidently taken more of a toll than I realised. Instead, you'll have to make do with a rushed Saint Bernard.