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Humour and Irony Are Dangerous Things

Wednesday, 28th June, 2006

You can’t see a smile or recognise dead-pan delivery when you read things in black and white. Which is what makes irony and humour such difficult things for people in public life. When people read your remarks instead of listening to them some are inclined to take everything seriously.

Especially your opponents as ACTU Secretary Greg Combet learned yesterday.

The Prime Minister might have been on his way from Indonesia to China but he could not resist taking this light hearted line of Mr Combet’s literally:

“I recall we used to run the country and it would not be a bad thing if we did again.”

According to Mr Howard this single sentence revealed what the ACTU campaign on work place relations was all about: “It’s not about the welfare of unionists, it’s not about getting the unemployed back into work, it’s not about boosting their real wages, it’s about union power.”