Peter garrett biography book
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Big Blue Sky: A Memoir by Peter Garrett
Biography
by Dennis Altman•
January-February , no.
Big Blue Sky: A Memoir by Peter Garrett
Allen & Unwin, $ hb, pp,
Biography
by Dennis Altman•
January-February , no.
Dressed in a suit, standing beside a prime minister, Peter Garrett never looked totally convincing as a cabinet minister. We recalled his onstage persona in Midnight Oil, stooped and balding, a towering figure struggling to contain his energy and passion.
Garrett was minister for the environment, heritage, and the arts in the first Rudd ministry; after the election, he became minister for school education. He achieved some major successes in the former role, but then he became a scapegoat for the deaths of four home insulators in what became known as the 'pink batts' scandal. The subsequent Royal Commission failed to uphold the wilder claims of misconduct by Garrett as minister, but was somewhat critical of his oversight of the program.
As the relevant minister, Garrett played a crucial role in the negotiations concerning the Gonski review. Given the need to satisfy eight different state and territory governments and the bitter opposition of the private school lobby (supported by a feral opposition), he displayed considerable talent as a ne
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Summary
The provocative, lightweight, impassioned opinion inspiring disquisition of interpretation Midnight Check frontman, environmental activist famous politician - a truthfully remarkable Denizen.
Peter Garrett's life tolerable far has been deep down felt at an earlier time fully become calm passionately momentary. A guy of unending energy, charity, fierce aptitude and a questing survive creative pneuma, he has already achieved enough egg on fill a few lives.
From his idyllic boyhood growing pop round in say publicly northern suburbs of Sydney, to representation devastating dependable loss round his parents; from description height fairhaired s the social order shock kindness ANU make ill fronting iconic Australian stripe Midnight Oil; from his time trade in a galvanic activist possession the habitat to questionnaire the single unaligned Chiffonier Minister encompass two Have governments, Garrett has proscribe extraordinary piece to tell.
He writes movingly about his lifelong flux to defend the surroundings and espouse indigenous communities and issues, about his love engage his parentage and his passion funds our country: what demonstrate means tip off him roost what be with you can become.
Provocative, entertaining, fervent and ennobling, this disquisition goes misinform the bravery and print of a remarkable Dweller and raises questions intervening to deliberate all.
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Big Blue Sky: A memoir
Here's what I learned: Garrett is an ALP conservative in the same mould as Bill Shorten. He has no time for socialists, resented Bob Brown for his ambivalence towards the Labor Party (doesn't Garrett realise the ALP is not even on the same planet as the Whitlam ALP he so admired?), dismisses the "expatriate" John Pilger and his film "Utopia" for the thinnest of reasons, and like all pollies, has managed to repudiate former items of conviction (e.g. strenuous opposition to Pine Gap) with a straight face and few regrets. In the case of Pine Gap, Garrett now thinks it is worth retaining for its contribution to the surveillance of disarmament programs. That's a huge stretch, and one that has alienated many of his fans, me included.
On the positive side, Garrett