John Linton ...that of Stupid Stephen to the post of Federal Communications Minister In November 2007?
..and yes I know that standard has been set remarkably high with almost all the Whitlam appointees (including Whitlam himself) challenging Rex Connor for this title.
This question was brought to mind when I read part of the transcript of the Telstra's Chairman's address to shareholders in this morning's paper:
http://business.theage.com.au/business/telstra-silent-on-broadband-bid-20081121-6e64.html
Now let me say that I, personally, regard Mr McGaughie as flagrantly incompetent to be the chairman of Telstra as I have regarded the previous incumbent and therefore don't expect him to ever say anything either logical or correct and especially if it is on a subject that has any relationship to, or bearing upon, telecommunications.
However I would expect the Federal Communications Minister, even if he is as stupid as the current one and who almost certainly knows less about telecommunications than the current chairman of Telstra to have, long ago, debunked the outright lies and total cr** that has become McGauchie's 'mantra":
"Mr McGauchie said a split of its business would "wipe out jobs", significantly increase costs and dent productivity"
These claims are so totally nonsensical (and they have been made several times over the past few months) that there have been many opportunities for SS to rebut them using nothing more than the statements themselves and applying basic commercial logic to them a la:
Splitting Telstra Would Wipe Out Jobs
Why? How does splitting the current operating divisions of Telstra wipe out a SINGLE job?
If such a split was to made then all the current jobs would remain exactly as they were before you cut the Telstra organisation along the dotted line separating infrastructure build, development and maintenance from the bit of paper listing the retail sale of the various services? Sure - some current Telsta employees might go and work for a Telstra competitor but 'jobs' will not decrease - unless of course Telstra is so significantly over staffed that the 'jobs' shoudn't be there in the first place.
Splitting Telstra Would Significantly Increase Costs
Why? How does cutting the Telstra organisation chart in two pieces increase costs?
Everybody listed on the mythical piece of paper one millionth of a second after making the separation and thereafter will continue to do exactly the same job at exactly the same remuneration as they did before the scissors were picked up. It seems highly likely that some costs (retail sales spring to mind) would actually significantly reduce.
Splitting Telstra Would Dent Productivity
Why? Everyone will remain doing exactly the same job at exactly the same cost as before and no tiny issue or task will be done any differently. It seems likely that when the retail side of Telstra becomes leaner and more efficient that productivity would actually increase.
Even someone as stupid as SS, or as stupid as SS's staff must be, should be able to demand a public explanation of these statements phrased much more incisively than my casual words written without research or more than the time it takes me to type the actual sentences.
But they are never rebutted and that, among all the other stupidities and inactions of this minister and his office, has allowed the current situation to develop where in just on 12 months in office SS with the full 'support' of Krudd has placed Australia in the position of re-monopolising the Australian communications industry because they were so totally, stupidly incompetent that they have allowed 'Sol's Puppy' (I claim no authorship for that phrase but I can't get my brain to recall who first used it) to continue to make these outrageously incorrect statements in the Trujillo bluff poker game with the clearly intellectually out-gunned Labor 'government'.
The ONLY result of Telstra separation would be lower prices for Australian residential and business users and a higher share price for Telstra share holders.
Of course, that bald statement of mine can be easily dismissed on the basis that I haven't supported it with any factual/referencable evidence.
WHICH IS WHAT SS HAS ALLOWED TELSTRA TO 'GET AWAY' WITH FOR THE 12 MONTHS HE HAS HAD THE RESPONSIBILITY!!
You actually don't need to be either very bright or to have any great depth of commercial understanding to KNOW that McGaughies statements are the sheerest nonsense. You need to be even less bright and have less commercial understanding to know that my 'bald' statement is likely to be correct based on every previous transformation of a government monopoly in to one or more privately owned enterprises and that true competition always produces the best results for both customers and shareholders.
So Conroy gets my vote for the single most inept minister to have ever held federal office and will have done more in 12 months to ruin the future lives of all Australians than any other individual since January 1st 1901.
(Rex Connor can now relinquish his hard earned crown).