Everybody who reads newspapers or their websites knowns that the relevance deficit disorder sufferer, and NSW One Notion upper house member, Mark Latham, tweeted something disgustingly homophobic (and deleted it subsequently) about openly gay NSW independent lower house member Alex Greenwich1.
Mark Latham assisted the Liberal and National parties win the 2004 federal election by his lack of self-control when shaking hands with then Prime Minister John Howard. In this handshake, Latham used the same technique as Donald Trump, in pulling the handshake partner towards himself in a childish show of power; symptomatic of a malignant narcissist. Up until that handshake, Latham was likely to win the election and become Prime Minister. But that handshake was the beginning of the end for him2. As with most narcissists, Latham dishes out blame, and he cannot forgive the Labor Party or the Australian populace for not making him Prime Minister. Since his failure, he has party surfed, searching for some form of perceived relevance, originally joining the Liberal Democrats, then gravitating towards the vegetative end of the political spectrum to join One Notion.
After Latham’s homophobic tweet, which was in response to Greenwich’s assertion that Latham was “a disgusting human being”, Greenwich has suggested that he will institute defamation proceedings if Latham does not formally apologise.1
NSW’s former long-time Christian Democrat member of the NSW upper house, and religious crusader, Fred Nile has offered an impassioned defence of Alex Greenwich, insisting he wants the openly gay Sydney MP to know he is loved and does not deserve to be subjected to personal attacks based on his sexuality. He did what?!? Nile, contacted Greenwich this week to offer his full support after Latham’s homophobic tweet3. I was amazed at this from Fred Nile, who has, for as long as I can remember, railed against everything even vaguely redolent of sexual liberation4, sexual equality5, gender affirmation6, prevention of discrimination by the religious7,8, and even decriminalisation of homosexuality9,10; everything even vaguely concerning the genitalia.
So, has Fred Nile’s attitude to those against whom he used to protest changed? Could it be simply that now he has retired from the NSW upper house, he doesn’t have to politick any more? Or is it because he is realising that those people with whom he has been warring and who aren’t like his followers, are not his enemy. It is his bigoted followers who are his enemy; and the enemy of his religion. It is their bigotry, their hatred, their lying, and their hate-speech which is speeding the flight from religion.
Sources
- https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/may/01/enough-is-enough-alex-greenwich-threatens-legal-action-over-mark-lathams-homophobic-tweet#:~:text=The%20comments%20came%20after%20Greenwich,never%20apologise%2C%20never%20explain”.
- https://www.vice.com/en/article/8x9dmg/mark-lathams-downfall-started-with-this-very-intense-handshake
- https://www.smh.com.au/politics/nsw/he-is-loved-christian-crusader-fred-nile-supports-alex-greenwich-20230503-p5d5e0.html
- https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8792873/How-morals-crusader-Reverend-Fred-Niles-campaign-rid-Sydney-sin-ended-failure.html
- https://www.buzzfeed.com/lanesainty/back-at-it-again
- https://qnews.com.au/fred-nile-to-target-trans-childrens-healthcare-before-he-retires/
- https://www.starobserver.com.au/news/national-news/new-south-wales-news/fred-nile-introduced-bill-would-allow-discrimination-against-lgbti-people/169119
- https://piac.asn.au/2005/03/01/fred-nile-tries-to-remove-gay-rights-again/
- https://www.smh.com.au/politics/nsw/from-the-archives-packed-house-for-the-great-gay-debate-20190514-p51n86.html
- https://qnews.com.au/on-this-day-january-7-religious-freddom/
“It is his bigoted followers who are his enemy; and the enemy of his religion. It is their bigotry, their hatred, their lying, and their hate-speech which is speeding the flight from religion.”
Nile’s support for Greenwich is great news (somewhat belatedly), but it is Nile’s lifetime of extreme and unrelenting bigotry, hatred, lying and hate-speech which has created his followers-turned-enemies, and is now speeding the flight from his religion and just about everyone else’s. Too little too late, Freddy-boy. The genie’s out of the bottle and it’s your genie. You reap what you sow. Do enjoy your last few fogey years watching your religion disappear into nothingness. I hope you live long enough to see it disintegrate altogether, you hateful old sod. Your lifetime of pouring crap on others you’ll never really understand seems to be having the diametrically opposite effect to the one you intended. Congratulations for that.
Arthur,
It is difficult not to feel a bit of smugness over the behaviour of people like Nile, whose bigotry has been quite intense in recent decades, just as Australia is becoming more progressive. His bigotry has come back to bite him on the arse.
Much as it pains me to say it, but I sometimes reflect that Howard winning the 2004 election was a bullet well dodged, considering how bonkers Latham turned out to be. And how flaky of the ALP to put him up as a leader!
Totally agree Clive. As a former Labor party member I think it is to the ALP’s eternal shame that Latham was even in the parliament representing them, let alone elected as their leader. He is not the only embarrassment that they have had, and maybe not even the worst, but he is bloody appalling.
Clive,
Yeah, I think you are right. Latham was a very strange puppy. His post Labor career shows how self-centred he is. It is all about him. In addition, much of Howard’s damage to the nation was done by this time.