Vale Gough Whitlam

[watt price tully]

A giant in the history of Australia. A tragic & sad loss

[3.14159]

One of the great reformers of Australian politics.
I doubt we'll see his like again.

Goodbye Gough.

[Tannin]

Gough achieved an incredible amount in his too-short term: modern Australia is massively in his debt. The free university system open to all; the freedom to get out of a failed marriage without having to prove "fault" in a court; the priceless gift of a nation-wide healthcare system; peace instead of the evil and wrongheaded Vietnam War; the first legal protection against environmental abuse; creation of a superior judicial system in Australia, for Australians, by Australians.

Vale Gough. You were among our greatest.

[Pies4shaw]

One of our very few visionaries. An extraordinary man and a beacon to a generation.

Rest in peace.

[regan is true fullback]

"Oh Parnell, my dead king"

[Mugwump]

Undoubtedly a great Australian. A bit of a tragic hero, really, who achieved great things but might have achieved even more with a little more humility and reflection. A sad day, but a great life.

[Proud Pies]

Vale Edward Gough Whitlam. He was my hero and was the reason I became interested in politics as a 13 year old.

It was the Whitlam Government that:-
1. ended Conscription,
2. withdrew Australian troops from Vietnam,
3. implemented Equal Pay for Women,
4. launched an Inquiry into Education and the Funding of Government and Non-government Schools on a Needs Basis,
5. established a separate ministry responsible for Aboriginal Affairs,
6. established the single Department of Defence,
7. withdrew support for apartheid�South Africa,
8. granted independence to Papua New Guinea,
9. abolished Tertiary Education Fees,
10. established the Tertiary Education Assistance Scheme (TEAS),
11. increased pensions,
12. established Medibank,
13. established controls on Foreign Ownership of Australian resources,
14. passed the Family Law Act establishing No-Fault Divorce,
15. passed a series of laws banning Racial and Sexual Discrimination,
16. extended Maternity Leave and Benefits for Single Mothers,
17. introduced One-Vote-One-Value to democratize the electoral system,
18. implemented wide-ranging reforms of the ALP's organization,
19. initiated Australia's first Federal Legislation on Human Rights, the Environment and Heritage,
20. established the Legal Aid Office,
21. established the National Film and Television School,
22. launched construction of National Gallery of Australia,
23. established the Australian Development Assistance Agency,
24. reopened the Australian Embassy in Peking after 24 years,
25. established the Prices Justification Tribunal,
26. revalued the Australian Dollar,
27. cut tariffs across the board,
28. established the Trade Practices Commission,
29. established the Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service,
30. established the Law Reform Commission,
31. established the Australian Film Commission,
32. established the Australia Council,
33. established the Australian Heritage Commission,
34. established the Consumer Affairs Commission,
35. established the Technical and Further Education Commission,
36. implemented a national employment and training program,
37. created Telecom and Australia Post to replace the Postmaster-General's Department,
38. devised the Order of Australia Honors System to replace the British Honors system,
39. abolished appeals to the Privy Council,
40. changed the National Anthem to 'Advance Australia Fair' (confirmed at 1977 Referendum),
41. instituted Aboriginal Land Rights, and
42. sewered most of Sydney. (Hard to believe, isn't it, that Sydney wasn't even sewered 40 years ago???)
Mind you it took 'em all of 3 years!!!
(I am grateful to various sources) THANK YOU.

[Culprit]

Don't get Alan Jones to do his eulogy.

I was with my Dad when I met Gough. I was 11 and that meeting has stayed with me. Amazingly Dad and Gough pass away in the same year.

[Tannin]

[David]

It's certainly "time" for another Whitlam. It sure ain't Shorten, I'll say that much.

[Proud Pies]

[John Wren]

thankfully for whitlam and his government i have been afforded opportunities i never would have the good fortune to receive.

ignorantly, i never fully understood what paul kelly was singing about in his song "from little things big things grow" ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZZl7Eg7Tz4

whitlam and lingiari ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FdpVBHxpArI

[doriswilgus]

One of the few true greats of Australian politics.A man who changed this country for the better in ways that few others have been able to achieve.A man whose legacy has reached through the decades to this very day.A true legend.

Rest in Peace,Gough Whitlam.

[stui magpie]

I remember when Kerr sacked him, my Dad was like someone had shot his dog. So wild.

Gough was no doubt a visionary and undertook massive reforms. His legacy has become irrevocably tangled with the changing times that were the 70's and he's remembered in different ways by different people because of it.

Graham Richardson probably sums up how I feel. http://audioboom.com/boos/2579718-graham-richardson-pays-tribute-to-gough-whitlam

[partypie]

I am loving the tributes ... Most of them anyway.