It's my body and I choose if I want to.

With our new parliament the debate on Euthanasia has been put back in the agenda.

I am strong believer in the principal that governments should as much possible stay out of our life choices, so long as I not causing harm to others.  Be this in the choice of sexual partner, what I choose to see and read and amongst many others, the right to end my own life.  So in principal I believe that the people have the right to have access to euthanasia.  Most arguments that I have heard against this seem to be little more than religious values dressed up in some sort of fear mongering about people being euthanised against their will.  In the case of abortion we respect the rights of women to have control over their own bodies, yet we don't want to extend to the terminally ill.

However I do have some concerns about this.  This mainly stems around people feeling obligated to end their life as they have become a burden on those caring for them.  To go back to abortion, with this now normalised, outside of religious circles it seems somewhat anathema for someone to have strong feelings that abortion represents the taking of a life.  I have seen first hand pressure being placed on someone to have an abortion, despite her strong feelings against this choice, with complete lack of understanding of her position.  Her body, her choice yet this doesn't seem to be respected when her choice is to keep the baby.  If we were to legalise euthanasia could we possibly reach the same point?  Would people be expected to take there lives rather hang on with every last breath?  You are free to choose as long as your choice is the affirmative one?  Maybe not a straight up as first appearances give.

Well that is it has been decided.

Well it seems like a long while that the election was held (it was only 16 days) and today we have government.  First to say - boy didn't I get that wrong, but, I think this is a great result.  Much better than a clear result for either side.

For me I am pleased, the one real point of difference between both parties was the NBN and I believe this is a important piece of infrastructure, with this result it will become reality.  It was interesting and good to see that this was important to all independents, it was a pity that the Coalition decided to march in lockstep against this.  I doubt that by the time they win government again that they will be able to stop it, even if it comes as early as the next term.  

It was by coincidence that I was a BIS Shrapnel conference today, very interesting they pointed out just how beneficial government spending has been in preventing Australia from going into recession and were surprised by the fact that Labor didn't make more of it at the election.

Whilst I think that the Labor party has run the economy well, it certainly didn't govern very well.  I thought that its failure of conviction to go to a double dissolution over the CPRS was more than disappointing.  They presided over an abuse of question time that made the Howard government look open.  By focusing on staying on message they lost purpose.

I am excited to see the changes that will be made to the parliament and I congratulate the independents on making this reform the most essential part of their negotiations and by getting bipartisan support for them.

At lunch today a number of people said that it will all fall apart,  not me I am idealist and believe that this government will run full term.  Time will tell.