Loose cannons

Greed

"The blame mostly lies with a greedy Australian electorate." — Right-wing think tank Access Economics lamenting the reduced federal budget surplus because "the punters demanded that 'everyone be no worse off'" after the introduction of a GST.

Priorities

"You don't hold up the major objective to achieve the minor." — White House official Brad Little, predicting that President Clinton will waive human rights provisions that would otherwise block the US military aid package for the Colombian government.

Coming soon: New, improved ...

"The New Labour brand has been badly contaminated. It is the object of constant criticism and, even worse, ridicule." — Philip Gould, the British government's pollster, in a memo leaked to the media.

Learning experience

"If the members are not suspicious now, then they are thicker than I first thought." — Alan Doak, resigning as Queensland vice-president of Pauline Hanson's One Nation.

Either will do

"Farmers won't pick it up unless there's a quid in it for farmers and unless it's good for the environment." — Hugh Roberts, chairperson of the NSW Farmers' Association biotechnology task force, commenting on genetically modified food.

Embarrassed

"I would describe it as an embarrassment." — A spokesperson announcing that the Pentagon was withdrawing an award to a defence contractor suspected of providing sensitive rocket information to China.

From GLW issue 413