This morning we’ve been treated to The Australian Financial Review‘s coverage of its own annual Business Person of the Year awards, which “recognises Australia’s top leaders, builders, pioneers and CEOs”. The criteria appear to be “already be stonkingly rich and getting richer”, as evidenced by the winner: low-profile philanthropist and WA’s Person of the Year, Gina Rinehart. According to the Fin, the list of nominees
demonstrates how entrepreneurial mavericks have been able to ride some of the big themes in the global economy: the critical minerals race, the energy transition, and the ever-increasing use of data in a world that will be increasingly powered by artificial intelligence.
A global economy dominated by billionaires grasping for ever-larger shares of our attention and data to feed increasingly powerful artificial intelligence? What could possibly go wrong?
Among the glamorous photos of the evening, we see the cream of business and political figures — and also Boris Johnson. We get why it would be awkward for Nine chairman Peter Costello not to invite former high-ranking Liberals such as Josh Frydenberg and Julie Bishop, but what the hell was the disgraced former UK PM doing there?
What insights was Johnson there to provide? To demonstrate via his time in government — the relentless calamity of which, following a landslide victory in 2019, continues to publicly grow and grow — how to trash a successful brand? To give AFR journos inspiration with the litany of fabricated stories he produced pre-politics? What possible reason could there be to continue our national pastime of convincing him he’s still relevant?
The other lesson of the awards is a simple and sobering one: no matter how successful you get, you can’t escape the rendering of David Rowe:
Is it just me or does that photo of Gina look like Twiggy wearing a wiggy?
Perhaps giving Johnson a prior engagement to be out of the country attending while the UK COVID Inquiry runs is an act of kindness on Costello’s part?
Johnson, as foreign secretary, was memorably on a purposeless hours-long trip to Kabul the night that the commons voted on a further runway at Heathrow. He had previously promised to “lie in front of the bulldozers”. It became apparent at that point that he would lie anywhere and everywhere about everything, but not, as it happens, in front of bulldozers.
Which explains why the AFR would want him here. The Fin is a faith-based organisation, guided by divine revelation rather than facts in real life, the existence of which the faithful deny in any case. The multitudes of enemies made by Johnson are eloquent testimony to his sanctity and super-powers.
Open secret in UK Johnson attended a party in Italy hosted by the Lebedev’s (who were being monitored by Italian secret services), after a NATO meeting, without security and/or aides; seen on camera at airport next a.m. looking worse for wear.
See much more credible fin media outlet, the FT (27 June ’23) ‘Boris Johnson faces fresh questions over 2018 party at Lebedev villa. Most senior civil servant of former foreign secretary’s department was unaware of controversial visit to Italy’
I do think that Australia is not enforcing proper standards in the granting of visas to enter this country. Boris Johnson is here? Last month it was Nigel Farage. Last year it was Matt Hancock. (I know those about those last two only because I read The Guardian – I do not watch their jungle(??) escapades.)
I can’t wait for next year’s edition when Albo and Labor (while tainted by not being Business Leaders or Private Enterprise) will certainly be featured for making the rich even richer. I heard that David Rowe is already working on the portrait.
?my thought exactly.
Revenge for inflicting the Mad Monk?