The Sunday Age's Melissa Fyfe wrote a surprisingly fair and balanced account of the recent divisions in the Victorian division of the Liberal party across two articles here and here.
This is not what Baby Boomer and Lounge Lizard David Davis might have expected when he sanctioned the Sunday Age hit and briefed the journo on how odious and right-wing thug-like the yoofs from the Kroger faction. That's all a bit weird because of course the Victorian Liberal yoofs are seen as decidedly left-wing and latte-sipping by their harder-nosed NSW cousins.
WHITE-ANTING THE BABY BOOMER
Fyfe makes the point that Baillieu appears to have totally lost the confidence of many Liberal party members in the generations younger than him. His supporters like the charmer David Davis and Kim "Whodat" Wells have struck out at these young ones, characterising them as bullyboy extremists.
The attack on the younger Liberals aligned with the Kroger group sits uncomfortably with reports earlier this year about:
the dire state of the Victorian party, in opposition now for almost a decade. Membership, has dwindled to 13,000 down from 33,000 in the Whitlam era. The number of suburban branches is shrinking and the average membership age is 62.
Sixty two years. Anyone with any care for the future of the Liberal party should be very concerned about that statistic. Sure it reflects the reality that many people are reluctant to join traditionally structured organisations these days because of demands on their time but it's alarming. Instead of being worried about the alarming lack of young members, Baillieu and his comrades are keen to hunt down these pesky yoofs and mount their heads above Ted's baronial fire-place.
Just as Baby Boomers snatched and grabbed every privilege and prize they could for themselves in the 1960s and 70s, they jealousy and even viciously guard their rich bounty of power as they get older. This phenomenon plays itself out every day in many organisations, in the law, in politics, journalism, probably every workplace in the nation.
EXPEL THE PESKY YOOFS FOR UNDERMING HIS REDNESS SAYS KIM "WHODAT" WELLS
Upper house leader Davis even lined up his factional bruvver Kim "Whodat" Wells to talk up the expulsion of the two young bloggers for expressing private or anonymous views about some party policies and the party leadership.
The expulsions seem very unlikely to happen without a great deal of faction bloodshed. All the Baillieu huffing and puffing at the Kroger house isn't go to blow it down, as Fyfe notes the numbers simply aren't there. At least for now. This might change with the prospect of both party President Old Man Winter Dr David Kemp and the Leader himself monstering, hectoring and bullying Policy Assembly members into toeing the line to expel two young rebels.
BUT TED'S UNELECTABLE THEY RESPOND
But Ted's opponents have a pretty devastating riposte to all his positioning on this issue and that's what actually played really well for them in the Sunday Age today. He's a loser. He's unelectable. He's Red Ted and Dead Ted all rolled into one.
One told her:
"We need someone to put us back in the race. We are a laughing stock … I really feel we have to do it; we have to put enough pressure on him (Red Ted) so he goes."
Another said:
One, close to party headquarters, described the Opposition leader as: "extraordinarily paranoid, dictatorial and incredibly factional"; a man who interferes obsessively in minor positions that volunteers hold in the party and stymies efforts to reform it and share power among the factions; and a leader who struggles to deliver a cohesive, sharp grab for the television news.
It will all sound familiar to OC readers because that's what we've been reporting for a long time now. This sums up Ted's problem very well: "But you don't see that on the Kennett (factional) side of things. If they can't inspire and excite party members how are they going to inspire and excite the people of Victoria?"
Fyfe reports:
Several members of the administrative committee have told The Sunday Age that Mr Baillieu himself will be the one facing fury at its next meeting on June 6.
She also says:
One committee member has written to state president David Kemp over their concerns about the Opposition leader's handling of the blog crisis...
The OC understands that while he didn't write the letter, one Admin Committee member believed to be very concerned about Ted's conduct is cake king Frank Greenstein, regarded by many as a tireless workhorse for the party who puts the party's interest ahead of any factional considerations. He's not a twenty-something, impatient, ideologically crazed Melbourne Uni Liberal Club hardass, he just doesn't think much of Baillieu's recent brutish and unsubtle behaviour.
People like that are just part of the majority of Victorian Liberals who've been offended by Red Ted's mishandling of the blog affair.
A CARICATURE NOT EVEN THE AGE BOUGHT
Ted Baillieu and his support-group aims to characterise their young foes as hot-heads with degrees from Melbourne Uni who are distastefully passionate about voluntary membership of student unions, unnaturally enthusiastic for the Reagan presidency and are racist sexist thugs.
The truth was always more complicated.
What's most telling is that this supposedly oafish band of yoof rebels is clearly growing in sophistication as they get older and wiser.
Lined up for a thrill-kill by vengeful Baillieu forces in today's Sunday Age, it seems several of them patiently and carefully explained their position to a journalist with a surprisingly open mind. She ended up telling the whole story and while it wasn't all the yoofs' way, it was a fair account of their position and a very reasonably expressed exposition of their opposition to Baillieu's leadership.
Their judgment over some things - including operating the blog from 104 in the first place - can be questioned but many of them are smart young blokes making their way in the world and showing every sign that the future of their party belongs to them, if they can keep their wits about them.
They say Ted is unelectable and you don't have to be Genghis Khan to know that's right. Their vindication is not a matter of if but when.
Game on.
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A patriot found this facsimile lying around Chairman's Lounge today:
The Herald Sun 
