Webdiary - Founded and Inspired by Margo Kingston

I'd just like to add my appreciation Margo. I also hope you will write in the future. Good luck.

Margo: Thank you, Kathryn, and good luck to you too. As for writing, not for a while. I need to rediscover myself, you know?.

Good riddance and perdition to you, you fascist political whore.

Dear Margo...feels a bit like losing a limb. Particularly since, during the last few months' struggle with depression, it has only been Webdiary that has (however intermittently) kept me writing...

And, I shall miss it more than I can say.

Not only that, but to also lose you from the fray - and, yes, I still see you as "the first lady of Australian journalism" - is a further bitter pill to swallow. And, as many earlier have insisted, Webdiary was not a failure... but a genuine harbringer of new modes of democratic debate. So, be proud.

love, and best wishes

Hi Margo, and thank you for all your hard work and personal sacrifice to bring Webdiary to us.

When I first read this this morning I was devastated, and quite depressed.

Webdiary is an important part of my life now, and reading your post was well... like a death in the family.

I applaud your courage, through what I'm sure has been quite a difficult time. Now it is time to relax and re-energise.

I am sure that this site has been a catalyst of change for many people. There is strength in numbers, and I think this site has helped to give others strength as well.

You are not a failure, in fact IMHO you are a hero and a champion for all that was good in this country, that is being blatantly stolen away by Howard and his ilk.

Others will continue your legacy, while you take a well earned rest, and enjoy some peace.

Thanks again.

Margo: Hi Anne. Thanks for commenting on Webdiary, and thanks for caring about Oz.

Dear Margo, I've been reading Webdiary every day ever since I found it, even if I've not contributed very often, and have found it a great source of comment from like-minded people, a comfort in these dark days.

Sometimes reading much of the press I feel I'm living in a parallel universe - so much of it just doesn't make any sense. A great number of journalists simply aren't doing their job these days; sycophancy isn't what we need, and if we ever needed what you were doing, it's now.

Congratulations for having had the fortitude and stickability to keep it up for so long. You'll be sadly missed.

Best wishes for the future, and nil desperandum carborundum, or something similar. Don't let the bastards grind you down! Regards.

Margo: Never surrender, Christine. Yes, I have, but I've sacrificed my personal life and a few other things besides, to try not to. Balance is the key. I'm gunna try to find it now. It will take a while.

I've been lurking for four years. This site has been my main source of political sanity. Margo has obviously worn herself to a frazzle and I can understand her decision. My mornings will never be the same though I will keep checking to see if Hamish can keep it going through community effort.
Congratulations and goodbye Margo - I'm missing you already.

Vivienne

Margo. Thanks Vivienne. I love lurkers!

Margo, apologies but unsure of your current address, can you post it again here?

If not, send something through to mine.

Cheers, Adam

Margo: Hi Adam. My email is mlkingston@gmail.com

Hell's bells, Margo, you have NOT failed! Through your integrity, your passion and commitment, you have (virtually) single-handedly created a community of passionate and committed minds who are all in their different ways seeking honesty and truth - in government, in politics more broadly, and in a lot more.

Earlier today, after reading your announcement, I wrote to a friend:

“All I really know at the moment is that I feel so sad - bereft - about the loss of a genuine forum in which the contest of ideas happened in a (generally) civil discourse.....O brave new world: IR, anti-terrorism, and welfare-to-work legislation all passed - and no Webdiary to reassure that there are lots of other sane heads out there.... “

But somehow ... now ... seeing all the love with which you are surrounded - I know that this is a project that cannot be allowed to die. So, dear Margo, remain with your community in spirit at least.

Margo: Look forward to meeting you on December 22 in Canberra, Fiona.

Margo, I am very sorry to hear this. I can only imagine how hard this decision was to make. Your writing has been unique, passionate, thoughtful and original. I know how dedicated you are to Webdiary, what this community has meant to you, and how hard you worked to make sure it was ethical, open and inclusive. You have been a pioneer.

Good luck chilling out for a bit – staring at the trees and sky as you said! – I know you’ll be back, writing again, sometime soon.

Hang in there.

Margo: Thanks Julia. We haven't had a chat for a while, but I look forward to our next one. Love your work, and can't tell you how much I appreciate your best wishes. Onward, eh?

Margo. 'tis a very sad day for the community you have fostered on these pages.

I thank you, and the various editors, for all you have done in your hard work at Webdiary.

I have contributed less and less over time, due primarily to spiralling workloads, but I truely valued the dialogue you inspired here, and - as others have said - I will miss my daily fix of news, comment, information and debate.

I thank one and all contributors, no matter your political affiliation, for enlightening me on so many, many issues. The level of research exhibited by some amazed and astounded me at times, and I learnt many an odd and pertinenent fact from these debates.

Jay White, I think 'twas me with whom you had the fuel debate, and with only a few shopping days to go, fuel is still around the $1.20 in Sydney. What was the silly wager again?

C Parsons, I managed to get to New Orleans to see my brother last month. I am glad to report he is doing OK in his little quarter of that fine city, and that the bars still serve beer. And no, he hadn't seen any alligators.....

Margo, in closing, if you ever get to the Northern Beaches - to report on McTaggart perhaps? Drop me a line, and we can have a glass of wine or two, in the beer garden at The Arms. I have a great family friend - working in magazines - who would be delighted to accompany us.

Margo Hi Adam. I'd love to - can you email me?

We will all be the poorer for Webdiary going into recess [note I don't say cessation] and subjects and issues the mainstream media won't go near. Sad to read that this whole WD venture - starting out at pathetic Fairfax - has cost you your health and money.

We MUST not let you and WD go under. A grass-roots movement to keep WD going MUST get up and going.

Dear Margo, I am shocked, devastated, upset that you have made this decision. As a latecomer to your forum, I was happy to discover a source of real information, and a filtering of the abuse that becomes part of comment in some other forums.

Walk tall and proud of your achievement. What a great effort and a great example for others to follow.

Good luck in your next venture. Have a rest and come out fighting. I'm sure you will. Can't keep a good woman down.

As for you, John Smith, and your ilk, I'm, sure your contribution to society is a net zero. No one will recognise your name or remember you for anything worthwhile ther than sniping and yapping in a dark corner. Margo's name is recognised worldwide for her excellence in journalism and brave attempt to take on a huge task of disseminating real information.

Well done Margo and good luck.

Margo,

I'm so sorry that the Webdiary is going into recess. I hope that there might be a glimmer of hope that it will continue in some way.

Webdiary let me see that there were lots of people who were worried about the way our country and the world was heading, and that there might be ways where we could change our course. Even if Webdiary does close the positive things that you fostered here will continue, and it will be because you were prepared to take the risks that you took to develop this site. So it hasn't been in vain, and when this world does change for the better, you can feel justified in taking at least some of the credit for it.

I hope to see and hear much more of you Margo, because what you have to say needs to be said loud and clear these days.

Margo: Hi David. And thank you for caring.

Hi Margo. We'll be the poorer for it, but if you need to stop now and look after yourself, PLEASE DO. To be honest, I've often worried about how much emotional energy you were investing in Webdiary, and how angry and depressed you seemed. Your passion and integrity has shone through every word.

Here's a virtual hug and a virtual chardonnay (mine's a trendy inner city decaf soy latte, ta).

Hi Cathy, and what a stayer you were, despite the demands of your young kids and other duties. And what a great piece you managed to squeeze in for Webdiary. You know the one - Blaming Lasch. Are you in Canberra on December 22? There's a Webdiarist coffee thing at 3pm at the National Library. I'd like to meet you.

Eric McDonald, clansman, I can pass on a dinner invitation to you if you'd like - I can't go - the Duke of Argyll is the guest of honour and it's with some rather posh Campbells at a place called Glencoe.

Very sad to hear about the end of WD, though I must confess I was always concerned about the financial side of it (if that was the main reason for it closing down). Maybe the sad lesson from this is that, in this day and age of corporatisation, genuinely independent journalism will increasingly come from those who aren't paid for it (no disrespect to many paid journalists).

Maybe, as Jack H Smit suggests, WD could be reborn out of the ashes as "a volunteer venture by Citizen Journalists, supported by donations". If so, then in no way could it be said to have been a failure, to the contrary, such an outcome would be a real success. And wouldn't that get up the noses of its foes! Jack's suggestion, while not without some potential problems, has real merit, and is worth considering seriously by the good Citizens of Club Chaos.

I disagree with those who think that WD was doomed to failure because it was, to paraphrase, 'hopelessly and self-indulgently left-wing', etc. I respectfully suggest you do not have a good understanding of Margo, politics, or history.

To friend and foe of WD alike: whatever direction the political/cultural tide may be running now, with you or against you, it will inevitably change direction again in the not-too-distant future.

Experiments don't always work out as hoped, but whatever the final outcome WD was definately not a failure overall, and it has left its indelible trailblazing mark for the better.

Thanks to everyone who made a constructive contribution to WD, including all those who had different and even opposing views from me. The diversity and general civility of WD discussion was particularly unusual and noteworthy, and will be sorely missed.

Whatever path you take from here, Margo, you will always have many who respect, admire and support you and your past and future efforts, and who wish you the very best personally, including for your health.

And you can very definately count me amongst them.

SK

Margo: Thank you, SK. It's all good...

Margo could you please delay the closing of this site for a few days? I am trying to read all the great thank yous and letters.... but it is a bit hard because I have a shop and people keep coming in and the phone keeps ringing which would be great normally but all these great notes are a tribute to you and equally to democracy and you can't just get rid of it can you? What an amazing phenomenon this site has been.

Margo: Hi Jenny. I'm gunna hang in there till midnight.

It truly is a Black December for this country - bravo Margo on your encouragement to others, generosity, strength and ethics.

All the best in gaining respite, renewal and some mental ecology away from the public/media minefield- you deserve it

Jenny

Margo: Jenny, you've been a Webdiary stalwart. Thank you. I'll do my best to reinvent myself. Thank you for caring.

Dear Margo,

Although I did not agree with many of your posts you have my utmost respect for providing a good mix of view from different political positions and more importantly for actually having a go at providing a local alternative to our bland mainstream media.

I have known a number of successful entrepreneurs in my years and without exception they have all had some form of set-back before moving on to greater things.

Please take care of your health and I hope to see you in your next journalistic/business incarnation.

Best regards.

Hi Rob. And what will it be? I've just has a terse conversation with the SMH, which, for the first time since I left wanted to have a chat for a story. I asked for a fair go. The reply: "I don't think that's productive." I agreed. We left it at that. The 'reporter' was from 'Spike'.

Margo, I came late to your work, and I regret I didn't get there earlier. You played strong, done fine, and you have made a difference - and a difference for the better.

Please don't give up commentary forever; we need gutsy quirky feisty people like you sticking it to the establishment and their shibboleths.

Regards and thanks for your fine work. As to the bottom dwellers, sludge eaters, and human slugs that have the effrontery to knock you even in this late hour, as M Duncan says, they can go and get. Thanks again.

Margo: Too late, too late. I'm a lawyer too, Richard. Of the Sir Joh era. We failed, I"m afraid. But f..k it, I did my best to warn the Southerners.

I too am a lurker, not a particularly erudite one, but one who has learned a great deal about a great many things from Webdiary and the informed and learned people who contribute. So for that, at the very least, thank you Margo.

As for the detractors, it is interesting to note that none of them have had the courage to establish their own forum and leave themselves open to the abuse and vitriol you have had to put up with; most don’t even have the courage to use their real names (Anthley & John Smith – indeed).

Good luck with whatever it is you decide to do next Margo and first and foremost get well.

Thanks David. Good advice. I'll take it.

Thanks Margo and good luck with whatever you decide to do next. I've lurked for years with only an occasional contribution. Appreciate all your efforts, the quality of your work and your integrity.

take care

Margo: You too, Robyn. And thank you.

This is why capitalism works so well, because anyone can conduct bold experiments in financial stupidity like this one has been, and when they fail utterly, no widespread harm is done - eveyone just looks around and says "yup, saw that comin" and gets on with their day.

good riddance, another piece of junk taken off the internet. I hope u fail at life (wait ... u already have)!

Margo thanks for the last few years of Web diary. I am going to miss the vast array of stories and I wish you well whatever you decide to do. will also miss the forum with you at the helm. Furthermore to "John Smith" what a sad little neutered puppy!

Thanks Margo for a great site, a place for real information and discussion, except of course for those right wing nutters whose only contribution is to slag off the thoughts of those with a once of compassion.

One thing I will never agree with though Margo is your attempt to engage those on the right. I just hate their guts. I cannot and will not engage with them. People like John Smith, T Tazman, Daryl Numan, A Mills et al. I hope their children die in car accidents and their houses burn down with them in them.

Congratulations,

Those of us who work in the community sector know only too well what it is like to give your all with a passionate intensity that is all consuming, only to feel like very little has changed.

Soak up the heart felt comments, accept you did your bit & be gentle with yourself.

You are much admired, much loved and I for one am truely grateful for the inspiring daily read.

Cheers,

Peter

Peter, I'm weak, in the end. Stay strong.

Sienna Bootman: "So Australia is a dreadful country is it ? Maybe if you had actually travelled outside the place and discovered some of the delightful shitholes you couldve been born in you wouldnt post such crap."

Margo, I wasnt a big believer in Karma until I heard you were crook. You were drowning in a sea of idiocy and fate has thrown you a life-preserver. Quit while you're a long way behind.

I'm going to miss this site almost as much as I miss one of my turds after I flush the toilet.

ed Hamish: this is a fake David Weir. Our apologies to the real one for publishing this.

Vale Margo.

I shall miss you at WD and although I probably don't share much of your political perspective I greatly respect that, despite the claims that some have made about the political slant of WD, you gave "right-wingers" like me a very fair run to put our views and arguments and provided an open forum for debate. I can think of no other blog that comes close in that regard. I hope Hamish will be able to continue WD in that spirit.

I wish you well for whatever direction you choose to take in the future and I hope that every day offers you many opportunities to smell the roses.

Margo: Thanks Greg. Funny, I never thought of you as right wing. Thans for contributing to Webdiary. You were an asset to the forum.

Yes, I was also lurking under my lily pad wondering how I could help and join in the fun from my spot in the middle of nowhere and now the only contribution I can make is to wish you good luck and say how much I shall miss you and the rest of the WD team. The sheep'll miss you too. Come back as a fast-moving cheap blog maybe?

Michael Boddy

Margo,

please tell me its not true :-(

Regardless of some of the gutless comments posted so far (some people just have no grace in their soul whatsoever), as far as I am concerned you should always look back on what you and your co-contributors have achieved at Webdiary over the last 5 years with dignity, pride and great accomplishment.

Thank you for all your hard work and devotion to this project over the years.

I hope that Webdiary will be able to continue in some form or other while you regather yourself, re-evaluate and hopefully come back stronger than ever (hopefully in some journalistic capacity) to ruffle some more feathers and 'stick it' to the John Smiths of this world.

All the best for the future.

You will be missed.

Hi Paul. Thank you for your good wishes. I had dinner with my hero in public life recently, and he said I'd done my bit and should get a life. I wonder what that is? I hope to find out.

For all of you who are disheartened, check this thread before you drown your sorrows in a bottle.

David Weir, you were very abusive towards Margo in your post. Posts are moderated and yours was not edited, that is, in a sense you have been listened to. John Howard acts more like a manager than a politician; he doesn't listen to we voters. John Howard has not been straight with the electorate; whereas Margo has maintained a high standard of conduct. I suppose your rancour is created through your disagreement with her views.

When you mature David you will realize that people are entitled to opinions other than those you hold.

Margo, lost touch over the last few months - as I've been otherwise engaged. It is sad to see WD go under and even more disquieting to note the obvious glee of some.

A thick skin is needed for this game - or a, perhaps perverse, joy in battle. I collect the more egregerious insults as badges of pride. Reading this page I see you've got more than me. I'm jealous!

But, ya done good kid. For all its many, and perhaps inevitable, faults, WD added something special to the Oz media scene - and to the blogosphere.

It will be missed.

Margo: Michael, as a fellow journo, I take what you say as a compliment. You've done what you can to help make Webdiary viable, and
I thank you for it, Comrade.

Oh Nooooooo!!!!

*sob*

Thank you Margo for your consistent honest reporting over many years. I'll treasure Not Happy John forever.

A serious lurker is very sad.

Margo, I was one of your first readers, back in the SMH days. I congratulated you on your visionary embrace of new technology back in the last century.

I've seen Webdiary descend into a self-parody though, with serious articles about how George Bush invaded Iraq to get anti-gravity technology, and anyone criticising that pilloried as being not merely "anti-progressive" but "fascists-in-training".

Well, there's a saying in computer science : plan on getting the Mk 3 version right, because you'll throw away Mks 1 and 2 anyway.

Australia has many real problems causing real misery to real people. I hope that the next incarnation of Webdiary won't be just another haven for Idiotarianism and Moonbatery, and actually be useful as a truly independant and rational voice that exposes, and does its bit to cure, these problems.

All the best, Zoe

David: personally, reading Malcolm Street's "Antigravity and us" gave me one of the few really good laughs of 2003. But each to their taste.

David Wier, not nice you know, to show the world your little hang ups. Not nice to wear those big black jack boots either. Kicking a person when they're down, well it just ain't..er... well... you probably won't understand, but, it.. also, just ain't nice.

Take a nice cold bath and you will probably feel better.

I was not a regular reader, but the fact that your WD was there has been an important point of light for me and many others.

I wish you well for your future. Look after yourself, and thanks.

Margo: Look after yourself too, Bob. Best wishes.

Margo: I'm really pleased that you have allowed through such comments as that of David Weir, that show not only their own unhappiness but their warped, ugly minds.

It gives us an inkling of what you have had to endure

"Here at last I can come home
And lay me down with a quiet mind
For the work is done that I had to do -
A sheaf that my hand must bind" - Mary Gilmore

I wish you a quiet mind, Margo..and the satisfaction of a job done with excellence.

Add me to the long list of lurkers. While this is my first comment to Webdiary, I have enjoyed reading it for the last two years. In that time it has been a fine source for news and (usually) genuine political debate, something that is needed more than ever in a time when Parliament discourse becomes more and more harried. [That is, when a question isn't deflected with a bad Wayne Swan joke.]

Despite the comments of political zealots and the cruel-hearted (often synonymous), this site will be missed. I wish you well in whatever you do.

It's a blog, for Gahd's sake. Maybe you could do what many other bloggers have done, and post at home after you get off work.

Margo,

Always thought you would be. What a shock! Good luck with everything in the future. I am sure you will do well at whatever you put your mind to.

You were one of my favourite people on Lateline. Similar to here on Webdiary, your viewpoint was always quirky and questioning. Like a breath of fresh air, it stretched the mind. Often eccentric yes, but very very interesting ideas you have; no doubt upsetting quite a few.

Is Tony Jones going to drop his job so you can take over? grin

Keep your spirit up!

Margo. Hi Heather. Haven't been invited on Lateline for yonks. Been banned from LNL for years, though Phillip got a special exemption for my book last year. Thems the breaks, mate.

So much for "Patron Power".

Yeah, but a search for "margo kingston failure" shows up 36,200 of those results. So your point is.....?

Sniffle Sniffle, keep fighting the good fight you retards. On seconds thoughts, why don't you all fuck off and die. I'm sure there is a dung beetle somewhere that could put the oxygen you are breathing to better use......

ed Hamish: this is a fake David Weir. Our apologies to the real one for publishing this.

Failure??

Google Australian sites for Tim Blair and come up with 42 000 results.

Google same for Margo Kingston and come up with just under 60 000.

So who’s the failure then?

Hurry up and get healthy, you’re needed on the battlefields.

Much love…

Hi Margo. This is disappointing news, but life goes on. I'm sure you'll re-invent yourself successfully next year.

As for myself, I'll also be ending my short stint as a Webdiary columnist. I'm starting a new job and pretty much a new life next week, so my focus needs to be on that. But at the end of the day I was writing because it was Margo who had invited me to do so, and my working relationship was always with her. While I take my hat off to the work of the Webdiary crew and wish them all the best with the project, I can't justify the continued effort the writing requires if Margo isn't at the helm.

It's been a lot of fun and very educational, and I thank everyone for letting me have my say in this excellent forum. Merry Christmas and God bless.

Margo: Phil, you were a star Webdiary columnist. Good luck next year, and thank you for your wonderful work for Webdiary. Love M.

Margo, I've said it before, I'll say it again. Australian public life has been the richer for your participation. Not many journalists can say the same. All the best, and lets catch up soon. Margaret Simons

Margo: Love to Meg. Maybe there's something else in me to write...

Dear Margo,

I am devastated! And I feel so much for how you must feel - but as so many of the posts say, think instead of what you achieved. And thank you for publishing my little cry from the heart.

I discovered MK's WD only a little over a month ago, and was thrilled to feel that there were so many more Australians who felt as badly as I did about what was happening to our country. It was like a black curtain drawing that Webdiary should close on the day when 'Terrorism' legislation is passed (by Labor as well as the government), and the anti-worker anti-family IR legislation, and the so-called welfare to work, hitting the most vulnerable in the community.

But thank you for providing that outlet for so long, I only wish I had discovered it earlier...

And I was going to write a piece on Genuine Progress Index in place of GDP as a measure of real social progress... I can write no more now, but thank you.

Betty Birskys

Margo,

Congratulations on what you've accomplished with WD. My mother's mantra is ringing in my ears "Not failure but low aim is crime". That's why I join the chorus of posters who won't let you reproach yourself as having failed.

Who knows how the issues which you've been so passionate about will shake out in the long term. There's plenty of encouragement from history. Is the muted cause of dissent in current Australia more quixotic than were the causes of Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, Xanana Gusmao, for example? You've been a courageous witness for truth in the face of lies, and you've been remarkably patient and courteous in the face of highly personal vilification.

If you've run yourself into the ground to the point where your health is in jeopardy, then you must take some time out.

Best Wishes for all your future ventures.

Maro: Thanks Peter. I was pulling my health into gear, but there was no financial backing. Indeed, those who promised same were playing other games. I was out of my league, I'm afraid.

Dear Margo, never ever think you are or have been a failure.

You have done more than most to ensure that there has been an opportunity for so many everyday Australians to have a voice.

I feel priveliged to have met you and been able to utilise the various media vehicles that you provided for my and many others so views and shared concerns were heard.

Go well and enjoy the next adventure.

The human spirit is an amazing thing and it is unlikley that the majority of australians will just accept that no one can influence the need to reestablish the balance in our society and country that will allow people to be treated decently.