Toowoomba

Toowoomba’s a funny place.

It’s not a bad place to live – cheapest fuel in the country – agreeable climate (except for the week or two when the Westerlies blow) – lots of schools etc.

It is however, a hard place to move to.

What I mean by that tortured piece of prose is that if you move here from somewhere else – anywhere else, it takes a long time to be accepted.

I lived that when we moved here from Mt Isa in 1996. After living in North Queensland for a long time, where newcomers were always welcome, the narrow provincialism of Toowoomba came as a shock.

We’ve been here for sixteen years now, and I can’t walk down the street without being greeted by every second person. We’re still not “local” of course – that takes thirty years.

Nowhere is this provincialism reflected more clearly than in the local rag.

The background to this story relates to the very real possibility that Campbell Newman won’t win Ashgrove at the state election, but the LNP may win government.

Should this be the case, there is speculation that he would be parachuted into a safe seat. One of those seats is Toowoomba South, hence the Chronicle’s headline.

That headline reflects Toowoomba attitudes accurately.

Incidentally, I wouldn’t attempt to call the election results. Queensland is different.

All I would say is that you should expect a surprise, and don’t write Katter off.

He’s crazy in the same way a fox is crazy.