Look, Anne, genuine sexism

Tony Abbott looked at his watch, which set Julia Gillard to ranting about the then-Opposition leader — “this man” — and his irredeemable sexism. Her speech, it is often forgotten, was an attempt to get Peter Slipper’s random thoughts about bivalves and female private parts off the front pages and, in this regard, the harangue succeeded mightily. On cue, the likes of Anne Summers were hailing that address as a high-water moment in the emancipation of women. It was one of Ms Gillard’s finest moments in that, for once, it actually achieved what she set out to do. Ms Summers’ ardent advocacy of her heroine’s spittle was also something of a plus for garden-variety readers, as her noted feminist admirer had found a topic sufficiently engrossing to see her set aside the production of further essays on her favourite abortion.

Abbott is gone, perhaps for good, and Ms Summers has been getting by on the thinner gruel of far less serious offences than the wearing of blue ties. Indeed, so…