Fed: Can 1,000 Aussies do to Kevin07 what Jefferson did to JFK?

AAP General News (Australia)
04-20-2008
Fed: Can 1,000 Aussies do to Kevin07 what Jefferson did to JFK?

By Doug Conway, Senior Correspondent

CANBERRA, April 20 AAP - When US President John F Kennedy hosted a dinner for 49 Nobel
Prize winners in 1962, he described it as "the most extraordinary collection of talent,
of human knowledge, that has ever been gathered together at the White House, with the
possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone."

This indicates it may take only one person, not 1,000, to have a bright idea. No
harm can come, however, from gathering 1,000 bright people under the one roof.

Kevin Rudd has just done it.

Federal parliament has rarely radiated with such intellectual wattage - certainly not
when it's sitting, some might say.

The problem with asking people what they think is that they very often tell you - ad infinitum.

Mr Rudd must now digest the plethora of suggestions to emanate from his 2020 summit.

He set out to "shake the tree" of ideas, but may find that sifting through all the
fallen fruit is a huge task.

If all he picks up are statements of aspiration - we want a republic, we want equality,
we want better indigenous health, we want a fairer tax system - then the summit might
prove an entertaining waste of time.

How to achieve all the lofty goals is the thing.

As one economic delegate remarked: "As soon as you talk about implementation, the degree
of difficulty goes up exponentially."

A community delegate added: "There's going to be a long way to go after the summit
turning ideas into concrete reality."

There was no shortage of cynicism, including among delegates.

As international relations professor Michael Wesley explained: "This is Australia."

Yet there was also an air of genuine optimism.

Few can quibble with the proposition that it's a good idea to seek good ideas.

Mr Rudd has undertaken to respond by year's end.

Surely 1,000 of Australia's best and brightest can prove as inspirational as one Thomas
Jefferson.

AAP dc/mfh/wf/bwl

KEYWORD: SUMMIT (AAP NEWS ANALYSIS)

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