
The world reacts to THAT gun photo of George Christensen
THE gun-toting photo Dawson MP George Christensen posted over the weekend has been making headlines across Australia and the world today.
And the Twittersphere is continuing to fire up, after Mr Christensen posted the photo of him holding a gun with the caption: "you gotta ask yourself, do you feel lucky, greenie punks"?
The BBC reported the news under the headline 'Australia MP George Christensen criticised over gun photo'
"An Australian MP has drawn criticism for posting a photo online that showed him aiming a gun and asking: "Do you feel lucky, greenie punks?"," the BBC reported.
"The Greens party said the conservative MP's post was "disgraceful", noting it came in the same week that 17 people died in a US school shooting."
Gulf News Americas story 'Aussie politician slammed for gun-toting photo' spoke about the image coming days after the school massacre.
"A conservative Australian politician who posted a photo of himself on Facebook holding a gun in a jibe at environmentalists was reported to police and slammed on Monday as insensitive after a mass US school shooting," Gulf News reported.
A shocking error of judgement by @GChristensenMP. Does @Barnaby_Joyce have the moral leadership/fortitude to call him to account? If not, then Joyce cannot be leader. https://t.co/GFo7stYEXi
— Catherine Yeomans (@cathyeomans) February 19, 2018
Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young, in an opinion piece via the Sydney Morning Herald, blasted Mr Christensen's "undergraduate, silly, and downright thuggish" tactics for posting the photo.
She put his ability to lead an electorate into question, saying politics was a space where there's "power and privilege" in being a representative of your electorate.
There's a lot you can do in Parliament, even from the backbench, and it gives you a platform to say and do things that people listen to
Thank you to everyone who has reached out given support overnight. I have taken your advice and referred this hideous threat to police. https://t.co/vf6wIAQY75
— Sarah Hanson-Young💚 (@sarahinthesen8) February 18, 2018
She blamed Mr Christensen for a vulgar death threat she received from one of the Dawson MP's supporters, saying "that's what happens when people in positions of authority" act the way he did -- "it emboldens and enables their supporters to take it a step further".
.@billshortenmp: I know @GChristensenMP's brand is to be colourful, but that photo was just on another level all together. He's a MP, not some galah down at the front bar carrying on with a few jokes.
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) February 19, 2018
MORE: https://t.co/Lu2jzotJj4 #newsday pic.twitter.com/Lh5rNhNE9N
High profile journalists, political commentators and politicians from all parties have also weighed in on the photo, with independent senator Derryn Hinch in a fiery exchange on national TV.
"For him to do that stuff with a gun yesterday when kids are being buried in Florida, it is sick," Senator Hinch told Channel Seven's Sunrise program today.
"I think the man should apologise on his knees," he said.
"This is the most disgusting thing I have seen since I've been in Canberra."
Senator Pauline Hanson also said she had heard the image was "wrong" and "distasteful".
“I’m absolutely bloody fuming about it” - @HumanHeadline clashes with @PaulineHansonOZ over Nationals MP George Christensen’s social media post in which he uploaded an image of himself holding a gun, accompanied by a caption appearing to threaten "greenie punks". pic.twitter.com/vtphSwkqpb
— Sunrise (@sunriseon7) February 18, 2018
National Party: How can we deflect attention from Circus Barnaby?
— Annabel Crabb (@annabelcrabb) February 18, 2018
George Christensen: Leave it with me.
.@GChristensenMP says he won’t apologise for a controversial photo he posted on Facebook of him holding a gun. #TenNewshttps://t.co/oyw8OhWz2c
— Sandra Sully (@Sandra_Sully) February 19, 2018
And he wasn't even safe from the pundits with half-decent photoshop and meme-making skills...
How George Christensen thinks he looks in that gun photo pic.twitter.com/ygzDP9cPVR
— Junkee (@junkee) February 19, 2018
#GeorgeChristensen looks like he’s afraid. Swap out the gun with a kitty and you’ll see what I mean. He looks like he can’t wait to hand it back. #auspol pic.twitter.com/hwQhHVdafu
— Steve Minon (@steveminon) February 19, 2018
Just when you think it couldn’t get any worse for the coalition. #auspol #auspolbarnaby #georgechristensen pic.twitter.com/JUzttVEsww
— man from (@theUNCLEdaily) February 18, 2018
"George Christensen is a Galah" - Bill Shorten. pic.twitter.com/ZaUbo2yskk
— michael halliday777 (@michaelhallida4) February 19, 2018