PETER VAN ONSELEN: Gee, doesn’t that sum up Australia in 2025… Our country’s most powerful politicians use their precious time to make videos about their favourite BIRD

So The Guardian is holding its biennial bird of the year poll – and if that’s not bad enough, it has managed to convince the Prime Minister, Opposition Leader and Governor-General to partake in it.

Each of them took to YouTube to post videos extolling the virtues of their chosen feathery friend. 

Time well spent, I’m sure. Not to be a hater, but haven’t these very important people got better things they could be doing?

Perhaps not, and to be fair, this is a clear cut case of the pot calling the kettle black, because here I am writing about it.

Upon learning about this weighty poll being conducted, I initially assumed the quality of journalism at The Guardian must have gone down since Amy Remeikis left. So much so that the left-wing (get it?) news site is now resorting to this sort of puffery for clicks and attention. 

But no, this competition has been around for years. 

So who did our dear leaders pick as their nominations for Bird of the Year?

The GG selected the sulphur-crested cockatoo, described online as an urban pest. There you have it. It’s apparently quite a sociable flying friend too.

Ley chose the bittern, which, given Andrew Hastie’s actions of late, is one letter off the mark of how she’s probably feeling at the moment. 

The bittern is apparently secretive and seldom seen. Make of that what you will.

Albo picked a chicken. Enough said! Actually, he picked the bin chicken, as it’s commonly known, whose formal name is ibis. 

Unlike most Labor MPs, its natural habitat is in agricultural areas. It gets its nickname, however, from its habits in urban areas – picking its way through bins in search of food scraps – and is common to where Albo lived before he moved to the Lodge. 

The video was published just a week before Donald Trump announced peace in the Middle East. 

So look, I’m well aware politicians and online news sites can walk and chew gum at the same time, but surely the likes of Albo, Ley and Mostyn have better things to do than play up to this stunt?

Bird lovers are probably in a fit of rage right now, thinking to themselves that this biennial treat is so very important because it brings attention to the threats Australia’s bird life face. Perhaps.

But I’d like to see Albo focusing on tax reform, Ley coming up with some (any) alternative policies, and The Guardian sticking to its left-wing biased news and commentary. And Mostyn surely has important events to attend and hands to shake.

The most disturbing part of all of this came when I realised a member of my own family (who shall remain nameless) partook in this intellect-sapping exercise a few years back.

I shook my head at the time, but I’m even more appalled upon learning today that they knew about it back then. Because they read The Guardian.