Australia — "the Outback Steakhouse of countries" — has once again entered the sights of John Oliver and his team at Last Week Tonight, with the US-based Brit comedian unleashing on our expensive, "dispiriting [and] ultimately pointless" postal survey on same-sex marriage.
As News Corp reports, during his comprehensive takedown of the "weirdest waste of Australian money since every Baz Luhrmann movie ever made", Oliver took aim at everything from lobbyist Sophie York's insane suggestion that gay marriage should instead be termed "garriage" and Liberal MP Kevin Andrews' misguided attempt to cheapen the affection shared in same-sex relationships as being akin to that of his cycling club mates, to 7.30's interview with marriage-opposed couple Mark Poidevin and Ben Rogers, and Macklemore's NRL Grand Final performance of Same Love ("I do support gay marriage, but I refuse to ever say, 'Let Macklemore perform.'").
Noting that the $122 million, non-binding survey — which closes on 7 November, with nearly 75 per cent of eligible voters having currently participated — is especially odd given the prevalence of opinion polls that suggest majority support for marriage equality anyway, Oliver ultimately surmised that, obviously, the best outcome would be for the swift passage of the change in law (as well as Poidevin "put[ting] himself out there and meet[ing] someone that deserves him", given Rogers' opposition to tying the knot).
As is often the case with these segments, it's hard to argue with that.
Watch the full video below.
