peopleswing to the right – Page 3

Behind the door of 2024

It is a leap year.

Hopefully some brave leaders will propose love to others and generate some peace!

Good news!

Life expectancy has more than doubled since 1900
the world has become far more peaceful. In 2022, 3,5 in 100,000 people died in war, in the 20th Century, there was an average of 30 deaths per 100,000.
the annual global burned area has been declining for decades with 2022 being the lowest on record.
Deaths from famine and floods have declined almost 50 fold over the last century.
Less than 10 percent of the world lived in extreme poverty, compared to 80% in 1820.

Media coverage of conflict and other horrible incidents like crimes and natural disasters crowd out the good news that objective data shows.

Conflict

Our world is threatened by the increasing interaction of the Russia, China and Iran Axis (a term recalling the World War 2 Germany, Italy and Japan alliance).

Warfare so far has been less direct, being fought by local forces, backed and supplied by sponsor world powers.

Radical threats to global trade by Iranian backed Houthis in Yemen are likely to be the catalyst for a wider war.

Israel seems to be itching to take on Iran which is also supplying Hizbollah and Hamas.

My 2023 forecast commented on the impact of Covid in China. Only estimates are available as China stats are patently false. Apparently 1.87 million excess deaths, mostly aged people occurred after the lifting of Covid restriction in December 2022. How can we know the pain and anger of that muzzled population?

Certainly the Chinese economy is not doing well. One can only see increasing authoritarian and totalitarian conduct from the Xi regime I still say a Taiwan conflict is imminent.

Even more so, now the Western power bloc is distracted by the widening of the Gaza conflict. Just to add some further spice, that rabid dog in starving North Korea is throwing artillery shells around again and making threats.

The waning of Woke

There are increasing signs that the Western world is waking up to the widespread damage and threats to its civilisation by the Woke ideology. This resistance has been powerfully articulated in the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship Conference in London in October.

The loud rejection of Woke style virtue signalling and identity political appeasement tactics was graphically demonstrated in the Australia Voice referendum.

Politics

In Europe, there has been a strong political swing to the right, caused by the increasingly uncontrolled refugee invasions from Africa and the Middle East. It will be interesting to see if Labour gets elected in the UK.

In the US, there is strong support for Trump, probably a world leader in anti Woke policy, despite repugnance for his personality and behaviour. He will be elected if the indictments against him fail to stick. He will likely stamp down on illegal immigrants.

the US political system is more dysfunctional than any other advanced industrial democracy. In 2024, the problem will get much worse. The presidential election will deepen the country’s political division, testing American democracy to a degree the nation hasn’t experienced in 150 years and undermining US credibility internationally…. the only certainty is damage to America’s social fabric, political institutions, and international standing
GZERO Daily . Ian Bremmer

In Southern Africa, blatant government bullying extinguished any chance of democratic change in Zimbabwe. The South African political landscape is disintegrating as fast as the national infrastructure with power, water and sewerage systems continuing to fail. The ports and rail systems are barely functional. Xenophobia is rife as unemployment soars.

Generally speaking democracy is not doing well and the need for strong, capable leaders has never been more urgent.

Other stuff

Artificial Intelligence is apparently producing productivity miracles, all likely to be at the expense of human roles, so ethical dilemmas abound.

My local forecasts are:

Australia will continue its cricket supremacy and rugby inferiority.
Labor may well lose the next election.
The AUKUS submarine purchase is a non-starter: delivery decades away while the world is spinning faster don’t add up.
The greening of energy generation will slow down

The Western order is still mighty but the white ant-ing of woke ideologies has harmed it immensely. The cross border migrations from vastly different cultures which have not assimilated poses major existential issues for Europe and the US.

Less than 80 years since the last world war, another on two or three fronts is trembling on the brink.

Nothing like a world war to re-set values, priorities and expectations!

The Janus Perspective

As the god of transitions and dualities, Janus is portrayed with two faces—one facing the past, and one facing the future. He also holds a key in his right hand, which symbolizes his protection of doors, gates, thresholds, and other separations or openings between spatial boundaries.

That is where we are – in transition. At least I desperately hope so!

At last the Western world, which I identify with as the best civilisation in this age, has awoken to the threat within its walls.

The erosion of identity politics, uncontrolled borders and hordes of refugees from alien cultures, the surplus of elites, declining educational standards, scant academic rigour and the dearth of strong politicial leadership has hollowed western democracies.

In 376 AD, a large migration of Goths and other non-Roman people, fleeing from the Huns, entered the Empire. Roman forces were unable to exterminate, expel or subjugate them… The Roman elites were beset by squabbling and in-fighting and the Roman Empire disintegrated.

Western polities are in the throes of an identity crisis which has enfeebled them, allowing more primitive, authoritarian cultures to infiltrate our institutions and values. Internal attacks on history, convention, institutions have been endured to their detriment.

We’ve been redefining deviancy so as to exempt much conduct previously stigmatised
Senator DP Moynihan, c.1994, quoted by Tom Switzer, Weekend Australian 30 Dec 2023

The moral outrage displayed under the Black Lives Matter banner fuelled the looting, toppling of statues, burning of cars and widespread defiance and confrontation of police. The cause was the death in police custody of George Floyd, a drug using criminal.

Such was the righteousness of this outrage that Democrat Senators took a knee as did many sportspeople, virtue signalling their acceptance of guilt for somehow being the cause of the failure of a huge majority of black people to succeed in modern society.

A number of state governments began considering paying reparations for slavery 100’s of years ago, at the expense of current taxpayers.

This challenge to society occurred during the period that the #metoo phenomenon strengthened the cancel culture which had stifled freedom of speech in universities.

Over the last decade, the West has been inundated by floods of refugees from the Middle East and Africa. Many of these people have not been absorbed into society and are living informally in squalid conditions, contributing to huge welfare demands and a rise in violent crime.

The decades-long lenient immigration rules in the UK have resulted in a huge influx of Sout East Asians and Africans. Such is this impact that many churches in the UK have been transformed into mosques and Muslim radicals protest at military funerals. Curry and rice long surpassed fish and chips as the favourite food choice.

Decolonisation is a rallying cry of the progressive left, but it no longer means the freeing of former colonies, it means racialising and disparaging the historical legacy of Western civilization.
Frank Furedi, Weekend Australian 30 Dec 2023

2023 saw a swing to the right, with the election of right wing governments committed to crackdowns on migrants and stricter border controls. In Australia the rejection of the Voice referendum, knocked back a flimsy political virtue signal aimed at empowering Aboriginals by according them extra constitutional power.

There are clear indications that there is a strongly building conservative resistance against the ideology of multiculturalism and the rewriting of history from the viewpoint of non Europeans.

What a swing of the pendulum to the right will require is for the hitherto generally silent middle mass of the population to bestir itself and defy the attacks on freedom of speech and the the right to police public order.

It will require resolute, courageous leaders determined to hold a firm stance and withstand media pressure.

The incursion of identity politics into everyday business and social life must be resisted and diminished. The rights of parents to be informed and make decisions for their minor children must be unequivocally upheld.

It will entail the rolling back of recent liberties like illegal behaviour during demonstrations, the tolerance by governing bodies of bigotry and hate speech and increasing surveillance of society.

The hard edge of this civilizational conflict is in the proxy wars in Ukraine and Gaza. Ukraine stands against the invasion by personal direction of a ruthless, totalitarian dictator. Israel stands against those that attack its people and seek its annihilation. It is a bastion of Western democracy, surrounded by autocratic regimes probably directed by Iran.

Russia, Iran, North Korea, and China are autocratic regimes, superpowers that seek to subdue the influence of the Western world. They have a number of alliances and huge and extreme military arsenals. They operate clandestinely, funding cyber attacks and external terror groups while shaking their nuclear swords.

Israel opposes and counters Iran’s influence and confronts its proxies, Hamas, Hizbollah and the Houthis, with assistance from Western allies. Russia is assisted by Iran, China and South Korea in its war with Ukraine, who is backed by the West.

So the choice is coming closer and it is serious.

Who do you support?

The rewriters of history and seekers of reparations for slavery;

The defenders of invasions of their country and of the western constitutional democratic freedoms.

More weight!

The last words of Giles Corey as he was judicially crushed to death in an attempt to get him to answer to charges of witchcraft. He was 81 years old.

He defied the sheer madness of a society that tolerated in the name of God and the law, widespread, hysterical allegations of witchcraft. Such perverted zealotry was deemed appropriate by many.

“The Crucible” is a play about the 1692 Salem witch trials, including that of Giles Corey, written by Arthur Miller. Its themes are as relevant today as they were when aimed at the Communist witch hunt in the US in the early 1950’s.

Some girls were seen dancing in the woods by a minister in the rigidly conservative Puritan society of Salem in Massachusets. They pretended they were under spells and witchcraft was blamed. They began naming people as having communed with the Devil and influenced their behaviour.

Suddenly a vehicle was found by some to settle scores, old and new. Others came forward and alleged bizarre behaviours. A zealous minister interpreted and prosecuted the allegations. Hundreds were accused, arrested and tried on allegations that could not be proved. The mere fact that many alleged the influence of the Devil was accepted as truth.

Those denounced were arrested and required to admit their connection with the Devil or deny it and be hanged. Most did and saved their lives but lost their estates; nineteen men and women did not and were hanged. Giles Corey, 81, was squashed to death.

It was like reading accounts of today’s woke mobs baying for policemens’ or Jews’ blood or the credence given to the gender dysmorphia hysteria of teenage girls. It sheds light on the reality of mass psychogenic illness, which are very real behaviours with no known physical cause, a form of social influence, which defies our understanding.

… but now the little crazy children are jangling the keys of the kingdom…
The Crucible, Act 2

What is so frightening about social media today is the immediate identification by millions with reports of situations. One consequence is a cacophony of ‘me too’ howls which generate so much noise that they are almost impossible to deny. Substantiating the truth is no longer relevant. The mere noise of the mob causes knee jerk political response.

Protestantism was mass resistance to the existing Church’s iron grip on society, the Inquisition, suppression of challenge and direction of government. Ironically the idols and ritualism of Catholicism were rejected and the swing went to the rigid strictures of Puritanism which added zeal and the same belief that the Devil was ever present. The pendulum swung but the iron rule of the Church prevailed.

We see now the rise of ultra right wing nationalism across the western world. Apparently a reaction to the huge influx of Arab and African refugees and the campaigns of woke movements such as #metoo and BLM, which pillory historical figures and values and call for reparations and bending the knee in acknowledgement of white patriarchy guilt. Mere allegation is sufficient for substance of wrongdoing.

Just like in Salem in 1692.

Serious splits in society have formed and we will be pressed to answer whether we agree that taking the knee is a good thing or face consequences.

I hope I will say: “More Weight!”

Good News!

Contrary to popular belief, the world is not falling apart

It’s easy to think that the world is falling apart. Media driven fear demoralises us – particularly when young – and engenders terrible political decisions

The necessary media spotlight on conflicts like Ukraine and Gaza gives the impression of unprecedented levels of violence – it’s not, it’s unprecedented media coverage of conflict and other horrible incidents like crimes and natural disasters. So much so that media channels seem to promote such scenes to maintain followings.

But wait, take a look at the data:

Last year, 3,5 in 100,000 people died in war, in the 20th Century, there was an average of 30 deaths per 100,000. The world has become far more peaceful.

The data speaks to the constant barrage of contextless catastrophe and doom. Negativity sells, but it informs badly.

The same pattern characterises the climate change reporting. A pervasive and apocalyptic narrative draws together every negative event, ignoring the data. Fires, for example: the annual global burned area has been declining for decades with last year being the lowest on record.

Deaths from famine and floods have declined almost 50 fold over the last century.

The world has improved dramatically:

Life expectancy has more than doubled since 1900;

the almost universal illiteracy of 200 years ago has almost disappeared;

in 1820, 80% of the world lived in extreme poverty, now it’s less than 10 percent;.

This incontrovertible progress has been driven by ethical and responsible conduct, trust, well functioning markets, the rule of law, innovation and political stability.

We need to foster a climate that challenges fear-mongering and promotes optimistic yet critical thinking and constructive discussion regarding the future.

The authors have convened the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship and their conference commences on 30 October in London. Follow the outcomes.

This is paraphrased from an article by

Jordan Peterson John Anderson The Weekend Australian 28 October 2023

This is the kind of talk you need to listen to. No doubt there will be muted and hypercritical media reporting on this movement – their methods, ethics and calling are under scrutiny, at last!

Say No

Generally speaking people feel uncomfortable objecting to something somebody says or saying “no”.

The desire for social acceptance and fear of causing disappointment or conflict lead us to agree, even when it’s against our best interests. Some of us were brought up with expectations of obedience. Saying “no” to a parent was exceptionally hard; an older sibling would likely give you a thick ear!

So we learned how to express our refusal: often by persistence, pleading, begging and tears. These tactics sometimes worked with Mum. Dad’s response was invariably: “what does your mother say?”

By saying No, I am challenging your power, intimating you are wrong and I am right, disappointing and inconveniencing you, embarrassing you.

The reluctance, discomfort and often fear of saying no is the playground of bullies. Standing up to our teacher, boss or parish priest is almost as difficult. But if successful, a “no” reaps rewards and enhanced respect.

The most challenging “No” of all, is the one you say after having said “Yes” many times before… when there is an expectation of “yes”

Hurt feelings, guilt, shame, embarrassment, sadness, anger and rage are common reactions to a refusal. Here in Australia, the rejection of the Voice referendum has seen all those emotions and more.

Saying no means we need to be able to discriminate – to be to tell the difference between different options and select the right one. We should also learn how to signal our position before being asked, if possible.

For some time I have been uncomfortable with the increasingly commonplace Aboriginal “welcome to country” ritual foisted on audiences; particularly the increased emphasis on this land being “ours”.

I believe it is commonplace before meetings in government departments and even in some churches.

These “welcomes” are not endearing Aboriginal cultural practices; they are in fact political statements which challenge the status quo in Australia.

High Court v Commonwealth 1993: … there is no justification for “the notion that sovereignty adverse to the Crown resides in the Aboriginal people of Australia”

The referendum message does not seem to have got through to the vociferous minority. The special treatment of people on the grounds of their ethnicity has been rejected.

Thirty percent of Australians today were not born here, they have different cultures – they are rightly expected to assimilate and contribute to our society.

The message is: You can say “No” to stuff you didn’t agree to, even the ‘touchy-feely ‘ ethnic and gender stuff.

Question the justification for unnecessary welcomes and cultural, ideological changes in your workplace.

Say ‘No”.

A question of balance

Terror tactics are horrifying and repugnant causing us to recoil. They are used when conventional warfare: i.e. soldiers fighting soldiers, is not pragmatic.

The terror tactics used in Rhodesia during the time of its ‘liberation’ war included the murder of unarmed non-combatants in pitiless, gruesome fashion. This included the execution by shooting of headmen and many tribespeople “pour encourager les autres” accompanied by mutilations, abduction and rape. It included the execution of survivors of a passenger aircraft they had shot down; the murder of missionaries including the bayonetting of a 6 month old baby.

Of course, Europe had its own terrorists like the Red Army Faction which engaged in a series of bombings, assassinations, kidnappings, bank robberies, and shoot-outs with police.

Governments also use terrorism. In World War II, the Nazis executed villagers in reprisal for attacks on them by resistance partisans.

The Japanese Army is estimated to have executed millions of Chinese and Korean civilians during the same period.

Let us not omit the ultimate terror tactic deployed by the US on Japan in 1945 – the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki which killed over 200, 000 people.

Neighborhood reduced to rubble by atomic bomb blast, Hiroshima, 1945.

Sadly, terror tactics clearly have some “legitimacy” in societies across the world.

This somewhat shatters our moral high ground when considering the Hamas massacres of Israeli residents and indeed the Israeli retaliation and the US support for it.

There is some distaste for the Hamas tactic of hiding amongst the “innocent” population, but it is a brutally clever tactic. Why should non-combatants not share the fight in a liberation struggle?

Of course, this type of thinking means that the only tactic to stop this type of warfare is eradication and suppression – obliteration will buy a few years until new ideologists fire up the youth of a new generation. Unavoidably, non-combatants will also be obliterated.

We can express our horror and repugnance, but we can not condemn the morality if we too are guilty.

It goes without saying that terrorists should be stopped before they attack.

But, how is this possible?

One answer which many will not like, is universal surveillance: the continuous monitoring of every meeting, conversation and movement of ….. everybody.

Don’t be alarmed, surveillance of communications and movement is commonplace in the military and security industries, including the police. Many private houses and vehicles already have security camera systems which track you whenever you pass by; you are watched in supermarkets, bars and train stations. Internet traffic is monitored and filtered by service providers.

Why do we still need a warrant to monitor criminal activities? AI bots can monitor and notify suspicious behaviour for investigation, in real time as it happens.

It will be far more effective in stopping terrorists and criminals than analysis of historical data, so what is the downside?

After all: “freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose”!

I wrote this poem for a poetry class some years ago.

Screen

Everyone everywhere should be screened

Let the camera capture

your face, your life, your ups and

downs.

And hers and his and theirs.

All must be screened – t’will

make us feel safer and happier, until

we think about

Who screens

the Screeners.

Look at the screen

be obscene and herd:

you’re on tv!

This is our new morality

I was on tv

did you see me?

The absurdities of our kind

I was thinking of another rant about the Woke Religion and its priests, the Voice and the courtesies we insist are paid to tyrants who we permit to flourish. But I have ranted about most of that already, so I need a change of tack.

We have too much tolerance.

We tolerate teenagers who steal and wreck the most expensive cars for Tik Tok kicks.

We tolerate demonstrators who burn and loot in their righteous displays of outrage.

We tolerate shoplifters because we are too scared to arrest them in case they create a victimisation scene.

We tolerate and compensate governments who suppress freedom, eliminate opponents and yet proclaim democracy.

We allow men claiming they are women to enter womens’ prisons despite convictions for rape of females

We give girls drugs to stop their sexual development and allow them to have their breasts removed, sometimes withhout parental consent.

We tolerate the mass murderers we catch, providing lifetime accommodation in our prisons.

We shoot mad dogs and any dangerous animal.

We also train soldiers in ways to efficiently kill people our governments declare are enemies; often in cold blood.

My recommendation is that we re-institute the death sentence for murderers and serial rapists.

Their places in our prisons can be filled by those who wilfully damage property.

We must also stop meeting tyrants and refuse them entry into our world.

I believe that the deterrent effect of capital punishment for terrible crimes will reverberate and reset the respect for societal values that has disappeared.

Odds and Ends

For some time I have been trying to work out what are the essences of Conservatism and Liberalism in politics.

Liberal politicians aim to maximise the transfer of wealth from Capital to the general population; Conservatives aim to increase the ability of business to generate wealth which in turn generates benefits to the population.

It would be easy to say Liberals are populists who succeed by appeasing the masses with new benefits and Conservatives are dedicated to preserving the wealth of the elites. Still a class war then…

The mission of both left and right wings is to be perceived as the greatest benefactor. If the Left take too much from the wealth generators, the economy falters and the voters suffer, if the Right do not give enough they will be abandoned, even if the economy is booming, although that can be a major attraction.

So recently in Australia, the Conservatves lost out in the election, despite “protecting” the economy during Covid: it was skilfully portrayed by the Left as arrogant and mysoginistic.

In the US the Liberals (Democrats) are seen to be too progressive with new rights and change, despite giving huge economic benefits, while the right (Republicans) are resistant and supportive of Trump who while personally offensive, appeals as a champion of conservative rights.

This is in my view is where the main battle in the World Woke War will be fought.

Moving on…

While Rugby remains my main affection, it has not been that exciting in recent years, despite skills seeming to improve.

The introduction of the TMO and on screen reviews is a contributor. Referees are no longer instinctive and decisive. The TMO should be reserved for reviewable foul play to be actioned after the game.

The other issue was the expulsion of Israel Folau, in my view one of the greatest rugby football talents ever. This is part of the Woke wave, along with the taking of the knee, welcomes to the country and the promotion of indigenous causes, support for the Voice, etc. which saw administrators kissing a number of arses to maximise their virtue signals.

They forgot that they are paid employees not elected representatives of players – they need to ensure that their utterances have the support of all players or shut up!

On the other hand…

I must say that I have really enjoyed the FIFA Womens’ World Cup matches that I have watched. I confess that I resented the intrusion of females into what I saw as male sports. I recant and am now a supporter, even of female rugby, although I cringe at the crunch of some of the contacts on those soft female bodies….

For men, it was sort of manly and glorious to be injured; a spot of claret endorsed manliness, a badge of glory – what is the significance for women?

There is no denying that they can be just as tough and their blood is also red but it is somehow uncomfortable. Vestiges of mysogyny?

Just to round it off..

I am glad that there seems to be backswing against transgender men being permitted to compete in womens’ sports. I don’t think they should be allowed in womens’ prisons either or in their toilets.

Who would think I was once threatened with deportation for my liberal views?

Rectitude

I suppose it’s the first 4 letters which generate in my mind a sort of carrot up the arse, stiff upper lip, holier than thou image .

I think maybe it was a desirable trait in the days of Queen Victoria, when it denoted a moral, conservative stance. Nowadays, it is a trait of the progressives who are awake to any opportunity to denounce.

It is also the armour of the petty bureaucrat, who will follow the letter of the law despite great injustice being the consequence. e.g.:your visa renewal is refused because you paid the wrong fee; you must quit your job and leave the country.

These thoughts have been kindled by a recent article on Celebrity Slavery*:

The fashionable pursuit of reparations from celebrities, who might shell out rather than run the risk of ‘cancellation’ and humiliation, smacks of extortion.

Certainly the latter suggests a commercial morality: a skeleton of a rich man’s ancestors is far more valuable and attracts greater media attention.

Much easier to apply leverage to an individual than governments of former colonies where there are many of the estimated 40 million people still in slavery.

Researching rectitude, I came across this graphic of virtues:

They seem pretty wet to me, grounded as I am in the more traditional cardinal virtues of prudence, fortitude , justice and temperance.

Be careful, be brave, be fair and moderate in all that you do.

If you practise those virtues you don’t need to be woke, righteous, progressive or vociferous.

*Article by Peter Kurti, The Spectator, 21 January 2023,

Speak now or forever hold your peace!

The debate over the referendum to grant a “Voice” to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders in Australia sparks many thoughts in my mind, most of them cynical.

Now I don’t have a vote in Australia, but I have paid taxes here for nigh on 10 years so should have one; thus I figured I am entitled to speak my mind.

My first thought is that these people do have a voice and representation by their own elected representatives. (Does this mean that democracy has failed them?)

My second thought is that the concept of a “Voice” for this poor benighted sector of the population is quite a funky meme-ish idea, likely to appeal to the shortspanofattention current generation. It is a crisp, simple virtuous PR vehicle, ideal for politicians.

My third thought is that the referendum is likely to be quite divisive, because of the modern propensity to factionise and label for easy meme-ing. The ‘aye-sayers‘ are inclusive, woke progressives and the ‘nay- sayers‘ are racist Tories.

Wait, it gets even more … rough-edged?

There are about 500 different Aboriginal tribes in Australia, each with their own language and territory and usually made up of a large number of separate clans. more than 250 languages and about 800 dialectal varieties

Which language will be used by the Voice? And will all agree on the words that are spoken? In New Zealand, there are still big money debates going on about the meaning of the Te Reo Maori version of the Treaty of Waitangi, thought to be clearly written in English.

The Indigenous population in Australia declined to a low of 74,000 in 1933 from an estimated 314 000 when the First Fleet arrived. About 12 000 were killed by colonists, the rest likely succumbed to the ravages of disease and by products of western civilization such as alcohol and despair.

A Voice will give 3.2% of the population additional power in Parliament – a 25% increase in that population since last census! It seems that aboriginal heritage is gaining flavour.

This portion of the population is the most poorly educated, unhealthy, socially destitute and criminal of all Australians. It is also diverse and disparate. It has a history of subjugation and some abuse, some of which may have been well meaning by the perpetrators but devastating for the victims.

Can we expect clarity, foresight and community interest from the speakers of the Voice? Will they be united and informed and representative of their electorate? Is that likely? Or will there be Boards and Committees and advisors and bureaucrats to give the Voice a neck and a head…? Lots and lots of money…!

It’s not a new political trick. In 1967 a referendum relating to Indigenous Australians, was called by the Liberal-Country Party Holt Government. Voters were asked whether to give the Federal Government the power to make special laws for Indigenous Australians.

Acts of Parliament have appointed Protectors of Aborigines and Aboriginal Protection Boards in the past, with little apparent success.

The persuasion for this campaign is founded on the wave of Woke thinking which is sweeping the old, democratic Western societies, which recently saw off ScoMo and the LNP.

The fact that the Aboriginal population suffers significantly less advantage in society is regarded as a consequence of a racist hegemony, enriched by its historical suppression and racism: massacres, dispossessions and stolen generations.

The guilty must now pay a penance which will (maybe) absolve them of this horrible taint of the past and make everything okay …. yeah, right!

My last thought is related to my antipathy to Woke-ism, which you may have detected.

Once the benighted Aboriginals have a Voice, will we not be bound by precedent to enshrine more power for the exclusive use of women, then the homosexuals, lesbians, transexuals, pansexuals, one knee cappers and sheep lovers, etcetera?

I will leave the allocation of body parts to a new age biologist!

While I am here I was wondering why there is no rainbow flag in Parliament and why no-one took a knee at the opening of that august body, soon to be given a new voice.