"The High Court's Wik judgement found to the dismay of the Howard Government that Native Title had not been totally extinguished on pastoral leases."

No, they found that making a pastoral lease over a piece of land didn't necessarily mean that native title was extinguished. This only applied to exceptional cases, such as one piece of land in North Queensland which was only ever farmed for a few years.

I wonder if it was the taxes of the 'rich'that paid for Dr John's education at least in part. I am also sure that many of our first people would be happy to have the house he paid for if we was willing to give it back to it's 'rightful' owners. Or is this more leftist ideology that refuses to allow any people accept responsibility for their actions (except those evil white settlers).

Right on John; I note you have already drawn a redneck sceptic

"It's the same the whole world over"

Indeed: most notably in the so-called 'advanced/Christian/Capitalist democracies', wherein greedy, ideologically-driven, self-styled 'professionals' set up offshore 'Tax Havens' (without any regard to professional ethics), thereby enabling the rich and uber-rich to pay little if any tax! (take note ‘runner’!)

Howard was indeed helped by many in the Labor Party (why the American spelling?), as evidenced by the actions of Millionaire Bob (Hawke) and Millionaire Paul (Keating) and the 15 or so other millionaires in that LABOR administration, by transforming Common-wealth public servants into Public Managers (complete with bonus schemes for excellence in performance!), ‘floating’ the Australian dollar and enabling & overseeing ‘re-forms’ such as the ‘re-structuring’ and privatisation of common-wealth public assets and services whilst telling unemployed young protestors to “get a job”!

Why have we become meaner?

As Dr Tomlinson correctly points out, it was LABOR Party ministers who initiated the attack on “The Unemployed” and those decreasing number of unions who endeavoured to stave off the global neo-liberal attack on the Working Class. Howard and his ‘Cabinet’ of millionaires simply picked up the reins and carried on the ‘re-structuring’ of the Australian society ... oops, sorry, ECONOMY! All in the financial/economic interests of the national and inter-national Capitalist Class who rule over the rest of us.

One has only to observe the anti-social, anti-democratic results of the politico-economic ‘re-forms’ imposed upon the REAL ‘wealth creators’ of this and so many other so-called ‘advanced and civilised Western ‘democracies’ ... the U$A, UK, Greece the home of democracy!), France and so on, to realise that it is not ‘we’ as a people who have become meaner but, rather, our political, bureaucratic, business and academic ‘leaders’, whilst many of our religious leaders remain silent.

Spending ABTA royalty funds on such housing is IMHO appropriate.

Those lands are owned by corporations with shareholders, practical difference only they called "Traditional Owners".

Consider most intended beneficiaries of the housing also the shareholder-beneficiaries within those corporations owning the land.

Those landowner corporations received million$ in public fund$ to construct houses on their lands since obtaining titles, yet from most refusal to issue their tenants with valid leases continues.

Shame upon Commonwealth continuing permit them avoid their responsibilities as the landlords.

IF those landowner corporations wish receive further public funds they need only issue appropriate leases to the relevant public housing authority.

Without valid leases, no public funds should be provided.

Without valid leases, they need spend their own monies.

.

Sowat,
Good point, Leftists will complain loudly that the West has been hijacked by a criminal elite but firmly shut their gobs when that thesis in any way contradicts their own relentless drive to economically sap and ultimately destroy Western countries.
Leftists and Bandit Capitalists operate in the knowledge that their means compliment each other, the "Vampire squid" wrapped around the globe in 2012 is the synthesis of Capitalism and Marxism, the new thesis in other words.
So, Trotskyite Capitalists, Neo cons or whatever you call yourselves, what's the antithesis?
Who are you inviting to the new dialectic?