The Australian's been pushing it's own barrow for a while, though. Allowing Phillip Adams one column a week does not make for balanced commentary (although they're not as crass as Fox to make the claim).

Isn't Noel Pearson having trouble with his scheme in Queensland? We never see any factual commentary on that, all we get are sucky "Pearson for Australian of the Year" comments (and articles, really).

Perhaps the Australian has discovered, as so many others before, that being Aboriginal, educated and highly paid are not the only prerequisites for a job looking after their fellows. Most of the members of ATSIC fell into that category and we saw a resounding lack of success in the way that they managed to look after their bailiwick.

Truth has a habit of overcoming bullsh-t.

David

“…The Oz adopted a policy agenda which it would pursue aggressively through selective reporting, sanctimonious editorialising and shrill columns.”

Ring is familiar with, and practises, these things himself; he just doesn’t get the coverage of his object of sanctimony. He sneeringly describes two of Australia’s leading aboriginal identities as “pin-up boys” because Australia’s only national newspaper reports their utterances on matters concerning descendants of aboriginal Australians.

For Ring, it appears, there are aborigines and aborigines.

“But readers could search in vain for thoughtful discussion of the policies advocated by those on the left”, peals Ring.

Agreed. Readers could search in vain anywhere for ‘thoughtful’ policies advocated by the left. There is plenty of emotion and ideology from the left, just no thought.

What is it, I wonder, with these left wing ideologues, who think that they are making a point of some kind by including the second names of people they hate – in this case John WINSTON Howard and Malcolm THOMAS Brough? It must be hard for them to denigrate someone without a middle name!

Not surprisingly, questions asked of relatives and friends in Alice Springs about Ring have come up with a blank. One “might have heard the name”.

To be frank, none of my friends or relatives in the centre are aborigines, but I don’t think Ring knows any either.

“The Australian” has nothing to fear from Graham Ring

The author seems disappointed in The Australian. Why? It has always been a right-wing rag that subtly, and not so subtly at times, has belittled anybody concerned about any aspect of social justice. As does its other Newscorp spawn, papers such as the Daily Telegraph, The Sun etc.

Too right Mr Right. The new soft left doesn't have ideas and policies it has warm fuzzy feelings and politically correct form.

The Australian may seem like it has a right wing flavour but that is only when held up to the obvious left wing bias of the ABC and the obnoxious far left wing tendencies of the BBC and the Age newspaper.

Graham writes about 'the policies advocated by those on the left.' As Gandhi is reported to have replied, when asked (I think by John Gunther?) what he thought of British civilisation: 'I think it would be a good idea.'

As a lifelong member of the Left, I was struggling to think of what coherent policy my mob had put forward in relation to Indigenous affairs, except policies to let people continue their fictional hunting and gathering and stay out of towns, while their kids learn only up to Grade Two only in their own languages and nothing much in English, the common language of power; while the adults have full access to all the grog and drugs they want while beating their beloveds. Meanwhile, economic projects are abandoned (so bourgeois, so Western)and rapid cultural change (in a sociological sense) renders custom irrelevant.

Let's face it: the policies of the Left, our policies, our ideologies, our paradigms, are bankrupt - they didn't work, and they have done tremendous damage to tens of thousands of Indigenous people, perhaps irreparable damage. It's time for us to take a good hard look at ourselves and admit that we got it wrong. And then try to nut out where things might go from here, what options Indigenous people might have, if it's not too late.

Joe