Where we are born is your nationality, who we identify with in beliefs, practices and an attitude is our culture.

Australia is multicultural society, however some cultures do not respect or accept the equal rights of all other citizens to live together in a democratic State, so commit violent criminal acts against that culture. When attitude or behaviour views another as lesser in status in our egalitarian society they do not accept our democratic values. If one's culture is the basis of criminal behaviour against other innocent citizens then that culture does not deserve protection under our laws.

Rapes not based on cultural attitudes; example, a Muslim boy who rapes a Muslim girl stands on the same platform as any rape within a similar culture. These same culture rapes are not happening in Muslim communities, or Muslim girls do not report them. Maybe the girls neither do nor report because of fear of being classed as a lesser person in her family and community.

Years ago while working among an Australian aboriginal settlement I saw attractive young aboriginal girls raped at the consent of their community for beer and wine etc. This cross cultural rape in my opinion was equally as vile though consent was given for convenience. Convenience was the motivating factor and it could not be identified as an offence against the culture. The young girls resented their sale for sex and tried to escape, but they were finally subject to their elders. The violence that continually erupted in that community took some quelling, but the problem of rape was a moral and criminal problem. The violence of the rape was not based on the a culture of the victim.

The Telegraph simply reports the news? As if! All news organisations
choose what to print, and what aspects of a story will be
printed. The media, by and large, make prominent what they think their
audience will want to hear or read.

Redneck, I don’t know what your problem is; it would seem that you have
something personally against certain ‘ethnic’ or religious groups. The choice
of your nickname says something about you as well, it is borrowed from a
foreign culture, that is the USA, which doesn’t say much for your connection
to Australia. At least you don’t hide the fact that you are a “white person
regarded as having a provincial, conservative, often bigoted attitude.”

Australia has been, since white settlement, a multi-ethnic place. People with
origins different to Europe have contributed greatly. Relations between
all these groups have not always been harmonious. I am old enough to remember
the conflict between ‘Irish’ Catholics and ‘British’ Protestants. It was something of a
scandal that my paternal mother was catholic and grandfather was protestant
. These problems have now been worked through, and there is very little friction
between these two groups.

The difficulties are little remembered.

I have a friend of Lebanese background whose mother is Islamic and father is
Christian. I know another couple where the wife is Islamic from Turkey and the
husband is French Catholic. This is multiculturalism in action.

I also know a family of Lebanese background, a devout Islamic family, who refuse
to live anywhere near the ‘Lebanese community’ because they see themselves as
more than just a stereotype.

And it is your use of stereotypes that contributes to friction more than anything else.

And before you go on about Islamic gangs maybe you should look back upon
the crimes carried out by a group in Sydney, that included rapes, home
invasions and murders just after the Skaf and the K Brothers situation:

For more information:

http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Dead-end-street/2004/11/29/1101577416862.html?from=storylhs

and you will see what I mean, these crimes did not involve
anyone from the ME, and Asians as well as Europeans
as victims.

Philo wrote "Where we are born is your nationality, who we identify with in beliefs, practices and an attitude is our culture".

When I was born (in this country) I was not considered a citizen and prior to 1967 referendum me and mine were never asked if we wanted to be citizens. I was however considered a ward of the state.

Who I identify with in beliefs, practices and attitude is indeed my culture*s.

I don't consider myself to be Australian or culturally Australian.

Rainier,
You say you were born in this country but you are not a citizen. All indigenous people and legally settled residents are part of the nation of Australia. Since you claim are not Australian, then you must be an alien or an illegal resident, or you prefer to not to consider yourself a legal person on this land. You seem to have a chip on your shoulder about Australian national identity. Being Australian is being a person of that land in this culturally diverse nation. Australia is not a culture it is a land mass governed by a Federal Government. The dominant culture of Australia is Anglo-European, but that does not make them non-Australian. You may not identify with Anglo-European culture, but if you were born here and have not taken out citizenship of another country - your nationality is Australian. Grow up!

Quote, "When I was born (in this country) I was not considered a citizen and prior to 1967 referendum me and mine were never asked if we wanted to be citizens... Who I identify with in beliefs, practices and attitude is indeed my culture*s. I don't consider myself to be Australian or culturally Australian.

To Mr Hamlet.

I knew that you were going to be easy meat the moment you barged into this debate, and in a tone of self righteous indignation, based your entire argument upon a premise which is demonstrably and provably wrong.

You claimed that rape was not culturally approved of in the Islamic culture, because some mullah said that the penalty for rape is death. It was screamingly obvious that you knew nothing about Islamic law or culture, or you would not have made such an idiotic statement. So it did not take much for me to acquaint you of certain facts about Sharia Law, which you were entirely ignorant of, and bowl you out for a duck.

Your next trick is to try to cover up your appalling ignorance of this topic by adopting the Mahatma Sitting Duck School of debating technique. That is, when cornered, try to change the subject by bringing up barely related issues and throw a bunch of questions at redneck, while dodging the single question that he set for you.

Mr Hamlet, I stereotype you as a typical young trendy lefty who is so sure that the fashionable views of his peer group are beyond reproach, that he does not feel the need to do even a skerrick of homework to figure out whether these views are right or wrong. Look sunshine, you are going to have to do a lot better than that if you want to cross swords with me. Could I suggest that you start doing a bit of research on Sharia Law yourself?

If you bothered to do so, you might figure out how stupid your original statement was. And that might finally turn on your scepticism and critical analysis circuit, which means that you might begin to think straight.

You would then agree that in Islamic culture, men have a virtual license to rape.

When you finally admit that your original assumption was wrong, we can then move on and investigate the implications of this barbarian attitude.

Redneck

The topic of this particular thread is multicultural Australia.
Multicultural Australia does not have Sharia law.

It doesn't matter one hoot about Sharia law in Pakistan and Nigeria
when it comes to discussions in this thread.

If you want to debate Sharia law and use it against Moslems,
start your own thread.

In fact, it is probably a good idea, so we can discuss it specifically at lenghth.

Many people of the Islamic faith have come to Australia to escape
Sharia law. Therefore, these people show the inclusive nature of
Australian law.

You are not debating, you present assertions rather than facts.

You are so much like the Monty Python skit where one character
insists that he is arguing simply by stating the opposite to the
other character.

Have you ever actually sat in on a rape trial? Have you heard the
evidence of either side? Have you ever discussed these hate rape
trials with an Islamic person and heard their disgust at the actions
of those who claim to have the okay from God to rape?

I don't think so.

Well, I have. I know what men do in rape is not about sex, or
religion. Sure it has a sexual content, but it is all about men
trying to appear men in their own minds, by the domination of women.
It is about some men thinking that they can build themselves up by
putting others down. Ethnicity has nothing to do with it.

Have you read, or listened to the accounts, of what so called
Christian men did to Islamic women in the wars in what used to be Yugoslavia? Or the murders commited in those conflicts by 'Christian'
men?

Does the Christan religion condone the rape and murder of Moslems?

Not since the Crusades as far as I am aware.

You peddle racial hatred in the guise of informed debate.

Well you have remained deliberately ill-informed.

Get a life, open your eyes and listen to the truth.

But sorrowfully I must consider that this is beyond you.