"So the future of our children and the planet is a concern outside the scope of this election for the old parties ?"

The future of our children -- and the planet -- is best served by making sure they live in a nation with a functioning economy, where their parents and grandparents can accumulate enough wealth to give them a decent education and a good start in life. Attempting to impoverish one generation is never a good way to enrich the next one. Even if 'anthropogenic global warming' were real -- and it isn't -- children's welfare is still a damn sight more secure in the hands of their parents than in those of the government.

An interesting article in today's Fairfax News can be found here:
http://www.theage.com.au/environment/climate-change/revealed-80cm-sea-rise-warning-20130819-2s7dt.html
I like the quip about deep fried eggplant. Reminds me of a Senator who recently claimed that he had run over better rabbits than some fellow members in his chamber.
How much of our reaction to undocumented refugees stems from our now nation wide Islamophobia? We seem to have some insecure cannons rolling around on our ship of state. On-shore processing with an understandable insistence on showing a valid ID to facilitate security checks and a health check - after that, what's the big problem?
Refugees have been shown to boost the nation, and these new undocumented arrivals would too. Demonizing them becomes a self-fulfilling exercise, not unlike an own goal. Pretty stupid, when you really think about it.

The author raises the moral issue surrounding Australia' treatment of refugees. But there is a much more fundamental moral issue that is not being raised. It concerns the reasons why there are so many refugees in the world, including those trying to enter Australia to stay.
The fact is that the present world order, comprised of so called sovereign nation states, each claiming the right to do whatever it likes behind national borders, often in flagrant breach of fundamental universal human rights, is the real cause of the refugee crisis. Trying to deal with the end result of the chaos and abuses of a divided world, resulting in the dislocation of masses of people from their homes, is just too little too late and constitutes an avoidance of the real moral issues. We need a world order that prevents the mass flow of refugees in the first place. We need a peaceful world order that respects all people's human rights and which has the mechanisms to achieve this.

Utopian? I don't think so. It requires urgent action at the global level to achieve a more unified global institutional architecture, combined with an acknowledgment that the sovereign nation state has had its day and that we need a new, much more unified global order in which states are merely the component parts. This is now a global imperative. The world is increasingly one global village inhabited by one human race. The time is right to bring the present world order into line with the emerging realities of the modern age, otherwise we are all going to suffer the consequences.

Lyn would do well to visit the refugee camps where people have been waiting for years to come here legally. Their are billions of desperate people out their. Not to be seletive is plain dumb.

There really should be a law that prevents silly little girls going to university, studding make believe disciplines & having their heads filled with all this rubbish about the poor underprivileged/misunderstood/illegals & what have you.

Todays refugee is yesterdays oppressor, who lost the last fight. A tent city, run & paid for by the UN, our money anyway, is OK. The losers can stay there called refugees, until their side win a fight. Then they can go home, to be replaced by their previous oppressors, now called refugees. It is the way the world works, haven't they read any English history?

You only have to look at the goings on in Egypt to see how it works. Muslim brotherhood, anti Muslim brotherhood, the seesaw goes up & down, first one on top, then the other. The only sure thing about it is, no matter what the result, there will be some pretty nasty militant people calling themselves oppressed refugees at the end of it.

The only other surety is people like Lyn will be crying for them, & trying to impose them on us. Yep these Lyns will say we can integrate those people who can't even integrate with their own kind here in an entirely different form of civilisation.

We have to keep these bleeding hearts to be, out of universities, they are mixed up enough as it is. The only safe place for them is in the kitchen barefoot & pregnant. Give them something to occupy their mind & time, & the world will be a better place for everyone.

Dear Hasbeen,

Talking about women and having their heads filled
with "nonsense" as you claim.

Do you know why women in Burma after centuries of following
their men, now walk ahead of them?

I found this question on the web.

The answer was given that:

"There are many unexploded land mines since the war."

Education, does help.

Dear Lexi

First of all, many hugs, as I have not spotted one of your posts for quite some time. I think you will find that women walk in front of men in Middle Eastern countries, rather than Burma, due to large numbers of unexploded land mines. Either way, it is a dreadful and shameful behaviour and nowhere in the Koran does it say 'Women are second class citizens.

The "Anglican Agencies" have a vested interest in refugees coming because they get money from the Government to look after them.

THAT is called a conflict of interests in regard to any statement they make.

To quote you "Meanwhile refugees are being made to suffer [unnecessarily], in our name."

If they are real refugees anything they are given by Australia should be better than what they claim to be escaping from or the tent food and water the UN give them.
NO they are mostly Economic Invaders with a belief they are entitled to get everything for free.

When do you stop the coming after the first 50,000 or the second 50,000 WHEN, we have wasted over $7 billion on only 50,000 since Rudd came in.

WHY did pensioners get such a measly increase, why do we have thousands of homeless Australians but not 1 homeless refugee.

On Nauru 540 mongrels did $60 million dollars damage think of what we could have done with that money.

Has been>> We have to keep these bleeding hearts to be, out of universities, they are mixed up enough as it is. The only safe place for them is in the kitchen barefoot & pregnant. Give them something to occupy their mind & time, & the world will be a better place for everyone.<<

H my daughter is doing her masters. During a debate with me some months ago she said “of course your right dad, that is common sense, but if I took that stance to uni I would be ostracized by the students and faculty……I’m not joking.

Is it not amazing that the seat of learning that promoted the current “social ideology” from its infancy, now pro actively deny anything other than unmitigated consensus to their social vision?

Bloody Nazi's...

Has it ever occurred to the Author that the political parties are implementing the will of the people in their treatment of illegal immigrants? We are about to have a completely free election, where the electors can, if they choose, vote for parties such as the greens that are opposed to the present policy. Of course there are many, mostly on the left, who consider that the people don't know what is good for them, etc. but unfortunately these people don't fill out the ballot papers. That is done by the people. There can be no quibble. Or have I got it wrong, and should all major parties ignore the will of the people and follow the author? (This of course would lead to an enormous resurgence of One Nation, as the only party offering a policy acceptable to the people).

Surely it is time to talk about tin tacks, and detail what the people want.

Firstly, they want the boats stopped.

Secondly, they want taxation reduced, or at worst, not increased.

As for the internationalists, any thought that the nation state will disappear any time soon is a total pipedream, as evidenced in the current strains in the European Union, which seems to be in a terminal phase. Fortunately for Australia such a supra-national union could not be formed without a constitutional referendum, and the chances of that being approved would be zero.

'Either way, it is a dreadful and shameful behaviour '

Hang on cody. Would it be shameful if it was the other way around? Men risking their lives to defend their families a-ok, women walking in front is shameful.

I'll bet if the men were walking in front of the women where land mines abound it would be considered chivalrous!

Great article Lyn.
Please tell me how many of the 40 million refugees world wide should we show compassion. All of them or just the ones that turn up here. If we cannot accomodate them all what should we do with those who we cannot fund or intergrate without turning us into a third world Islamic republic. Or do you have an upper limit to the number we can and should accommodate?

Just wondering what number your opinion as to what that number should be? We could then launch a realistic campaign to get public support for that figure. We would then have some sort of relevance instead of simply divisively criticising anybody who holds a view their number should be a lesser limit.

If you come up with what I opine to ne a relevant figure You can coumt on my support

I personally would support community based sponsorship of refugee families. I'd throw total weight behind a scheme that allowed individuals or community organisations to sponsor people to come here. The scheme would require such families to be funded for one year by the sponsor. It could be over and above the humanitarian intake (whatever that is set at). That would truely allow Australians to show compassion without an impost on the miserable buggars who oppose a limit because of finance.
It would also allow Australians to choose who they wanted here. That would address all concerns.
Don't you agree?

Runner, refugees are hardly ever waiting anywhere in camps anymore, they live in towns and cities in the countries where they have claimed protection.

You see, claiming protection is what they are doing, they are not going to one country, getting protection and then demanding protection in another country because there is simply no legal basis to them doing so.

Our only obligation is to those who present themselves at our border, just as it is in every other country. WE have no obligation at all to those who present at other borders and ask for protection.

WE only let a few thousand so-called refugees migrate here each year as a pretext to living up to our obligations.

After all this time is it really asking too much for you to at least visit the UNHCR site and see what it says about protection v resettlement so you stop your deluded belief that we can be monstrously cruel to those who ask us for help?

Would you jail patients at hospitals because of how they got there?

'There really should be a law that prevents silly little girls going to university, studding make believe disciplines & having their heads filled with all this rubbish about the poor underprivileged/misunderstood/illegals & what have you.'

I cant help but laugh at that hasBeen. It's so sexist but so funny. I'd love to have a beer with you.

I don't think it is possible to be more patronizing than that. I agree these navel-gazing courses full of righteous indignation and indoctrination in many areas is a ridiculous waste of money. Universities need a lot less ideological BS, and formalizing the BS into actual degrees with a career path in wasting tax payer funds is as offensive as sexism.

'Todays refugee is yesterdays oppressor, who lost the last fight. A tent city, run & paid for by the UN, our money anyway, is OK. The losers can stay there called refugees, until their side win a fight. Then they can go home, to be replaced by their previous oppressors, now called refugees. It is the way the world works, haven't they read any English history?'

That's a very interesting perspective and one I've not heard before. I am sure there is an element of truth in that one.

'No limit' Marilyn,
You have no right to lecture people while you refuse yo tell us how many refugees we should fund to stay here. Or for how long we should fund them. When you have answered those question you will have a legitimate right to criticise others who have set limits, with which you disagree. There is nothing very clever about simply ranting with out realism.

Marilyn Shepherd - Quote "refugees are hardly ever waiting anywhere in camps anymore, they live in towns and cities in the countries where they have claimed protection."

Please give me some of what you are smoking, it sure causes gigantic hallucinations.

presently there are over 1.5 million refugees from Syria alone they are not where you claim they are.

I won't bore you with the numbers from Africa and all the other countries.

To quote you further "Would you jail patients at hospitals because of how they got there?"

I would jail them if they hired a taxi and it broke down the RACV wants to give them a lift to a hospital other than the one they want to go to SO they threaten and intimidate the other driver.

As for helping someone who asks for help, after they did $60 million dollars damage I would help them onto the first plane home after a few years in jail.

Quote "WE only let a few thousand so-called refugees migrate here each year" Could that be because the cue jumper numbers are estimated at 25 to 30 thousand.

Please put me onto your supplier he has good stuff.

Dear Houellie,

The point that was being made was about education -
not gender. And education is the only way in the
middle east that may make cultural changes and possibly
improve conditions for
both males and females. Its at
least worth a try.

Dear Cody,

Thanks, and a big hug to you too.

Lexi my sweet, that myth about the women now walking in front of their men, actually comes from the Solomon islands after WW11.

It is a total myth. It is very rare for the 2 sexes to go anywhere together in the islands. She goes to the garden to grow the taro & bananas which supply the majority of their food.

He usually sits on his butt, thinking about climbing a palm for a few nuts, going fishing/hunting depending on the district, or attacking a neighboring village, because that is what they have always done.

When you get out to the atolls & smaller islands it is a bit different, but then there they mostly paddle a canoe, & don't walk much anywhere.

From the news tonight it appears that your [Victorian] recent inquiry has effectively agreed with me. I get the impression it said they want psychologist & other bleeding out of the parole system, & probably out of prisons, in not quite so many words.

You should be safer now.
.

...Thank God Psychologists are in the minority...

Hasbeen, I really wish you would stop calling Lexi your 'sweet', because that is so sexist and patronizing and....old!

She has more wisdom in her left little finger than you have in your whole body.

Whether or not we should accept boat people into our communities is decided by the predominantly male politicians in any case, so why the hell you are banging on about female university students/graduates is beyond me.

If you feel threatened about bright female university people , then why not enrol yourself?
If you feel threatened about female authors to this site, then why not enlighten us all and write an article yourself?

I look forward to reading it...

arh "hasbeen" or neverwas I'm now convinced you are a tween internet troll. It would be hard to believe that there could be an adult that silly.

The author should read the posts sadly many of them are by "voters", all except hasbeen (not old enough) runner (can't hold a pen) and Jon J ( to busy at home curing cancer).

Education, does help.
Lexi,
Of course it does, I think we should re-introduce it in Australia. A fair lump of the money we spend on Teacher Superannuation could be diverted to educate our kids.
Also the lump of funding that goes to the many hare-brained Uni schemes could be diverted to education. I'm totally convinced that once we have education in Australia we'll pick up economically & socially. Instead dumbing intelligent kids down we could educate them.

If Lyn Bender is a psychologist at the Woomera Detention Centre then she is part of the Refugee Industry and she has a vested financial interest in helping that industry grow.

She should refrain from commenting upon this issue as she has a clear conflict of interest. Public servants are like lawyers, the only thing that both professions are good at is making unnecessary work for their own members.

I agree with Hasbeen,
If the author is a product of one of our Unis, we really are in trouble. Forget shonski, we need to remedy this quickly. she has not an ounce of reality or practicality and unfortunatly, Hasbeen, they turn out males of that calibre as well.

I fear for future generations of Aussies.

The content of her article is not worthy of comment.

Lyn, congratulations on your excellent article.

Many people in Australia laugh and cry simultaneously given that they have to choose between two ego-maniacal bottom-feeders.

Saint Kevin is trying to out-muscle Phony Tony. It is not an edifying spectacle. Out of 20+ million Australians, are they really the cream of the crop?

And once the choice is made on voting day, Australians will have to live in fear of what their Government is going to do to them as the secret plans are unrolled. They will wonder how they will survive the promised/hinted-at austerity.

The Lucky Country?

Once!

Don't be so silly Suse, Lexi is a real lady, & she knows I admire her & her opinions, even if I might disagree with some of them.

I can think of a number of things I might like to do with a lady like Lexi, but patronizing her is not one of them. My little display of admiration is quite genuine.

Perhaps I do troll a little, but it is all in a good cause. You see there are a number of folk on here, unlike Lexi, who's self esteem knows no bounds. Unless their bubble of self importance is pricked from time to time, they just might swell so much they explode. I see it as my civic duty to prick their bubble before this happens.

Some of my posts allow them to release that pressure through their ears, just like an old steam engine "letting off steam", [which was actually purging their cylinders of condensed water] which I'm sure is good for them in the long run.

So Suse, unless I detect that Lexi is offended, I shall continue with my little bit of harmless wishful thinking.

Cobber, oh how I wish. All my "neverwasing" has left me with a worn out old body, but silly, no way. That is reserved for the feminists & lefties, who have no idea of what is actually good for them. They continue spouting their foolishness, despite their betters having shown them the truth time & again. But never mind, we will continue trying to lead you back up the garden path to wisdom, regardless of your foolish resistance.

Hasbeen, I'm sorry, I have to chuckle a little at your expense. I must say a few posts of yours on some topics have ruffled the fur a bit but I think I am beginning to see you might be a bit of a stirrer. That said it doesn't mean Im going to blow off any of your comments as just BS.
As a young woman I beleive that men and womens are equals, but common sense tells us both sexes have skills, abilitys, call it what you will, that they are always going to be better at or more likely to acheive. As a country woman I can change tires, service a car etc ect, but that doesnt mean that I can do it as easily as my husband can.

Suseonline, if you would be offended if a male was to make a "sexist" comment in passing to you then you more then have a right to say something, but why is it that so many feminists feel the urge to tell the rest of us females how we should feel? I LIKE my husband calling me "The Cook", holding doors open for me and encourageing me to stay home and look after the kids instead of having a career. (If I wanted a job I know he would support me 100%). If I had $1 for every time a women told me I was "lowering myself" because I call him "Boss" I would be a very rich person.

Oh why am I waiting. Oh why oh why. And here I thought the author might actually address my concerns before I could support her. Does she really assume I will jump to her tune simply because she is 'educated'? I only read and think before I adopt a position. I am capable of that even though I am nearly sixty, male and have not matriculsted. Don't my concerns count?

Why can't you show me some respect and address my questions. Or do you just want me to dismiss you like you are dismissing me.

Hi Bec, I hope you enjoyed your chuckle.

I have enjoyed your posts, since you joined us, & I'm sure we would get on together, even if we did not agree on everything.

Good on you, Bec :)

Joe

I did thank you Hasbeen, and I am sure we would. I have really enjoyed the forum thus far, feeling a lot more educated after been yanked off my high horse a couple of times. :-)

I notice Marilyn Shepherd has done her usual thing comes in on page 3 with a hit and run tactic.

Hits with comments then runs away and does not answer any questions put to her.