Lego,

Mainly true, but none the less contradictory of your original statement that Australia owed its progress solely to the Protestant/agnostic ethic, and whilst Catholic teachings may have held us back in some fields Anglicanism helped, abortion law springs to mind.

In fact the outlook that probably most shaped Australia was Anglican, and Anglicanism was notable for its persecution of Protestants.

It is a little known fact that the Catholic Church in Australia owes its official existence to Anglicans even to the point of Governor Macquarrie laying the foundation stone of the first St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney.

In the field of education, particularly for the poorer classes Catholics, particularly Irish ones were pre-emminent, my distant relative Mary MacKillop springs to mind.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_MacKillop

The fields of charitable work and politics in this country have also benefited from Catholic involvment

I have no idea how else you could describe someone who feasts on the host organism other than a 'parasite'. The Senator in question could resign today and retire on 79K pa for the rest of her life, with undoubtably a lot of other hidden benefits. Like a lot of other Australians, I don't see politicians as ever having a real job, so I did not mean to use the word parasite as a metaphor at all. If something walks like a parasite, talks like a parasite, and acts like a parasite, then they probably bloody are a parasite!



I work in the mining industry, and I work very long hours for not really a lot of money. If I don't 'produce', then I don't have a job, a simple but effective concept really, but one that I think would be lost on any Australian politician. I, and many others in this industry are constantly bombarded with utter rubbish from mining executives and politicians that there exists a 'skills shortage' that can only be rectified by importing huge amounts of labour on 457 visas. Believe me, there is NO skills shortage - how can there be when so many mismanaged mines are closing down? There is a 'common sense shortage' in the ivory towers of academia, body politic and big business.

I do not see how you can brand me a 'bigot' either, simply because I don't agree with the prevailing ideologies of 'multiculturalism' and 'diversity' that have been foisted on the Australian People from above, and have very little grass roots support outside of academia. Multiculturalism is simply the covert asianiation of Australia, and all the verbal posturing in the world will not hide that. I suggest you look at the immigration figures themselves and exercise your mind by examining reality rather than exercising it by jumping to conclusions.



Simon P

Above is a response to the Editor who removed my comment for 'abuse'.