By trying to pin down bias, BrainDrain, I think the only thing that can be said for sure is that

1. everyone comes to this forum with their minds already made up;
2. bias, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder;
3. bias is self-reinforcing. The message everyone takes away from the posts of others is the one they want to take away (ie. I'm right & everyone else is fooling themselves; don't they see that?)

That "we need action and leadership on this issue to prevent violent division escalating as it has in other 'multicultural' nations" is clear enough. With the methodic demonising of Islam on this site, and the dehumanisation of hapless "others" by our government, are we getting this in Australia?

Brainy_and_Bennie
I don't actually want to 'un' scramble_the_egg...I want to scamble it so much that it all looks like one basic mixture :) get it yet ?
Bennie.. you should read my piece on 'ONE NATION, ONE CULTURE ONE RACE....FULL STOP' to glean my real meaning here (Its in the private discussion area. I put a link to it above somewhere.)

BIAS...... the thing we have to decide as a nation is who are our 'enemies' (desirous of our ultimate subjection to them) and who are our 'friends'. Then, we adjust our terminology to suit BUT... I tend to dislike such terms as 'terrorist' for enemies and 'defenders of freedom' for our allies. Why not just declare them enemies and thats that. HAMAS are our ENEMIES and ISRAEL is our ALLY.

All Muslim nations are by nature (doctrinally and historically) our 'enemies' ('our' meaning the historic/cultural Australia) but for diplomatic and trade reasons we don't push that barrow too hard. Still, we need to focus on those elements of the Muslim world who are 'standout' enemies and this includes:

a)The clerics who are featured speaking in English in the doco "Obsession: the thread of radical Islam" (Google this) about "We will rule the world"
b)Iran in particular "Israel should be wiped off the map"

c)Palestinians in particular and Muslims in general, for reasons of insistence on the source of our religious heritage (Judao/Christian) i.e. Jerusalem, remain as an Islamic shrine (Dome of the Rock and Al Aksa Mosque) This kind of "enemy" is a latent one, which would only become obvious if Australia overtly supported any move to cleanse the Temple mount of the Mosque and Dome.

Let me be clear on something though, the above points are made in the sense of our current historical/cultural point in time, not as a 'Christian'. The Christian position must be the Biblical one, which allows on the one hand the 'Emperor' to make decisions of State, and on the other, individual Christians must adopt an attitude of compassion (which can only be achieved in Christ) even for enemies.(who are blinded and misguided).

BOAZ_D,

Nice attempt at rationality. 4, maybe 5?, out of ten.

Christians are supposed to follow Christ and prefer death at the hands of their 'enemies' before the death of their enemies under their (or their government agents') hands. 'Thou shalt not kill' and 'Love thy fellowman' do not come with provisos.

So now we can realise there has not been a christian nation at anytime in the last 2000 years (or before) perhaps we can do without the feel-good Judeo/Christian rationale for supplying our Nation and ourselves with ememies?

Not suprprisingly you, as a 'christian', chose to first of all seek an 'ememy' (the Old Testament goodvEvil, usvThem dichotomy - divide and conquer is Satan's technique. Jesus sought the company of 'evildoers' and publicans instead of the 'godly' scribes and Pharisee's remember?) and gave us three handy starting points.

I have to wonder where the Shi'ite muslims who fled Saddam's perscution and were accepted by Australia as legitimate refugees come into that 'equation'. Or the Christian Lebanese refugees of Israeli bombings (not terrorism - justifiable retaliation. Whereas Hamas and Hezbollah have no right to retaliate or stand up to an occupying invader/conquerer?)

Bias is Bias. Truth is Truth. There is precious little truth being spread about the Israeli State in western culture today. Not that there ever has been. The Truth would make us all too uncomfortable.

And there is no real profit in it as there are in lies, corruption, and war.

Any secular reasons for us choosing Iran and Palestinian terrorist organisations bent upon 'our' destruction as enemies of Australia?

Fact to note: 14 million Jews world-wide, 6 live in Israel. 60 million Iranians, 25 million Iraqi's, (??Afghanis) and about 10 million Palestinians, I do not have full figures for but suspect the majority live in their 'own' lands.

Aqvarivs. "Politician should be speaking to Australians." They already are - the immigrants you refer to are Australian citizens.

You say: "Your multiculturalism is an ideal and not in actual practice."

My multiculturalism is both and ideal and an actual practice. I have presented why I think multiculturalism is good above. You disagree. If you don’t think multiculturalism is an actual practice what is your problem? I think we must all have ideals. A multicultural society that really gets into goodwill and respect for the other is a great ideal to aim for.

I could say the same about your ideal which denies the democratic right to cultural difference. A monocultural utopian Australia is impossibility because even, for instance, if we were all W.A.S.P. sooner or later someone would form their own group. The history of Christianity confirms this. A homogenised monoculture is impossible - your position and my position, in part, confirm this too.

You said: " It's like your other god, political correctness. What a joke."

Show me where I have argued that political correctness is a god. That is a childish attempt at belittlement. You are wrong. How many times do I have to prove you wrong before you start to be sensible? It was you who tried to swing the discussion to political correctness rather than actually discuss the issue at hand.

You say: "There is right and there is wrong, (good and evil), there is no politically correct ethic or morality." Well you've been proven wrong but I wouldn't say you are evil.

And again you brought up the term politically correct Aqvarivs which is irrelevant to the discussion. “Your multicultural politically correct teachers have failed you.” Your back peddling on the teacher thing is understandable given the foolishness of such an assumption. Teachers is inclusive of school teachers. You used the term in a way that suggested "politically correct ethic or morality" - not I.

In a monocultural society political correctness would limit the ability to argue against wrong-headed ethics and morality. Remember Luther, Jesus, early feminists, Solzhenitisyn, Thomas More, Socrates and so

ronnie peters
You live in a country governed by a system based on British parliament and Judeo-Christian values, with white leaders, policed by whites, and defended by an army of whites. You throw a passing mention and inclusion at culture and proclaim a multiculture society. Sorry but you have to do more than proclaim multiculture. It needs to be fairly instituted. All of the many ethnic/cultures have to be represented in government, in the police, in the army, in all of the institutions equally and as equals.
When we no longer speak of minorities, or the ethnic vote, when I see equal representation across the board. I'll say Australia is multicultural. I'm certainly not going to say so due to the number of different restaurants or because you can point and say see there goes one. I'm not necessarily against multiculturism or your defence of the idea. I'm saying it isn't being honestly created and that as it is, is
just simple politically correct speech to give the impression of multiculturalism not actual multiculturalism as an Australian institution. We let them come here, to live and work, and open their shops, therefore we're multicultural. NOT. I just saw an advert by Australian Tourism (as an arm of the Australian government) representing Australia as young bikini clad white girls playing on a sandy beach, white middle aged guys playing golf, white lady leading a camel train, all interspersed with Australia's well known landmarks.
Hurrah, we're multicultural

Excuse me Sneekeepete!

This country does not actually have Multiculturalism, which would include "multi-legal-systems" such as Sharia or perhaps the cultural practise of racism that occurs in say Japan towards Koreans.

What we have is simply what we have always had, Multiracialism, which accepts all others but makes them conform to OUR ethical and legal standards. Don't try and pretend that you are somehow above this, the fact that you yourself and all your kind would not budge on human rights and equality for all but purport to be for ALL cultures. The only difference between you and a so-called "right wing" person is that they are open and HONEST about not budging on such aspects of our way of life, you are devious and insulting to the intelligence of any newcomer to this country by pretending to be "all for their ways" when in reality you think that Sharia or the Indian Caste system is barbaric.

So, this is the point: there is and never has been, nor ever will be, Multiculturalism allowed in this country or any Western country because this would go against our obligations to the UN charter of human rights, not to mention our very humanity and the future of our world.