The key issue here seems to be more about the general insecurity of white Australians in proclaiming their identity, rather than what other culture immigrants also identify with.

And that’s a true shame.

It should make no difference to you that someone else feels a certain attachment to an ancestral home. I'm 4th generation Australian, yet I still get a bit of a thrill adding up the various races that contributed to my gene pool- Scottish, Irish and German mainly (probably explains a lot!). I'm sure that Spider, Mickijo and DB also know where they came from. And that knowledge shapes a large part of their identity.

Why should we deny this to others?

I’ve lived overseas for a few years. For me, the sad part is that most of the people I meet over here seem to have a better grasp of what it means to be Australian than many of the posters on this thread.

I LIKE saying I’m Australian. People look at you with the awe reserved for the little scrapper who punches above his weight. From the outside they see a lovely continent full of proud people, forceful in pursuing their own path in the world. They see honest, friendly people who are the first to take you by the arm, settle you down in front of the barbie with a coldie. More importantly, they see a country that knows right from wrong and is willing to stand up for it.

We’ve been on the front line of political change and reform. Along with Canada and NZ, we are viewed as a beacon of light in a world that too often let individual interests override the common good.

Those are the Australian values! We should take pride in them!

They’re also the reason most immigrants climb over the still warm corpses of their mothers to come here. They don’t want to change them- why would they? Multiculturalism just allows them to hang on to a piece of what they were. Just as we do.

I've always considered myself an Irish-Australian even though I have Scottish and English ancestors, and probably raiding Vikings, Breton fishermen, French adventurers and possibly Algerian Corsairs; these latter had a habit of raiding the south west of Ireland and murdering the men and raping the women.
Why Irish Australian? because back in the 1940s, when I was but a wee bairn, we were known as 'bloody micks' and never allowed to forget our origins.It sort of stuck.

These days I spend some of my time in India where I am invariably mistaken for a Muslim, until I speak; my Urdu has a slight accent it appears.

As the Celts are thought to have come from somewhere to the north of the subcontinent there may be some reason for their assumption.
Brothers under the skin? Certainly if one takes a black and white negative of a group of western suited Indian businessmen and a similar one of Europeans there no way to tell which is which until they are printed.

mickijo makes an important point in that multiculturalism places all the emphasis on ethnicity rather than shared national identity, thereby creating an alienating situation where old-stock Australians are not permitted by the countries of their colonial forefathers to consider themselves English, Irish, German, etc., while newer arrivals from vastly different cultural backgrounds can claim multiple identities. Mr. Lo is obviously a product of this multiculturalist obsession with allegiance to original culture and ethnicity over Australian nationality. Australia is no longer a nation united by a common culture, merely a co-habiting space for unconnected tribes.

Mylakhrion: That was beautifully said. Go and travel overseas a bit and you will lose the 'we're losing Aussie culture' thing. We are indeed a great example of a successful multicultural nation.

I have tried, as an Australian who came from elsewhere and adopted this Nation as my country to point out that pride of where we came from is OK. It could translate into: where I came from was fantastic, there are many things I sometimes miss, but Australia is even better, that is why this is now my Nation. Anyone who doesn't want to adopt Australia as their Nation, because it isn't quite good enough (back home is still better) does not need to. They can remain a permanent resident, like so very many British and NZ citizens do.

We are a multicultural nation. If we want to talk about why is it that there are citizens who feel marginalized and not inclusive that's another thing. The issue of no matter how long you've lived here and people still ask you: what nationality are you? Or talk about Aussies vs Lebs could have something to do with that.

For me, since multiculturalism became a policy, it has become easier. It is more likely that now I'm asked: what other language do you speak? My Australian nationality is now generally assumed. You have no idea how such a little thing can make a big difference.This is just one example.

Unless you've travelled, you've no idea how bland and boring another country becomes. No matter how exotic initially. It's always good to come home to the vibrant culture of Australia.

Is Mise and Yvonne

How refreshing your posts are after all the misery and blinkered vision of the woebegotten and the conspiracy theorists.

I can go to bed now thinking someone understands how to get the best out of life in Australia, a wonderful country.

Thanks.

Frank.... you can do that anytime.. but remember this is after all a place where we struggle with each other about ideas.. did you in fact read my position post re 'ONE...etc' ?

I note you neglected to respond to my question this time ?

Yvonne and Is Mise are saying good things, no question about that, but while I do share their perspective by and large, there is an element of sentimentality in their expressions which could limit their appreciation of the cutting edge cultural dynamics being driven by certain interests.

My bigger concern is the 'vast conspiracy' :) or.. more realistically, the cultural dynamics which inevitably go on beneath the observable surface, and which, if not taken into full consideration, well mean one day we wake up wondering where we are and who we are.

Bear in mind, I've lived and worked in multi-tribal/national cultural settings, and have seen a lot of these things in 'hyper' view.. as in, from the inside.. and this with a reasonable background in Anthropology studies. The dynamics of which I'm aware were highlighted as I experienced them daily more magnified than we experience them here. So, I don't expect everyone to share my own colorful perspective, the best I hope for is that what I say will produce some reflection on the sentimental approach and bring a word of well founded caution into it.