Problem Solve. Jackson the picture is a big one. Yes Indigenous peoples do and most want to take responsiblity, just as mainstream do and want to support the question of "sharing service provisions" Alma Ata (Health for ALL) which has been ignored by all governments, at various degrees on the issue of civic health VS political mentalities.

Jackson, have you ever lived in the heat and dust center of rural Australia? It is so basic... micro hot... most visiting peoples working hide with clean office conditions and their air conditioners switiched HIGH.

Have you ever lived poor with other families in the same house... many in our population cant survive the few days with relatives at xmas let alone having them long-term. This is the similar part of the 'Kids at Risk' arguement (household dysfunctions) in mainstream... used as a reason to address (who influences who... independence, affordablity) and adequate youth housing.

The school issue is hugh. Transport, Bullying, Social Cohesion, Cultural Appropriateness.... Staffing... Content... Teaching APPROACHs... as well as the background causal elements to crime - through crime prevention... which leads us back to the begining again.

See Dr Weatherburn, Helping Families And Communities - I have an intro on;

http://www.miacat.com/CrimeReductionReseach/FtVIEW_CPTheory.asp

The nature of Poverty is something we can not argue about.

I say Jackson get on board and help... go to a rural isolated community and offer to work alongside those who struggle with time, money and resources as well as their health. 'Share the Burden' Jackson and report how it felt.

This issue is about comfort zones and using our imagination as we try to understand. I know people who find it difficult to see, but I tell you, if it was that easy, there would not be the levels of deprivation we ALL witness... still, in these communities, today!

We ALL need to get real!

http://www.miacat.com
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Miacat
Of course it is a big picture. Certainly we all need to help Indigenous people but they need to help themselves too. I realise Indigenous people living in remote communities are disadvantaged, but the Indigenous people living in urban areas are not living remote and have access to the same services as white people. On welfare pay day there are dozens drunk, urinating, spitting,swearing and fighting outside the supermarkets, with kids in tow.
It would be nice if the kids were at school, kept clean and not have to be exposed to this behaviour.
I have lived in the Northern Territory most of my life, and yes I have experienced the hot dusty centre of Australia (without airconditioning).

Dr John. Another expert who overlooks the obvious.

Has solutions, reasons, theories but can't see the bleeding obvious.

What jobs? Where? These communities are usually 100 - 300 people, one shop/store, a petrol seller and that's it. He's always white by the way. No hospital, schools that have mainly empty class rooms and all teachers are generally white. Not indigenous as they aren't educated. Get it yet? Most jobs are already taken by whites.

Those teachers by the way are those that usually couldn't get a teacher's job anywhere else. Some exceptions but how would I know this?

That rejects get these teacher's jobs and are all white? I worked in Education in Darwin for years and saw it. The list of applicants was taken from the bottom up for remote jobs except for those few who actually wanted to help. But I also know most of them left real quick when reality struck them.

So. Again. Dr? What jobs? Where? Are you going to build these places up? Where is the rehab clinic for the drunks and petrol addicts?

There aren't any and won't be.

If these people keep living in these places there is only one possible outcome. The exact same as there is now.

Except for one thing. In 6 months time they will be shell shocked by the invasion of people who don't give a steming pile of waste what the locals need, think or want.

My solutions? Burn these places to the ground and move the people to where they have a chance. If they then choose to return to a desert then it's their choice. They have that choice don't they? Stay or leave?

We have big rural towns that are dying because government's remove essential services. So do banks. Roads bypass them And the town dies. So why would we put all this money into trying to create something no one wants and is not feasible on any level.

It's an election stunt. Disgusting and nasty, rodent droppings. And Rudd smiles and says yes.

pegasus,

I don't think Professor Tomlinson would disagree with you at all about the lack of jobs.

However I don't think your solutions are realistically thought through.

You suggested;

• "Burn these places to the ground and move the people to where they have a chance"

There are many suburbs with as low unemployment as these communities.
Should we burn these down too?

• AND- If they then choose to return to a desert then it's their choice.

Many of these communities are not in the ‘desert’. get your Australian atlas/ map out and have a look. You might want to look at those communities that reside next to mines with high employment of white people..(for example).

• AND - They have that choice don't they? Stay or leave?

For many these are their homelands.
Perhaps all Anglo Australians should return to England if they don't have a job or house? Is this what you are saying? Put them is chains and ship them off to the motherland?

There's an interesting article by Peter Botsman
http://www.workingpapers.com.au/publishedpapers/2505.html

>>Title: Putting Indigenous Child Abuse in the Northern Territory into Perspective.

There were 319 substantiated instances of Indigenous child abuse in the Northern Territory in 2004/5. This compared to Qld 1,186, NSW 1,642 and Victoria 770. Perhaps the Commonwealth and other states should be sending an army of bureaucrats to study why the Northern Territory has a comparatively good record for looking after Indigenous children. But let us not doubt the motives of John Howard and Mal Brough in seizing control of NT Indigenous communities! Download the key statistics below.

Perhaps John Howard and Mal Brough should send in the troops to Victoria, the ACT, Queensland, South Australia and New South Wales. Victoria has the highest number of Indigenous child abuse substantiations per 1000 children (63), followed by the ACT (56), then South Australia (43.2), then NSW (27.1). Qld has the highest number of child abuse substantiations in number (17,307) and has a rate of 14.1 per 1000 children.

In 2004/2005 there were a total of 473 child abuse substantiations in the Northern Territory – the second lowest of all of the States and Territories. Of these 319 were cases of substantiated child abuse in Indigenous communities. NT’s relatively low rate of child abuse substantiations of 13.7 Indigenous child abuse substantiations per 1000 children. Only Western Australia (12.2) and Tasmania (5.8) had lower rates of child abuse substantiations per 1000 children.

The worrying trend however is that in all States and Territories Indigenous child abuse substantiations have increased and in a number of States and the Northern Territory the rate per 1000 children has doubled over the past five years.<<

......but then NSW and Victoria don't have huge reserves of Uranium and the Northern Territory does.

The author effectively, in his rather one-sided and simplistic piece, blames Howard for everything that's wrong in Aboriginal affairs. While I tend to suspect that the intervention is a distraction and an election stunt (however serious he may be about it now), how can the plight of Aboriginal people be his fault? If Aboriginals are happy to live in substandard conditions in the red dirt, then where exactly is the motivation to improve their lot going to come from? No one can make somebody do what they don't want to do.

Just look at history. If Howard were to take Aboriginal people out of their communities, and put them in boarding schools etc, he'll be charged with paternalism. If he builds houses for them which then get trashed, he'll be condemned by whites for throwing taxpayers' money away and if he tries to coerce Aboriginals to improve their lot in line with Western standards (the only thing that can realistically work at this point in time), he'll be charged with trying to destroy Aboriginal culture.

So, there's not much he can do that will have any real effect. The fact is that most Aboriginals are guilty of the situation they find themselves in now. It's not up to Howard or anyone else to go out of their way too much to help them. From now on, if Aboriginals want help, they have to help themselves whenever the opportunity presents itself. I know it sounds harsh, but it's the only way it can be.