I am not an "indigenous" person so therefore just a another "foreign" invader! I am certainly not the "Australian" or Howardite drone!
I liked my grandparents and their attitudes, I liked listening to them talk, the depression and the community they had.

Living in Redfern and watching the Rabbitohs training at Redfern oval, going to the "Greek" fish shop and Italian "dellie" as a kid.

Knowing I had relatives I would never see, because they died in WW11.
Having been brought up to believe in a "fair go" and your right to a "fair days pay for a fair days work" these things fought for and won through difficulty and sacrifice, oh yeah, that's is the Australian I love, and one that I have tried to be, fair dinkum!

Hi porpie I know how you feel mate, I lost a grandfather in wwi, uncle in ww2 brother in Vietnam and was severly wounded on active service in the army. With the exception of myself, all the others served and died without the rights we take for granted as citezans, and it makes me sick to the stomach that our sacrifice has not been mentioned in history or in this test.

Radical suggestion - we make all residents sit the test.
That being unlikely to happen I suggest that Lyn Allison and those who agree with her read "Cultural Literacy" (the author's name escapes me for the moment) in which an argument is made for the need to have a certain body of knowledge in order to sufficiently understand the community in which you reside. Without that knowledge you cannot participate fully in it.

As I stated previously that as a "CONSTITUTIONALIST" I am aware that the Commonwealth of Australia is in principle racist, and so the States, as it is approved for this in Subsection 51(xxvi) of the Constitution. Personally I oppose racism but have to concede that constitutionally it is permissible. Getting rid of Subsection 51(xxvi) might then be the better way to go!

While Kevin Andrews introduced the “(Australian) citizenship test” it is a sheer and utter nonsense, as learning who was a cricketer has got nothing to do with current cultural/moral conduct and legal postion of Australians.

While the test seems to make out that Edmund Barton was the first Prime Minister, the truth is that Lyne was the first one commissioned on 18 December 1900 and when he handed his commission back then Edmund Barton was given the commission on 24 December 1900, as the second (not first) person to be Prime Minister!

The “citizenship test” neither does expose constitutional reality that “citizenship” is constitutionally a State legislative power dealing with political status (including franchise) and nothing to do with nationality, as we are and remain "subjects of the British Crown”. Just that politicians pretent otherwise!

If we expect others to learn about Australians and heritage would it then not better that we teach our politicians some constitutional facts?

My book, published in July 2006, “INSPECTOR-RIKATI® & What is -Australian way of life- really” makes it very clear that it means that every person of whatever religion, colour of skin, nationality, etc, can live his/her life in whatever way he/she desires, including customs and traditions provided it is within the provisions Australian laws!

See people as equal and we all are better off!

Yindin:
Good on you mate!...It is time that somebody spoke out about the real issues here in Australia in this day and age!
We need to disregard all this rubbish about Immigration Tests and tackle one of our REAL problems. We already have too high a population commensurate with our nationwide infrastructure. It is time to close the door, at least in the short term, until we can sort out our own problems and improve our infrastructure accordingly!

The general public is currently being bombarded with news-media photos showing the "disgusting" conditions within the confines of some of the MANY Aboriginal Communities and Town Camps that are scattered across the country. I notice that the public never see or hear of the "model" Communities,....probably because that would be counterproductive to the current political push to excise the people from their land! It denies the fact that there are dark people out there who do have pride and respect for their country and their environment!

The public should be made aware that the greatest majority of Aborigines "existing" in Town Camps were rounded up out of the desert areas ( where they were living quite happily pursuing their cultural ways and hurting nobody!), shipped to conveniently located Town Camps and expected to live in harmony with members of many and varied skin clan members,....all this under the guise of assimilitating the Aborogine into our white society,....a society who`s members generally turn away or cross the street at the sight of an approaching Aborigine,....and we have the audacity to pretend that we are NOT REALLY racist!!

Our country has to come to grips with this particular problem. We cannot simply ignore the Aboriginal population and hope that they will either die out or breed themselves out of existence.Regardless of what the "white supremists" in our society may say, the Aborigines were here long before us and they deserve GENUINE help and must be provided with the guidance and humanitarian assistance neccesary to elevate them from the mire in which a large majority are currently existing as geographical vitims of history!