Oh Bushbred you legend.... well said

The Brits introduce an illegal law (based on total falsehoods) terra nullius and steal the great South Land.... Yep Thou shalt not steal! Thou shalt not covert they neighbours property! We sure are a Christian country!

We virtually wipe them out with the common cold, the gun, starvation and all manner of ugliness ... Yep OOzing Christianity there! "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"

In Queensland we even steal their wages.... Yep Thou shalt not steal again!

And what? we can't say sorry to them or give them a fair go... OOps I thought "a fair go" was an Australian value!

We introduce "fire water" to them "beer and other grog" again to destroy their culture and we still can't say sorry!

Every Aussie should be so proud of every indigenous Australian.

Here they were nestled in their own little part of paradise (I wonder if they thought they were in the lucky country)... still never having needed to be anything more than stone age man, living at one with the land, and we expect them to come up to our ways in just over 200 years?

Captain Cook's first order when landing at Botany Bay was to shoot an aborigine... "Thou shalt not kill"

If it is so easy to just change... why don't some of you non-racist? aborigine criticisers go bush by yourself without guns. tents etc. and survive in the outback... You expect rpid change from the aborigine... lets see you do it in reverse. Oh the outback is a long walk... don't die on the way!

On behalf of ALL Australians (yes even the non-apologetic ones) I apologise profusely for what we have done to our aboriginal brothers.

May the Lord have mercy on our souls and especially John Howards soul. If the way you think doesn't get you to think about your Christianity then you probably aint a Christian!

The arguments as to whose side of history is correct does little to rectify the current appalling state of aboriginal affairs. I suspect strongly that their is a little truth and lies on all sides. To pretend that all tribes were living here in some sort of harmony before white man arrived is one of those lies. I have sat with many elderly aborigines who contradict this 'harmony' theory. Noel Pearson appears to be one of the finest leaders that we have in this country. May be we should listen to him instead of using this issue to again demonstrate our hate and anger at Mr Howard. If an apology is going to stop one child being abused or one suicide I would be the first to apologise. Even the Howard haters know that this would not be the case.

Oh runner there you go weaving your own little brand of Christianity... runneranity ...lmao

What would Jesus do? runner

So you won't say sorry because of what that it won't save a child from being abused... Are you for real?

Turn a blind eye to the other 200 years of pain runner... good for you... Do you have any Christian values?

Of course it wasn't harmonious runner... it was like all over the world... the aboriginal tribes had conflicts.... but lets not confuse that with the biggest threat to their existence that came... The Brits!

Come on runner let me see you "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"... Just say sorry... be brave it won't hurt! I say it is UnChristian not to... Are you really a Christian?... Your day of judgement is here... Be careful your maker is watching!

Oh by the way I don't hate John Howard I just think he lies and is unChristian also...lmao

In my OPEN LETTER to Mr Howard concerning governance or what's wrong with "development", I talk about a lack of "glue".

This "glue" is the quality of engagement, the cultural human understanding that is missing from the government system in general. It is the thing most disturbing because even when they spend the MILLIONS, it gets lost by the lack of understanding in inter-relationships, thus the WASTE.

I don't just blame HOWARD. I blame all who work in adminsistrive governemnt services and who fail to transfer the potential benefits, by NOT engaging and building on local and regional capacity to a) empower, or b) stand up against what is wrong (in the workplace).

Silo cultures, closed systems - status struggles, bystanders and a disgraceful practice of inaction on "good inclusive policy" is RANK throughout Australia's services. It is distorying the best part of our combined intelligence in Australia.

Bottle-necked with regional and local individual comfort zones, a lack of imagination and collaberation has resulted in a breakdown that is shrinking ground level communities. Those rural and isolated are left in crisis.

On miacat.com, I have a number of sugestive papers. One about CANDOO (NGO) where CANDOO stuggles and wants the intervention of a trustwothy GOVERNMENT CHAMPION. (DARE TO CARE)

By example it is a true story and possibly a final straw for Howard. I named Cooktown as Australia's first Administration and asked 'DO WE HAVE A PROBLEM'? (Local Council Reform campaign)

http://www.miacat.com/Media_Pan_One/REGIONAL_Pacific_News/Local_Cape_York/New_campaign/Do_We_Ck_Letter_Open.asp

YES it is a typical LOCAL RANT. I use my role and experience with CANDOO (NGO) to demonstrate the debilitating - lack of glue ... expressing the wider nullifying issue over seven years of persistence.

We have 28% unemployement here in Cooktown/Cape York and the Candoo story gives some background on how all the innovation - skill and social capitial in the world is reduced to disorganisation when those in the system fail to connect.

This I say is the impact of silo.

It is a depleting humanity.

http://www.miacat.com
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Opinionated,

You obviously aren’t aware of the Noble savage myth as your recent post is full of similar romantic nonsense about the Aborigines.

“Every Aussie should be so proud of every indigenous Australian” Are you joking?
Mate we should be proud of people who have done something worth being proud of, whatever their colour. Championing EVERY Aborigine because of their race is just reverse racism. Aboriginal people don’t need your feelgood stupidity, they need real policies which will allow them the same access to the things most white Australians take for granted, like equality, education, health care, employment and home ownership.

Noel Pearson is one of the finest leaders Aboriginal Australians have ever had. He's had the courage to say the unpalatable things which needed to be said. Alcohol, unemployment and passive welfare are destroying aboriginal communities. They are the fruits of 20 years of failed leftist policy in Aboriginal affairs. Radical change was required and hopefully we will see results but the problems are long term and are not going to be solved overnight.

Communities where there is no employment cannot continue to exist. Its not whether we can afford to maintain aborigines in their pre settlement way of life, it’s whether Aboriginal communities themselves can survive if they continue to live in this way. It seems you find it hard to tell the difference between a critique of Aboriginal policy and straight out criticism of aborigines

Whilst I am no fan of Howard, the ‘Little Children are sacred’ report uncovered shocking and long ignored abuse of Aboriginal children. Something had to be done and the NT gov’t had presided over the appalling state of affairs without doing anything for far too long. Yet all the left can bleat about is the symbolism of who’s in charge. The federal gov’t has a responsibility to all Australian children, black white or brindle. Stepping on a few bureaucrats toes is hardly too high a price to pay for children’s safety.

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Bushbred,

You really don’t care for democracy do you? Permanent non elected representation? Who decides who gets the job? You?

Its not clear if megan davis or susan prior who edited article coined phrase 'the symbolism isn't bad, but the hypocrisy and cruelty are'...but it must cause an offence to all reasoning Austalians in that that is the very problem we deal with everyday and face a unscaleable wall to see the reality of any relevant issue in its full context...

Yep...usual blame of 'howard and law'...lack of address to conduct/standard/accountability to 'government' that implements laws in the region aka crown...and 'experts' on issue most the closest they have came to daily reality of 'issue' is reading about it while sipping tea in comfy chair while scratching itch on the large belly...

Who actually knows what effect the intervention resulted in so far on the ground...I dont and been searching for this information...surely any responsible media would have witnessed the before/now reality and provided a unbiased factual reporting by now, including all relevant issues that go to cause the problem/solution, for if the aboriginal children_and I mean children...and not women or men or aunties...are little safer now as a result of intervention...then we all should be supporting the initiative fully...

and megan...your article does not come anywhere close to supporting the tile, on assumption that you indeed did start article with that title...and by your lack of knowledge of reality of 'on the ground in aboriginal life' and which you should know before putting pen to paper...and critical view...firstly makes you a 'destructive' element and worse...detrimentally affecting all the 'constructive'/good individual people on or near the problem areas struggling to bring about a balanced and sustainable solution to produce happy and healthy aboriginal children...

I would like to say 'shame on you'...but its not morality that drives you...and writting article...is it now...

Sam
Ps~megan how about packing your swag and spending week out there with them...certainly eye-opener to harsh reality they live in...and deeper understanding of some of the misery they feel and live with every day comes from...i have...they dont have their 'stable working culture' anymore...and banning alcohol goes long way to bringing this back to them...