As I said, they cannot live completely traditional lives because white people have taken over the country. The country is not as it was, even the parts they can live on. Also, the assimilation policies, including the removal of children, has to a large extent done exactly what it was intended to do. Many Aboriginals are trying to learn about thier own cultures and often the only people who can teach them are old and dying, not as old as white folks die of course! A bilingual education is the norm in many countries. Malaysian schoolchildren, for example, usually learn 2 or 3 languages.
Aboriginal people are stuck between 2 cultures; white man has stuffed up thier traditional life and still complains that they arent white (metaphorically speaking) enough. The degree of widespread racism in this country is a national shame.
It seems most white people assume that Aboriginals get more from Centrelink, they dont. If you dont believe me just call them and ask.
Why is it that white people who make either insensitive or nasty comments about Aboriginals get so fiercely defensive about it? Why are they so concerned about the money "wasted" on this continents Indigenous people when they only make up 2.5% of the population and actually most of the adults are working, and they always have. "sedentary", "sitting under a tree"...how many Aboriginals do these commentators know?
40,000yrs is a long time. Before the Second Fleet had arrived the Governor had already decreed that no more trees were to be cut down within a certain distance of the river, because it was turning salty. In the 1930's the government paid farmers to clearfell thier land. We now have widespread salt problems in WA. White Western culture basically rules the world (despite the fact that we are outnumbered) and now the future looks very bleak unless someone comes up with something soon!!
Knowledge is great but unless you put it into context, and consider it all with a little humanity and less of that colonialist arrogance, you wont come up with anything new to this culture!

As I indicated previously, Aboriginals have a choice to live their own lives within the larger community or benefit to the ways others live as a society and then in return accept those standards even so still maintaining their own cultures and traditions for so far it doesn’t clash with society rules. That is precisely what the Framers of the Constitution intended!
Aboriginals pursued the 1967 referendum to amend s51(xxvi) and now you are complaining about racism? Come on, what do you think s51(xxvi) was for? It was to ensure racism against inferior coloured races. As a CONSTITUTIONALIST this I am well aware of even so personally I resent racism. So don’t come with the clap-trap about the white people forcing it upon Aboriginals and I recall, the Human Rights medal was even awarded to the woman who led this change to allow racism in regard of Aboriginals, some 40 years plus ago!
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The Framers of the Constitution provided that Aboriginals were equally to other Australians but Aboriginals themselves pushed for amending s51(xxvi) to allow racial discrimination against Aboriginals and the United nation were supporting this. So stop blaming the white-people for whatever and accept the consequences of something that was desired by the Aboriginals.
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One of my daughters is aunty of 5 Aboriginal children and as I have stated in the past I used to be friends with a group of Aboriginals. Their leader very much respected my views knowing very well I am not against Aboriginals, but generally this might be claimed by Aboriginals who lack to understand reality.
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There are always people who will blame whomever for their own misfortunes but it is well overdue that Aboriginals accept that they are not without blame and significantly contributed to many problems. As long as you are not willing to accept reality then you will never accept the rules of society n0or able to benefit of them.

Aboriginal culture is being seriously undervalued, again.
We should be grateful to these people for retaining as much of thier culture as they can. Furthermore we ought to assist them in doing so for our own benefit as well as thiers and for reconciliation.

It is incresingly becoming clear that "the application of Aboriginal knowledge, the result of millenia of experience, is essential to improve ecological management and inform environmental understanding...management responsibilities of traditional custodians need to be respected..." (Mark Horstman and Glenn Wightman, Ecological Management and Restoration Vol.2 No.2 August 2001, "Kaparti ecology: Recognition of Aboriginal Knowledge and its application to management in north-Western Australia).
Sadly, this knowledge is endangered though there are many attempts at revival. It is neccessary to record the old people and assist them to access thier land and take thier young people with them in order to pass on thier knowledge, survey and maintain the land as they have for so long. The Aboriginal people cared deeply and effectively for the land and lived sustainably on it, for example "Nyungar land management practices helped to ensure that sufficient resources would be available to them the following year" (Peter Bindon and Trevor Walley, Dept.of Conservation and Land Management, Landscope Spring 1992, "Hunters and Gatherers").

Many of our Indigenous people have lost touch with thier culture, this was forced on them as deliberate policy, let that policy be forever put to rest.

As I have no personal family history in regard of what was done against Aboriginals over the centuries I have neither any guilt in that regard. As such I do not need to try to write to excuse past inappropriate conduct that might otherwise stain my family. I view many Aboriginals are loud mouths and over the hill with their claims where as many Aboriginals that seek to advance themselves are nowhere heard like that. As one Aboriginal Elder gave me the understanding that he resented those big mouth Aboriginals glorifying themselves to pretend to fight the cause of Aboriginals. There are ample Aboriginals who have absolutely nothing to do with the noises of a few Aboriginals. Many Aboriginals have become well respected being it as doctors, lawyers, engineers, etc, they have not submitted themselves so to say to the white man but rather took the opportunity provided to them to enhance their lives where it suited them. They still have their Aboriginal customs and traditions and are respected for this. It is nonsense to claim that Aboriginals somehow all are the poor, drunken “siting under the tree” Aboriginals and neither does it reflect what Aboriginals really are about. While you claim funding is in regard of some of the 2.5% of Aboriginals of the total population the point is that any funding misused for whomever should not be excused. In my view a great deception is to try to use the Aboriginal culture and tradition as some excuse, like some Middle Eastern seek to do also in their regard. In my view it should make not one iota of difference if a person is of Aboriginal heritage or not, as we should all have equal rights. That is the way of thinking that should prevail and not about the white people taking away Aboriginal land, etc, because you will never resolve that issue. The Federation was put in place on governing British law and the High Court of Australia by this had no legal jurisdiction to go beyond it as it did in MABO.
See part 2

Continued from part 1
Forget about white people, black people, purple people or whatever, you will never learn if you continue about the colour of skin. Like it or not we are all one people and having a mentality to pretend otherwise is one of the major causes that divide so many.
You can argue about sorry day and any other nonsense day but it isn’t going to get you anywhere because I have nothing to be sorry about.
As I made all along clear the sorry day for Aboriginals was an utter and sheer nonsense as many half cast children belonged not just to Aboriginals but also other races and they didn’t get their sorry day! So, is it all right then to rip children away from Chines, etc, but not of Aboriginals? To me the colour of skin should make no difference. No child should be removed without proper legal excuse.
This 1967 s51(xxvi) referendum was a disaster for Aboriginals but if you cannot comprehend this then it better be for you it never will come to it that you discover how it can be used against Aboriginals!
Constitutionally not a single Aboriginals advanced in his/her constitutional rights with having the 1967 s51(xxvi) referendum succeeded and if you cannot understand this then you have lost the cause ofor Aboriginals, as if you cannot understand this while you are so much on about their rights then what hope will Aboriginals really have?
Because I am so to say neutral I can see the wrongdoing (such as the Northern Territory Intervention) on constitutional grounds. Perhaps if you were to remove the blinkers from your eyes and try to look at the overall picture and follow my line of argument then you may just realise that you can advance the cause of Aboriginals in a far better manner without needing to make attacks upon the while people and others.

Is anyone else listening?