Australian democracy has been declining since the onset of the Covid pandemic in 2020, particularly under Andrews in Victoria, with his suspension of Parliament; unilateral control by Andrews; division of citizens; police violence.

Federally, there is a special attack on democracy via the proposal to give an EXTRA 'voice' to one small group of people only. Racial/identity politics at their worst.

What activists and too many politicians want for one certain race/group of people is a SECOND voice to Parliament. The proposal is for TWO voices for a minority.

Australians connected to aboriginality already have a voice to parliament, just like all other Australian citizens of all races.

A NO vote to a change in the Constitution will help to protect representative democracy for everyone and show that we are concerned about the obvious change in our politicians and their growing contempt for democracy, and for us.

Hey ttbn,
I oppose in principle the idea of special treatment for one group of people.
- But I'm not opposed to indigenous people getting a fairer deal in so much as having a say in their own futures.
Anything so that we can put the past and all this divisive animosity behind us.

But if Labor can't give a full detail of their plan, or alternatively an indigenous person doesn't knock on my door explaining exactly why this is a good deal for them that will finally put all the issues to rest once and for all.
(which I'm skeptical of because it may in fact entrench the resentment and divisiveness between the two opposing parties forever).
- Then, even as someone who has a lil bit of indigenous in me, my answer has to be a no.

I'll make up my mind AFTER I see the definition of indigenous that will be used.

AC

They get the same deal as everyone else; and like everyone else, they don't all think the same way. I'm not interested in details, it's a big NO from me.

Hasbeen

I don't think that you have to be cynical to think that there is something very 'iffy' about that number of people identifying as 'aboriginal' these days.

In 1971, the Census showed that there were 155, 993 such people. The latest Census showed 812, 728 claimants to aboriginality.

That's an increase of 7 times, while the general population increased by only 2 times in the 50 year period!

What passes for Aboriginal ‘culture’ today is an invention of the last 50 years.

The aboriginal industry is loaded with ill-informed, urban myth-makers and illusionists.

Self-determination for aboriginals, real and make-believe, means that they will do what they like, and the rest of us will pay for it. It also means they want to colonise us, and take control of everything that whitefellas have provided, while they give nothing. It always was and always will be, about money, power and control.

Australian place names are also rapidly being overwritten with Aboriginal names, most of them made up just recently.

Recognition and the rest of the Voice and the rest of the bull has nothing to do with respect of aboriginal culture; it's about claims to ownership, and sovereignty that never existed; it's about takeover. If the Voice doesn't work - which it will not - something else will be thought up.

The Left is always telling us that we should catch up with modern Australia. How about aboriginal-identifiers doing the same thing!

WTF?

Here is an anecdote from many years ago when I worked as a teacher for a few years in northern QLD.

The school had a much higher percentage of Indigenous students than would be found in Brisbane and larger rural cities.

Each year a sum of money was provided specifically to target the needs of Indigenous students. These days it would fall under the umbrella of "Closing the Gap".

At a staff meeting the principal outlined how this money was placed in general funds. His logic was that the school already provided a quality and fair education for all students.

There would be no special group at that school with no EXTRA funding for that group.

As I waited for the obvious outcry from the more experienced staff members who would point out how completely immoral and fraudulent such an approach was I looked around the room and only saw nodding heads.

When I asked around I was told that that was the way it was always had been. Everybody seemed fine with it.

At the very best the principal could be described as paternalistic and misguided. At worst he was a fraud who cared little for the responsibilities of his role and the students he was paid to serve.

Now consider if that practice was taking place in a majority of schools.

Now consider if that practice was taking place in a majority of government departments.

Now consider if these practices were taking place over decades.

I completely understand why Indigenous Australian want more of a say in the governmental decisions that directly involve them.

Good on the principal. He could be accused of misusing the extra funds, of course, and probably should have said that they weren't needed because all kids were getting the same deal. But, given the bureaucratic mind, that would have been futile.

That sort of thing will happen as we get more like the Soviets and the Chinese: keep quiet and go 'underground'.