Is welcome to country appropriate?
No! It is not!
There are many cultures in Australia.
Probably dozens.
Why single out one particular one, and give them centre stage?
A stupid idea.
And the truth is aboriginals don't own this country.
They don't control it because:
They don't have a parliament.
They don't have an army.
They don't have a navy.
They don't have an air-force.
They are not in a position to call the shots in any way whatsoever.
There is nothing of a practical nature which would indicate they have any form of serious control.
And trying to claim something because your distant ancestors used it is simply not valid.
We can only claim the knowledge and infrastructure given to us by living persons.
And we have absolutely no way of changing history.
What happened in the past is now simply fact, and it is unchangeable.
Whether it was good or bad, it is beyond our control.
We can only live in the present, where we can make changes.
And we must use the hand we are dealt today.
And not fish around under the table looking for discarded cards.
I think Libby Mettam was right.
When any group tries to claim separate title to this country, and tries to divide the country along racial lines, that is WRONG.
Trying to emphasise it with flags and chants is also WRONG.
And saying welcome to us as if they own it and we are visitors?
The stupidest idea of the century.
They should be thanking us for the handouts.

Hi Trumpster,

Try reading the 8th Century Anglo-Saxon Chronicles (780-800 AD) which provide detailed, records of Anglo-Saxon royalty, Viking raids, and ecclesiastical events. They give a full account of women and children being offered to Viking raiders in the hope that their town or village would be spared Viking brutality.

"allowing aboriginals to practice their stone age cultural lores, but in this case allowing them to practice their 'pay-back' lore might have been acceptable." Why do you right wing extremist always call for violence in the first instance. Can't agree the accused is entitled to a fair trial.

Hi Paul,

"Cynically you imply that Aboriginals who are millionaires have gained their wealth thorough government handouts, and not their own resources, are they incapable of that?"

There are plenty of people who have made a career out of indigenous funding, and some of them have little or no indigenous heritage. Also, I did not say that indigenous people cannot do well off the gravy train. You state that 80 to 90 percent of spending is non-specific (remoteness etc), but that still leaves 10 to 20 percent, or up to 40 percent of that spent on non-indigenous Australians, so why wasn't the little girl helped?

No cynicism on my part, just concern.

mhaze,

I was taken by the ABC's euphemistic descriptions of the rioters, but the BBC was worse, describing them as protestors and making no mention of assaults of police and paramedics, damage to public and private property, or the theft of about $200,000 worth of goods.

Hi Fester,

To the riot and looting etc on Thursday night, I do not condone that what so ever, and those responsible should be subjected to the full force of the law.

"There are plenty of people who have made a career out of indigenous funding" Not sure about the "plenty", I don't see that "career" as "evil" but necessary. There is abuse of the system by some, which is not exclusively confined to "indigenous funding", wherever there is money there is criminality, that applies across government. Should there be one wroughter, and nine genuine, are you saying disposes all ten to avoid the one? I think not, yes go after the one, while always supporting the nine.

"I did not say that indigenous people cannot do well off the gravy train." I'm not sure what "gravy train" you are referring to. BTW excluding home ownership there is estimated to be about 90 people who are millionaires (Not billionaires), and also identify as indigenous in Australia, not one indigenous person is listed in Forbes 200 richest Australians. Given that 3% of the population identify as indigenous, should we not expect 6 in the top 200.
About 14% of the Australian population live below the poverty line, for Aboriginal people that is around 35%. Can't be doing all that well from your "gravy train".

Now that's funny. Paul claims to have read some history...."Try reading the 8th Century Anglo-Saxon Chronicles (780-800 AD) which provide detailed, records of Anglo-Saxon royalty, Viking raids, and ecclesiastical events. They give a full account of women and children being offered to Viking raiders in the hope that their town or village would be spared Viking brutality."

From one review I read...."The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle does not record any such instances in the 8th century.
The Viking raids on England began toward the end of the 8th century, with the most famous early event being the 793 raid on Lindisfarne monastery. The Chronicle's entries for this period are brief and focus on portents, plunder, slaughter, and some internal Anglo-Saxon politics or battles. Key relevant entries describe sudden raids involving looting, killing, and destruction rather than negotiation, tribute, or any offer of women (or anything else) to "save the village."

No mentions of offering women: Searches of the Chronicle text (8th–9th centuries) and related historical discussions yield no references to Anglo-Saxons offering women, daughters, or maidens as tribute, ransom, or to appease Vikings in this era.

This specific motif (offering women to raiders) does not appear in the primary records for 8th-century England. It may stem from broader medieval tropes, later folklore, or confusion with practices in other periods/regions (e.g., ransoming high-status captives or general slavery). For reliable primary material, the Ingram translation or modern editions like Swanton's are good starting points."

So Paul digs himself further into the quagmire of his own fantasies. And hilarity ensues.

Paul, from your extensive knowledge of these Chronicles (/grin), can you give us a quote that demonstrates your claims.

""allowing aboriginals to practice their stone age cultural lores, but in this case allowing them to practice their 'pay-back' lore might have been acceptable." Why do you right wing extremist always call for violence in the first instance. Can't agree the accused is entitled to a fair trial."

Paul,

Are you saying we shouldn't support aboriginals practicing their traditional law? I'm shocked at your racism. </sarc>