Hi foxy
well..as CJ said:

<<"there's a vocal and aggressive minority of people who do for various reasons, and they seem to be over-represented at OLO.">>

Probably me :) ...
One issue I have is with those who feel they can benefit from all our freedoms and liberties, only to:
a) Disprespect our laws and customs.
b) Work activly to destroy them.

I notice that the 13 Muslims accused in the Terrorism case in Melbourne will not stand up when the Magistrate enters or leaves the court room... in so doing they express utter contempt for our legal system and customary practices.

I hope they get charged with 'Contempt of court' each time they don't stand.

That...is one problem with 'immigrants' but some of them were born here, so its a problem more with 'immigrant religion'.

The various other clashes which have become news fodder over recent weeks..... Sudanese migrants/refugees (nominally Christian).. gang violence at Dandenong station and Flemington.. (that one was more north African Muslims) are more a problem of poor resettlement policy than migrants themselves.

1/ Resettlement should be aimed at preventing large pockets of single race/religion.
2/ If this cannot be accomplished...then reduce migration to levels where it can.

quite simple really.

Foxy, we clearly have some bits that don't work as well as they might in a perfect word, both with a small proportion of immigrants not respecting the rest of us and with "You don't see any racist elements in our society. No scapegoating. No separatism, or any anti-Muslim agitation."

Overall I don't see those as a problem with migrants, just part of the way life works. Most of those who complain about migrants are fairly vocal about all sorts of other groups who are not the same as themselves. I hope that they are a small enough minority that they don't present a serious threat to national wellbeing.

R0bert

since it is very possible to find yourself unemployable in oz, those that were born here feel entitled to ask: why are you importing more people, when i can't find work?

and plenty of immigrants and their children are in similar circumstances, and have similar feelings.

the libs and their supporters are not inclined to help these people, and have curtailed support services such as job training and education which makes the situation even worse. labor will do a little better, but not much. oz society creates 'losers', and the successful majority are not inclined to share their wealth. when the losers are identifiable by dress, language, and cultural differences, then scapegoating is the end result.

being an australian subject (not citizen, you're a lot of fore-lock tugging 2nd class people in your own land) means you can watch this process erode oz culture, and be able to do nothing about it. depressing, eh.

Foxy,

Having been part of the other threads you've referred to, I'm equally amazed this hasn't raised the same reticence as seen elsewhere.

As possibly the newest citizen in this thread (taken around 6 weeks ago now) I was not only happy to take the oath but very proud to take on my rights and obligations of Australian citizenship, and might I add I chose to include under God, though it was optional.

Further, at the ceremony there were a mix of around 14 nationalities (at the one prior there was 21 nationalities).

For me the ceremony was an emphasis of what makes up Australia: immigrants. The fact that generations may now have passed, we all arrived here at some point along the ancestral line, even the Aboriginals. The fact I look "Australian", having a British line has meant there have been no assimilation issues - more surprise when people learn I wasn't Australian in the first place.

This fact, that I've always looked Australian, has offered sitations with people where they've asked "spot the Aussie", etc: with me only adding that many of the people in question are more Australian than I.

So back to your original question: what does being an Australian mean? Well, for my two cents worth, it's about a fair go, equality of gender, race, religion and culture, it's about multiculturalism (even if this is not entirely government policy anymore). That we are not one people who make up a nation, but a nation of many peoples.

My hope is that we continue to recieve many peoples all bringing their cultures, beliefs and practices ... especially their cuisine!

I was born in this country (although my ancestry is European) and I remember my parents talking about their Australian Citizenship with pride.

To me Australia has always been a unique setting, moulded and modernised through waves of settlement by people from all over the world. The values and principles of Australian society have always reflected the strong influences on Australia's history and culture. These include Judeo-Christian ethics, a British political heritage and the spirit of the European Enlightenment. Distinct Irish and non-conformist attitudes and sentiments have also been important.

We've always rejected the use of violence, intimidation and humiliation as ways to settle conflict in our society. We've always had compassion for those in need.

I always thought that respect for the free-thinking individual and the right to be different were the foundations of Australian democracy. That's why so many people want to become Australians.

Reading your posts confirms that I wasn't wrong. Thank-You.

With regards to animals, "Australian" means that the species evolved here, whereas for humans the place of evolution of the species or race is irrelevant. For example rabbits are introduced pests even though they have spent 20-odd generations here.
With regards to humans, most people mean "white"... plenty of whites are technically migrants in that they migrated here but they are not what is referred to as migrant. Similiarly plenty of non-whites were born here but are referred to as "migrants" or "people of migrant background"