“All on-thread input welcomed”, eh BrainDrain? Unless, of course, you don’t like the content and then you squeal and lash out, showing your “values” don’t include accepting other people’s rights to hold opposing opinions.

BrainDrain is certainly an appropriate name for you. I suggest that you get your own act in order before you start dealing with the values of an entire country and its people.

Braindrain, seems like you are talking about human values, which is a good thing, but I think that the Dalai Lama is very much on the right track about this and might save you a lot of work :)
http://www.atc.org.au/index.phpoption=com_content&task=blogsection&id=7&Itemid=52

"...on the level of a human being, His Holiness’ first commitment is the promotion of human values such as compassion, forgiveness, tolerance, contentment and self-discipline. All human beings are the same. We all want happiness and do not want suffering. Even people who do not believe in religion recognize the importance of these human values in making their life happier. His Holiness refers to these human values as secular ethics. He remains committed to talk about the importance of these human values and share them with everyone he meets."

Leigh,
Apparently you are a Senior Cit, or damn close to it, so i will try to keep a civil tongue in my head since i come from the last time people were taught (forced) to respect their elders when their elders often quite clearly were not worthy of it for any reason other than their advanced years.

I've read your last ten posts (what a chore) to get a better picture of the kind of man you are. I am going to say something personally shocking to you now - perhaps it best you look away?

I see things in you i see in myself!

Fortunately for my will to live it is the differences i see (like the perception of and willingness to alter those things) that prevents me from ending it all now.

You are a sad, bitter, grumpy, little old man and a part of me is heading down that same path.

Look at your own comment: 'Surprised to see you doing a "Second Hand Rose" post - commenting on someones else's comment. That's usually the refuge of people who are incapable of making a personal comment on the subject at hand, preferring to lurk until someone says something thay can rubbish. "

While you are oh-so-quick to make personal comment they are exclusively negative (rubbishing) and do nothing to improve the situation here or in the real world. When have you ever written an article or discussion expressing your world view opinions for comment on by others?

I have done it twice in the month or more i have been in OLO.

All you can do is snipe at those who are willing to try to improve things, making sad little observations (often the first on OLO) showing how little else you have time for.

I see in you an aging dinosaur unable to keep up with the pace of change in today's society and longing for better, as your mind believes it should be, without the guts to actually do anything other than criticise here, to try to bring it into being.

cont.

Show me one positive comment you have made that does not deride the present way things are done in favour of your own, impossible to achieve, simplistic world view.

Despite the topic of this thread and my repeated calls for Opinion of others, You have yet to tell me just ONE Aussie Value you hold dear and true to, and you express in your actions here.

Sad. Just Sad.

This is an Opinion forum - that is MY opinion, based ( since I don't know you from a bar of carbolic) entirely upon YOUR choice of words to show others just how you think.

Think you are making good choices of words and ideas to express to others there Champ?

Read my last ten posts (I dare you). See any difference to yours? besides that they are frequently longer!

I get angry at people with tiny bigoted little views who really should, by now, know better. Their opinions are fine with me, if and only if, they are based in solid, provable fact and they are making valid comments based upon those facts. Anyone who bases their ill-informed opinions upon entirely false beliefs i will hunt down and kill with all the powers at my disposal. I hate those who intentionally spread FALSE belief. I also hate with a passion, ignorant racially-biased people and those who believe that 'we' can only do good while 'they' only do bad without seeing how very bad 'we' are at the same time.

So if your feelings get hurt by the things i write to others and to yourself...It's because i can see hateful (to me and MY opinion) things in them. Maybe you should consider what you put into your next post from a slightly wider view of people and the world? (it is called Growth not Grump).

nearly there now...

All people are different and hence there will be differences of opinion. Most opinions are based upon the facts as we choose to see them. Now you KNOW the facts as I see them. I hope you have the ability to adjust your Opinions (of me at least) accordingly.

Since people still don't get it.... ALL opinions welcome. I reserve the right to try to shoot to pieces and to show for just what they truly are, tiny minded, ill-informed bigotries posing under the more 'acceptable' idea of 'personal opinion' and any that are just dumb opinion based upon poor research. You all have that same right, in MY opinion.

Celivia, Sorry, my Dear, the link you posted was not available ( cannot be found) when i tried it.

Braindrain,

I didn't bother to read your entire rant, but just scrolling down shows you put a lot of work into proving your pigheaded ignorance. I concede that there would be more people like you around these days than silly old senior citizens like me, but that is nothing to be happy about.

When I realise that it is clowns like you who will one day make decisions for Australians, I am very glad that I am on the down hill run.