Foxy,
Can you give me a good, scientifically backed argument as to why future immigrants should not be drawn from the U.K and Ireland as opposed to China or India?
What's the difference?
Red Herring of course, there's no argument that isn't based on perceived (now scientifically proven) racial differences, is there?
I can give you an answer to the question in two parts, which may surprise you, immigration from the "Home Isles" should be prohibited because:
1. Britons and Irish should stay in their own countries and deal with their own political/economic situation, Australia should cease to be "plan B", only when they realise that they have no way of escape will things change in their own countries.
2. After decades of Liberal Democracy (and socialism in the case of the Irish) those peoples are degraded, demoralised and no longer fit for pioneering, they bring with them the all the bad habits and neuroses of political correctness. Indians, Arabs and Chinese in fact bring to the nation the very qualities we "Racists" need to further our agenda, ethnocentrism, disdain for laws and social standards, machismo and a dog eat dog mentality.
Your racial thesis actually works better in practice for we "Racists" than hokey White supremacism or Nationalism LOL. The more social standards slip as the non White population increases the more likely views such as ours will be accepted and the faster neo Fascist and Nationalistic political tendencies will grow.

david,
What happened here in 1788is the same as happened in most other countries that were colonized or conquered by a larger or stronger people. It is irrelevant to the present situation.

The big cultural change came in the 1970s. The government imposed multiculturalism, which is an ideology that rates original culture ahead of national loyalty. It promised 'Unity in Diversity' but has failed. Instead it fosters separate groupings and seeks a federation of ethnic cultures as opposed to one cohesive nation.

The examples I gave are practice that are happening now that we turn a blind eye to because of 'cultural considerations'. Our politicians ignore them. For those, such as yourself, that argue that MC is good, it begs the question as to what other cultural practices should we admit to further foster MC. Surely the more diverse the better, if diversity is so good. I would like to see your suggestions.

You appear to confuse MC with the illegal entry of boat people.

You said, "The boat people have committed no crime". Sorry but it is against our laws for non citizens to enter Aus without a valid visa. This is the only reason we can detain them.

Dear individual,

I have no reason to think that the boat people coming here have a political/religious agenda any more than most other migrants do. I doubt very much that you're like my father. I knew him much better than you could. Although I cannot be sure of his attitudes if he were still alive, I think he would sympathise with the boat people. Immigrants with a political/religious agenda (There are some with such an agenda.) can get financing from groups who support such agendas. I think it more likely that the boat people are just desperate people fleeing oppressive governments and/or poverty and have no other other agenda than to lead a better life.

Foxy,
You said, "They have to be persuaded that Australia needs more
people and that these will no longer come from the
founding British nations"

Can you show reasons why we need more people. I take it you like long queues, long trips to and from work and continued higher house prices and covering up the small amount of good farm land that we have. Also I care not about ethnicity, but would prefer the cultures that have shown they integrate and respect our laws and society.

You also said. "No one is suggesting to promote the national
cultures of other lands. That's not what
multiculturalism is".

Sorry, but MC is about the promotion of other cultures. Both State and Fed government have spent millions doing just that. Mostly by giving grants to ethnic groups to promote their culture. Then there is the expense of providing most things in a multitude of languages when English is our national language. The whole business of MC has been a flawed and expensive experiment.

Dear Banjo,

I repeat. The boat people have done nothing illegal. I do not confuse the entry of the boat people with multiculturalism. In my original post I mentioned Labor and the Libs appeal to 'stopping the boats' as employing the politics of hate and fear. The fact is that in the current world prosperous nations are subject to immigration from those less prosperous. Many of them have different cultures that they wish to cling to in some degree. the change goes both ways. They will affect the majority culture, and the majority culture will be affected by them. I know a Palestinian family in Brisbane. The husband went off the rails by losing a lot of money gambling. In that he was behaving in a manner in which many Australians of English descent behave. They have two sons and a daughter. The daughter is living with an Australian of Irish descent. The two sons were approached by a representative of a Middle East organisation who wanted them to be involved in 'liberating' the Palestinians. They sent him on his way as they have no desire to be involved in wars in that part of the world. As far as I can see they have been changed by Australia more than they have changed Australia. I doubt that they are alone in that.

The reason that I'm suggesting a non-European component
of the population expanding is :

1) Proximity to Australia.
2) Lower living standards.
3) Authoritarian governments.
4) The collapse of civil society which encourages
emigration.

These factors are much less relevant in Europe, Britain,
or North America. Therefore while European influences
are likely to fade slowly, Asian influences are
likely to increase. This will not necessarily mean the
rapid "Asianisation" of Australia. Qualifications for
non-refugee Asians have normally been higher than for
their European predessors. Outside China, English is
spoken by the educated classes which Australia seeks to
encourage. The traditional image of Asians as poor and
inferior has little basis for those settling in Australia.

What I'm trying to say is that as long as Australia continues
to recruit immigrants and to be open to student, tourist and
short-term arrivals in large numbers, it will continue to be
multicultural and to witness large numbers of Asians in
metropolitan streets.

It cannot, therefore, enjoy the luxury of xenophobia.
Many well-educated Asians are suspicious that the White
Australia policy lingers on. To dispel this belief,
governments must consciously advocate multiculturalism and keep
multicultural policies in place.

A harmonious Australia in the future will be one in which
all Australians feel comfortable. Failure to condemn One Nation
caused a very strong reaction in the once politically dormant
Chinese community. Governments, media, and education systems
must accept a strong Asian presence, dispel popular fears
of an "Asian invasion" and redefine multiculturalism in the
sense of equal life chances and not just food and festivals.

On present indications there is no possibility that Australia
will cease to be an English-speaking, nominally Christian
country. Equally, there is no likelihood of it returning
to the allegedly homogeneous British society of fifty years ago.