Dear Paul,

There's no escaping the fact that Captain Cook is
a polarising national symbol, representing possession
and dispossession.

This anniversary of Cook's landing may give us much to
reflect upon but it also highlights the need for
investment in new symbols with colonial legacies
and shared futures.

which means blanking out history, or presenting a sanitised version of events.
Paul1405,
That is as wrong as your agenda !

Paul,
You are a bloody fool. After some discussion with Joe you suddenly tear strips off him for his joy at the figures showing aboriginals attending Uni is increasing. Are you unhappy that the figures are higher here than the NZ ones?

I can see no justifacation for you suddenly attacking Joe. Maybe you are disappointed that he does not share your hatred for all things British and Australian.

Anyway I expect there will be ceremony to celebrate Cook's discovery and, no doubt, there will be aboriginal participation where someone plays a didgerido, a smoking ceremony and some dancers hop around in their traditional red nappies. Its ironic that this was brought about by a joke of some TV actors. Cannot see the whole thing costing $50 mil though, maybe it will be given to the aboriginal dancers like everything else has been. To give a British flavour there may be a reenactment with a couple of actors in costume. I can see the natives shaking their spears now. The little kids will be impressed.

Like someone else said 'If you don't like it stay at home'.

Me, I would prefer a modern memorial unveiling, with blokes in suits
and women in modern attire. An aboriginal bloke telling us how lucky we all are that the British were the ones to settle here. How many blokes with aboriginal blood fought with our forces and were decorated and gave us Joes figures about Uni attendance. Some things to celebrate!

Of course we should, & so should the aborigines.

Just like the Mouri, they live a damn sight better, longer & healthier lives than they would if Australia & NZ had never been discovered. In fact they would still be wandering around naked throwing rocks & sticks at animals, trying to get something to eat.

They should give thanks every morning & night that the white man arrived when he did.

Hasbeen ole man even aboriginals in fine costume are still throwing rocks at native animals, it is inbred culture.

Hi Individual,

Your statement:

'I assume that includes those who identify as indigenous with more caucasian/non-indigenous genes than Aborigine ?'

Down south, yes, people with Aboriginal ancestry, living in small towns with their brothers and sisters and mothers and fathers who were regarded amongst themselves, and by local non-Aboriginal people, and by cousins and uncles and aunties, as Aboriginal, quite unsurprisingly considered themselves to be Aboriginal. They forgot to carry around their/your colour-card at all times, to check out their relations whenever they met them, to see on what side of the Aboriginal/non-Aboriginal divide they fell on. Neither did white fellas carry around such cards, just in case they accidentally fell over that divide somehow.

From birth, people down this way took/take their identity for granted. Their mothers were Aboriginal on the whole. All their siblings were too. Their cousins and uncles were too. Their grandparents were too. Non-Aboriginal neighbours took it for granted. So what are they expected to think of themselves ?

Like it or not, Individual, Aboriginal people in the south can, surprisingly, consider themselves to be Aboriginal. They may not have much, or even any, traditional culture, they may not know their ngatjis or their country except in the most general way, and may know only the one or two hundred kitchen-words of their ancestors' language. But they will always think of themselves as nothing but Aboriginal. That's how it is. There are, after all, different ways by which people can define themselves.

Nobody much down this way would give a stuff about your fractionating and colour-carding of them. THEY define themselves, you don't.

Joe