CM, I withdraw your use of selective evidence. I did not read all of it properly and rushed my response.

I would have done it earlier, but ran out of posts on this thread.

I still think Australia can remain a Western society regardless of the ethnic makeup, as long as Australia remains committed to the rule of law, a free press, and pluralism.

I agree all issues should be open to debate, including cultural differences. I do not accept all cultures as being equal and I would rather a more diverse immigration intake that is also lower in numbers

And yes we all use selective evidence, but one must try and be balanced.

I try, but I am sure I miss a lot of info that should be included.

There is so much to know.

Hi David, Mr O.

Great story David, and Mr O there is no need to liken Chinese people to vermin or pests, no people deserve that kind of comparison. Did you know China is the 8th largest Christian country in the world by population, an interesting fact.

Paul1405,

They're not my words. I'm just citing Jared Diamond's comment in his 'Collapse'. And I meant it as a joke.

david f lacks what a lot of vocationally trained people lack: critical thinking skills. Like the shadyminister and LOUDmouth he just flies off the handle at the drop of a hat.

You have to remember these three characters belong to the pro-Chinesa camp. They worship Andrew Forrest and they think the sun shines out of his ass.

Dear Paul,

Glad to hear that you're keeping busy with your reading
and Thanks for the Tara Winch book referral. My favourite
book shop - "Readings" appears to have re-opened so I'
shall be paying them a visit soon. At the moment I'm into
children's books for my grandchildren. "The One and Only
Ivan" and "Ghostbear" are just two I'm after.

I was going to look into Woodward's "Rage" but I'm not yet
ready for anything political - too depressive.
I've had enough - the politics on this forum is about as
much as I can take right now.

Dear David,

Thank You for sharing your story. You are an inspiration.
Every since I was a child - I was made to feel "different"
because of not only my appearance (long red hair, green eyes)
but mainly because of my unpronouncable first name and surname.
So I know what it feels like to be excluded.

My mentor at school was my English Mistress - Rebecca Bowen,
who raised my self esteem and instilled in me a love of
Shakespeare.

Dear Foxy.

My mother had red hair and green eyes. I don’t know if she was made to feel different for it. Her parents were not English speaking, and everybody else in their small village was French-Canadian. My grandmother got pregnant in the Lower East Side in New York City. Deciding that was not a good place to raise children they relocated to the Adirondack Mountains. Although my mother was born in Brandon, NY which no longer exists she spoke French before she spoke English. She learned English in a one-room schoolhouse. Her teacher was a Scot from Ontario, and my mother wound up with a Scottish accent, said wee instead of small and used other Scottish locutions.

I never had any problems in school, but my older son was picked on possibly because he was the only blond kid in his class. He turned out to be a tough kid, and his younger brother never had any problems because of his big brother. They have an intense sibling rivalry. When Seth was two and Wm was 4 they were sitting in the back seat of a car, and Seth said, "No matter how old I'll get Wm will be two years older."

There was a rather unprepossessing girl in my daughter’s third grade class. She had freckles, pimples and wore glasses. Some girls formed an “I hate Karen Frego” club and invited Rebecca to join. Rebecca became a friend of Karen Frego, and I was proud of her.

My favorite teacher in high school was Miss McBurney. My weakest area is languages, and she made Latin interesting