Wedge politics. Just what the doctor ordered
Whatever your position on the last Federal Government’s intervention into aboriginal communities, the mistreatment of native Australians in the past is undisputed.
Whether it was out of a naïve sense of paternalism or a more sinister aim, we must as a nation face up to the institutionalised racism of the past. It is time to say sorry.
What disturbs me is the, speak no evil, hear no evil and see no evil approach of Dr Brendan Nelson on this issue. At best it can be described as Howard era wedge politics. As it is one of the few issues that he has bothered to comment on since his elevation to opposition leader, it shows his absolute lack of human empathy.
The most often used justification for not apologising is, ‘It wasn’t us, we didn’t do it, why should we apologise?’ What better way of showing that we are not the people of the past than by saying we do not accept what has been done to the native people of Australia that, we do not accept the policies of history and we are sorry for them. And what better way to show our commitment to a better a future?
I am sure once the government has apologised we will be asking ourselves, ‘What was all the fuss about?’
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Bulldog, acting like a Bulldog
It seems nowadays that the only time Wollongong makes headlines is when some footballer gets into a fight. That and the recent financial trouble of the Hawks. It does put into perspective how much of the city’s identity is carried on the Hawks wings. While not condoning whatever management decisions led to this crisis, it is nice to see something more than Ill. on a score sheet in the national news.
Back on the topic of violent sports people, not all sport is heading down this path. These headlines, for the moment, are restricted to two codes of football and verbal abuse in cricket. In this country Basketball, Tennis, Golf and Swimming have yet to seriously tarnish the reputations. So is it the money? Discipline? Or the nature of the sport which is causing so many problems?
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Move over Google
The recent Microsoft bid for Yahoo has caused a lot of feathers to be ruffled, especially at Google. It is not the first time that Microsoft has launched a bid for Yahoo. It is also not the first time Microsoft has seen to make major moves on the internet. However, since its cannibalising of Netscape’s navigator and the release of Hotmail/MSN, there has been little more than a ripple coming from Microsoft in the online world. This is one major step into challenging the unassuming internet giant that is Google.
With Microsoft’s track record, it is not surprising that Google is voicing concerns over anti-trust and a lack of competition. But, aren’t two giants better than one? The fact of the matter is that Google is monopolising more and more of the internet and adding a strong player to the mix like Microsoft is probably a good thing. The risk is that these colossus become partners and seek to consolidate their market share by chasing the little guys and not each other.
Yahoo has been struggling to keep up with Google’s easy of use, search engines and functionality. Media players such as Fox/News Corp have made it difficult to diversify into the content market, with various media networks such as MySpace gobbled up as soon as they have found an audience. It’s sale to Microsoft could definitely create some vibrant products that will enrich the internet experience.
In all the internet’s appeal is its independence in a world dominated by media conglomerates. Google’s search engines, control over flow of information and its quick acceptance of censorship has threatened this independence. Hopefully a strong new player will shake things up for a while.
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