Australia day to be celebrated on the 28th Jan.

[Bucks5]

Is this Policital correctness gone mad?

OK, so some indigenous people refer to it as Invasion day, but the public holiday is to celebrate the landing of the first fleet on THE DATE IT HAPPENED.

http://www.9news.com.au/national/2016/1 ... -to-jan-28

Freo to mark Australia Day two days later
nine.com.au staff


Australia Day next year will come two days late for one West Australian council.

The City of Fremantle has decided to move its traditional January 26 events to January 28 because of cultural sensitivities.

Read more at http://www.9news.com.au/national/2016/1 ... VZI6yvu.99

[watt price tully]

Is this Policital correctness gone mad?

Nope but I would have it on a different day. It's not just Aboriginals (or some / most) but many others including yours truly see it as Invasion Day (personally I can't see how anyone could see it as anything other but we all have our views) - have no issue with it what so ever.

28 January though? I'm just not too sure of that days significance though.

Need some popcorn though as I wait for the Australian & other shock jocks to feign & spew forth their outrage, apoplexy & indignation

[stui magpie]

Is this Policital correctness gone mad?

Nope but I would have it on a different day. It's not just Aboriginals (or some / most) but many others including yours truly see it as Invasion Day (personally I can't see how anyone could see it as anything other but we all have our views) - have no issue with it what so ever.

28 January though? I'm just not too sure of that days significance though.

Need some popcorn though as I wait for the Australian & other shock jocks to feign & spew forth their outrage, apoplexy & indignation

I find the term Invasion day insulting. A european nation started to colonise a continent inhabited by a fragmented collection of stone age tribes who had distinguished themselves in their 60,000 years of occupancy by inventing no higher technology than the stick, directly contributing to the extinction of multiple species of flora and fauna and irrevocably altering the environment and climate.

Anyone who genuinely thinks they're worse off now than before white settlement is living in an alternate reality.

[Pies4shaw]

Feel free to feel insulted. The descendants of the indigenous peoples who had their land stolen from them will, no doubt, be deeply troubled that your feelings have been hurt.

[stui magpie]

"their land"

I suppose possession is 9/10ths of the law.

The continent was around for millions of years before they arrived and trashed the joint.

I daresay I care a lot more about their collective well being in the present day than they do about mine, I just find this sooking about being invaded a bit rich

Find me an Aboriginal who would prefer to be living in pre white colonisation Australia, I'd like to talk to them.

If England hadn't colonised here, someone else would have and the English were the best option from their perspective IMHO.

If there had been a force field around the continent preventing anyone else coming in, they'd still be in the stone age.

[Pies4shaw]

There aren't too many to find. We killed nearly all of them.

You don't have to get into heavy handwringing about it but it is still possible to respect the view that the arrival of the First Fleet was a bit of a downer for entire nations of peoples.

A bit of balance is ok in these things.

[stui magpie]

I respect the view, I can understand it, I just don't agree with it or as you say get into the heavy handwringing.

Empathy is good, but sometimes a dose of reality is more effective.

[David]

Thread title got my hopes up! About time we stopped talking about moving the date and just did it.

[Mugwump]

Yes, that's what we need - more symbolic silliness whereby we can pretend to care about what happened to indigenous people 230 years ago. As WH Auden said (in a slightly different context), our greatest love is music, because it can be made anywhere, is invisible, and does not smell. This is political music.

If all of the fashionable historical hand-wringers actually campaigned for a lift in the tax rate, creating a medicare-like fund dedicated to creating effective infrastructure and services in Aboriginal settlements, that would be a real, gutsy policy. Instead, no - let's express our look-at-me compassion by moving dates around, whingeing about things our ancestors did in an age further away than Mars, and perhaps tax a few mining royalties because that'll never show up in the price of a latte.

This age of narcissism will be remembered, I think, for such pious vacuities.

[Jezza]

For those that want to change the date, what would be an ideal date to celebrate Australia Day?

[Pies4shaw]

Just abolish it.

[Mugwump]

For those that want to change the date, what would be an ideal date to celebrate Australia Day?

1 January, Federation Day. But that'd mean giving up a public holiday, and we dont care enough to sacrifice that.

Alternatively, dont listen to the look at me brigade and celebrate it harder on 26 Jan - the day we inherited parliamentary democracy, the common law, the liberty of the subject, and the many habits of mind and government that have made us one of the most successful, desirable and pleasant countries in the world.

The sulkers can spend their time considering how it might have been under the Spanish, had Nelson not clubbed them into the ocean at Trafalgar.

[HAL]

Ok I'll try not to do listen to the look at him or her brigade and celebrate it harder on 26 Jan - the day we inherited parliamentary democracy the common law the liberty of the subject and the many habits of mind and government that made us one of the most successful and pleasant countries too much.

[pietillidie]

Modernise the concept with a view to marking a new republic, superseding the convoluted mix of fact and nonsense of the past. Let's face facts; it has always been the dullest event on the national calendar bar the Queen's Birthday anyhow (the latter made worse by Melbourne regularly beating us for their annual moment of glory!).

Whoops, that's right; a referendumb 17 years ago barred the further use of reason and consideration in that area until Jesus returns in the clouds of glory!

[Jezza]

(the latter made worse by Melbourne regularly beating us for their annual moment of glory!).

Melbourne only just beat us for the first time this year on Queens' Birthday since 2007.

It's been an enjoyable affair up until now.