An article written by Malcolm Turnbull entitled Tony Abbott's Climate Change Policy is Bullshit has been a recent rediscovery of mine.
I don't want to go into a long analysis on this or speak too much about my views, as I think you, the reader, will have much more fun forming your own. It's just incredibly ironic that the Liberal Party has spoken about disunity as though it's ruining the government, when they have been just as susceptible to it as Labor. Need I remind everyone that a key theme of the 2007 election was who would lead the Liberal Party after the election was over. Howard or Costello? Rudd or Gillard? Abbott or Malcolm?
Two things are clear from this article: disunity is a part of politics and Tony Abbott's Climate Change Policy is Bullshit.
Monday, 15 July 2013
Primary School Report
The other day I was searching for a photo and happened upon some of my old reports from primary school. This was a fantastic trip down memory lane and gave me a bit of an insight into what I was like back then. I had almost forgotten, and was amazed to find that I was actually fairly similar to how I am now. The basic elements of my personality then, seem to have remained. The extra detail here, perhaps, pays homage to my last post which references an abundance of science that stipulates that "who we are" is determined in our first few years of life, and does not coincide with our cognitive development, so to speak.
There was one particular report that I found, however, that really interested me, and surprised me a little. It was a my SOSE report from 2001, back when SOSE was a thing we had to do various projects on different areas of science and society. The idea of SOSE was to integrate knowledge, essentially. To mash together science and history, with the added element of appreciating them in context today. In theory, it seemed a good idea, but in practice it was pretty rubbish—though I won't go there at the moment. One line from this report read:
This particular line of my report was interesting. I once said in an interview that my love affair with public speaking started in year seven, when a class that wasn't particularly fond of me, shall we say, sat there, and clung onto every word. At the end, they all applauded—and not a polite, thank-god-that's-over applause. A truly supportive accepting applause. As it happens though, this may not have been the beginning.
Reading this report reminded me of some of the public speaking I'd done in primary school. It reminded me of the Tournament of Minds, where I was in charge of presenting our project. In the face of total disaster (our project had failed), I cracked a joke that went a way to show the judges that the error was in a shakey hand, and not in our bridge (we had to run a golf ball along a bridge we constructed out of a strict list of materials). That was a hugely liberating moment. That one little line had averted disaster and had earned me the affection of my team mates. A budding engineer, certainly not; this was my mark on the project and where my strengths were best placed. Our success in reaching the state finals can largely be attributed to the way we delegated the right jobs to the right people, this was the first time I felt speaking was my job to own.
My love of public speaking was not only fuelled by success. In 2005, the year before the tournament of minds, we had the opportunity to stand for School Captain. Most of the boys in my year level gave the speeches, and there were some fairly good ones there. In fact, for a group of grade fives, the ability of them to speak well in front of an audience was incredible. However, what was evident, and what they didn't shy away from, was that they had the significant input of their parents inked into their speeches. I on the other hand, flatly refused to allow mum or dad to help me at all. Undoubtedly, it cost me the election, so it was certainly not a smart decision to refuse my parents' help; however, it gave public speaking the first opportunity to help me cope with something. It was the knowledge that my speech, one that I truly owned, had been a good speech, and had been delivered well and with integrity, allowed me to reconcile my defeat.
One last story, and I'll end my reminiscing. Another particularly fond memory I have of public speaking in primary school, that I was also reminded of by the report, was back in what was probably 2004. My grandfather was a World War II veteran, so I always took a great deal of pride in being someone who understood and appreciated the sacrifice of my grandfather and his peers in the armed forces. So when we had someone from the armed forces, a local named Greg Leader, I was naturally very excited about the occasion. He delivered his speech, and at the conclusion, I was asked by my classroom teacher to convey the class' thanks for taking his time to address us. I did so with a huge amount of pride, and after, was given the responsibility of escorting him to his next class. This was an momentous occasion for me at the time. It was only a short speech, and one that was unbelievably difficult to stuff up, but to me, the responsibility was enormous.
So, apparently I lied to Danny Lannen when I told him that my love affair had started with a humble speech to the rowdy boys of 7B. As a short trip to the past has reminded me, speaking has long been a part of my life, and provided there are still people to listen, will continue to be.
There was one particular report that I found, however, that really interested me, and surprised me a little. It was a my SOSE report from 2001, back when SOSE was a thing we had to do various projects on different areas of science and society. The idea of SOSE was to integrate knowledge, essentially. To mash together science and history, with the added element of appreciating them in context today. In theory, it seemed a good idea, but in practice it was pretty rubbish—though I won't go there at the moment. One line from this report read:
As anybody who has taken the time to read this blog will note, I like my public speaking and I'd also like to think that I'm not too bad at it (I haven't yet put someone to sleep). It's also something I get quite sentimental about. I do really enjoy it. Not the act of public speaking itself. It's actually awful if I tell you the truth. But the work, the ideas that you go through and most importantly, the wonderful discussions you have with people about the upcoming the speech, and indeed their support.I congratulate Travis on his excellent speech on his windsock project.
This particular line of my report was interesting. I once said in an interview that my love affair with public speaking started in year seven, when a class that wasn't particularly fond of me, shall we say, sat there, and clung onto every word. At the end, they all applauded—and not a polite, thank-god-that's-over applause. A truly supportive accepting applause. As it happens though, this may not have been the beginning.
Reading this report reminded me of some of the public speaking I'd done in primary school. It reminded me of the Tournament of Minds, where I was in charge of presenting our project. In the face of total disaster (our project had failed), I cracked a joke that went a way to show the judges that the error was in a shakey hand, and not in our bridge (we had to run a golf ball along a bridge we constructed out of a strict list of materials). That was a hugely liberating moment. That one little line had averted disaster and had earned me the affection of my team mates. A budding engineer, certainly not; this was my mark on the project and where my strengths were best placed. Our success in reaching the state finals can largely be attributed to the way we delegated the right jobs to the right people, this was the first time I felt speaking was my job to own.
My love of public speaking was not only fuelled by success. In 2005, the year before the tournament of minds, we had the opportunity to stand for School Captain. Most of the boys in my year level gave the speeches, and there were some fairly good ones there. In fact, for a group of grade fives, the ability of them to speak well in front of an audience was incredible. However, what was evident, and what they didn't shy away from, was that they had the significant input of their parents inked into their speeches. I on the other hand, flatly refused to allow mum or dad to help me at all. Undoubtedly, it cost me the election, so it was certainly not a smart decision to refuse my parents' help; however, it gave public speaking the first opportunity to help me cope with something. It was the knowledge that my speech, one that I truly owned, had been a good speech, and had been delivered well and with integrity, allowed me to reconcile my defeat.
One last story, and I'll end my reminiscing. Another particularly fond memory I have of public speaking in primary school, that I was also reminded of by the report, was back in what was probably 2004. My grandfather was a World War II veteran, so I always took a great deal of pride in being someone who understood and appreciated the sacrifice of my grandfather and his peers in the armed forces. So when we had someone from the armed forces, a local named Greg Leader, I was naturally very excited about the occasion. He delivered his speech, and at the conclusion, I was asked by my classroom teacher to convey the class' thanks for taking his time to address us. I did so with a huge amount of pride, and after, was given the responsibility of escorting him to his next class. This was an momentous occasion for me at the time. It was only a short speech, and one that was unbelievably difficult to stuff up, but to me, the responsibility was enormous.
So, apparently I lied to Danny Lannen when I told him that my love affair had started with a humble speech to the rowdy boys of 7B. As a short trip to the past has reminded me, speaking has long been a part of my life, and provided there are still people to listen, will continue to be.
Beginnings
Science has taught us some truly incredible things. Even more excitingly, it will continue to do so. The benefits of science are numerous. It can be used to treat diseases, put food in more and more people's mouths and allow us to live increasingly comfortable and happy lives.
With each step we take forward in science, we also advance the burden of knowledge. There's one particular example that pops to mind. Each discovery made in nuclear physics, in the early 20th century, presented both an opportunity for incredible good and incredible evil. The burden of knowledge in this case was responsibly discussing, planning and implementing the technology. Nuclear technology still ignites hotly contested debates today, thus, we are still carrying that burden.
It is not, however, nuclear technology that I wish to focus on. In fact, my introduction may have betrayed the true topic of this post. I actually wish to focus, fairly generally, on some of the work done in psychology and medicine, and more precisely, the implications of that work.
On the back of an overwhelming amount of good research (and the 'good' is an important distinction to make), it is now held that the formative years of child's life, determines a great deal about their life. This has huge implications for parents, new and old alike. Let's first look at some of the positive aspects.
Armed with this knowledge, we now know just how important it is that a child be cared for extremely well. We know that every little thing a parent does can have profound effects on the child when they grow up. It is believed, and the research tends to support this, that in the first few years of life, an individual's personality, their moral outlook and the basis of their social skills will be developed. All of this occurs before the all important education of the child starts.
The extent of these formative influences on the "adult product" is subject to much debate, though I think we could conservatively assume that these influences are quite a lot larger than we would expect on intuition alone. As a result, parents in general have started to lift the standards of care for their children. They have headed these warnings, that have come from psychologists and doctors alike, and have made a concerted effort to give their children the best possible future. So effective has this knowledge been, that mothers have started taking supplements even before conception to ensure that their bodies are ready for the huge responisbility that is bearing a child.
It is undeniable that these new found standards in child care have really lifted the bar. Naturally, it will remain to be seen, but it is fair to suggest that 21st century parents have, by applying the knowledge that science has given us, started to raise a smarter, a healthier and a happier next generation.
There is, however, a significant burden that comes with this knowledge. Today, we live a cursed life of what ifs. We not only pay particular attention to what actions we take in the future, but we also reflect on those actions we've taken in the past—in fact, it could be said that we do the latter more so than the former.
In this context, we can quite understandably succumb to an incredible amount of apprehension and self doubt about our decisions. Moreover, if unhappy about how we've turned out, we are now more capable of confidently blaming our parents and subjecting them to our bitterness. Because of this knowledge, because of its implications, we are subjected to a torturous amount of what ifs. Our personality, our social skills (or lack thereof) and our moral outlook are no longer predicated on our decisions, or on our experiences as students. According to the science, they were all decided long before we had a say in them, let alone anything really.
As with much of what science has taught us, when we appreciate the facts, we are often left with a stupid look on our face and the word wow etched on our lips. Our knowledge of the important balance of rearing, with the right amount of play, the right amount of nutrients and the right amount and type of social interaction, has no doubt helped 21st century parents be much better parents, but we must ask ourselves, what has been the burden on them?
With each step we take forward in science, we also advance the burden of knowledge. There's one particular example that pops to mind. Each discovery made in nuclear physics, in the early 20th century, presented both an opportunity for incredible good and incredible evil. The burden of knowledge in this case was responsibly discussing, planning and implementing the technology. Nuclear technology still ignites hotly contested debates today, thus, we are still carrying that burden.
It is not, however, nuclear technology that I wish to focus on. In fact, my introduction may have betrayed the true topic of this post. I actually wish to focus, fairly generally, on some of the work done in psychology and medicine, and more precisely, the implications of that work.
On the back of an overwhelming amount of good research (and the 'good' is an important distinction to make), it is now held that the formative years of child's life, determines a great deal about their life. This has huge implications for parents, new and old alike. Let's first look at some of the positive aspects.
Armed with this knowledge, we now know just how important it is that a child be cared for extremely well. We know that every little thing a parent does can have profound effects on the child when they grow up. It is believed, and the research tends to support this, that in the first few years of life, an individual's personality, their moral outlook and the basis of their social skills will be developed. All of this occurs before the all important education of the child starts.
The extent of these formative influences on the "adult product" is subject to much debate, though I think we could conservatively assume that these influences are quite a lot larger than we would expect on intuition alone. As a result, parents in general have started to lift the standards of care for their children. They have headed these warnings, that have come from psychologists and doctors alike, and have made a concerted effort to give their children the best possible future. So effective has this knowledge been, that mothers have started taking supplements even before conception to ensure that their bodies are ready for the huge responisbility that is bearing a child.
It is undeniable that these new found standards in child care have really lifted the bar. Naturally, it will remain to be seen, but it is fair to suggest that 21st century parents have, by applying the knowledge that science has given us, started to raise a smarter, a healthier and a happier next generation.
There is, however, a significant burden that comes with this knowledge. Today, we live a cursed life of what ifs. We not only pay particular attention to what actions we take in the future, but we also reflect on those actions we've taken in the past—in fact, it could be said that we do the latter more so than the former.
In this context, we can quite understandably succumb to an incredible amount of apprehension and self doubt about our decisions. Moreover, if unhappy about how we've turned out, we are now more capable of confidently blaming our parents and subjecting them to our bitterness. Because of this knowledge, because of its implications, we are subjected to a torturous amount of what ifs. Our personality, our social skills (or lack thereof) and our moral outlook are no longer predicated on our decisions, or on our experiences as students. According to the science, they were all decided long before we had a say in them, let alone anything really.
As with much of what science has taught us, when we appreciate the facts, we are often left with a stupid look on our face and the word wow etched on our lips. Our knowledge of the important balance of rearing, with the right amount of play, the right amount of nutrients and the right amount and type of social interaction, has no doubt helped 21st century parents be much better parents, but we must ask ourselves, what has been the burden on them?
Saturday, 13 July 2013
Geelong Young Leaders Award Ceremony
This is the speech that I gave to accept the 2012 Richard Marles Geelong Young Leaders Award. The video quality is poor, though the audio is fine. It was a huge privilege to have been nominated and subsequently win this award. The funds that accompanied the title were used to purchase a laptop for University, which has been extremely useful to me and to my studies! (though perhaps not in Chemistry!)
Sunday, 7 July 2013
Ungrateful Australia
The following is text to the speech, Ungrateful Australia, which I gave at the 2012 Western Heights College awards night. Note that this speech was given in the week that the world was "going to end".
May I first congratulate all of the award winners tonight on their fantastic achievements, with particular mention to our incoming school captains and our dux on his phenomenal ATAR score.
Ladies and gentleman. As I’m sure you know, the world will come to an abrupt and devastating end this Friday. But who is responsible for the demise of our planet?!
The Liberals would tell you that the end of the world is the result of a failing government, another Labor mishap caused by years of infighting in the party! But don’t worry if you’re a Labor voter, they will be quick on the reply, assuring Australians that this is just the remnants of the previous Liberal government!
Is this where Australia’s going? Are we at a point where we’ve become so pessimistic, that we would blame our government for the end of the world? When did we stop being optimistic?
Now, clearly, the world isn’t ending on Friday. What is coming to an end, however, is the grateful Australia.
Each day, Australians are bombarded with negative media. We read and watch reports of a “dying economy that can no longer support its people”, “a cabinet of ministers who should all leave their positions”, “healthcare reform that will endanger the lives of every Australian”. You could be forgiven for thinking that our country is on the brink of disaster.
But despite the media and government’s image of an Australia where people are dying on the streets, nobody has money to feed their families and where watching Big Brother is actually a highly stimulating activity...we actually have it pretty good.
We have one of the most stable economies and banking systems in the world, with low unemployment and sustainable inflation.
We have one of the best health care systems in the world. Unlike in most Western nations, the biggest concern upon entering a doctor’s surgery is the illness that led them there, rather than the bill they’re going to receive on the way out. The majority of us live happy and healthy lives thanks to extensive funding from the government and the freedom to belong to either the public or private system.
We have one of the best education systems in the world! We live in a country where each and every child has the right to learn and to do so without cost. The catholic, private and government sectors all deliver unparalleled curricula...though public is the best of course.
I’m not saying that we live in a perfect country, nor am I saying that we should turn a blind eye to those imperfections.
We’ve got it great here, and we should be thankful for that. All this rubbish in the media about the destruction of our nation, is just that, rubbish.
Don’t start the day with death and despair in the newspaper or with Gillard’s beautiful voice on the radio, as she tears through Abbott for the 400th time that morning… start the day with some gratitude. Gratitude for waking up in the morning, free of war and poverty, with the right to say or feel what you like...gratitude for waking up in Australia.
May I first congratulate all of the award winners tonight on their fantastic achievements, with particular mention to our incoming school captains and our dux on his phenomenal ATAR score.
Ladies and gentleman. As I’m sure you know, the world will come to an abrupt and devastating end this Friday. But who is responsible for the demise of our planet?!
The Liberals would tell you that the end of the world is the result of a failing government, another Labor mishap caused by years of infighting in the party! But don’t worry if you’re a Labor voter, they will be quick on the reply, assuring Australians that this is just the remnants of the previous Liberal government!
Is this where Australia’s going? Are we at a point where we’ve become so pessimistic, that we would blame our government for the end of the world? When did we stop being optimistic?
Now, clearly, the world isn’t ending on Friday. What is coming to an end, however, is the grateful Australia.
Each day, Australians are bombarded with negative media. We read and watch reports of a “dying economy that can no longer support its people”, “a cabinet of ministers who should all leave their positions”, “healthcare reform that will endanger the lives of every Australian”. You could be forgiven for thinking that our country is on the brink of disaster.
But despite the media and government’s image of an Australia where people are dying on the streets, nobody has money to feed their families and where watching Big Brother is actually a highly stimulating activity...we actually have it pretty good.
We have one of the most stable economies and banking systems in the world, with low unemployment and sustainable inflation.
We have one of the best health care systems in the world. Unlike in most Western nations, the biggest concern upon entering a doctor’s surgery is the illness that led them there, rather than the bill they’re going to receive on the way out. The majority of us live happy and healthy lives thanks to extensive funding from the government and the freedom to belong to either the public or private system.
We have one of the best education systems in the world! We live in a country where each and every child has the right to learn and to do so without cost. The catholic, private and government sectors all deliver unparalleled curricula...though public is the best of course.
I’m not saying that we live in a perfect country, nor am I saying that we should turn a blind eye to those imperfections.
We’ve got it great here, and we should be thankful for that. All this rubbish in the media about the destruction of our nation, is just that, rubbish.
Don’t start the day with death and despair in the newspaper or with Gillard’s beautiful voice on the radio, as she tears through Abbott for the 400th time that morning… start the day with some gratitude. Gratitude for waking up in the morning, free of war and poverty, with the right to say or feel what you like...gratitude for waking up in Australia.
Who Am I? (2011)
The following is text to the speech, Who Am I?, which I gave at the 2011 State Semi Finals of the Plain English Speaking Award (Victoria).
Who am I?
Well I know who I am, and I am not just talking about my address nor my age. I'm talking about my culture, the languages I speak and how they combine to make me. But do you know who you are, and why is language such an important part of this?
Take the indigenous people of Australia for example. They arrived here over 40,000 years ago. Since then, they have spoken more than 750 distinct languages and have created a rich cultural heritage. Today, however, this culture is slipping away. Their celebrations, their religions, their cuisine, their art…these are all disappearing. But how and why is this happening?
As I just said, there were once 750 indigenous languages in Australia; now there are a mere 18. It is no surprise then, that we are seeing a loss of indigenous culture. Without language, there are no means to communicate concepts and ideas, there are no means to teach and learn about culture. The indigenous people could, in theory, use English to replace their own languages, however, English lacks the vocabulary needed to communicate indigenous beliefs, such as those regarding the dreamtime.
Unfortunately, language death, leading to the loss of culture, is not confined to the indigenous languages. Broad Australian English, or “ocker English” has also started to decline in use, which is leading to the loss of some more key aspects of Australian culture.
According to the website www.aussieexperts.com (which is an Australian internet based travel office) the top reason to come to Australia is that Australia has “a people of legendary friendliness”. Furthermore, tourism Australia’s most successful advertisement, which starred comedian and actor Paul Hogan, was not based on our vast and beautiful landscapes, but rather our easy going attitude and our rich vernacular. Viewers are told that the only thing they need to know before coming to Australia is how to say “g’day”.
This simple, and chiefly Australian word is being used less and less in today’s society. We’re replacing “g’day” with British and American equivalents such as “hey” and “sup”. Our slang is what allows us to identify ourselves as Australian and to celebrate this. G’day, among other pearlers such as: well, pearler, no worries, cobba, bugger, sheila, aussie, mozzie, cossie, frothin’ and troppo, is the key to expressing our national identity.
Australian English isn't just for the "working class Aussie". As we know, "we are one, but we are many, and from all the lands on Earth we come". This lyric sums up our nation perfectly. No matter our heritage, no matter our race, no matter the colour of our skin, no matter how much money we earn, we are all Australian. With our slang, we show this. Take the film "Wog Boy" for example. The main characters, who are portrayed by Vince Collosimo and Nick Giannopoulos, both call themselves wogs. They took a term, usually reserved for insults, and turned it into a word to positively express their identity. Whilst the film is full of references to the differences between their childhood and the childhood of a typical anglo-saxon Australian, the film is also chock-a-block with Aussie slang.
"Wog Boy", and the whole concept of wog, is about celebrating both one's European heritage and celebrating being an Australian. It's about celebrating the multiculturalism of this nation. We can enjoy this celebration of identity and the music, festivals, stories and food that comes with it, because of language.
Language is to culture as air is to humans. Without air, we cannot last, without language, culture cannot last. Thus, the preservation of our language, is essential to preserve our culture and to continue to celebrate the rich and diverse identity of Australia.
So the question is, what can we do?
By chucking the odd Australianism into a sentence, by being that friend who speaks to mum on the phone in that "foreign language which nobody understands" and by hearing all of the stories from nan and pop, nonna è nonno, baba i deda or oma und opa, we start to learn about and develop our language and our cultural identity.
It may seem a small and silly idea, but we're a sharing and caring bunch. Our language is made up of some words from mum and dad, some words from our teachers or colleagues and some words from our mates. It’s always changing and is always open to influence.
We need to go back to the basics and bring back Aussie slang and then watch as everyone else follows.
Every culture is worth preserving, so let’s stop beating around the bush, and do something about preserving ours.
So, it’s time we all start asking ourselves, who am I?
Who am I?
Well I know who I am, and I am not just talking about my address nor my age. I'm talking about my culture, the languages I speak and how they combine to make me. But do you know who you are, and why is language such an important part of this?
Take the indigenous people of Australia for example. They arrived here over 40,000 years ago. Since then, they have spoken more than 750 distinct languages and have created a rich cultural heritage. Today, however, this culture is slipping away. Their celebrations, their religions, their cuisine, their art…these are all disappearing. But how and why is this happening?
As I just said, there were once 750 indigenous languages in Australia; now there are a mere 18. It is no surprise then, that we are seeing a loss of indigenous culture. Without language, there are no means to communicate concepts and ideas, there are no means to teach and learn about culture. The indigenous people could, in theory, use English to replace their own languages, however, English lacks the vocabulary needed to communicate indigenous beliefs, such as those regarding the dreamtime.
Unfortunately, language death, leading to the loss of culture, is not confined to the indigenous languages. Broad Australian English, or “ocker English” has also started to decline in use, which is leading to the loss of some more key aspects of Australian culture.
According to the website www.aussieexperts.com (which is an Australian internet based travel office) the top reason to come to Australia is that Australia has “a people of legendary friendliness”. Furthermore, tourism Australia’s most successful advertisement, which starred comedian and actor Paul Hogan, was not based on our vast and beautiful landscapes, but rather our easy going attitude and our rich vernacular. Viewers are told that the only thing they need to know before coming to Australia is how to say “g’day”.
This simple, and chiefly Australian word is being used less and less in today’s society. We’re replacing “g’day” with British and American equivalents such as “hey” and “sup”. Our slang is what allows us to identify ourselves as Australian and to celebrate this. G’day, among other pearlers such as: well, pearler, no worries, cobba, bugger, sheila, aussie, mozzie, cossie, frothin’ and troppo, is the key to expressing our national identity.
Australian English isn't just for the "working class Aussie". As we know, "we are one, but we are many, and from all the lands on Earth we come". This lyric sums up our nation perfectly. No matter our heritage, no matter our race, no matter the colour of our skin, no matter how much money we earn, we are all Australian. With our slang, we show this. Take the film "Wog Boy" for example. The main characters, who are portrayed by Vince Collosimo and Nick Giannopoulos, both call themselves wogs. They took a term, usually reserved for insults, and turned it into a word to positively express their identity. Whilst the film is full of references to the differences between their childhood and the childhood of a typical anglo-saxon Australian, the film is also chock-a-block with Aussie slang.
"Wog Boy", and the whole concept of wog, is about celebrating both one's European heritage and celebrating being an Australian. It's about celebrating the multiculturalism of this nation. We can enjoy this celebration of identity and the music, festivals, stories and food that comes with it, because of language.
Language is to culture as air is to humans. Without air, we cannot last, without language, culture cannot last. Thus, the preservation of our language, is essential to preserve our culture and to continue to celebrate the rich and diverse identity of Australia.
So the question is, what can we do?
By chucking the odd Australianism into a sentence, by being that friend who speaks to mum on the phone in that "foreign language which nobody understands" and by hearing all of the stories from nan and pop, nonna è nonno, baba i deda or oma und opa, we start to learn about and develop our language and our cultural identity.
It may seem a small and silly idea, but we're a sharing and caring bunch. Our language is made up of some words from mum and dad, some words from our teachers or colleagues and some words from our mates. It’s always changing and is always open to influence.
We need to go back to the basics and bring back Aussie slang and then watch as everyone else follows.
Every culture is worth preserving, so let’s stop beating around the bush, and do something about preserving ours.
So, it’s time we all start asking ourselves, who am I?
Media Gone Nuts (National)
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There is not a hole in the ozone layer. Despite
years of having this idea shoved at us by our media, there is not a hole in the
ozone layer.
In reality, what we are experiencing is
something called Ozone depletion. We are not as well protected from solar
radiation and therefore, the temperature rises. If there were really a hole in
the ozone layer, as we have been lead to believe, we would be exposed to the
full wrath of the sun. Now, I can only speak for myself, but I’m not on
fire—are you?
How has an entire nation been lead to
believe something so outrageous? Is it only sensationalised rubbish that we are
being fed, or is it worse? When did journalism lose its moral core in the
pursuit of money?
This is a somewhat light-hearted example of
media gone nuts. The modern media has ditched its moral responsibilities for
nothing more than financial gain.
Now, don’t get me wrong. We should expect the
media to try to make money. But it is the methods they are using to do so that are
worthy of our attention.
Long gone are the days of sensationalism.
Back then, it was simple. A bit of dramatization, misinformation and fear
mongering lead to a healthy serving of public anxiety, and that public anxiety converted
itself into a nice wad of cash in the media moguls’ pockets. Kaching, kaching
for the media!
Unfortunately, one day a particular media
mogul decided that sensationalism wasn’t quite enough. He decided that to sell
his newspaper, he must rely on the truly immoral. His name is Rupert Murdoch
and he is the man at the centre of the news of the world scandal.
In most of our pockets is a mobile phone.
It’s a fairly simple device. It makes calls, sends texts and may do any number
of things for you.
And sometimes, it seems, a phone is the
only way to reach the outside world—the only way to let our friends know that,
well, we are still breathing. At least, this is what Milly Dowler’s parents
thought.
Milly
Dowler is dead.
In 2002, Milly Dowler was abducted on her
way home from school. Soon after she was murdered in cold blood. Before Milly’s
parents learned of their daughter’s death, they submitted a missing person’s
report and quickly set out to find her.
For seven
months, police, family and friends searched far and wide for Milly, but no luck.
The only shred of hope for Milly’s family came from her phone company—somehow,
she was deleting her voice mail messages! Milly must be alive.
She wasn’t.
News of the world journalists were hacking
Milly’s phone. They listened to her voice mail messages, and then deleted them.
They heard her family’s desperate pleas. They stripped Milly’s family of their
privacy and gave them false hope.
Milly’s family isn’t the only one left devastated
by News of the World Journalists. At a recent parliamentary investigation into media
ethics, countless witnesses came out of the woodwork to stand up against the
unethical, immoral and inhuman standards of the media in Britain.
Surely, this isn’t happening in Australia
though? Our media has always acted ethically, right?
“A dingo’s got my baby”.
Thirty years after the death of Azaria
Chamberlain, the words her mother cried out at journalists still manage to
strike a chord. In fact, her story was made so huge by the media, that jokes
about the death of Lindy Chamberlain’s daughter even made it onto TV shows like
Two and a Half Men.
But who was Lindy?
Lindy Chamberlain was born in New Zealand,
but soon moved to Australia. She grew up here and had a family. After some time
in Tasmania, Lindy and her family moved to Queensland. There’s nothing
particularly interesting to say about Lindy. She was just an ordinary person
with an ordinary life, like you and I.
It was only after, well, a dingo got her
baby, that her world changed. Soon she became a household name in Australia. And
after that, the story became a media hit around the world, selling newspapers
left right and centre.
But what about Lindy? What about her family?
What about thirty years of trial by media? Eh, who cares, she’s only one
person.
One person’s life completely ruined by the
greed of the media.
It is this attitude that leaves families in
ruins.
Nobody can escape. The sports stars, the
writers, the humanitarians, the academics, the musicians, the artists, actors,
actresses, chefs… ordinary people…Lindy and Milly….you and I.
Regardless of who you are or what your
circumstances may be, if you’re going to sell papers, then the media will stop
at nothing to tell your story.
But, who’s to blame for this?
Perhaps the easiest way to go would be to
stick it on the government? They are responsible for protecting our interests,
so why have they failed us here? They must be responsible for fixing the media!
But what if, we just said that the media were
to blame? That makes sense. They are the ones who are robbing people of their
privacy and acting immorally. Surely they should be held responsible!
The media and the government do have a roll
to play in this, but what about us?
We are, after all, the reason the media
exists. If we didn’t buy their product, why would they go to the effort to
distribute it?
In fact, today we are actually a part of the
media. We call it social media and the only difference between it and the rest
of the media is that we manage it.
On websites like Facebook and Twitter, we
can read and discuss everything from the political situation in Mozambique, to
declining breakfast cereal to box ratios—whatever we choose really.
Social media does not stop at that,
however. Much like our own “every day” media, it is driven by immoral and
unfair invasions of privacy. Social media is full of gossip. Whether it be
about people in the public eye or Jimmy
Stevens from Bacchus Marsh, there is a constant stream of images and snippets
of information being uploaded each day.
Despite this, despite the cyber bullying of
celebrities and ordinary people alike, we still choose to indulge. Each day, more and more people connect to these websites.
Social media is defined by our choices.
Content won’t spread unless we choose to share it. In fact, content won’t even
be there in the first place unless we choose to publish it.
So it raises the question, is it the
media’s standards that are declining, or ours? Are they really just immoral, unethical and unfair, or are they just giving
us what we want?
And if we
are the media; what can we do to stop media gone nuts?
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