Guess who's under the bed now?
PETER Costello's attack on "mushy multiculturalism" is used to paint another "us and them" picture. It involves picking a group who are new to Australia, about whom many people are ignorant, let's give them a kick for the benefit of all the "ordinary" Australians.
On one level this is good old Australian bullying. It also draws on our rich tradition of White Australia policy, "yellow peril' "wog bashing" and "Reds under the bed" - tarted up for the 21st century. I remember this, anyone who went to a Catholic school in 1950s (Howard's best loved decade) knows all about good old Australian government bullying and about being called names.
Nice little distraction
PERHAPS it is not unremarkable that Peter Costello has come out, whistling up the dogs of fear and prejudice at this time. It's been a bad couple of weeks for the Coalition, with the Iraqi wheat perks, and also Iraq lurching more and more into total chaos.
On one level this is good old Australian bullying. It also draws on our rich tradition of White Australia policy, "yellow peril' "wog bashing" and "Reds under the bed" - tarted up for the 21st century. I remember this, anyone who went to a Catholic school in 1950s (Howard's best loved decade) knows all about good old Australian government bullying and about being called names.
Nice little distraction
PERHAPS it is not unremarkable that Peter Costello has come out, whistling up the dogs of fear and prejudice at this time. It's been a bad couple of weeks for the Coalition, with the Iraqi wheat perks, and also Iraq lurching more and more into total chaos.
posted by Susanna Duffy @ 10:07 PM
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