I could do with some healing like this:
The federal government should establish a “healing fund” to pay for services to members of the stolen generations, a Senate committee has recommended.
Well before the ‘healing’ starts, the Government should attempt to establish the veracity of those claiming to be ‘stolen’, but that does not seem to be a priority. Instead, the usual members of the club for victim hood are out asking and demanding for more:
Australians for Native Title and Reconciliation national director Gary Highland said the recommendations fall short of what is needed to deliver justice to the stolen generations.
In other words, super size my healing! From the ABC:
A member of the Stolen Generations has slammed a parliamentary committee’s decision to establish a “healing fund” rather than provide compensation payments.
Indigenous businesswoman Sharon Firebrace says she believes the Government is avoiding costly compensation….
“I just think it’s a tricky way of tricking Aboriginal people,” she said.
“As I said, it’s trinkets and beads. I think it’s a cheap way for the government to get out of costly compensation.”
If the Government wanted to give me money for nothing I’d be happy to be tricked into taking it, I’m sure most people would. And BTW, the ABC describes Sharon Firebrace as a member of the ‘stolen’ generation, as if they had verified the claim. By contrast:
AUSTRALIA’S richest man, Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest, has described the lives of many Aborigines as crap and criticised successive governments for giving welfare not opportunities.
When it comes to advice, I think I’d be taking Twiggy’s over Firebrace’s. Twiggy’s thoughts reflect Helen Hughes’ book Lands of Shame, where she outlines how leftist Aboriginal policies created welfare dependency and the other spate of problems now facing Aboriginal communities. Hughes writes:
Communal land ownership and the consequent absence of private housing, communal health services, indigenous education and ”customary law” support for assailants against their weak victims have led to the stultification and degradation of traditional culture so that it has not moved from sorcery to the rule of reason, from polygamy to the equality of women with men and from ”pay-back” to the rule of law. Welfare dependence has led to widespread alcoholism and violence, particularly against women and children.
Is anything likely to change under Rudd? Remember, he’s “…an old-fashioned Christian socialist.” – Kevin Rudd, Australian Financial Review, February 2003.