Why is the population of Australia so low.

[Scozzie]

You appear to be suggesting that Aborigines are more Australian than those whose families arrived from Europe during the past 150 years or so.

 

Do you consider yourself to be less British than somebody whose ancestors have lived in the UK for 1000 years?

 

223 years - please people, get it right.

 

Australia claims lots of people as their own.

Naomi Watts - English

Olivia Newton John - English

John Farnham - Essex

Mel Gibson - New York

Russel Crowe - New Zealand

Sam Neill -Ireland

Nicole Kidman - Hawaii

Bee Gees - Isle of Man

Bon Scott - Scotland

Jimmy Barnes - Scotland

Julia Gillard - Wales

 

We even adopted Tom Cruise and Claire Danes...... for a while.

 

Pieter van den Hoogenband and Alexander Popov who were swimmers - were made honorary Aussies - just because everyone liked them so much.

 

Most pople are considered Aussies if they are in school or pay taxes.

[Bluelight]

Our immigration policy is very similar to the Australian one, based on a points system.

 

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/policyandlaw/immigrationlaw/immigrationrules/part6a/

 

The difference being Austrailia have been vetting people as far back as the sixies when I myself was thinking of going out there to live. If you did'nt have a sponser and job waiting for you, end of story you did'nt get in. Vetting in this is relatively new to this country and no where as strict as Austrailia.

[boyfriday]

But you went on to say:

 

 

Surely, Australians are Australians if they have Australian nationality - irrespective of how many generations of their forebears have lived in the country?

Absolutely, but the point I was making was you appeared to be appending ownership to Australia to the people who implemented what you believe to be a strict and successful immigration policy-the law makers in Australia are largely the offspring of (relatively) recently arrived European immigrants-that's why I quoted the timeline. I was intending to highlight the irony in that statement, that's all.

Should those British people whose families have lived in the country since William the Conqueror (or earlier) have a greater say in policy than those British people whose families immigrated more recently?

No, and I wasn't saying that.

You appear to be suggesting that Aborigines are more Australian than those whose families arrived from Europe during the past 150 years or so.

Well that wasn't my intention, I was reversing your logic, in that the then natives of Australia didn't vote or elect a government that allowed in immigrants yet they arrived nonetheless and contributed to making Australia the country it is today.

Do you consider yourself to be less British than somebody whose ancestors have lived in the UK for 1000 years?

Not at all, and by the same taken I dont regard European Australians any less Australian than the native ones.

[boyfriday]

The difference being Austrailia have been vetting people as far back as the sixies when I myself was thinking of going out there to live. If you did'nt have a sponser and job waiting for you, end of story you did'nt get in. Vetting in this is relatively new to this country and no where as strict as Austrailia.

 

I quite agree, historically immigration policy in Australia has been onerous and racist, it was only in 1973 that the 'White Australia Policies' were rescinded, whereby immigration applications had to be viewed equally, irrespective of someone's colour. As I've said previously there's a delicious irony in an immigration policy conceived by a group of people who colonised a nation where it's previous inhabitants were non white.

 

A further irony is that their restrictive immigration policy may well have hampered the development of the country, as people were being selected not on the basis of their skills or talent but on the colour of their skin. Australia is still crying out for skilled tradespeople and professionals.

 

There are many non whites who came to this country and made significant positive differences, who may well have chosen Australia had they been allowed to do so-Australia's loss as they say.

[Scozzie]

I quite agree, historically immigration policy in Australia has been onerous and racist, it was only in 1973 that the 'White Australia Policies' were rescinded, whereby immigration applications had to be viewed equally, irrespective of someone's colour. As I've said previously there's a delicious irony in an immigration policy conceived by a group of people who colonised a nation where it's previous inhabitants were non white.

 

A further irony is that their restrictive immigration policy may well have hampered the development of the country, as people were being selected not on the basis of their skills or talent but on the colour of their skin. Australia is still crying out for skilled tradespeople and professionals.

 

There are many non whites who came to this country and made significant positive differences, who may well have chosen Australia had they been allowed to do so-Australia's loss as they say.

 

Thats right, they abolished the 'WAP' because of all the refugees coming over from SE Asia to escape the war/communism, Khmer Rouge etc.

 

People flooded in and some were living is really cramped conditions.

There were several families living in 2 bedroom flats.

 

Where I lived in Melbourne, we got a LOT of refugees. Most couldn't speak English, so it was up to the community to help them. There were just so many of them.

They were supposed to go to 'English School' before they started in regular schools, but there weren't enough, so they'd come to regular school while they waited for the ESA to have room.

 

It was tough enough in Primary school without having to teach the kid next to you what they were supposed to be doing. Sometimes we had 2 'buddies'.

 

When I got to grade 6, 70% of my school was 'non-caucasion' and of those 70%, 80% were not fluent in English.

 

Of the other 30% - only 5% were born in Australia. the rest were Greek, Italian, Yugoslav and Polish.

 

We had 1 Aboriginal and he was a thief. But we weren't allowed to say anything when our stuff wen't missing because 'he cant help it, it is in his culture'

 

Anyhoo, needless to say, I can go into just about any restaurant in the world and order a meal by its actual name.....and know what it is that I'm ordering.

[boyfriday]

Thats right, they abolished the 'WAP' because of all the refugees coming over from SE Asia to escape the war/communism, Khmer Rouge etc.

 

People flooded in and some were living is really cramped conditions.

There were several families living in 2 bedroom flats.

 

Where I lived in Melbourne, we got a LOT of refugees. Most couldn't speak English, so it was up to the community to help them. There were just so many of them.

They were supposed to go to 'English School' before they started in regular schools, but there weren't enough, so they'd come to regular school while they waited for the ESA to have room.

 

It was tough enough in Primary school without having to teach the kid next to you what they were supposed to be doing. Sometimes we had 2 'buddies'.

 

When I got to grade 6, 70% of my school was 'non-caucasion' and of those 70%, 80% were not fluent in English.

 

Of the other 30% - only 5% were born in Australia. the rest were Greek, Italian, Yugoslav and Polish.

 

We had 1 Aboriginal and he was a thief. But we weren't allowed to say anything when our stuff wen't missing because 'he cant help it, it is in his culture'

 

Anyhoo, needless to say, I can go into just about any restaurant in the world and order a meal by its actual name.....and know what it is that I'm ordering.

 

Quite some experiences there Scozzie. Australia isn't a straightforward place either in terms of colonialism, the indigenous people, the settlers or the politics generally. Unlike South Africa they've managed to avoid the excesses of extremism (from both sides), and created a society that is relatively egalitarian despite the obvious difficulties, that's why I'd not be so critical of Europeans who chose to settle there (good for them) unlike those who went to South Africa. One of my closest friends is the offspring of English settlers to Australia in the 60's and he demonstrates all the finest qualities of these people.

[Rich]

Australian women are FIT! Even some of the older ones! I'm looking at Lyn Scully off Neighbours