Racial tension sparks Sydney riots
12 December 2005

SYDNEY: Racial tension erupted into violence on a Sydney beach on Sunday when around 5000 people, some yelling racist chants, attacked youths of a Middle Eastern background, saying they were defending their stretch of beach.

It is one thing to be resistant to political correctness, but quite another to resort to this!
Cool it, Aussies, this is not how its done.

Apparently there was an attack on two lifeguards last week, and the assailants were reported to be Lebanese. There was a brawl, there was alcohol, there was attitude and a festering anger not far beneath it.

Sydney’s Islamic community blamed the violence at Cronulla Beach on “racist and irresponsible” sections of the media which turned a common youth issue into an issue of ethnicity.

“Innocent people have been bashed as a result of this simmering racial hatred,” said Kaysar Trad, president of the Islamic Friendship Association of Australia.

Unfortunately, I have no knowledge of what those “racist and irresponsible” sections of the media actually said, and it is too hard to make any sound judgement without all the facts. One also has to be aware of political spin, and maybe the placement of blame by the Islamic community is cunningly designed but not helpful either. The victims are victims, no doubt about that, but to what extent and in exactly what ways they are also the victims of much wider political motives is a most interesting issue for debate.

On a personal level, it is one thing to make a stand for patriotism, but quite another to resort to this kind of violence.
And yet I wonder, just maybe, if there is some element of prophecy in what has happened.

After Sydney not wanting to offend other cultures by putting up Christmas lights, and after hearing that the state of South Australia changed its opinion and let a Muslim woman have her photograph on her driver’s licence with her face covered, the following editorial written by an Australian citizen was published in an Australian newspaper.

Immigrants, NOT AUSTRALIANS, must adapt.
Take it or leave it. I am tired of this nation worrying about whether we are offending some individual or their culture. Since the terrorist attacks on Bali, we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority of Australians.

However, the dust from the attacks had barely settled when the “politically correct” crowd began complaining about the possibility that our patriotism was offending others.

I am not against immigration, nor do I hold a grudge against anyone who is seeking a better life by coming to Australia.

However, there are a few things that those who have recently come to our country, and apparently some born here, need to understand.

This idea of Australia being a multicultural community has served only to dilute our sovereignty and our national identity. As Australians, we have our own culture, our own society, our own language and our own lifestyle.

This culture has been developed over two centuries of struggles, trials and victories by millions of men and women who have sought freedom.

We speak ENGLISH, not Spanish, Lebanese, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Russian or any other language. Therefore, if you wish to become part of our society, learn the langauge!

“In God We Trust” is our National Motto. This is not some Christian right wing political slogan. We adopted this motto because Christian men and women, on Christian principles, founded this nation, and this is clearly documented. It is certainly appropriate to display it on the walls of our schools. If God offends you, then I suggest you consider another part of the world as your new home. Because God is part of our culture.

If the Southern Cross offends you, or you don’t like “A Fair Go”, then you should seriously consider a move to another part of this planet.

We are happy with our culture and have no desire to change. And we really don’t care how you did things where you came from.

This is OUR COUNTRY, OUR LAND, and OUR LIFESTYLE, and we will allow you every opportunity to enjoy all this.

But once you are done complaining, whining, and griping about OUR FLAG, OUR PLEDGE, OUR NATIONAL MOTTO, or OUR WAY OF LIFE, I highly encourage you to take advantage of one other great Australian freedom… THE RIGHT TO LEAVE.

If you aren’t happy here then LEAVE.
We didn’t force you to come here. You asked to come here.
So accept our country that YOU accepted.
Pretty easy really, when you think about it.

Those Aussies… they call a spade, a spade.

Locked doors cause robbers.

But on this occasion, that same sentiment was voiced with an interesting and more thoughtful rationale.

The locked door is symbolic, and maybe the robber is too.
The locked door represents the way we are often closed to others, keep ourselves hidden and apart, do not share as well as we could, do not open ourselves to others and their needs, and are deceptive about ourselves. We keep too privately to ourselves and don’t live as communally as we should.
Empathy is encouraged by honest sharing of self, and with empathy comes stronger bonds of association, and the caring nature of love.
If more doors were unlocked, maybe more of the hungry would be fed - the spiritual hunger that leads to moral depravity.

The reason people steal is because they don’t have any association to us and they will never see us again. They steal from a person who means nothing to them. Hiding from each other lets compassion run low. There is little empathy among people in a society like this. The teachings of Christ just seem to kindle that feeling of empathy and the greater good. If we open our souls to each other then we will mean something to each other. If we mean something to each other then we will have no jealousy and no stealing.

I believe this second speaker does have a good point.

It is well known in psychological circles that a degree of dehumanization assists those who would harm others, and those who lack empathy are better equipped to act with criminal intent.

Baring one’s soul to the Islamic kidnapper has done very little to save the captured infidel his head. No amount of human fear and anguish on the part of the victim will interfere where the intent is driven by the perpetrator’s choice to cause grief in the name of a cause. This also demonstrates the effect of dehumanization, but it is important to note that compassion does not always result in the perpetrator from the sharing of oneself with others.

Yes to more openess with others, more honest connection, but yes also to the discretion of wisdom.

And that reminds me, someone I know has come up with a link to an interesting comment on Rudeness.
Check out this discussion as well.
It is suggested that this is an age of social autism - folk going about wired to portable entertainments that enable “limitless self-absorption”. The result is a gross lack of manners, a result of inconsiderate and antisocial attitudes. It is an age of “lazy moral relativism combined with aggressive social insolence”.

Oh dear. An example of locked doors robbing us all of real life?