Rupert Murdoch, Boyer Lecture
... Australia has many advantages... include being an open, democratic and multi-racial society, built on the rule of law.Bah humbug. The logic of a civic nationalism is toward its own dissolution. Demography is destiny, and diverse immigration is just a sleepwalk to segregation and ethnic conflict. Tell him he's dreamin.
... a need ... to maintain a liberal immigration system ...
Australia will be strong only if it is open to immigration. Thank goodness we are beyond where we were a few decades ago. After World War Two, we opened our doors to Southern Europe and other non-Anglo populations. And after the Vietnam War we began welcoming our neighbours in the region. In a relatively short period of time, we have buried 'White Australia', and in its place have raised a modern, diverse society.
This does not mean we are neutral or valueless. We must expect immigrants to learn our language and embrace the principles that make Australia a decent and tolerant nation. At the same time, Australia needs to recognise that immigrants bring energy, skills and enthusiasm. They often better recognise the virtues of Australian society, virtues that we are too shy or embarrassed to laud.
In my view, Australians should not worry because other people want to come to our country. The day to worry is when immigrants are no longer attracted to our shores. We should be a beacon to all. To our region in particular, we should be a living, happy, civil and contesting democracy that is a model for the emerging democracies around us.
Posts
1 comment:
Murdoch's speech is outrageous in the way it belittles what it means to be human. He treats us as "human capital" waiting to be liberated fully as workers in a global market. All of society is to be organised around this role of being an atomised, individual agent in a global market.
It's an impoverished philosophy based on the most narrow concept of human purposes.
Post a Comment