Though this thread has evolved a long way from its origin, the topic has far greater importance for all of us than probably 98% of the aviation related posts on this forum. It is aviation related indirectly in that many pilots and operators have to face and wrestle with the host of issues alluded to in previous posts within both their professional and personal lives.
Anyone not having experienced Top End or outback communities would be horrified by some of the postings while those who have would have been nodding their heads in agreement. The television images of desolate, dirty, overcrowded and almost demolished communities raise levels of pity and the desire to bring about justice and equity in terms of living standards. They don’t realise that the reality of some communities is even worse.
Those who have had the pleasure of the experience have it indelibly scribed into their memory. No-one can easily forget or repress the images of a towering aboriginal man dragging his wife through the dust by her hair within spitting distance of the strip at Halls Creek, or the morning image of Broome’s litter strewn and otherwise very pretty central park or the humbugging and butt runs of aboriginal people in Darwin and Alice.
The former have a noble altruistic approach, sometimes tainted by political correctness but principally centred on the notion of giving all in this country a fair go. The latter have to deal with the sharp end of the issues on a daily, debilitating and depressing basis.
The sad thing is that neither side knows the solution - there is none. It is as unsolvable as the conflict in Iraq and as and world poverty is. To walk around major outback and Top End centres is to stroll through parallel universes. Two cultures live side by side most often with no acknowledgement or recognition of each other. It often appears as if each is invisible to the other, except for those occasions when they clash so heavily.
I’m not a black or white person. (that’s outlook not skin colour). I don’t put the majority of the blame on black or white individuals (that’s skin colour not outlook!) for either creating or perpetuating the sad state of play. Our ancestors bear that responsibility. My responsibility is to try to retain the empathy necessary to treat people with some dignity while those capable others attempt to improve the situation. Cause there but by the grace of God…..
LD