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Showing posts from 2011

Reflecting on a previous post about Pearson's analysis of Obama

Recently I had the privilege of meeting the US President Barack Obama.  This made me reflect on a previous post from 2008 which I've copied below... Post of 15 May 2008: Noel Pearson’s essay in the Monthly offers an intriguing analysis of Steele’s insight into contemporary race relations in America. There are several compelling paragraphs that refer to responsibility, opportunity, and how uplift occurs in dominant-minority populations. After reading the essay I was disappointed at what I saw as deficiencies in Pearson’s core argument. Pearson argues that Obama has not pursued strongly enough the radical centre that integrates core notions (or a contemporary understanding) of responsibility. Pearson contends that Obama should ‘radically revise’ his account of such issues at the Democratic National Convention in August. Obama is being misrepresented. My observations are that he has pursued the radical centre by offering a style of politics that is untested a

Statehood, the constitutional convention and regions

The Centralian Advocate printed this letter to the editor: If the Australian constitution is to acknowledge Aboriginal people as the first Australians then this will likely be a symbolic gesture. Symbols and acknowledgements can be important; it can lift peoples’ hopes. Going beyond symbolism will be very difficult because changing the Australian constitution requires broad bi-partisan support from across political parties. This support exists now, and only to the point of acknowledging the ‘first Australians’, but there is still a long way to go. Putting the Australian constitution aside, what is more important to us is Statehood because we have the opportunity to design a completely new constitution. We start with a blank canvass. A planned convention in late 2011 intends to involve delegates from across the Territory to do exactly this. What a number of us on Town Council have said, and what we are calling for others to support, is for the new constitution to actively prote

The politics of a blanket youth curfew

The post over the fold offers my views of the politics of a youth curfew for Alice Springs.  These views start before the debate resurfaced and positioned itself as one of the most controversial for the town in 2011.  That my observations were predictions of actual events which occurred is not surprising but adds to my disenchantment with the nature of politics and the media cycle (which is a debate in itself).