Comments on: NT Intervention a lemon: 28 medical specialists give their diagnosis

By: Sean

Sean — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

As I said, ignorant, patronising, and pseudo-paternalistic colonialism to boot. I have ample evidence of what I have stated, having completed a major in anthropology in Australia, focusing on such peoples. Time for Avocado to have a long hard think about things and find some counter-evidence, and JamesK to stop falling for and parroting right wing discourses emanating from dubious vested interests — unless, of course, he stands to profit from the outcomes himself in a direct monetary sense. Time also to compare the rates of ‘abuse’ that JamesK is so worried about with the rates in white communities.

By: Marion Wilson

Marion Wilson — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

Social and economic disadvantage affects health throughout life. Few family assets, poor education, a dead-end job, insecure employment, living in poor housing and trying to bring up a family in difficult circumstances have cumulative effects on health. The greater the physiological wear and tear people suffer the less likely they are to enjoy a healthy old age. Welfare policies not only need to provide safety nets but also provide additional support to offset earlier disadvantage. Positive action to enable all citizens to play a useful role in the social, economic and cultural life of their society is cost effective - people would be be healthier, have greater self-esteem, would live longer, would be more productive and innovative and would commit less crime. Allowing people to fall into disadvantage is not economically sound business management.

By: dermot mcguire

dermot mcguire — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

peter throwing money into duplicating services is not 'fixing problems'. As to cu;lturalvalues that has enormous amount to do with kids health. If you do not engage with your population whoever they are you cannot treat them effectively.

By: Brenda Rawlins

Brenda Rawlins — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

There always have to be raging lefties. It would absolutely kill you to admit that Mal Brough’s intervention did any good at all. I lived in Alice Springs for two years and worked at the local court. what I saw was horrific.
Good luck w ith Mr Sheen at the helm. I am sure he will undo all Mal Brough’s good work.

By: JamesK

JamesK — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

They won’t and should not be “left alone” whilst child sex, physical and emotional abuse persists on truly extraordinary scale. Those policies patently failed generations of abused children Sean.

Grow up you twit!

By: JamesK

JamesK — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

Depending on the ‘political correctness’ of the tertiary institution from which you are ‘majoring’ Sean you may even obtain an honours despite views as frankly stupid and dangerous as yours……

By: peter cavanagh

peter cavanagh — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

the system was in complete failure before intervention so knocking attempts to fix problems is particularly silly
problems caused by 30 years of do gooders, what have cultural values got to do with kids health

By: JamesK

JamesK — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

Very nice comment from Marion Wilson. Much more substantive than the 'apple pie is good' cry. The NTER has been largely effective and remember it is still early days...it is still an 'emergency response'.

There is a new Aboriginal leadership who want their peoples out out of victim hood. Spending money in the past has been all too often not only counterproductive but damaging.

Long term improvement in the Aboriginal health care statistics was not the primary focus of the NTER.

Sadly to certain groups 'maintaining the rage' against all things perceived by them to have originated from John Howard is more important than outcomes

By: Avocado

Avocado — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

Sean has well & truly exposed his ignorance of the matters about which he is claimimg authorative knowledge.
“Many indigenous people still lead a simple subsistence lifestyle approximating pre-settlement conditions” he says.

If he has any evidence to support this contention, I would be very surprised. In fact there is very unlikely to be any group of Indigenous people living that way, and the number of individuals doing so is extremely small. Just about every Indigenous individual has been caught up in the cash/welfare economy & lifestyle.

By: Sean

Sean — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

It is not a question of ‘victimhood’. It is a question of the terms of co-existence. To represent indigenous peoples as some sort of inner client state of a benevolent white invading force who ‘know better’ is insulting and disrespects a fundamental right to be left alone, or with minimal intervention and on their terms. Many indigenous people still lead a simple subsistence lifestyle approximating pre-settlement conditions. To claim ‘victimhood’ status for all indigenous peoples or to fail to respect their long-standing pattern of settlement and culture is, for want of a better word, simply ignorant and patronising.

By: Sean

Sean — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

I thought the NTER was just a thinly veiled pretext to claw back land rights and disposses indigenous peoples from areas rich in minerals like uranium or useful for dumping the world’s nuclear waste?

By: dermot

dermot — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

what good work? The staffer who lied? the duplication of services? I aint a leftie