Everybody’s Talking At Me

But they don’t hear a word I’m saying!

As the words to this classic song suggest Australians have, through their votes, told the Parliament of Australia that we as a nation are eclectic rather than lambs.

Whether each of our votes went to the major parties or to the left or the right, it is up to the Parliament to manage our society’s wants and fears. Whilst within our populace there are accusations of racism, intolerance and lack of informed thought, the Parliament must start from the positive aspect that each of us has exercised our vote to elect who we want to the Parliament.

I remember my father commenting that Queensland had once elected the only person from the Communist Party to its Parliament.

We as a society speak of the great achievements in the first Indigenous woman and first Muslim woman being elected and then bemoan that Pauline Hanson has returned. Surely we as a nation should be able to produce a platform of tolerance to allow positive dialogue to emanate from our elected members to address our fears and needs.

The 45^th Parliament should be a place of anticipated excitement in recognising and facing the challenges which the Australian people have placed before it rather than having the numbers to merely produce the governing parties manifesto to the exclusion of all others. It has been this lack of vision in the past which, I say, has led to the current formation of this Parliament as opposed to commentators and politicians lamenting the choices we, the people, have made.

There is much debate about the factions in each major party at the present time and in particular the Coalition and its conservative elements not being heard. I feel that if our leaders are able to grasp this opportunity then our nation will truly be multi-dimensional with the one culture being tolerance for all.

You may consider this a strange blog for a lawyer to post but I believe the people of Australia want resolution just as a person seeing a lawyer wants and needs resolution.