Brekky Scraps: Zero steps forward.. 10 steps back
“If children are being ‘socially engineered’ to be more accepting and tolerant of others – in my opinion that’s a good thing”
Look at the calendar. Yep, it’s 2016. Sometimes it’s kinda hard to reconcile that with some of the stuff that’s been happening lately. I think we are going backwards in a lot of ways. And I don’t mean backwards as in landline or house phones will become useful or even trendy soon.. I mean backwards politically and culturally. Australia used to be a country that was the envy of the world, and it still is in some ways.. but we’re kind of fluffing it up.
This weekend marks the 38th Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade. A truly special time in the city and a real highlight on the social calendar. Sydney has been described as the gayest city in the world.. and yet Australia is one of the few Western countries remaining to legalise marriage equality. It’s such a wonderful contradiction. ‘Here come and celebrate who you really are, who you really love. Let’s have a parade! BUT DON’T YOU MARRY THAT PERSON. How dare you think you can spend the rest of the life with that person! Marriage is between a man and a woman! EXCLUSIVELY. Please keep parading‘. I’m yet to meet someone to convince me it’s a bad idea. I only just got married myself a few months ago and would want anyone to experience the happiness and completeness of that act. I fail to see how it would affect my union at all. But hey – that’s just me. Last week saw an official recognition and apology to the 78ers.. whose lives were destroyed when their names, occupations and other details were splashed across the front page of a newspaper. Long overdue.. but will we see an apology of a similar nature once marriage equality inevitably comes through?
Yes we do like to paint ourselves as a tolerant society.. but is that the reality? The Safe Schools saga continues to roll on. With accusations of a ‘homosexual agenda’, ‘social engineering’ and my personal favourite ‘grooming work that a sexual predator might undertake‘ coming from the likes of elected officials. They are implying that schools around the country are ‘programming’ people to be gay. Seriously what year is it? 1955? 1985? Have they even read the program? Here’s a summary. Growing up is hard. It’s especially hard if you don’t fit the norm.. if you don’t like girls and you’re a boy or if you don’t like boys and your a girl. It’s the norm because it’s everywhere. In films, tv shows, ads. It’s kinda like we’re programmed to like the opposite sex.
Suicide is the biggest killer of young people. It’s an issue that already isn’t talked about enough.. but questioning and removing a program that supports and encourages young people to be who they are without judgement seems like a fairly important service. If children are being ‘socially engineered’ to be more accepting and tolerant of others – in my opinion that’s a good thing. Sounds like some of these old white men should have been socially engineered a lot more when they were growing up.
So Australia I’d really like us to keep moving forward.. not backward.
You can hear Mitch Monday to Friday 6am-9am
@meetchbeeyat
