30 September, 2023
Dear Reader,
Every nation cherishes an image of itself. We are often told that ours was formed on the beaches of Gallipoli, but long before the Australian union the people of the Australian colonies came to self-awareness. Few were proud of the ‘convict stain’, but almost all stressed our independent spirit, our impudent mockery of authority, our strength and toughness in the face of adversity. The much-loved poet Henry Lawson, in his 1888 piece Andy’s gone with cattle, asked: when Andy’s gone away over the Queensland border, who’s left behind now to ‘cheek the squatter?’ That nicely sums up the spirit of an age when most people barracked for the underdog – including even outlawed bushrangers. Our other great poet Banjo Paterson, Lawson’s rival for popular acclaim, met ‘Breaker’ Morant and didn’t like him much as a man (he does seem to have had a brutal streak) but being shot by a British court martial made him a hero in the eyes of many. Bruce Beresford’s 1980 movie is worth watching. Squatters of course had their own self-image as ‘rural toffs’ and ‘bunyip aristocrats’, but such pretensions cut little ice with average working people.
When the states finally agreed to form a federation they drew many of their constitutional ideas from the United States and chose to call their new union a Commonwealth, which is actually a very respectable English translation of the Latin term res publica. That choice reveals that there was a tension even then, as there still is, between our nation as a monarchy and as a republic. The term ‘crowned republic’ is an apt one to describe the unique Australian political compromise. To borrow from Frank Sinatra, we did it our way.
But Covid seems to have done what no other calamity succeeded in doing. It affected the psyche of the nation. Clive James reportedly claimed that Australia’s problem, post-Covid, is not that there are too many descendants of convicts, but too many of the offspring of their gaolers and prison officers!
The words disinformation and misinformation have been around for many years, but have recently risen to prominence as the Australian parliament debates a bill which would ban false or misleading information in the media.
The two terms are not interchangeable. The proposed law defines Misinformation as ‘online content that is false, misleading, or deceptive’. Such information may not actually be intended to deceive, but could be deemed to have harmful consequences. Disinformation, however, is the more serious of the two – it is misinformation deliberately intended to deceive.
It simply beggars belief that the loudest demands for the suppression of so-called disinformation and misinformation seem to come from the biggest offenders against truth and integrity, who ran with the official Covid line from the beginning and worked hard to silence those who questioned the narrative. People were sacked for refusing the vaccine. They were not respected as conscientious objectors should be in a civil society, but denounced and gloated over – ‘serves them right’ was the cry of far too many of us.
It was a spectacularly nasty couple of years. From the beginning of 2020 there was no shortage internationally of responsible medical practitioners and researchers who questioned some of the measures adopted by governments to combat Covid. But they were effectively kept in the shadows. The so-called social media were transformed into tools of oppression. On Facebook opinions that ran counter to received wisdom were abruptly taken down. Wikipedia likewise practised a kind of informational cleansing, adulterating any entries that appeared to contradict the accepted narrative.
It now seems clear, at last, that the large pharmaceutical companies played fast and loose with the truth, connived at silencing opposition, suppressed research that questioned the effectiveness of vaccines, and persuaded (to put it most tactfully) government bodies from the WHO downwards to buy the drugs and enforce some of the toughest regulations and restrictions on human liberty ever experienced in peacetime.
And all for what? Covid took lives, of course, but apparently no more in those countries that refused to impose lockdowns than in those that did. It was a nasty illness, but the miseries inflicted by isolating or deferring the treatment of those who were sick and dying from other causes, and by driving so many small businesses into bankruptcy, were in the final analysis even greater.
In many ways the performance of the mainstream media was even more heinous than all the others combined. Those that are funded by the people (such as our ABC) have a moral duty to report facts without interpretation. Of course, there is a place for commentary and opinion in the media – but not at the news desk!
The government has now launched an enquiry into our national responses to Covid. That would be good and heartening news, if it weren’t for the fact that the performance of the states is to be excluded from the terms of reference. Yet state governments were the prime offenders! It was they that mandated masks outdoors while walking, playing or even driving tractors, restricted travel across borders or even between suburbs, and imposed quite irrational minimum distance rules. All these things were absurd beyond imagining. Did they really happen? Was it just a bad dream? How could we have so far departed from our traditional Australian larrikinism as to submit quietly to such nonsense, and even to thank our governments for ‘looking after us’? Here was the nanny-state in full flower.
‘THE VOICE’ – ONGOING DISCUSSIONS
The referendum is rapidly approaching. The Prime Minister tells us that ‘Every major business in Australia is supporting the YES campaign. Woolworths, Coles, Telstra, BHP, Rio Tinto, the Business Council of Australia, the Catholic Church, the Imams Council, the Australian Football League, the National Rugby League, Rugby Australia and Netball Australia are all supporting the YES campaign.’
This looks like bad news for those who intend to vote against the proposed amendment to the Constitution, for it means that the most discussion available to the general public, not just from corporations such as those listed above, but also from the public broadcasters, is strongly pro-Voice.
Here, then, in the interest of balance, are two pieces that present different aspects of the NO case:
1. Cometh the Hour, Cometh the Woman, focuses on Senator Jacinta Price and was written by Prof Ramesh Thakur.
2. This second article is by Philip Crisp, for many years a technology and intellectual property lawyer, and the author and editor of So You Want to be a Leader, Melbourne, 2015. Philip’s article offers one of the best explanations we’ve seen for the enthusiasm that big corporations show for ‘woke’ causes – it’s bread and butter for company boards to achieve high scores on diversity, equity and inclusion indices.
Finally, a comment by British journalist and former MP Matthew Parris: ‘Mr Albanese looks like setting back the cause his referendum was called to advance. He will leave all sides feeling more raw than when he took it up. Though conceived with good intentions, this has been a serious error of judgement; and, were I Australian, I’d feel angrier about the calling of this referendum than about any possible result.’
With best wishes to all,
David Daintree
IN THE NEWS
TALK BY DR RALPH MARTIN
On 12 September we hosted a very moving lecture entitled ‘Living as Catholics in Challenging Times’ by Dr Ralph Martin, a world-renowned Catholic Apologist. His talk has been uploaded to our YouTube channel.
Here is a list of Dr Martin’s books:
A Church in Crisis: Pathways Forward
The Fulfillment of All Desire: A Guidebook for the Journey to God Based on the Wisdom of the Saints
THE SOUND OF SILENCE – HYPOCRISY OVER CHILD ABUSE
This short article is worth reading in full. It clearly demonstrates that grave offences are overlooked, if not condoned, when their perpetrators have the correct political pedigree, and concludes: ‘The normalisation of paedophilia as a “sexuality” is just around the corner. We must fight tooth and nail to prevent that corner being turned.’ The piece examines controversies around Peter Wilby and Peter Tatchell.
RECOVERING LOST GROUND IN EDUCATION
This event in Adelaide on 4 October featuring addresses by Kevin Donnelly and Bella d’Abrera has already been heavily booked. Looks exciting: ‘Australia’s four-decade long experiment with the education of its children is on the cusp of ending. And not before time…’
‘THE ETON OF AFRICA’
In response to our piece on Malawi’s Kamuzu College, one of our readers submitted the following anecdote:
‘My grandfather, Martin Southwood, was an Oxford graduate who went to Malawi in the early 1960s to take up the position of Headmaster at Blantyre Secondary School – an all-African school funded by the British Government. He loved the Classics, having majored in Latin and Greek at school before going on to read Old English at Balliol College in the 1940s with JRR Tolkien as his professor. I am sure he would have passed on some of his love of the Classics to his African colleagues and pupils. Growing up, I remember him talking about Banda. Whenever I hear about the ‘evils’ of western colonialism, I remember my grandfather who gave African boys some of the best education that the West can offer.‘
‘TEACHING HISTORY CLASSICALLY’
The Australian Classical Education Society is running a two-hour online seminar on this topic on Saturday 7 October. The course is led by Mark Signorelli, Headmaster of Lumen Gentium Academy in the US, and wise commentator on matters relating to the western tradition. For more information, and to book, visit here. Participant numbers are limited to 30.
THE CASE FOR LATIN – OH WAIT, CAN THERE BE ONE?
Quadrant has been kind enough to re-publish an article by the Director, The Case for Latin. He asserts: ‘I am adamant that Latin is still the best second language to teach to people whose first language is English.’ Readers who are curious about that claim might like to consider enrolling in our annual Latin summer school! (Details below)
MATHILDE MAGAZINE
We’re happy to promote this exciting (and very beautiful) publication, but sorry to report that the fourth issue, just released, has already sold out! Its wide-ranging discussions gently address important topics — from the healing power of art, to the censorship of children’s literature; from the need to value every life to the hidden messages contained in fashion choices across the ages — Mathilde is always a feast for the eyes, designed to inspire and soothe the soul. Visit https://www.mathildemagazine.com/store to secure your copy of Issue 5, on the theme of ‘intelligence’. For the writers out there, pitch submissions are now open for our upcoming issue.
PLAYING AND PRAYING
Whether through the influence of TV or films, or for some other reason, some children have never learned how to play – they are simple ‘literalists’. But, says the writer of this intriguing piece, ‘the games of children are not silly or full of nonsense. They are probably the most serious activities undertaken by human beings. For in their games, children are searching for the deeper pattern and learning to walk in unseen paths.’ Play is ritual, even sacramental. Is it possible that those who have never learned to play cannot fully understand the impulse to worship?
COMING EVENTS
HOBART TUES 12 OCTOBER – 6.00 PM
PROF JOHN HALDANE
‘Catholic Education and the Common Good’
Hope and Anchor Tavern
Macquarie Street, Hobart.
Talk and Dinner $45 per person
CHESTERTON CONFERENCE, 21 OCTOBER
Sydney readers might enjoy this annual event at Campion College on Saturday 21 October. It is run by the Australian Chesterton Society. The theme this year is Chesterton and the Rise of a Counter-Culture. You can book here.
SUMMER SCHOOLS JANUARY 2024
We shall be running three summer schools again in early 2024. They are listed below. At this stage we invite expressions of interest from those keen to participate.
SUMMER SCHOOL ON WESTERN CULTURE 2024
Monday 8 to Friday 12 January 2024 inclusive
Hobart – venue to be finalised
The Dawson Centre was founded to advance the notion that the Christian Faith and the intellectual tradition that grew up with it are essential components of our civilisation, not optional extras, but core elements in the very fabric of the culture. Christopher Dawson maintained that a true human culture cannot exist at all without a religious component, and the Christian religion is inherent in and inseparable from our Western culture.
What are some of the great and distinctive achievements of the West?
We are offering this course for the third time as a sort of a ‘taster’, a broad and sweeping view of the terrain and some of its principal landmarks. It cannot claim to be any more than a sketch of the panorama, but we hope it will meet a need and inspire participants to delve further into our fascinating and rich heritage.
SUMMER SCHOOL – LATE AND ECCLESIASTICAL LATIN
Monday 15 to Friday 19 January 2024
at Notre Dame Priory, Colebrook, Tasmania
The Latin school assumes some prior knowledge of the language and leads participants through a selection of important readings in poetry and prose, sacred and secular, from authors such as Augustine, Jerome, Bede, Peter Abelard, Aquinas, the Carmina Burana, and even Dante. In date our selections range from the poet Virgil to the abdication speech of Pope Benedict! Accommodation may be available on request at Bethany House in the Priory grounds.
SUMMER SCHOOL – BIBLICAL GREEK FOR BEGINNERS
Monday 22 to Friday 26 January 2024
at The Emmanuel Centre, 123 Abbott Street, Newstead, Launceston
The New Testament and Koine Greek school is for beginners who want to experience the excitement of reading parts of the Bible in the original language. We shall read extracts from the Gospel and Epistles, as well as some important passages from the Septuagint (the ancient Greek version of the Old Testament), as well as some pieces from the early Fathers of the Church and the Liturgy of St John Chrysostom. Accommodation at the Centre is available on request. We are trialling the Emmanuel Centre for the first time – it sounds ideal. We would appreciate expressions of interest at this time.