...that's just 'un-Australian'.

I don't drink VB, I don't have a Southern Cross tattoo, I don't fly my football team's scarf out of the car window when they win a game, I don't eat Four 'n' Twenty pies, I don't get inebriated on Australia Day, words like 'G'day', 'mate', 'beaut' and 'chunder' do not feature in my day-to-day vocabulary, my friends aren't nicknamed 'Shezza', 'Kezza' 'Bazza' and 'Dazza', I don't wear thongs (flip flops) in Winter, and have never watched anything from Bay 13.

Now don't get the wrong idea, like many of you who do (or have at least done) some of those things; I still classify myself a 'Proud Aussie'. The only difference is, I believe that National Pride should mean more than just possessing a few superficial personality traits, which have apparently become the guidelines by which we seemingly define our patriotism.

Pardon me in advance for being a bit of a 'wowser', but either I was born with a genetic defect that only a minority of people my age are blessed enough to have, or Generation 'We-are-apathetic-and-drink-too-many-beers-to-care' (more commonly known as Generation Y), are more 'un-Australian' than they would like believe.

You see, to me, being a 'true blue' Aussie, is about taking pride in everything to do with Australia; in particular the things which make it such a strong player in the global market, and have earned it the well deserved reputaion of being 'the Lucky Country'. It isn't about paying attention only when an issue is likely to impact on everyday life, or having sudden outbursts of pride when the culture you have become accustomed to living by is threatened.

ItSHOULD mean taking a vested interest in the political and economic state of this magnificent country, rather than owning a V8 Holden Commodore Ute and winging about the price of petrol to fill it.
It SHOULD mean keeping up to date with the current affairs that affect everyone's lives on a daily basis, rather than having a few 'tinnies' at the pub on a Frid'y arvo while watching the footy and deliberating over whether or not Lara Bingle and Michael Clarke should 'call it quits'.
It SHOULD mean caring enough to spend ten minutes reading the paper before an election so you can make an informed decision about who you would like to see running the state / country, rather than bitching about 2am lockouts, P-Plate laws, taxes on 'Alco-pops', or the abolition of the First Home Buyers grant, when the government you didn't take the time to vote in passes a law that DIRECTLY affects your life.
It SHOULD mean getting angry over the $1000 handouts given to the deceased, those living overseas and people in jail, and holding the Government accountable, rather than boycotting a particular local pub over inflated beer prices.
It SHOULD mean forming opinions and making decisions on the things that DON'T just effect your everyday life, by having a general awareness and knowledge of what is (and may potentially be) important to it, rather than blindly following the distorted information presented to you by the media.
It SHOULD mean having more respect for the Prime Minister than the Australian Cricket Captain, and above everything, it SHOULD mean thinking about 'why' this is the lucky country, rather than just taking it for granted as being so, because if people don't start, frankly, to give a damn, we'll soon be moving in a direction that I am honestly afraid to be a part of, because I am well aware of where it is heading. Down.

Clearly, the things that I believe 'should' define a truly proud Aussie, are not what do, and the qualities that I admire in those who are brave enough to stand up for it, are not the same ones which many of the spoiled-alcoholic-angry-mob aspire to have... When did bragging about how big a hangover you had after Saturday night become a more desirable trait than knowing which portfolio Liberal Party politician Scott Morrison looks after? When did joining a Facebook group stating 'I Love Australia!' excuse having absolutely no knowledge of the political parties that run it? When did a 'Donkey Vote' become common practice among those too lazy to get a clue, and too naive to exercise the fundamental right people in some countries are still fighting to have? When did ignorance and arrogance become more socially acceptable than being humble and well educated? And lastly, how is it that in this era of ever increasing advances in technology, media and communication, where information is literally available at your fingertips, we are more disinterested than ever before, in utilising our resources to access it or making ourselves available to absorbing it?

The more I think about it, the more baffled I am, the more frustrated I get, the more I fear the future, because I believe that if we continue to move forward with this apathetic attitude towards how the country is run, it surely won't be much of one.


Not caring enough about Australia to be passionate about the things that actually affect it and make it the amazing place that it is today?




Now that's just 'un-Australian'.