Resiliency: don't count on it

So let’s not kid ourselves. To think that there are special qualities of resilience that will save us in bad times is delusional. And bad times will come: shit always happens. We can guess at what potential disasters might come down the track, but can have no real idea of what, or when, or the scale of the challenge we may face. Any more than it could have been predicted that the self-immolation of a young Tunisian man would spark a revolt that now shakes the foundations of the Arab world.

Well, if resilience won’t do the trick, what can we do?

We could start by using our brains, and play to our strengths and our possibilities, remembering always that geography is destiny and it is the great Asian countries through and with which our future will be shaped.

We are not a smart culture but we can be one. We can make of Australia a great educational and research centre. We can build a twenty first century infrastructure to guarantee our place as the prime source for Asia of the raw materials it needs to build the dominant economies of this century. We can set up a sovereign fund built on those same exports – yes, a tax - which could be invested principally in Asia, and which would give us a huge buffer of financial strength when we need it.

Most radically, we could demand more of our politicians at the federal level, where the big decisions are made, or avoided.

More thoughtfulness, more honesty, more skills, more smarts, and more character, backbone, honour. The “debate’ at the federal level is dismally bad. Negativism. Empty slogans. Fear mongering. Lies. Pettiness. A determined avoidance of big ideas.

To do something about this swamp of mediocrity Australians will have to get off their bums, get engaged, get outraged, get organised.. Which is asking a hell of a lot from an apathetic, lazy, disengaged electorate.

Actually doing something about the system is, I suppose, asking far too much. Don’t worry, don’t bother. If things go bad someone will bail us out.

The Americans? Santa Claus? She’ll be right …won’t she?