Sotto Voice: A Post Mortem

Did misinformation and a lack of education Waleed you astray?

Were you one of those people that our paragon of virtue, national moral lodestar, the great and powerful Waleed Aly said ‘were too uneducated to vote yes?’ Did you not have the privilege of a university education and found yourself on the wrong side of history owing to your lack of media literacy and ignorance of the Socratic method? Well I hope you’re happy with yourself, you stupid racist dickhead! THE DETAILS DIDN’T MATTER, WHY DIDN’T YOU TRUST THE CELEBRITIES AND CORPORATE AUSTRALIA?!

Last week Marcia Langton said if Australians vote No, they can expect to never hear another Welcome to Country. It appears a majority of Australians found the offer too good to refuse. The people spoke, but what they said is well, contested. Now before I go on, I must admit I was wrong about something. In other pieces I wrote, I predicted it would be the most unsuccessful referendum in Australian history. I’m glad that it wasn’t and thankfully Sportsbet didn’t offer odds. But I was wrong and in order to maintain credibility, I must concede it (see how fucking easy that is?).

While it wasn’t the most unsuccessful referendum, it was undoubtedly the ugliest. It brought out the worst in many people on both sides, including those pedagogic luminaries with tertiary degrees. I really feel for the Indigenous community. It was terrible to see them divide over the issue and I can’t imagine the hurt many of them are feeling after the result (whitey’s, enough with the crocodile tears already). As I’ve written previously, what was heard is not what I think was said, but I’m just a white guy. Be that as it may, even if you voted no, in my view it is not something to celebrate. There are no winners, only losers and lessons. Having said that, we need levity right now, so let’s have brief recap of this monumental clusterfuck of public advocacy.

Premature Capitulation

In WA, the polls were still open when the Prime Minister conceded defeat. That’s gotta be some sort of record right? It’s common courtesy to let a voter finish, but as the campaign highlighted, courtesy ain’t so common these days.

The polling data tells an interesting story. Every State said No. Not even Victoria, the First Nations Non-Binary Republic of Progressivism got over the line. Despite looking like it would be the only State looking likely to vote Yes, Tasmania didn’t exorcise its Van Diemens either. The two Territories provided a snapshot of the nation, with the Northern Territory voting No, while the ACT, heavily populated with Commonwealth bureaucrats, voting Yes. Could it be they’re out of touch with mainstream Australia? Surely not.

Interestingly, despite the assertions from the No campaign, the data shows remote Indigenous communities in the WA and the NT predominately voted Yes. I would like to see Jacinta “Colonialism was Good” Price explain that.

Unsurprisingly, the two states which recorded the highest No vote were QLD and my home of WA. I remember in the 90’s when Paul Keating proposed the Native Title Act, the government of the day took a hit in the polls, mostly in WA & QLD. Two sunburnt States, so obviously you’d expect some red necks.

One suspects former WA Treasurer turned Woodside/Rio Tinto/APM board member Ben Wyatt’s clusterfuck Aboriginal cultural heritage legislation didn’t help the Yes campaign. Having said that, given Ben is on the board of Woodside/Rio/APM, some would argue that is a voice to parliament and indeed a sign of progress in this country, that an Indigenous man can engage in white collar crime¹.

While the other States all had at least one electorate which voted Yes, South Oz was having none of it. Apparently white guilt doesn’t Maralinga there.² South Oz Premier Peter Malinauskas announced he would enact a State Voice to parliament. A pragmatic approach, given that many of the issues Indigenous people need a better deal on, are the domain of State governments, not the Commonwealth.

The other unpalatable fact for the Yes campaign, is Labor heartland overwhelming voted No. Those incorrigible racists who voted in the Albanese government! The PM’s own electorate voted Yes, but there was only a handful around the country and they were all trendy inner city electorates. That’s a pretty emphatic rejection, one that cannot be explained by racism alone.

What happened to the 80% of Australians who initially supported it? Those polls were taken in March. Assuming those numbers were authentic, I suspect that was reflection of sentiment about recognition, which I reckon most people would have voted for. However, when the rubber hit the road, the Yes campaign could not articulate its position in a concise or compelling way. Nobody could explain why, if it’s just an advisory body, why it needed to be enshrined in the Constitution? It didn’t cut through.

The other failing of the Yes campaign, was the absence of a clear figurehead. I respect Noel Pearson (his eulogy of Gough Whitlam is superb) and admire the fire and fortitude of Marcia Langton. I was mightily impressed with Thomas Mayo (yes I’ve read your comments, thank you) but I didn’t know who was running the show. But at the end of the day, the cold hard truth of it is, their advocacy wasn’t that good, compared to Jacinta Price and Warren Mundine, the latter proving himself a formidable campaigner.

Stan Grant was noticeably quiet though wasn’t he?

Blue Check Your Privilege

While we are thinking of the hurt our Indigenous brothers and sisters are feeling right now, spare a thought for the celebrity class. It must be demoralising for them to know the public, cares not for their venal opinions. It’s almost as if Australians know anyone with a blue tick on Instagram can have their opinions bought and paid for.

The erudite elder statesman of Australian comedy, Rove McManus, went on Australia’s favourite cultural shit show, The Project emotively imploring Australians to vote Yes. Rove quoted his 9 year old daughter, “I can’t believe anyone would say no this”. The inference being if a 9 year old can get it, why can’t the rest of us non-tertiary educated Philistines.

Really mate? A quick perusal of the 1401 comments on his Instagram post from 14 September would have helped him check the pulse of the polity he was appealing to. It was a wilfully ignorant, condescending thing to say and such an abortion they should henceforth call his segment Rove v Wade. Speaking of condescending, if Waleed Aly thinks people who voted no are uneducated, wait until he sees the people who find Rove funny (Rove if you read this mate, please know I omitted my favourite joke about you as a sign of respect- hook me up with some of those sweet corporate gigs though and I’ll retire it).

“Why won’t they listen to us?”

Why are celebrities and the media class so unwilling to consider the views of the majority? Do they despise them? Are they afraid of catching some philosophical pestilence by even acknowledging their views? Churchill used to say “the best argument against democracy is a five minute conversation with the average voter”. No doubt that is still true, but one thing I learned *actually talking to them* is the great unwashed heathens of the working class are far more sophisticated than the milquetoast muppets in the Bunyip aristocracy and media establishment give them credit for. In fact, all the dumbest people I know, are tertiary educated. The arrogance of that class is so breathtaking I might end up on a ventilator.

The Fall Out

I’m not sure if there’s something wrong with me. The only thing I’ve taken any enjoyment from in the last few days, has been the dummy spits of the champagne socialists on social media and the predictable drivel of the commentariat. Ohhhh Lord, it’s given me a priapism. The sanctimonious bloviating of the Karen’s and Darren’s, their pearl clutching cuntery and dismay has been a thing of sheer beauty. They’re seemingly immune to self-reflection and allergic to humility. The extent of their disbelief about the outcome has got me wondering, if they live in the same country I do. Are they so insulated from the views of the majority, the loss genuinely took them by surprise? Talk about living in a bubble.

“I am just so ashamed to be an Australian today. I cannot believe this is my country. I hope you’re happy with yourselves No voters!!! Please unfriend me if you voted No. I have no tolerance for your small minded bigotry!”. Not a hint of introspection. All they can do is blame it on racism, misinformation and the far-right boogieman. Anyone but themselves.

And to be fair, racism did play a role but not to the extent they’d have you believe. But that is was there is undeniable. Attitudes and sentiments that laid dormant since the last time John Farnham was popular returned like an outbreak of herpes. At social events amongst polite society, you didn’t have to kick over too many rocks over a beer to hear things like “Oh but they get given so much. We give them free housing and they wreck it.”. I thought many of those sentiments had slipped away in the long pint of history. But they’re there and it probably naive to think they ever won’t be. If history teaches us anything, it’s that there always was and there always will be cunts.

Going forward, the standing of the Prime Minister is greatly diminished. He couldn’t prosecute the argument effectively. He should have adopted the same surgical statesmanship Paul Keating employed with opponents of the Native Title Act. The political capital he enjoyed after replacing the most corrupt and incompetent government in Australian history, has been squandered at a time when the ship of state required a good skipper like never before. It was always going to be a tough sell, especially in the absence of bipartisan support in an electorate with its mind elsewhere.

As for Peter Dutton… well, who would have thought that a former copper from QLD would unequivocally demonstrate he is a complete cunt, unfit for office (as if we didn’t already know)? He encouraged and capitalised on the racism genie John Howard let out of the bottle all those years ago. Any real leader would have stomped on it, but he did not and that will be his legacy and ultimate undoing. The Liberals can never reclaim the Teal seats and return to power while he is opposition leader. I’m looking forward to his next appearance on Annabel Crabb’s cooking show.

At the end of the day, there has never been a more shambolic campaign in Australian history. It became the virtue signalling vaudeville of public advocacy. The approach of “The details don’t matter; just trust us, the celebrities have endorsed it, what are you racist?” was never going to cut it, especially in circumstances where a section of the electorate suspected some sort of Davos inspired constitutional chicanery.

Advance Australia Where

Marcia Langton said this means “reconciliation is dead”. While I completely understand how Marcia might be feeling demoralised and angry right now, I think that is defeatist and divisive. A vast majority of Australians want better for Indigenous people. There is disagreement about how to do that, even amongst the Indigenous community. To my mind, the vote wasn’t a rejection of them as the First people of this land, a denial of their existence or whatever other batshit the cryers and liars in the “progressive” commentariat are spewing to generate clicks. It was a noble idea, poorly drafted and terribly sold. Classic Labor Party.

Once they’re done grieving, the Yes crowd can take heart from all those who volunteered and attended the marches and the fact 4 out of 10 people voted in favour. I suspect of the 6 out of 10 who voted No, 5 wanted to but were simply not persuaded either because they were suspicious of the government agenda, or they didn’t see the merit in enshrining an advisory body in the Constitution. That is a failure of the Yes campaign and nobody else. It’s also a pretty good result given how things were looking.

Anyway, the misinformation drums are beating from everywhere you’d expect. Bring on the ACMA bill. Had the referendum succeeded, I would love to know what recommendations the Voice to Parliament would have made about that..

As ugly and as farcical it was, I walked away from the polling booth Saturday thinking how privileged we are to live in a country where things are decided at the ballot box. Now I don’t want to be too romantic about it; as you know I am deeply cynical bastard. But it doesn’t happen in many parts of the world and for all its flaws, it’s something worth celebrating. I love my country. I hate the people who run it. I hate the people who own it more but at the end of the day, I cannot think of another American colony in which I’d rather live.

Anyway friends, until next time. Go gently and don’t let the bastards Waleed you astray.

1. I said that to his face. He didn’t laugh.

2. It’s a pun on South Oz nuclear testing and the Cranberries song ‘Linger’. A bit esoteric but I refuse to dumb my writing down to the point Australian comedians can understand it.