Let’s bring back respectful discussion

Are we being conned?

I reflect on the courage and selflessness of the volunteers fighting the disastrous bushfires, revisit the footage of the Lismore floods, where citizens risked their lives to rescue residents; some known and some total strangers.

I delight in the memory of the humour, skill and inventiveness of the podcasts produced during COVID; this stimulation kept me sane.

Yes, there were hysterical fights over toilet paper but from memory these were universally condemned as not reflecting our community way.

All of the above happened when the government failed us.

Citizens just acted, as a matter of course, in humane ways.

Somehow anger and fear have increasingly crept up on us over the past few years.

Now we accept “robust debate” which has become synonymous with slander as inevitable and “the norm”.

We never stop to question this.

The idea of discussion has evolved into debate which in turn has morphed into robust debate.

What we condemned in our parliament is becoming our everyday community behaviour.

Are we being unconsciously manipulated?

When my son was in preschool a group was discussing mothers and my son, to my shame, ventured the opinion that he had a shouty mother.

Am I now to turn my shame into a badge of honour? I don’t think so!

Our society, social media and political discourse is increasingly emulating feelings of fear, disaster and making us feel threatened with the need to shout to be heard.

This is highlighted at this moment in respect of the referendum, but it has developed over the years in relation to many issues: from the petty, like who should or should not wear a mask, to the more serious issue of climate change.

We seem to have lost our perspective.

I can’t envisage any of these issues as frightening as huddling on a beach watching fires roaring towards you and seeing no way of escape or crouching in the ceiling space of a house hoping someone would hear your knocking and rescue you before the water rose any higher.

I want us to take control and turn back to listening, respecting and disagreeing when all involved can retain dignity and respect for the self and the other.

So that when there is hysterical, aggressive behaviour we continue to say, this is not our way mate. Fair go.

It was community that modelled self-giving in floods and fire and isolation.

Can community bring back listening and dignity for each other?

Is it too late?

Have we already been conned?

Email, Sep 17
Margaret Hagan, Buff Point