Backbencher

I was more than surprised to hear Manning Clark referred to as a Marxist, although on reflection it makes perfect sense. True, there is a sense of the struggle between classes, but I never considered Australia a socialist society, even with its universal healthcare. This is probably why I was eager to agree with Dr. Whitfield's assessment that Aussies were just as capitalistic and materialistic as Americans (good thing? bad thing? I don't know).

A short history was promised and was delivered, touching on major points in history that have (apparently) been misinterpreted or over-emphasized. The origins of consumerism begin when the continent was still a penal colony with an open gaol (I like the Aussie spelling). Instead of governmental control, everyone - including the higher-ups - strove for a self-sufficient economy, which would enrich both colony and motherland. The first of the middle class values were drilled in, shifting the family from shiftless single mothers to happy married families on a giant farm.

The Federation of the Australian providences reminds me of the US Articles of Confederation, in that states' rights were more important than national administration. It is also funny how the reality became what the founding fathers feared. Yet again, every one gained because of the economic reasons that led to this union.

Finally, the post-WWII era again mirrors the US at the time. It might be the fact that American pop culture was invading the island with their surfboards and Elvis music. There was also the fact that the world survived yet another great war and the depression was over, so people had money to burn. People bought cars and homes, which became status symbols. It also prepared them for 'responsible citizenship.' In the end, the mate-ship egalitarianism that is evident in Aussie society is the result of middle class values rather than socialist in nature.

*Dr. Whitfield is a professor at Charles Sturt University in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia.

- Krista Hellman