The lure of the domestic

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  • Published 20060905
  • ISBN: 9780733319389
  • Extent: 288 pp
  • Paperback (234 x 153mm)

CONVERSATIONS ABOUT AUSTRALIAN society with visitors of a certain political stripe inevitably end at the same point. No matter their background – whether it is an Iranian pro-democracy activist or a French university student – after hearing low-level grumbling about local politics, they ask: "Where are the street protests? Why are Australians so quiet?" References to anti-Iraq War demonstrations in 2003, when up to one million Australians took to the streets, mean little as they counter: "Where are these people now?"

Media reports marking ten years of the Howard government followed a pattern. Opinion polls registered high levels of support for the Coalition – especially for its economic management and "border protection". Oversized photos of the Prime Minister, arms stretched upwards, filled the press. One newspaper asked whether Australia had become a "meaner" country. Undoubtedly, it has become less politically engaged and more compliant.

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