The Blues

Rantsville

On September 9, 2010, in Australia, Barrow Pushing, Life, by Rosie

Three things today:

First: When will Australia find/have/procure/develop an INSPIRATIONAL leader? Will there ever be a day I’ll pop into the cardboard, collapsible polling booth and think to myself ‘this person is going to be fantastic for our country! I want him/her/it as our leader and international representative!

In a previous post, friend and grouse artist Sarah quoted her own mate about the outcome of our 2010 election: “The people of Australia have spoken… and they said… meh’ Truer words have yet to be printed anywhere in the country.

Give us someone, please!

Seconds: When will Australians stop giving so much press to our sporting stars when they are being ridiculous? When will we (as a cultured, thinking, evolved, rational nation) stop expecting elite athletes to demonstrate an advanced intellect? Sure, some do, but we seem to focus upon those who struggle.

Will we ever stop the ‘watching a train wreck’ mentality? Do we hope that a sporting star might say something inappropriate, behave in an obscene manner or be caught in an adulterous situation (again) just so we can ‘bring ‘em down’? Does it make us feel better about ourselves? OR, are we so stupid that we regard folk who are good at sport as modern day heroes, equating them with people who have given their lives on battlefields or sacrificed their time to better health, poverty, social equilibrium?

Come on, country! We are so much better than some of the fabulous people that represent us in games!

For what it’s worth, S. Rice’s statement was utterly ludicrous. However, she is young, precocious, wealthy, probably over- excitable and (perhaps) chlorine-affected. She needs to be EDUCATED in the use of expression and online socializing, she (probably) doesn’t need to be tarred and feathered in a public arena. Ian Roberts, you’ve said some important, ground-breaking things with regard to sexuality and sport in Oz, but it seems that this young person needs advice rather than a call to sponsorship arms.

Finally: Some of our school educators require fast, thorough inservicing about depression and mental illness. They need to be told that it’s not just a matter of ‘being sad’. It’s not about being ‘lazy’. It’s not about wanting to miss class, not doing homework coz it’s boring, not showing up to morning assembly because someone was ‘mean to me!’ or ‘I broke up with my girlfriend on Facebook last night.’

It’s actually about not being able to get out of bed for days at a time. Or not being able to talk because you think anything you say might cause some sort of catastrophic reaction. Or not being able to go into class for fear of germs/voices/calamity/people talking about you. Or not thinking you are ‘worth it’. Or not seeing any light at the bottom of a well filled with noise and hate and fear. Or believing that living is overrated, let alone outside factors like school!

If a kid suffered from asthma or broke her arm or ‘got leukemia’ in high school, teachers would bend over backwards to help ‘em. I know. I was a teacher for over a decade. When someone is clinically depressed, verified by a doctor and psychologist and needs help, they’re not being lazy. They’re ill. They’re not sad. They can’t ‘just get over it’.

Perhaps some teachers need to think of it in terms of ‘this kids brain is broken!’ Until we start thinking of depression as a physical illness, the road to becoming mentally well will always be rocky and strewn with people who don’t think medication is appropriate and believe the victim can haul him/herself out of the cesspit.

And please, please note — in the above rants, I refer to some teachers and some athletes. I have worked with, and know, people in both camps who understand fully and represent beautifully.

One thing about this great nation of ours is that we have the room for difference. Now we need leadership that will make us gasp with joy!