Is it right wing extremist to say "close the borders " and "Australia First"? A young and intelligent man I know and love, who prides himself on being a centrist, has suggested to me that these phrases are somehow worthy of his contempt. But I wonder, what is so contemptuous about those 5 words?
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When I read his email, I took a deep breath and felt surprise, shock and disappointment, all in the space of about 1 second. Maybe less. I thought about it. 5 words, 2 phrases and both apparently not nice. So I decided to write something that would hopefully convince him that I am not a right wing extremist, do not differ from him in so many respects and, most importantly, I may support closed borders, but I do also support open minds.I also support family first. I somehow suspect that he focussed on these two phrases for some reason and that reason is one and same. Security.Two phrases that are so offensive to him and many others are all about security. I am not talking about that new version of "security "that seems to suggest secret agents and James Bond like actions that seek to expose our every action and word to the "Thought Police "but that lovely word security which means being held safely in our Mother's arms when we were children; the snuggly warm and fuzzy feeling we get when we are in familiar places and enjoy familiar smells, sights and kindred spirits.We feel secure and as such feel safe.As an adult, I still want to feel secure and safe and, whilst my expectation of these things is not met by my mothers embrace - it is still met by familiarity of my environment and the knowledge that I can close the curtains at night, lock the doors and gates and relax and kick back within my home.I wonder how this young man would react if someone came and removed his front door and windows? Are windows and doors and locks and fences and gates not borders? Are they not simply outer edges? Have we no right to protect our homes on the outer edges?And surely we have the right to close the borders to our minds, our feelings and our very personal spaces?I suggest that personal borders are sacrosanct and should not be crossed or open for invasion.When someone enters therapy, they trust that therapist with the key to their mind and invite that person in. It involves an enormous leap of faith and is an incredibly brave thing to do. The trust that is imparted to the therapist is massive. That therapist has been given an open border to our mind.Would you give that key to just anyone? I suspect not. I would suggest that you would check that the therapist was worthy of that trust, that key and that honour. That privilege.So many of us only trust our immediate family. So many of us would hesitate before giving a stranger $100 if we had to borrow that $100. I personally would give a loved one a hundred dollar bill if their need was great and if I could raise or borrow the funds. But would I do it for a stranger? No I would not.Which brings me back to the 2 quotes. "close the borders " and "Australia First"Is it truly so wrong to want to stay safe and put our family first?THAT is what those 5 contemptuous words really mean.No more, no less.Have we the right to feel safe within our own minds? Yes.Have we the right to feel safe within our own homes? Yes.But have we the right to stay safe in our country? Therein lies the rub. Not according to our Politicians and our left leaning fellow citizens.I stand firmly behind the 5 words and, truth be known, all Australians do if they are honest with themselves.And the final word to Roy Beck.What do you think?
