Dinosaurs and Ostriches
If we want the ‘young’ to be involved in our world, we’ve got to get with the program a bit.
I’m 52. Almost 53. And whilst I look in the mirror and sometimes think ‘Geez, what happened? Where did that freckly faced kid with the big mop of hair and the fire in his eyes go?’ I’d like to think I’m not a dinosaur. I’m trying hard to keep up with modern stuff, stay adaptable, flexible and open to change, as well as (trying to) thinking about a bigger picture when I can. I firmly believe that combining a healthy dose of old school with an open mind is the way forward for our broken world.
Like nearly all of us, I’ve dabbled in the world of online shopping. That means giving your credit card details via computer or phone, hoping that measures in place will protect both my identity and my bank account. Touch wood, touch wood, I’m good so far. From my rugby tips, to buying Elton tickets, through to paying the bills, the online world in which we live isn’t going away. That’s why I’m flabbergasted that in 2019 in Australia we still have to run the gauntlet of pushy people ramming how-to-vote posters down your throat, then tick a box or two in pencil via a ridiculously giant piece of paper in a cardboard booth. It beggars belief that we can’t do voting better in the land Down Under. The cynic in me would say that the voting structure we employ is a reflection of our broken political system, but I’ll stop there. Online voting is open to hackers and rorting, you say? Could it be any worse than what happened last time, when they ‘found’ another box of 1000 or so votes behind a desk that hadn’t been counted? Dinosaurs. Ostriches. Give me a break. Sort the problems, make it secure, get us voting online or we’ll lose the young people forever.
Speaking of Ostriches. I remember the ‘rope a dope’ tactic from Ali in 1974, where he let George Foreman try to beat the tripe out of him for most of the match, only to come off the ropes in the eighth round to take George down. The analogy between some of our religions and the rumble-in-the-jungle ends where Ali was on the rope. I can’t see a happy ending for some churches after recent events … are you telling me the youth of today are likely to jump on board after what they’ve seen and heard in recent times, particularly in our own nation? They’re not likely to stay on the ropes for as long as Ali did and take the hits – they’re outta there I reckon. Not sure how you sell the mission of ‘Faith’ when those T-Rex’s at the top appear to be the one’s impersonating the hooded claw.
Bravo to that young lady from Sweden, Greta Thunberg. The polar opposite of a Dinosaur. In her speech to the governments of the world rallying for action on climate change, she boldly said “you are too scared of being unpopular… we have not come here to beg world leaders to care. You have ignored us in the past and you will ignore us again. You have run out of excuses and we are running out of time. We have come here to let you know that change is coming, whether you like it or not.” She earned her day wagging school I’m thinking, and I’ve come around a bit to the idea of kids skipping a day to have a voice. Take that, Dinosaurs. Take that, Ostriches.
Oops, I’ve run out of room – I didn’t even get to talk about Egg Boy (I’m against what he did by the way) – but I’ll save that for another day.