Kangaroos on the hop

[Gary MacLennan <g.maclennan@xxxxxxxxxx>]

An absolutely remarkable decision has just been made by the Australian
players that were due to travel to Britain for their rugby League
tour.  League is the working class breakaway game from rugby union (based
still largely on the rich private schools) that is basically played only
in  Eastern Australia and the north of England.   The players announced
that because of the dangers involved they were unwilling to risk a trip to
England.

The decision shows that the fear that the media is spreading is taking
root.  Honestly I was astonished.   I think it also reveals that there
is  kind of isolationism within the Australian working class that means
they do not want to get involved with troubles abroad.  Fundamentally it
is  an amazingly "unpatriotic" decision, certainly not the stuff of heroic
legends.

The officials of the games have been taken by surprise and they are now
desperately trying to work out a compromise. Whether they succeed or not
remains to be seen of course, but I think that the whole affair is a straw
showing us that the winds of war are not blowing that strongly for the
Australian govt in particular.  Polls show support for the Conservatives
still at high levels, but as the war goes on and the Americans and the
British continue to just bounce the rubble around Kabul, I think that this
support will ebb.  In any case it is primarily passive
support.  Australians do not want to go and play football in Britain never
mind go to Iraq or Asia to fight.


regards

Gary

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