{"id":94279,"date":"2023-10-29T05:00:07","date_gmt":"2023-10-28T18:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/goldenplains\/?p=94279"},"modified":"2023-10-26T00:34:41","modified_gmt":"2023-10-25T13:34:41","slug":"from-the-desk-of-roland-rocchiccioli-29-october","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/goldenplains\/news\/from-the-desk-of-roland-rocchiccioli-29-october\/","title":{"rendered":"From the desk of Roland Rocchiccioli \u2013 29 October"},"content":{"rendered":"

It was epiphanic! A commonplace comment of such profundity, I saw the reality, with clarity. I have no-one in my life to whom I matter!<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

THAT is not meant to be highfalutin; nor is it meant to garner your sympathy.<\/p>\n

It is, frankly, the truth; the reality of my life – and millions of other people.<\/p>\n

I live alone – except for Moggy, the cat. She was dumped, clapped her eyes on me, and moved in. I am not certain she even likes me, but that is irrelevant. We have an amicable arrangement – a mutual need. Moggy has won Cattslotto!<\/p>\n

Like many, I come from a dysfunctional family. I have no relatives with whom I maintain a close contact. I have two living sisters, neither of whom has any interest in a familial attachment with me, or each other, as it happens. The feeling is mutual. I understand their choice. Simply because they are consanguineal, it does not follow, ipso facto, they are people with whom you would choose to establish a close bond; or spend a deal of time. Life is too short to waste it with people whom you hold in scant regard.<\/p>\n

The word friend should be used more sparingly. It is applied, frivolously, to the most casual of associations, and has no real foundation. I refer to many as \u2018familiars\u2019; they are those whom I know, and with whom I share a particular familiarity. Meetings with them are always enjoyable, but do not necessarily precipitate a \u2018front-of-mind\u2019 connection. We are tribal by nature, and they represent the important ebb-and-flow – the flotsam and jetsam of humanity which modulates our lives, and controls our perspective on the world. They are essential, but they are not friends!<\/p>\n

Conversely, friends are those about whom one cares, deeply, and are those to whom one can turn in a time of crisis. I am most fortunate in numbering about half-a-dozen. Regrettably, several have fallen by the wayside over the years – one after 58 years. It was sad; it was done; the moment had passed. It is like fairy dust: it disappears at the touch of human hands.<\/p>\n

Collectively, we talk much in Australia of being a multicultural society; an international beacon of tolerance and affability.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Given the erstwhile \u2018populate or perish\u2019 immigration program, there are those who would disagree, vehemently; the argument being there is only one culture, and given our diaspora, we are, more correctly, a multiethnic population. The difference is subtle, but important.<\/p>\n

In the aftermath of the 1999 Australia republic referendum, there was philosophical debate of a divided nation: one part was cosmopolitan, confident, and progressive; the other, provincial, apprehensive, and increasingly conservative.<\/p>\n

A quarter-of-a-century later, the result of the 2023 voice referendum would suggest the divide has not healed; arguably, it has become more adversely marked. We have become less tolerant, and more hard-hearted.<\/p>\n

While Crocodile Dundee and Neighbours is the face we present to the world, it is, in essence, a ruse; a Panglossian fabrication to make us feel good about ourselves. While we are quick to take the more high-ground, and prone to talking-the-talk, we do not always walk-the-walk. We are a complex nation of contradictions.<\/p>\n

Scratch the dark underbelly and you discover an unpalatable groundswell of white supremacy; bigotry; overt and reverse racism; insularity, and isolationism. We are unwelcoming and judgemental. Worst of all, we are incapable of embracing the thorny aspects of white-settlement history.<\/p>\n

We need, all of us, to take a long, hard look!<\/p>\n

Roland can be heard with Brett MacDonald on 3BA on Mondays at 10.45am and can be contacted via roland@rolandroc.com<\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It was epiphanic! A commonplace comment of such profundity, I saw the reality, with clarity. I have no-one in my life to whom I matter!   THAT is not meant to be highfalutin; nor is it meant to garner your sympathy. It is, frankly, the truth; the reality of my life – and millions of […]<\/p>\n

Read More…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":148,"featured_media":94280,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-94279","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nFrom the desk of Roland Rocchiccioli \u2013 29 October - Golden Plains Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/goldenplains\/news\/from-the-desk-of-roland-rocchiccioli-29-october\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"From the desk of Roland Rocchiccioli \u2013 29 October - Golden Plains Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"It was epiphanic! 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