Hugh Mackay Quotes

» I'm in total sympathy with Dick Smith's sentiments; I only wish there were grounds for saying we Australians would never tolerate such appalling treatment of refugees being carried out in our name.

» I wish we didn't have to own up to a policy deliberately designed to inflict suffering on people who have already been traumatised in the countries from which they've fled.

» It's Australian to do such things because, however uncivilised they may seem, it's human to do them.

» Actually, I can't imagine anything more tedious than a perfect person, especially if it was someone who also demanded perfection from me.

» I suspect the secret of personal attraction is locked up in our unique imperfections, flaws and frailties.

» Nothing is perfect. Life is messy. Relationships are complex. Outcomes are uncertain. People are irrational.

» A strangely reflective, even melancholy day. Is that because, unlike our cousins in the northern hemisphere, Easter is not associated with the energy and vitality of spring but with the more subdued spirit of autumn?

» Indeed, in the present climate of mistrust of institutions, many people who yearn for a more meaningful and fulfilling life would regard the church as an unlikely place to go for guidance.

» Despite the availability of cheap and effective contraception, it looks as if we are not as careful in our decisions about reproduction as all the talk of family planning might suggest.

» But the rule seems to be that the bigger and more life-changing the decision, the less it will seem like a decision at all.

» One reason we resist making deliberate choices is that choice equals change and most of us, feeling the world is unpredictable enough, try to minimise the trauma of change in our personal lives.

» Although we love the idea of choice - our culture almost worships it - we seek refuge in the familiar and the comfortable.

» Recounting their histories, people often sound like interested bystanders to their own lives.

» Perhaps it's the people whose lives have taken sudden new twists - people who have learned to embrace the creative possibilities of change - who stand the best chance of penetrating life's mysteries.

» No one welcomes chaos, but why crave stability and predictability?

» But many researchers operate as if it is their responsibility to demonstrate that video violence has a direct effect on the behaviour of young children, because that will help to explain why society is becoming more violent.

» So, if falling crime rates coincide with the rise of violent video games and increasing violence on TV and at the cinema, should we conclude that media violence is causing the drop in crime rates?

» The copycat effects of media violence, similar to those previously attributed to westerns, radio serials and comic books, are easy to exaggerate.

» Still, most of those effects occur in the context of harmless play and it is patently obvious that children are not normally turned into aggressive little monsters by TV or video games, since most children do not become aggressive little monsters.

» Frankly, I'm more worried about the violence we do to ourselves and our children by allowing the media to create an expectation of instant gratification.

» Even more worrying is the violence we do to our personal relationships when we let media consume time we might otherwise spend with each other.

» On average, Australians watch more than three hours of television a day, compared with 12 minutes a day spent by the average couple talking to each other.

» Some researchers sensibly suggest that rather than worrying too much about which programs our children are watching, we should concentrate on trying to reduce the total amount of time they spend in front of the screen.

» The underlying message of the Lancet article is that if you want to understand aggressive behaviour in children, look to the social and emotional environment in which they are growing up, and the values they bring to the viewing experience.

» Is it possible that literacy standards are falling because young Australians are growing up in a culture in which they can be entertained and informed, and in which they can communicate effectively, without having to master any but the most rudimentary literacy skills?

» Reading is a huge effort for many people, a bore for others, and, believe it or not, many people prefer watching TV.

» Obviously, every child should be given the best possible opportunity to acquire literacy skills.

» Parents should be encouraged to read to their children, and teachers should be equipped with all available techniques for teaching literacy, so the varying needs and capacities of individual kids can be taken into account.

» Far more people have enjoyed Jane Austen's work on television than will ever read her books.

» Universal literacy was a 20th-century goal. Before then, reading and writing were skills largely confined to a small, highly educated class of professional people.

» The question is, will we continue to fight what may be a rearguard action to defend universal literacy as a central goal of our education system, or are we bold enough to see what's actually happening to our culture?

» It seems inevitable that the magic of the written word will fade.

Who Said It?

Who Said: "It is my fondest wish that the gift of song that God has given me will flow from my soul to yours and help ease any burden that might weigh upon you." Click To See

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"I am not the archetypal leading man. This is mainly for one reason: as you may have noticed, I have no hair." - Patrick Stewart

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