In May 2001, our family made its first fact-finding mission to Far North Queensland, Australia.  We were enchanted with the people, the land, the climate, and knew this was the right place.  We returned to the States, applied for, and were granted Permanent Resident status, but due to work commitments we were only finally able to return last year, just before our five year visas expired.  What have we discovered since our initial visit? Similarities to the United States are unfortunately much more numerous and prevalent than they were five years ago.  American companies are everywhere now:  McDonalds, KFC, Target, K-Mart, Dunkin’ Donuts, Baskin Robbins, good god, they even have Curves, and those are only the obvious ones.  Hungry Jacks is really Burger King and Big W is Walmart in thinly cloaked disguise.  As far as omnipotent megacorporations go, they have Coles and Woolworths controlling 85% of the nation’s grocery sales.  I used to think Walmart’s 15% market share was scary.  Australians pride themselves on their independence, and, at least here in the country, the majority of people are somewhat self-reliant, but the government, as led by John Howard, seems to look to the US for its lead.  Infrastructure is being privatized and industry outsourced.  China is Australia’s biggest customer hogging up mineral rights and raw materials, and Australia is one of China’s top customers purchasing loads of cheap goods much to the dismay of the people.  (We have noticed the “Australian Made” stamp on products and purchase those when we can.)  “We’ll all be wearing Chairman Mao suits pretty soon,” is only one comment we’ve heard on that topic, and one of the less vulgar ones at that.  Those were many of the things we were trying to get away from in the States.  It’s a little dismaying to see it happening here.  We also wanted to get away from nuclear power and presently the government is looking toward nuclear facilities for their future needs, again, against the preferences of the general public.   The land of the free and the home of the brave is neither, one of our numerous reasons for leaving, but you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone.  Big Brother is here, both literally and figuratively.  They have the same tacky television show, though with a twist, and Queensland boasts the highest number of video security cameras in use anywhere in the country.  There are relatively few police officers in our area and the people for the most part are law-abiding citizens, so I guess it works. Regulations are everywhere:  seatbelts must be worn in vehicles, helmets on bike rides, etc., but because the government takes responsibility for the medical care you receive from an injury flouting these precautions, it makes some sense.  I am able to accept that interference more so than in the US, where if I am injured in an accident after disregarding seatbelt or helmet laws, because we cannot afford insurance, it comes out of my own pocket, but there’s still that feeling of being controlled.  There is a lot of concern over public safety and liability.  The latest is a possible ban on take-away foods.  Your leftovers could spoil once you leave the premises, you could become sick and sue the owner of the restaurant.  People are resentful of these ridiculous protections but don’t seem concerned enough to speak out about it other than the occasional letter to the editor.  I don’t know how much legal recourse they even have.  Personal freedoms are foundational to the Australian lifestyle, or at least the image of the Australian lifestyle, but there are no constitutional rights and the Queensland government at least seems eager to steamroll the public.  Maybe that’s what it takes to run a peaceful, functioning country.  Maybe having too many rights creates too many problems. "Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety"-Benjamin Franklin

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Technically Australia is a free country, and one with a high rating on the United Nations Development Programme’s 2006 Human Development Index, but given the level of government intrusion into daily personal life here, it feels positively oppressive and hasn’t been scoring so high on my 2007 Index.  I’m thinking it may be a fair trade off to live in a country where the occasional kidnapping or machete murder occurs, a country rated down there say, around 95, where there are no zoning or health and safety or building inspectors standing over your shoulder, no police officers pulling you over for not wearing a seatbelt, no teachers rating your child’s homemade lunch on a red, yellow, or green scale.

News of the shootings at Virginia Tech spurred a conversation in my oldest daughter’s SOSE (Study of the Somethin' Erother) class about gun control. (My two older children attend public school while the youngest is still being educated at home.)  Everyone in the class except my daughter thought Americans should have their guns taken away immediately.  She briefly tried to explain - exercising her apparently only-valid-in-the-USA First Amendment right - the right of the people to keep and bear arms to classmates living in a country with no Bill of Rights or other protections defined in their foundational documents, and was quickly shouted down. 

When guns became a problem, most notably after the Port Arthur shooting in April 1996 (which was brought up in the press with an ironic bit of braggadocio as in "We still hold the record for the most dead by a single crazed gunman!") the government clamped down and took nearly everyone's guns away.  Certain classes of weapons are allowed and highly regulated but only for specific activities i.e. pest control, hunting, and target shooting; self-defense is not an authorized use.  What was that little saying about freedom and security again???In addition to the reports from Virginia, our big city paper carried a story about a large, licensed public event raided by the police and their drug-sniffing dogs that produced a score or so of arrests.  There was no probable cause, the police just decided to drop by unannounced and begin searching people.  Authorities defended their actions by explaining, "We are protecting the public from themselves."??A week earlier, our local paper announced a settlement to give more than 50% of the shire back to its native owners, the local aboriginal tribe.  The mayor was quoted as being pleased that an agreement had been reached after five years of negotiations behind closed doors.??So, let's see, there is nothing comparable to Second and Fourth Amendment rights, and nothing equivalent to Florida's Sunshine Law.  That's three big strikes.

Ignorance is bliss, at least up here in the Far North.  The newspapers are either nationwide publications focusing on sensational news from all over the country in New York Posty, hysterical tabloid style or completely local in farm bulletin fashion.  We have yet to find any in-depth business or political coverage on any serious level.  For those of us without cable, international news is limited.  Other than the night I briefly saw Condoleeza replying to some threat involving the shutting off of oil to the US if Iran is invaded, televised news reports are mostly focused on national or state goings-on.  Is the US going to invade Iran?  Did we already?  I sure won’t hear about it unless the Australian military is called in for reinforcements.  Neighbors have told us they intentionally turn a deaf ear on the news, as it doesn’t apply to their daily lives. 

It was in Neil Postman’s Amusing Ourselves to Death that I read real news is only that which directly impacts your daily existence.  The weather is a good example.  But when you are paying $3.00 per gallon, or $1.35 per liter and more for gasoline, how can you think international events don’t have any direct consequence?  Advertising seems naive and quaint compared to the States and radio stations seem stuck in the 80s, a charming time warp, and we are glad at least for these media limitations.  The media in the US is all about fear and hype, so again, maybe limiting exposure to certain news is what it takes to run a peaceful, functioning country.

People here resent those on the dole, fair enough, but don’t mind the coddling trade unions provide.  (Coming from Florida, a right-to-work state, I’ve never really understood the case for unions anyway.)  People here also resent the flow of immigrants into their country, also fair enough, but they don’t resent the dollars they provide.  My husband was skilled enough to qualify us to enter on an Independent Skilled migrant category, but has found himself insufficiently qualified or certified to actually practice his trade of twenty years (or operate a chainsaw), so we’re definitely contributing more dollars to the Australian economy than we have seen in income.

Americans are spoiled.  Everyone believes they are entitled to a giant television with six hundred channels, a sports car, and a house decorated like a movie set or trendy style magazine and furnished with every possible gadget; we call it the American Dream.  We outdo the Joneses while the Aussies make do.   Aussies are suspicious and derisive of any show of wealth.  Neighbors questioned the reason for two vehicles in our driveway.  We explained that until our old troop carrier had an adequate number of seats - it was short two - we were renting a small, four-door diesel pick-up.  They were relieved, worried we might be too “flash” for small town, country living.  That we desire high-speed internet access would probably seem flash too. 

One of Australia’s richest men, Tom Headly, recently sold his large chain of liquor stores and pubs to Coles, but kept one pub, the first he owned in his hometown, because his mom works there and she is not ready to retire just yet.  You can drop by the pub and he will likely be there.  If I hadn’t seen his picture in the paper I would have thought he was just another bloke in a bar.  Now he’s turning his attention to saving the local horse racing track which needs millions of dollars in improvements before it can host the high-stakes races again because he likes horse racing and wants to stay close to home.  Not flash at all.  Americans also take for granted that expensive appliances will work right out of the box and expect to be told up front if they are purchasing a three-year old model or given some redress if that’s not the case.  Consumer rights here aren’t a given, something we learned when we bought our flash washer and frivolous drier.  The Hills Hoist, the iconic rotary clothesline, being our neighbors’ preference. 

Any show of intellectualism would likely be frowned upon here in our neck of the woods as pretentious, but that’s just life in the country, I hope.  Other acquaintances, transplants from Melbourne educated in English boarding schools, mocked the quality of education in Australia.  A retired mining executive neighbor, says he has never had a secretary that could spell properly.  School is openly vocational in its objectives here as opposed to the hidden vocational agenda of public education in the States.

Childhood obesity was briefly mentioned in the news as an upcoming health concern, another unfortunate American trend they are following, but on the whole, Aussies are very healthy people.  And sexy.  The men here are ruggedly handsome and chiseled, even the old ones, and you’ve got to love those blue-collar guys in their short shorts and workboots; the women obviously spend quite a bit of their discretionary income on beauty products.  The majority of the people we have observed are fit and trim, the men because they are either working hard or playing rugby or footy or cricket or some other incomprehensible sport, and the women in order to lure men away from their ballgames.  The first overweight people we spied were at a suburban shopping mall, a result of too many hours at the food court living the American Dream.

Prices here are higher for electronics and dining out is a bit expensive.  Fruit and vegetables in the grocery store are unreasonably high, but there are plenty of markets and roadside stands that sell fresher local produce cheaply.  For someone used to Boar’s Head deli meats and a huge selection of available cuts, shopping at the grocery store is questionable, the butcher is a better option.  With the climate we enjoy it makes much more sense to grow your own, and most neighbors have a small veggie patch, or a couple chooks, or a couple head of cattle to supplement. 

Other goods, paper products, linens, etc, are unexceptional, functional, though not cheap.  I suppose I could locate 600 thread count all-cotton sheets in the big city, but I sure wouldn’t rest easy knowing what I paid for them.  Building supplies, however, are a steal.  High quality millwork, including elaborate wood louvers and custom doors, plumbing, lighting fixtures, steel, and concrete are so inexpensive you want to run right out and build a house.  And you could fill it easily enough with low cost Asian wood furnishings. 

For all my ranting and complaining I have to say the people are, almost without exception, delightful.  Helpful, friendly, inclusive, outgoing, real. True blue, as they say.  We have made some great friends.  Their submission to the government, though?  They need to work on that.  I can only speculate that the original convicts and all the many support service personnel sent over from England initially were accustomed to a very harsh, rigid society and this deference to government domination stuck.  And also maybe that newer immigrants have arrived from countries with more dictatorial laws and consider this relaxed.??A new acquaintance, who has since become a good friend, no doubt in part to his spot-on powers of observation, had a real sparkle in his eye when he greeted us with, "Ah! Rebels, are ya?!" instead of using the more common term "Yanks." We were quite pleased. 

Is it better here?  We feel safer, if you count living in a house that doesn’t even have a lock on the door, but not if you count being surrounded by venomous snakes, poisonous bugs, deadly marine life, and dangerous plants.  Life is simpler.  Population density is low.  There is enormous natural beauty.  For all that we are truly appreciative.

Will we stay here forever?  I don’t know.  It works for a great escape, but I don’t believe we’ve found our ultimate destination.  Like some Americans love to tell newcomers, and these Australians have said: Our country, love it or leave it.  Or like it or lump it.  Or something.  And we're considering that advice.  Because raising our daughters under the thumb of Big Brother or in the care of Mary Poppins who micromanages every aspect of your life and perpetrates the lie that you are living in a free country and spouts all kind of nonsense about equality and a fair go when clearly indigenous people are governed by an entirely different set of rules is nearly intolerable.  But try explaining those concerns to your older daughters who aren’t too terribly worried when they have good friends they can hang out with eight hours a day and take cool classes their mom wouldn't teach them at home, like Japanese and graphics and engineering, and come out at the top of their classes without really even trying, and go horseback riding or swimming in the creek after school; that being enough freedom for them, life and the pursuit of happiness taking top priority.  Our biggest job while we remain here will be to continually remind the girls of their hardy rebel stock and the responsibilities it carries.  So we stay.  For now.
 

Everything You Need to Know About Immigrating to Australia - Do you feel frustrated, confused . . . even overwhelmed when you think about all the questions you have about immigrating to Australia . . . and the monumental task you face trying to find answers? Don´t worry. I did, too, when my wife and I immigrated to Australia in 2001. I couldn´t believe it when I heard that the Immigration Department might want to see romantic letters or emails that I wrote to my wife when we were dating. Or that they could ask to see wedding photos . . . review our joint financial statements . . . or even demand statutory declarations from family members vouching for our genuine love for each other.And I´m a native of Australia!  So if a citizen, born and bred Down Under, can be confused by the immigration rules . . . I can just imagine how daunting the migration process must seem to you right now. That's why I'm writing.  Now there´s a way for you to get the answers you need . . . quickly, easily and without spending a fortune on international phone calls and high-price immigration lawyers.