ZEUS’S LAW

Had a radio interview today with a local community station — thirty minutes of questions and answers on Sovereign Australia policy. That was fun. It was IPL Radio in Rockingham; they reached out because they are giving every candidate thirty minutes of air time. They will send the video link in a few days and I will put it up when it arrives.

I have been hermiting for a long time — pretty much since I left Mindful Earth in 2023. At Mindful it was talking all day long with all sorts of people. I was in my element. So when I left and went out into the wide world, I found it cold and isolating.

In four years of travelling I found that Australians have stopped talking to strangers. Often not even acknowledging each other. Eye contact is rare. COVID played a part, and so, I think, have the meth epidemic, the mental health crisis and homelessness on the streets. People have stopped taking the small risk of talking to their fellow countrymen. It was a shock, honestly. The g’day mate, how ya going has gone. Coming from a farm where there was kind acceptance and an openness to share, it took a while to adjust.

I had to learn new ways to connect with strangers. Canberra was the worst of the lot — I put that down to government secrecy and public servants who are not encouraged to mix with outsiders. Anyway, it became a lesson in being alone and turning inwards.

I did get better at breaking the ice, and it is an important skill now, because most people are simply out of practice — a bit scared, a bit uncomfortable, so it is easier to ignore each other. Break the ice and people open up. I reckon ninety-nine per cent of people want to connect with other humans. They have just forgotten how.

Building unity in this society means fixing that. People have to feel safe — which means cleaning up the streets, dealing with violence, and finding real solutions for the mentally ill, the drug addicted and the homeless. Then we need to teach ourselves how to say g’day again.

There is an old idea worth remembering here. The Greeks called it xenia — Zeus’s law: you welcome the stranger into your home, because you do not know who they are or what they may bring. The stories are honest about the risk too, and what happens when a guest abuses the welcome. That custom still holds in older societies — Turkish, Iranian, and plenty of others. In the West the stranger is now assumed to be a threat. We were once followers of Zeus’s law as well. Watch how much of that change came from films and from fear-based news running all day long.

Did you know Australia was the hitchhiking capital of the world in the seventies? Travellers came here to hitch around the country. My mother hitchhiked from Victoria to Darwin with her girlfriend when she was sixteen. Look how that has changed.

We need to change it back — bring back the trust, and the harmony, and unite this nation again.

A side note. In four years of travel, exactly one stranger offered me a room for the night. I had all but given up on Zeus’s law when, not a month ago, a legend in Tumut offered me a bed. I was so surprised I nearly said no — did not want to put him out — but I said yes, because it was an honour.

Anyway. Back to the by-election. If anyone has media contacts, or ideas for getting the Sovereign Australia message out, they are much appreciated.