an australian hero
I wish I could say I'd have such strength in the face of $5 billion. Saying a prayer for his continued good health.
Labels: astonishing acts of selflessness, environment, world heroes
posted by BigAssBelle at 1:08 PM
11 Comments:
I now pray to any and every entity in the universe for the protection and continued excellent health of this good soul. And further request he be blessed with children to pass this legacy on to- But most of all, I pray he is successful in obtaining enduring protection of this amazing place.
Astonishing and good people are still all around us- some simply seek no recognition, unless forced to.
Many thanks Lynette, you brightened what has otherwise been a very dark day for me..
me too.
long life and peace to him... I would say he deserves good fortune but from what he has said he always enjoys that.
Sadly, and cynically, there is something in the back of mind that fears for him in the face of Corporate Greed.
Thanks for sharing... a story to restore faith in people...
Indeed that was a very bright spot - but I hope he's able to do this swiftly (and safely) ... too many bad mystery novels under the belt ...
Ditto doralong. Very well said.
All I have to say is, he better watch his back. A lot of folks would be happy to see him disappear and they have the money to make it happen.
Lovely story. Thank you.
Hi, resident cynic here.
I'm glad everyone is so supportive of this man and his assertion that the land is sacred and should not be distrubed.
But I can't help thinking that you'd all be calling him a wingnut if he announced that he wasn't selling the land because Jesus told him not to.
You are all rather accepting of a belief system that includes giant lizards with blue tongues, but should he believe in a deity that was sired through a virgin birth, then he's another crackpot to watch out for.
Lynette, you know I'm no booster for hardline Christianity, but I routinely read faith-bashing comments here and I can't help but catch a whiff of hypocrisy in all the support that is showing up.
Yes, he acknowledges that uranium is bad. But do you honestly and truly share his belief that floods and earthquakes would result from the mining? His main motivation is what many of your loyal readers deride on a regular basis.
You might argue that if all religions were as respectful of the earth as his, then we'd be doing a lot better. But don't forget that his father and grandfather were willing to sell and they were of the same faith as he is.
Make no mistake, I admire and support him, but it rankles me a little that he gains your support when others of more familiar faith do not. There are a lot of good Christian, Jewish, Muslim, etc. people fighting to take back their religions from the fanatics, but I consistently see people willing to throw the baby out with the bathwater because someone in a church calls them ugly names.
I've talked too long, but I just needed to say this.
David, I wasn't thinking of the religious part of this, only that $5 billion is a lot of $$ to turn down and it doesn't seem inconceivable that for a piece of land that's obviously profitable, it seems possible/probable that he'll end up dead. I like the fact that he's not money-motivated and is content to simply meet his basic needs. I didn't actually think about his religion and how that played into this. Maybe I need to read it again :-)
As you may or may not be aware, I am a Christian. I don't often say so these days because the taint of the Far Right Christian Wingnuts (as opposed to the simple Wingnut Right which uses the FRCW to its benefit) has reached everyone of faith and I think that's a terrible, terrible shame. Although the practice of my faith is more founded in the spiritual principles of AA, if you pin me to the wall, I'm a Missouri Synod Lutheran girl to the bone. Aside from the fact that they hate people based on biology or sexual behavior, I am most angry with the FRCWs because of the widespread perception that all people of faith are wild-eyed crazies who wish to deprive people of their human rights.
I support anyone's right to oppose religion if that's their deal. I know there are folks on JMG, who visit you, who visit here and elsewhere who are atheists. Because I can accept everyone, no matter where they are (except those who use religion as a cudgel to assault human rights), I assume everyone else is too and get a little uncomfortable when there's no distinction drawn between people who truly practice their faith and those who use it as a tool to bully others. It bothers me quite a lot that there's an entrenched opposition to all religion on the left, as if one cannot be progressive and also have faith. That bothers me a lot and I run into it everywhere. Maybe I need to be more open about my own beliefs because I'm a pretty hard core lefty. So thanks for the food for thought. I am certainly sorry if I've ever offended you directly. I know your faith is important to you, and respect that very much.
I was looking at this from an environmental basis, and the fact that greed was not the basis for this man's decision making. I think religious fanaticism has taken us down many horrid and violent roads, that being said, I came back to my faith the same way Lynette did, through recovery and AA. I do not hate on Jews, Christians, or Muslims because of their faith, or because they, like the man in the story, fight to preserve an area of land which holds religious significance to them. I do get angry when people use their religion as a means to deny me and others of basic human rights, or when the line between church and state is crossed and political agendas are pushed from the pulpit. That being said, I think there is a lot of room for criticism in this day and age, whether or not you are a person of faith. I don't quite see the need to twist this into a question of hypocrisy, when there are many other reasons to see this story as uplifting.
I am an aussie chick...currently living in NZ but people like him are rare indeed...especially aboriginals...a lot of them are out for all they can get and the bottom line is always the dollar...so kudos to this inspiring man...he knows whats important.
:) Flabuless
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