Each morning at work, I check the various versions of Google News in English and French. It's a great way for me to stay abreast on things going on in the world that American media doesn't deem sexy enough to cover and keep up with my French. Google News Australia has been abuzz lately due to Prime Minister John Howard banning alcohol and pornography from Aboriginal reservations to curb pedophilia among Aborigines. He honestly believes that this will work, but he's got a lot of critics. Even if I didn't feel the prime minister is a racist butt-munch, I'd still side with the critics. Here's why.

It reeks of paternalism
This plan treats Indigenous Australians as if they can't handle the issues in their communities, and it's White Australia's duty to help them since they can't help themselves. Indigenous Australians have a lot of issues do deal with such as drug abuse, alcoholism, crime, etc. All these issues result from disenfranchisement and marginalization in mainstream (i.e., White) Australian society. The best way to address these issues is through inclusion to mainstream society and reconciliation for past events.

It's opportunistic
Prime Minister Howard is up for reelection this year, and due to his support of the Iraq war, and the Bush administration, among other things, he is behind in the polls to his main opponent Kevin Rudd. So, what's a quick way to drum up support? Show that you're "taking action" to support a group of citizens you didn't give a crap about for the 10 years you've been in office. You get extra brownie points if it's an issue that community leaders have been telling you about for the past 5 years.

It's already in place
For most Aboriginal reserves, the bans on alcohol and pornography have been in place for at least 20 years. They've curbed alcohol abuse, but not pedophilia. Aboriginal leaders have said that the government's ban will have an effect only if it's enforced in areas where Aborigines and Whites live together; otherwise, it's not gonna change what's been happening for the past 20 years.