encouraging things (if not cat pictures)
A small tale of hope c/o an Australian author and her daughter: Four Years#WhatIReallyWant: A little cheesy, and somewhat ironic given the election, but I find it...oddly uplifting. There are women and minorities in countries that have far less than women and minorities the west, and yet they're willing to fight for what they want, if it takes
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We don't have a wall, but we are surrounded by an ocean. It means people don't get here easily, but when they do, they're generally reasonably easy to round up (you're not easily going to survive washed up on a beach, and there are patrols). Our governments of the last 10 years - even the Labor govt - have approved and used "the Pacific Solution" which is basically to lock away 'boat people' - arrivals by boat - away on a small Pacific island nation called Nauru. The abuse there is pretty damn awful, and the government has been similarly awful - to the point where they're threatening to prosecute doctors and/or reporters who talk about what goes on in there.
I'll be honest; conservative rule is not pretty. But our parliament is differently structured - there is no executive branch as you have it, and our PM is part of the Lower House, while the Senate actually passes the laws. And our Senate is pretty evenly balanced at present - 30 seats to the Coalition (Liberal govt), 26 seats to Labor (opposition govt), and 9 to the Australian Greens, who lean very very heavily leftwards. Of course, Labor is more centrist than left these days, and the Liberals swing painfully Right And White - the party of Economic Rationalism and Market Capitalism At All Costs.
Basically, a lot more compromise is needed, and they have to be a lot more careful, because if Australians get hold of an idea, ALL of us have to turn up at the polls...
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