Hanson’s political goals were achieved not by One Nation or its remnants, but by a smarter, more politically astute political outfit known as the Liberal Party.

If that sounds like an exaggeration, just note that the party that disowned her has now delivered on every single one of the substantive policies proposed in Hanson’s maiden speech.

ATSIC has been abolished and rights to native title have been whittled back to protect the interests of white landowners. Refugee policy has been refashioned in line with Hanson’s complaint, “If I can invite whom I want into my home, then I should have the right to have a say in who comes into my country”, the echoes of which could be heard in Howard’s Tampa election catchcry: “We decide who comes to this country and the circumstances in which they come.”

…and…

PAULINE HANSON: We’ve got to look very seriously at the people that we bring here, that they will not create social incohesion (sic) in Australia.

We can’t just bring people in clearly for the vote, as the major political parties have done. We need to make sure that there’s going to be peace and harmony in Australia, and it’s clearly not happening.

DONNA FIELD: Ms Hanson says immigration needs to be overhauled. She’s most concerned that Africans are bringing diseases into Australia, in particular AIDS.

PAULINE HANSON: We have got people coming into Australia that I don’t believe are going to give this country their loyalty, and we need to look at health issues as well.

DONNA FIELD: Ms Hanson says she knows a lot of white South Africans who have immigrated to Australia, and they’ve been subjected to medical tests. But she’s concerned the same can’t be said for black Africans.

The Immigration Department says Ms Hanson is just plain wrong, and all people entering Australia on permanent and temporary visas, or as refugees, undergo stringent health checks.

But Ms Hanson’s attack on immigrants doesn’t end there. She also wants an English requirement for newcomers because she’s concerned about “social incohesion” (sic) in Australia.

PAULINE HANSON: People should speak English, and of course they should, and that’s happening throughout many other countries throughout the world. They say that you must have an understanding of the language of that country, and that is quite feasible.

There’s no problem with that, and actually the Government is moving now to actually make sure that people do speak English when they come here.

I smell a rat.

I hope one day I will be able to come back with an insightful and interesting observation about Kim Beazley’s proposal.

Right now, I am just seething, so I will bite my tongue.

Imagine if other countries did this. Want to visit China? Better start memorising Mao’s little red book. Israel? Convert to Judaism. Argentina? Back to Catholicism. New Zealand? Start supporting the All-Blacks. Et bloody cetera.

In related news I see the Chaser had a go at enumerating Australian values. (via Crikey).

Pity a lot of the rest of the country agrees with Costello.

I think I agree with your claim, but I am not sure I understand the concern behind the claim.

One Australian may say “Don’t kill, because God said not to in the Ten Commandments.” Another might say “Don’t kill, because you wouldn’t want someone to do it to you.” Another might say “Don’t kill, because you’ll be reincarnated as a slug.” Another might say “Don’t, like, kill, man, because it gives off bad energy, dude.”

Sure, it means talk about values of “Australians” (as a whole) will remain wishy-washy. I don’t see that as a bad thing. It just means one should avoid trying to stereotype the values of Australians (or even worse, declare something to be un-Australian.)

Slightly off topic: Part of the problem with trying to explain “Australian” values is that the values are fairly deeply rooted in reformation-style Christianity.

For example, in the 1950s, when a large percentage of society attended church regularly, it was possible to argue in public that it is absolutely right to treat all men with respect, because man is made in God’s image. These days Australia’s values are not sourced from any one theology or philosphy. Many Australians would agree that we all people should be treated with respect, but it is impossible for us to agree the reason for that respect. Public talk about “values” is going to remain wishy-washy unless (or, more optimistically, until) Australia regains a common basis for those values.