Father John Dobson is not only regional dean of the Catholic Church on the Coast but also the Chancellor of the University of the Sunshine Coast. The well educated priest challenges us all to be slow to condemn and more tolerant of others’ viewpoints.

Election result evidence of the Aussie altruist

December 9 | Father John Dobson

“The evil that men do lives after them while the good is often interred with their bones, so let it be with Caesar!”

So spoke Mark Antony at Julius Caesar's funeral, according to Shakespeare.

For many people it will be applied to former prime minister John Howard.

It seems to me that many people, some from within the former government, will soon blame him for all of their electoral woes and problems.

Never before has a long-standing government with an acknowledged track record of good national economic management been dismissed from office so decisively.

So, it seems, the lesson is that no longer can a government stand solely on its economic record.

For the first time in human history we are living in a “global village” where we can not relate to the rest of the world as “them” and “us”.

We must now realise that we live in close proximity to people everywhere. The world is akin to a village.

We can no longer regard the rest of the world, and the earth itself, as a remote inanimate means for our own prosperity.

We must relate with equality, respect and care.

The crass selfishness demonstrated by the sub prime housing fiasco in the United States is an example of the destructiveness that is no longer possible in the global village.

It is this very selfishness on a global scale that produces the poverty and prejudice that is the root of terrorism and violence.

At this point the violence and destruction can only escalate to the cost of all.

I believe the recent federal election is a watershed point in Australian political history.

It does show evidence that the Australian electorate is taking into account global issues in their political thinking and is moving beyond the “what's in it for me?” and “I’m alright, Jack” attitude to a national economy.

If this is true, and I believe that it is, then it is a clarion call for us to widen and deepen our vision beyond our own national boundaries and see the whole world as being part of a global village and not simply differences to be afraid of or, worse still, used for our own prosperity.