User:Grace-obrien

Land Is Wealth

According to Webster’s English Language Dictionary the word ‘wealth’ means “An abundance of valuable material possessions or resources ; also regarded as riches.” Land, an important resource, has many beneficial uses such as cropping, raising livestock, building and also extending urban areas, It is also a good source of income ( for example buying and selling land.) Many communities in developing countries use land as a source of income and survival. However, sometimes when only a small amount of land is owned it is not enough to support a community or a family. The expenses of land, crop and livestock maintenance are often more than what the average farmer earns by selling his produce or livestock. Due to the expansion of urban towns, suburbs and cities there are now many conflicts between new rural residents and farmers. The residents who are new to the rural areas and atmospheres fail to understand the farming modus operandi and regularities. Many of the new residents are not accustomed to the odours, dust and loud noises that are components of the everyday farming practice. Farmers often have to justify their way of living. As said earlier, farming is a significant part of many lives in numerous developing countries. The livestock and crops grown and raised on the land owned can either be sold to make a small profit or it can be used as food to feed the community or family. Thus, the percentage of poverty is minimised. As well as being used for farming, land has other uses as well. Crown land is the general term for all land owned and controlled by the State Government. Crown land is never privately owned and remains in public ownership. However, native title land is somewhat different. Native title rights and interests are not rights established by Government such as constitutional land rights of the kind found in the Aboriginal Land Rights ( Northern Territory, Australia) Act 1976. Native title rights may exist over land and water areas to the degree that they are unswerving with other rights recognised by law or executive action. The Commonwealth Native Title Act 1993 established a structure for the safeguard of native title. The Australian Government notices native title eligibility where: The privileges and interests are owned under traditional laws and customs that persist to be acknowledged and observed by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders By culture and customs, the indigenous peoples have a connection with the land or waters.

In Fiji, there is an organisation called the Native Land Trust Board (NLTB). The board was established in 1940 under the Native Land Trust Act. The primary role of the NLTB is to administer native title land for the advantage of the indigenous landowner. The NLTB ensures that land and other natural resources are used and managed in a sensible and sustainable way. The Board must also ensure that unique and vital characteristics of the Fijians natural and cultural tradition are set aside and defended for the advantage of the future generations. In total, native land makes up 84% of the total landmass in Fiji. That’s 1 487 581 million hectares. The NLTB currently has 28 700 leases covering 387 075 hectares with a prospective income of about $20 million. Sir Arthur Richards (Lord Milverton), one of Fiji’s wisest colonial Governors suggested to Ratu Sukuna to produce the Native Land Trust Board but it was Ratu Sukuna himself who ‘ planted the seed, nourished it and gave the resulting plant sturdy growth and permanent form.’ Until the Board was established, the Fijian landowners, mataqali by mataqali, negotiated the leasing of the land they chose to make accessible. Most of the time though, the amount of land owned by each mataqali was only of a small amount, therefore meaning there was no chance of any major development. In 1933 Ratu Sukuna informed the Great Council of Chiefs: “ We regard the Indian desire for more permanent tenancy as a natural and legitimate consequence of an agricultural community settling in any country. But how was this desire to be reconciled with the need to protect the interests of the present and future Fijian landowners?” The scheme was perfect, it was unique, creative and practical .There was only one difficulty. The idea of asking landowners to surrender the control of their land to the organisation was so absurd that it would take a lot of explanation and understanding before being allowed. Ratu Sukuna himself took the liberty to visit every village chief and carefully explain the function of the NLTB and how it could benefit every village. He didn’t utilise radio broadcasts or advertisements but instead he went to every mataqali in person to seek their acceptance. Ratu Sukuna went from village to village, council to council carefully and patiently clarified the details and purposes of the scheme. After letting the idea ferment, he returned once again to answer more questions and again clearly explained the scheme. Eventually, acceptance grew. However, there were some who were still in doubt. After a long and serious discussion, the scheme was approved and began taking shape. Overall, the expression ‘Land is Wealth’ has numerous meanings. To many people, land is an essential element of survival. Land is a place to grow food and raise livestock. To others, land is a place to build, a place to extend, a place where businesses can be started. In some cases, land can even be a symbol of social status. The expression means different things to different people. Is land really wealth? Or is it just a fragment of the many valuable resources we have access to? Land, like the ocean, can be a source of wealth and endurance. But wealth is not only owning precious material possessions or having unlimited access to essential resources, but having the ethic to use the material possessions and to use the resources. Like Ratu Sukuna, those who work hard using what they have, can establish something that will benefit not only themselves, but other people as well. Those who wisely use their resources will then discover what ‘Land is Wealth’ means to them.

Grace O’Brien

Australian Proverbs/ Sayings. Grace O’Brien

People all over the world use aversive psychology. The term ‘ aversive psychology’ is simply a mind trick whereby people over-represent irrelevant aspects that permit to confirm an image they have of themselves. For example, an overweight person may stroll into an ice-cream parlour and order a large chocolate sundae, which would contain a large amount of sugar and fat, but then order a ‘non-dairy creamer’ in their coffee to state that they are trying to lose weight. People use aversive psychology when shaping their self-conception of their standard of freedom, racial acceptance, and conformity to religious beliefs.

In Australia, there is a broad suspicion of aversive psychology. Possibly, this in an inheritance from the colonial era when Christians used it when they performed inhumane acts such as whipping, killing or over-working convicts whilst preaching to the Bible. Thus, the proverb/saying “ The bigger the hat, the smaller the property,” was adapted and used by convicts and convict families. This proverb basically means the bigger the punishment, the smaller the crime. Nowadays, this saying would be classified as an incorrect use of words, however, in the earlier days ( such as the early years of European settlement in Australia ) many people used this style of language on a daily basis. “The bigger the hat -….” in simpler terms would also have been said as “The severe punishment is the cost -……”. “the smaller the property,” would have also been said as “ of the smallest property.” Therefore, these two parts form a new version of the original proverb- “ The severe penalty is the cost of the smallest property.” However, this version of the original proverb-“The bigger the hat, the smaller the property.”  was very rarely used as it was complicated to understand.

Aversive psychology is the base of many Australian proverbs. An Australian proverb which is widely used today, would have been based on events or words of someone influential etc that happened/ had been said in the convict/colonial days. For instance, the proverb “ It’s like the axe that’s had two new blades and three new handles but otherwise it’s just as it was when grandfather bought it,” was a line from a verse in an old folk song which was sung in colonial days. However, it became a very popular saying and eventually, a popular Australian proverb. Folk songs are also another common base for many Australian proverbs. Folk songs were originally sung by convicts who were sent to Australia from England, Ireland and other places in Europe. These people were already heirs to an extensive tradition of folk music. Nonetheless, some people found it hard to adapt to Australian colonial life, and being deprived of comforting gin-palaces and various entertainers. Without these recreational places, people were inclined to sing in their old traditional way. Such singing of traditional songs and rebel ballads would result in being hanged or ‘flogged’ However, people still continued to sing, despite the risk of very severe punishments. Of course, as time went by, many lines from these songs were said as proverbs and eventually became internationally known.

“It’s like the axe that’s had two new blades and three new handles but otherwise it’s just as it was when grandfather bought it,” - this primarily means that no matter how many changes something or someone undergoes, they are still the same person/thing as they were when they were born/made. For example, a woman may change her hair colour three times and get her ears pierced, but aside from that, she is the same person she has always been. Changing her hair colour and getting her ears pierced only affects her appearance, but not her personality or the way she thinks.

This is where aversive psychology comes in. This woman may be changing her appearance just for the sake of it, or to be accepted by a group of people, or perhaps, she may be wanting to change her lifestyle or herself. This proverb- “It’s like the axe that’s had two new blades and three new handles but otherwise it’s just as it was when grandfather bought it,” perfectly explains that you can change your or something’s appearance, but you cannot change its mind or personality.

So, this means that basically, aversive psychology, music, words of people and events or certain eras etc are what influence proverbs. Proverbs mean a lot more than they appear to say, but only those who are willing to look and read carefully while truly discover what these proverbs really mean.