An American Tragedy

The gap between America's rich and poor is accelerating (The Age, 1/9/2005), partly due to massive tax cuts for the rich and a minimum wage below the poverty line. Now we read that many of the poor in hurricane-affected areas were simply left behind to fend for themselves. US media reported whites as "finding" food in shops, while blacks were "looting". Police were diverted from search-and-rescue operations to protecting property. In the face of such institutional prejudice and an "every man for himself" ethos, I'm not surprised that there is widespread breakdown in law and order and civil society.

Is this the future for Australia that the Liberals envisage?