Sunday Territorian

Folau follies a sad case for our times

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I ’M not sure about you, but I’m batting around three out of eight on Izzy Folau’s handy checklist of who is and isn’t going to hell.

If anything, his list pulled up a bit short, as I suspect that we tabloid journalist­s have our own wing in hell, even though we didn’t specifical­ly make Folau’s cut.

Whatever the case, it will be great to catch up in the hereafter with old newspaper buddies from the Evening Star Hotel. The Folau case is a case for our times in that it has flushed out the thunderers and poseurs who love nothing more than puffing out their own chests and running down their enemies in the social media space. If ever a story demanded a hashtag it’s this one, with the Christians and conservati­ves saying it’s all about #free speech and the progressiv­es and pollyannas that it’s a simple case of #loveislove and why can’t we all just get along.

My view is that Israel Folau is a well-meaning and deeply unintellig­ent person who has landed himself in a pickle of his own creation.

In the same way that a dentist would probably lose his job ON KEZIA PURICK WANTING TO CASTRATE MATT CANAVAN

She’s been in politics too long. You can tell — they start making comments that a normal person would get held accountabl­e for. Imagine the outcry if he said that to her!!! Rosanne

You have to love Kezia! A straight-talking politician at last. Christophe­r Territory Politics = All Class. NOT! Ingrid That’s the best we can get as if, rather than just concentrat­ing on the cavities, he used his consults to tell his patients that they were going to burn in hell if they lay down with another man, Folau would have had no trouble if he stuck to his day job of chucking a ball around and remained civil on social media, keeping whatever views he has about who’s burning in hell for the appropriat­e setting of his church, where he would our elected representa­tives. What “Swill”. David ON THE SEVENTH ANNUAL MUFF

If you jump off the jetty at Mandorah during this event is it “MUFF diving?” Mark Scott ON JOB AND COURSE CUTS AT CDU

This will greatly affect smalltown kids coming out of high school who have no choice but to go to CDU because of lack of money to travel and live interstate. I was one of those kids years ago, and the list of things offered by CDU then was pretty small. By cutting it further, this isn’t doing any Territory students’ have faced no sanction.

Like all the football codes, rugby pitches itself as a family sport and, being a sport, a vehicle for fun and escapism.

It can do without one of its biggest stars using his celebrity as a bully pulpit to list the various categories of human that are destined for eternal hellfire.

The sponsors who put millions into the code also have the right to query whether such mad conduct is what they’re after in a return-on-investment sense in signing on to back the sport.

Of course, Folau’s interpreta­tion of Christiani­ty is that it is his job, or calling, to spread his interpreta­tion of the Gospel far and wide.

I know he keeps getting accused of being a hateful person, but I don’t think he is hateful at all. Weirdly, I reckon he regards himself as a loving person, one who loves homosexual­s, drunks, atheists, liars, adulterers and fornicator­s so much that wants to warn them off their current path to save them a fiery fate.

But in terms of hatefulnes­s, one of the more hateful things we have seen of late in Australia is the determinat­ion of so many progressiv­es to go after Folau’s wife, Maria, and even drive her out of her own game, netball, as a censorious punishment for her apparent complicity in her husband’s collateral views.

Bizarrely, the worst offenders on this front have come from the big end of town in corporate Australia, with the ANZ bank (proud owners of a “pink tick” for LGBTIQ awareness) coming out and having a crack at the Silver Ferns vicecaptai­n for her “support” of her husband. The Health Insurance company HCF followed suit, with a spokesman saying, “we appreciate the complexiti­es of the Folau matfuture any good. Sarah Hay

That is just terrible! This Govt certainly has killed this our beautiful Darwin. They say things are improving this year? Well you have your answer right here in this post. I really think Darwin is in a recession. More jobs lost. Such a shame its got to this. Christine Habel

I live in Darwin but study my Bachelor of Law through Charles Sturt University. Looking to move south at the end of the year. Recommend not to study at CDU because you won’t get any work after you graduate. Nardene Murphy

Big mistake transferri­ng courses to Sydney campus. They already have access to a number of universiti­es. Darwin students, on the other hand, do not! Nic Ankidz

Hold on, didn’t the government come out and say that there will be an additional 10,000 students in the next few years? Rob Smart

No surprise at all ... it is getting hard to find a job in here. Yang Chiung-Ju

Disappoint­ing, education is our guaranteed way forward (I look at what happened to rural-remote education after a former Government closed rural TAFE annexes). Stephen McGreevy

No wonder people are going interstate and unis, and for work, RIP Darwin. Jude Lane

Kids leaving Territory for Uni are less likely to come back. Julie Phelps

This is disgusting. The government should ensure these cuts don’t happen to keep people in the Territory! Lauren Chapman

We already have to source interstate training for our skills shortage areas at my work. CDU are a waste of time. Jamie Lewis

 ??  ?? Israel Folau and his wife Maria – an example of hatefulnes­s is how so many have turned on netballer Maria who has never uttered even similar opinions to those of her husband
Israel Folau and his wife Maria – an example of hatefulnes­s is how so many have turned on netballer Maria who has never uttered even similar opinions to those of her husband
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