Indeed, in the present climate of mistrust of institutions, many people who yearn for a more meaningful and fulfilling life would regard the church as an unlikely place to go for guidance.

Polls are no substitute for leadership because, at its very essence, leadership is about giving people what they don't already have - a sense of vision, inspiration, or even an adequate grasp of a particular subject.

Obviously, every child should be given the best possible opportunity to acquire literacy skills.

Although we love the idea of choice - our culture almost worships it - we seek refuge in the familiar and the comfortable.

It's Australian to do such things because, however uncivilised they may seem, it's human to do them.

Universal literacy was a 20th-century goal. Before then, reading and writing were skills largely confined to a small, highly educated class of professional people.

The thing we need most is each other.