The Headlines: We Now Know the Words We’ll Vote on for a First Nations Voice to Parliament

The Voice to Parliament Wording

“A Proposed Law: To alter the Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice. Do you approve this proposed alteration?”

According to our Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, this will be the wording of the question at the centre of this year’s upcoming referendum on an Indigenous Voice to Parliament.

Previously, the question was reported to be: “Do you support an alteration to the Constitution that establishes an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice?”

However, after further consultation with First Nations peoples, independents, and the opposition, this wording has switched up. On March 23, this updated version was released by Albanese.

During this massive announcement, Albanese confirmed that the Voice to Parliament question was changed to please both First Nations peoples and some parliamentarians.

As Albanese said, “After many months of careful consideration on the draft formal words that I presented at Garma last July, the Referendum Working Group and the government have agreed on the provisions that all Australians will vote on in this year’s referendum.” 

Several times during this announcement, Albanese got choked up.

“One person, one vote. People from all faiths, background, and conditions, all of us will have equal say,”  said Albanese. “All of us can own an equal share of what I believe will be an inspiring and unifying Australian moment.” 

The First Nations Voice to Parliament will be a group of First Nations peoples that advises the Federal Government on First Nations issues. This group will not have any veto powers or hidden abilities.

Finland Offers Free Happiness Vacays

According to the annual Happiness Report, Finland has been the happiest country on Earth for six years in a row. This is because there’s a small gap between its happiest citizens and its saddest citizens. Additionally, Finland doesn’t rely on private donations to flourish. 

“Arguably, this is not too surprising if common states look after the needs of their citizens to a point where private donations are less necessary,” said the report. 

“For example, donation rates are low in Finland, but citizens are highly likely to expect lost wallets to be returned. With this measure of generosity, we find a strong positive correlation with state effectiveness.”

So, how is Finland celebrating its six years of winning? Well, they’re now offering ten people a free “Masterclass of Happiness.” 

This masterclass will teach people how to be happy like a Finn. It’ll take place over four days in June at Finland’s swanky Kuru Resort. And as previously mentioned, all of your travel and accommodation expenses will be covered.

If you want to sign up for this competition, then a link to it’s right here.

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‘Air’ Scores 100% on Rotten Tomatoes

Warning: This section discusses sexual assault and may cause distress for some readers.

Ben Affleck’s latest directorial swing has been certified a hit. This is because his film AIR currently has a “100% fresh” Rotten Tomatoes rating. 

Some other flicks that have scored this rating include the likes of 12 Angry Men and The Terminator. However, AIR only has 13 reviews at the moment. Once this film becomes more publicly available, there’s a strong likelihood that this score will drop. 

AIR is a movie about the partnership between a young Michael Jordan and Nike as they create the iconic Air Jordans sneakers. It will also follow Jordan going from a newbie to a basketball GOAT.

Yet, before you give Affleck your hard-earned cash, it’s worth remembering that he’s allegedly made his profession an unsafe one. During the height of the #MeToo movement, Affleck admitted to acting inappropriately towards the actor Hilarie Burton. This is because Burton stated that Affleck nonconsensually touched one of her breasts.

If this section brings up any issues for you or anyone you know, or if you just feel like you need to speak to someone, please contact 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) — the National Sexual Assault, domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service.

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