IT IS said hope springs eternal. While not eternal, at 98, former PM Gough Whitlam had a bloody good crack at it.
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The torrent of tributes and cascade of grief that have flowed for Mr Whitlam since his passing yesterday are a fitting response to the loss of one of our nation’s most towering figures.
A political goliath in the bear pit of parliament and consummate gentleman out of it, Mr Whitlam will be remembered as a man of rare vision and humanity.
During a time of intense social upheaval, Mr Whitlam’s leadership helped redefine what it meant to be Australian.
His greatest legacy is making our nation a more inclusive and compassionate place.
His list of achievements in office is breathtaking: free university education, universal healthcare, the end of conscription, the withdrawal of troops from Vietnam, abolition of the death penalty, the Racial Discrimination, Aboriginal Land Rights and Family Law Acts, reinvigorating the arts, establishing ties with China and making Advance Australia Fair our national anthem.
He offered us a glimpse of what modern Australia could be – a multicultural nation where the ladder of opportunity is available for those willing to reach for higher ground.
Even in far-flung Tamworth, where his politics were anathema to many, Mr Whitlam is today being mourned.
That is because regardless of which side of the political divide you sit, it’s hard not to admire authenticity and conviction, qualities Mr Whitlam had in spades.
At a time when poll-obsessed pollies look only to the next election, Mr Whitlam looked to the next generation.
And that’s a legacy worth holding onto.
On his 80th birthday, Mr Whitlam said: “I do admit I seem eternal ... Dying will happen sometime. As you know, I plan for the ages, not just for this life.
“You can be sure of one thing, I shall treat Him as an equal.”