The divide between the punters' and the economic rationalists' worldviews highlights the sources of people's frustration with government. It provides an insight into why people are abandoning the major parties and punishing incumbents with massive electoral swings. But the electorate's behaviour is going beyond disagreement on points of principle. People are not simply annoyed, they are angry. They are expressing sentiments that spring from fear and anxiety. The source of the anxiety becomes clear when we explore the transition from the ‘Australian Settlement’ to ‘economic rationalism’. Economic rationalism is impacting on something deeper than government policy. It is eroding one of the great assets of Australian culture.

The shift is not just an economic change. It is also cultural. Economic rationalists believe the economy can be separated out from culture and social issues. But when we look at what makes up culture, the distinction blurs. When we pin down the essence of culture, the threat that economic rationalism presents crystallises.

I should quickly acknowledge that other major social changes, such as feminism, multiculturalism and Aboriginal reconciliation, have also had impacts on our culture. But other authors have discussed them in detail elsewhere. I want to put them to one side to draw out this under-recognised thread in Australia's cultural evolution over the last 20 years.

So, what do I mean by culture? Its essence is highlighted by those epiphanies one occasionally has when spending time with people from different cultures. You are sitting around, talking and laughing.