I also like to think Australian society now has fewer “battlers” than 40 years ago because we have better social networks and safety-nets. Doesn’t always happen though.

These days, real battlers live in Darfur, Baghdad, Phnom Penh and certain suburbs of Washington, DC.

Although I know Goss and Beattie were making nice tributes to a fallen comrade, do you think that cliches like “larrikin” and “battler” have any meaning in modern Australia beyond some attempt to tap into a mythical Australia that doesn’t exist anymore?

I hate those two words: larrikin and battler, mostly because pollies have used them to the point where they’re tainted.

Curious to hear your thoughts.

Good question. I suppose it’s not immediately obvious to a lot of, especially young, folk.

In some areas, housing commission homes used to be numbered something like 1A, 1B, 1C etc on one block, 2A, 2B, 2C etc on the next block rather than the usual 1, 3, 5, 7 etc down one side of the street, 2, 4, 6, 8 down the other side. This scheme probably made life easier for some government administrator somewhere.

There was unfortunately sometimes a stigma associated with living in a housing commission home and a battler effectively had to admit to this every time he gave his address.

Tom saw the inequity and changed it.