How many civic duties can you think of, and will politicians be included in your idea of "Civic Duties"?

Let me list a few civic duties ...

Dobbing in a drug dealer

Notifying Police if you see something suspicious

Notifying Police if you see someone stealing

Helping to save someones life


How many other voluntary civic duties are there that you know about and would perform if you were willing to?

issuevoter wrote on Nov 15^th, 2018 at 1:04pm:


Do you do house calls?

Bias_2012 wrote on Nov 15^th, 2018 at 1:39pm:


Councils only interest in citizens is their rate payments. All else intereferes with their enjoyment of life.

Bias_2012 wrote on Nov 15^th, 2018 at 2:51pm:


Which council do you work for? Wait a minute, I mean which council pays you for your attendance at their premises?

The_Barnacle wrote on Nov 15^th, 2018 at 3:36pm:



Nope, it's inquiring how many different voluntary civic duties there are

Here's another two ...

Volunteer bushfire fighting

Volunteer charity worker

Here's a selfish one. I donate to Wikipedia once a year.

The_Barnacle wrote on Nov 16^th, 2018 at 3:07pm:


I don't know about that. He did not use capitals, which could be read as unofficial.

The great champion of civic "duty" was of course - Ian Kiernan of Clean up Australia fame, a volunteer I admired immensely and still do. We should all follow in his footsteps, better still, don't litter or dump stuff where it shouldn't be dumped in the first place

Bias_2012 wrote on Nov 21^st, 2018 at 9:16am:


Have you ever heard this one? "Yes, but I'm a good driver."

Done Marine Rescue and soon to do my Community Radio slot (both Volunteer).

So its much like 'Social Ethic/Moral' performance?

Snorkling around Wollongong harbour every now and then, I would 'clean up' - occasionally finding good knives, a mask, etc.

We do scuba dives of Clean Up as well.

When I did Taxi - I would 'give tips' as well as 'receive tips'.
If a really rich guy gave me a $20 tip - it would be used to give a single mum with 3 kids a nice ride.

"The Best things in Life are 'Free' " is my motto.

Currently, I go out and bash a Moslem... for 'Free'. 

I blow up feral birds,,, lorikeets

Good post JaSin

Also, when tired, have the driver's window down a little to circulate fresh air in your face. It can prevent going to sleep at the wheel. It usually does the trick

Bias_2012 wrote on Nov 21^st, 2018 at 7:39pm:


I regularly get the finger and foul language for doing the speed limit.

I think it depends on what the individual considers to be civilised behaviour, and what a civilised society should be.

I think it's the little everyday things we do which makes a society function and could be called civic duty.

Letting/helping people merge in traffic, waving someone in front of you when you have a big trolley full of groceries and they have a few items, lending people a hand when in need.

When you're polite and helpful it rubs off. Sure, some will take advantage but the majority of people are good and will respond in kind.

Bias_2012 wrote on Nov 24^th, 2018 at 2:44pm:


Well . . . I probably don't agree with you. The matter of different societies and their different behaviours does not validate different interpretations of civilisation. In my view, civilisation is a matter of degree. Modern Western societies are products of a slow refinement of what is fair and decent. Certainly, they have a way to go, but I do not see them equal by comparison with other less developed societies.

I don't believe it is civilised for a government to have an official religion, it implies a person of that belief is correct, when this is pure conjecture, and many religions espouse the view that only by following it, can a person be fair, decent and moral.

I don't think we have to learn anything over again. No society has achieved a higher degree of civilisation than our Western, but I would agree that we need to re-examine the concept of civilisation carefully, and not attribute it to dogmatic notions of what some spurious authority has deemed it to be, just because its traditional.

The Magna Carta, the US Declaration of Independence, and Bill of Rights are all good starts at defining civilisation, but they are only the beginning. In the process, we cannot have people claiming they are God's chosen people, Buddhist, Jew, Hindu, Moslem, Christian must give up that claim, because it is bigotry with only superstition as a support.

I would put forward for critique, the ideal of a society where no individual or group of any description, is allowed to take advantage of another individual or group. And I am not interested in debating the meaning of advantage. We all know it, when we see it.

Further, your sense that government does not want us to be civilised so it can increase its revenue, may seem to explain bureaucratic regulation, but government is the result of democratic policy making by elected representatives, not some shadowy and homogenous, self-perpetuating entity. That sounds like a conspiracy theory to me.