KenH I agree the majority of Pollies are conscientious, sadly there are some who are not.
BTW I am very active in the political arena, and I wish you well also!!

runner, your line of argument against the cruelty of the European towards the indigenous people of Australia I don't understand.
You say "it must have been wedded bliss for those young girls with their uncles, the barbaric rituals and the pay back system. To bad for the deformed children getting beaten over their heads." If we are to accept the above as common practice before white settlement how does this justify the treatment of the Aboriginal people by the European for the past 223 years.

What a lot of anger here!

I must say I was amused at the Queens award to Howard, and saw it merely as a poor consolation prize for a soundly defeated ex PM.

He was not made the Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports though, was he?

Nor blessed with the Order of the Thistle?

No hint of a small cottage in Kent flowing his way, even though he seemes to hanker for the Ming style.

No, this was a very lowly prize indeed, compared to Ming's booty.

It does, however, raise again the issue of our low status here in Australia, still hanging around as an appendage of the not-so-Great Britain.

For instance, I was listening today to RN, a modest discussion concerning the changes to 'our' Australian Constitution.

Blow me down, it's not even 'ours'.

It seems it will be hard to add, or subtract, anything in relation to the recognition of Indigenous peoples because 'our' Constitution is, in reality, a part of an English Act, and we would have to ask them to change that before/at the same time as we change 'ours' here.

Frankly, that is of more concern than a clapped out ex PM getting a jamboree bag prize from some ageing queen.

Finally, it is worth noting here that Keating seems to be the only PM of honour, eschewing any such frippery as a mock knighthood from the state as he continues to decline to accept an OA: or is it an AO?

The other PMs have all grabbed whatever prizes came their way, not content with being paid to do the job they self-selected themselves for.

For those who despised the Howard era, and even the man, this prize confirms him and his era as wearing the fagend of Empire, as old men wear their dandruff on their backs.

Never mind that other political charlatan and his association with this phrase, but, 'it's time' for a new Australia, a Republic of Australia, cut free from queens, princes and the not-so Great British public, not to mention being freed from all religions too.

KenH,"he offers nothing as a solution for the daily mass murders perpetrated by the Saddam regime"
Better to have international troops killing civilians than Saddam. They do the right sort of murder and torture....is that what you're saying, Ken?

Blue Cross I agree with you in what you say in your Post, very well said.

Pual you write

'runner, your line of argument against the cruelty of the European towards the indigenous people of Australia I don't understand. '

I don't have a line against the cruelty of the European people. It was your sarcastic post that referred this this subject. I like thousands of others am sick of the one eyed view of history which allow an excuse for the appalling behaviour of many aboriginals today. Many of those who have travelled from overseas have not been given everything on a platter and yet you don't see their youth bashing people in their 80's and 90's, stealing consistently and then whinging they are over represented in prisons.