Walter Edwards is right about a Constitution. We don't have one. The US used to have a good one but it has now been trashed.

If we are to have a Constitution and be truly independent from the Monarchy and it must include monetary sovereignty, ie only our Govt can create the new money for growth + inflation.

Nobody here seems to be making the very basic case that before we change anything (whether it's our underpants or our queen) we have to be assured that what we get is an improvement worth the effort. There's no point in grizzling about hereditary monarchs, opinion polls, celebrity, or eeevil monarchists before you take a good look and see what an excellent system we have now compared to just about any other country in the world. Australia is one of the oldest, stable democracies in the world and we should value that highly.

Our constitution is difficult to change for good reason. Republicans have been sneakily trying to bypass the constitution for years by gradually removing the symbols of our institutions, hiding pictures of the queen (and perhaps replacing her with one of the local strongman), banning knights and dames, QCs, oaths of allegiance, references to the crown and replacing these traditional things with newly invented ones designed to belittle our heritage.

Why do they do this? Because they cannot convince their fellow citizens of the reasons for their change by fair means. They have lost the vote before and have retreated from any logical argument, replacing argument with mushy sentiment about the mythical sunlit uplands, peace and happiness and goodwill to all that will result from a republic whilst at the same time denigrating solid citizens who disagree as being un-Australian, boot-licking forelock-tuggers, bowing to a foreign aristocrat and unable to stand on their own two feet. They are as wrong as they are dangerous.

Beware what you wish for.

It really doesn't matter what works, as long as we don't become stupid enough to become a republic.

Just pause for a moment, & imagine having a clown like Obama, or a vindictive troll like Keating as president. God we could even end up with a Rudd, Gillard or Palmer. If that doesn't stop your silly republican ideas, you are an idiot.

The UK go to vast expense training their royals to be nice inoffensive dolts. We would have to be mad to reject taking advantage of such a great tradition.

‘morning Captain Col and Hasbeen,

You make excellent points that the republicans repeatedly fail to answer, what is broken and what can be done to fix it?

We have many States, all with different laws, rules, regulations and political systems. Republicans wish to unify, under a republic, that which is already dis-unified.

When the republicans can explain to Australians what it is they can fix, then perhaps they may get a hearing?

Dear Hassie,

Not sure is the "stiff-upper lip" approach of the
old traditional Royals still works
with most Aussies. Perhaps that's why
the normality of Wills and Kate went
over so well on their recent visit to Oz.
And look at the furore that the re-instatement of
the "Imperial titles" by the PM caused recently.
Sir Pository of Wisdom indeed!

Hasbeen, Our new president would just have to stand there and not open his mouth to questions, just like the Royals, so there would be no difference, so what are you worried about