David, you are not colonial or inferior serfs to the UK. The bonds that unite the nations of the Crown Commonwealth are fraternal, not colonial. As a Canadian, I feel a special attachment and kinship to Oz, a bond you would churlishly weaken by punting the family patriarch. Besides, Australia has it all; a much better situation than the quango state image of England, which as a nation has no parliament, no anthem and no official recognition. Yet they pay for the Queen, whereas you don't. So get over your chincy, inferior thinking.

Not Colonial? You could have fooled me, MONARCHIST. The draft of our Constitution submitted to the (then) Queen recorded that we were "CITIZENS OF AUSTRALIA" but the British Government changed this and we became, and still are "SUBJECTS OF THE QUEEN." Even so, once as 'British subjects' we had the right to enter England with that status. Now this has been removed and we have to join the Aliens queue. Every decision of our democratically elected Australian Parliament is subject to veto by the heriditary foreign Queen as our Head of State. Hence we have to seek 'Mummy's' approval for everything we do. Nothing fraternal about that. Seems I have missed something when you suggest that England has "no Parliament, no Anthem and no official recognition." Perhaps they do subsidise the Queen and all her cohorts except when she makes a very infrequent visit to the Colony. Accompanied by the large team of hangers on. Costs us a fortune and for what? Stays a couple of days for a quick cuppa, (made with Malvern water because our water is not to her taste) gives a few desultory waves and appears extremely bored with the whole process. We can do better and the desire for political freedom grows daily. The Free and Independent Republic of Australia is on the horizon and very soon will dispose of the Colonial status and become free of the inferior 'Colonial Serf' position. The sooner we can grow up and stand on our own feet as Citizens of the Australian Republic, then we will be able to cast off the colonial status and select our own Head of State from one of our own citizens. Only then can your assertion of a fraternal relationship be realised.

David ,you paint a gloomy picture. Poor Australians .Slaves at Britain's outpost, no autonomy,no laws of their own, dependant on Britain for everything. Crikey! not even water to boil the billy with, we will have to wait for the next Barque from the Brits for a cargo of bottled water.
It is this attitude by the republicans that puts us right off, as if this nation is so insecure, so backward, so lacking in rigour that only a PRESIDENT can save us.
It is not us who are doing the cringing, we are fine and at the right time we will do what is needed.
And you poor old republicans can go on being miserable until then.

Aussie’s don’t know what it’s like to have a Head of State let alone have one of our own in the job.

There are three people sharing the duties of Australian Head of State:

1. The Queen. Though the titular HoS she does nothing as Australian head of state except to visit here occasionally. She never puts our views and interests forward when she is in another country no matter how fine a woman and Queen she is.

2. The Governor-General. As with his predecessors, he is the hireling of the Prime Minister. It’s especially obvious with John Howard as head of government that the G-G only gets the ceremonial tasks that the PM doesn’t want to perform himself. Sir William Deane did begin to push the envelope slightly and showed what we might be able to do with an independent Head of State but the rest seem content to be fete openers. Having said that, I acknowledge that Michael Jeffery is doing what he should be doing in Northern Queensland at the moment.

3. The Prime Minister. John Howard has assumed the de facto role of Head of State and uses the position to further his popularity and secure his political position. I suspect his main reason for opposing a republic is not that he sees benefits in keeping the Crown and Queen in our Constitution but more that he can manipulate the current system for his own ends. I don’t know that the next PM would be any different.

I want an Australian republic not just to get the Queen off our coins but to see an independent national, apolitical leader emerge and put the politicians back where they should be – in parliament, sorting out the budget and foreign policy etc.

That change won’t happen the day after our President is appointed/elected – it will take some time.

What about the cultural and institutional vandalism - everything from the Royal Australian Navy down. Do republicans care not one whit about their national heritage? Yeah , that's what I thought. Shhhh. Don't tell. Mums the word.

Response to Monarchist:

Lot's of heavy handed accusations there, and nothing to back it up.

The ships of the Australian Navy belong to Australians; built by Australian shipyards; paid for by Australian taxpayers; commissioned by Australian governments and manned by the Australian Defence Force. Yet HMAS means Her Majesty’s Australian Ship.

Shhh, lets not remind anyone of that, eh?

Republicans care for OUR national heritage and monachists care for ... something else.