I think we should take note of one ANZACs story, as cited by the conservative minister Dr Nelson when he claimed that John Simpson Kirkpatrick and his donkey represented, "everything at the heart of what it means to be Australian."

Kirkpatrick was an illegal immigrant, staunchly anti-war, a radical socialist and a trade unionist.

Thanks Dr. Nelson!

John Greenfield asks:

"John Passmore

"Are you really Dirk Moses?"

I am neither John Passmore nor Dirk Moses. But thank you for referring me to Dirk's article. It was OK.

And by the way the article was written by John Passant. Facts can be difficult things.

Australian's signed onto the first world war because they wanted to protect the mother country, not because they were particularly Australian and this week in Beersheba we see one of our biggest post war betrayals being played out. In Beersheba and Palestinians fought alongside the Australian and British soldiers against the Turks yet this week the ISRAELI warmongering mother of invention of the illegal settlements in the West Bank is helping to launch a statue to the Australian soldier and the Palestinians are not invited.

In WW11 the Palestinians again fought with us when the British promised them their own statehood finally, then the British told the jews they would have their own state and to this day we keep betraying the Palestinians by supporting and cheerleading for the rogue state without borders laughingly called "the jewish state" even though 20% are not jewish.

All these damn wars, all this murder and mayhem - what on earth was it for and what did we learn?

To be an attack force whenever the US says too.

I hate ANZAC day and everything it stands for.

Well... it's about time. Someone finally put Anzac Day in political perspective. Well done John Passant.

Actually, I was about to write something along similar lines, so you have broken the ice for me, John. Much appreciated.

Anzac, far from being something to celebrate, is a yearly reminder of how we have been lap dogs for 130 years; sacrificing our youth on the alter of imperialism. Worse, we have collectively averted our eyes from the evidence that; with Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan, we were willing cohorts in torture, murder and genocide against innocent people; about three million altogether. There is nothing to be proud of here. None of these people were a threat to Australia. What we did, and continue to do, is support the most ruthless aggressor in human history.

I recently conducted a series of surveys and, although this was not the specific target of my research, I was astounded by the viewpoint volunteered by so many; including ex-soldiers, that Australian defence forces should only be engaged in the defense of our own continent. Clearly, the reservations expressed by Passant are widespread.

However, there was one fight that we can all be proud of, and it truly represented the Aussie spirit of independence, equal rights and equal opportunity. That was Eureka.

There was another important difference. This was a fight for the people of Australia; not for the government, which was as corrupt then as it is now. Personally, I regard Eureka as unfinished business.

Ho Hum,

You say, “And as for the "aborigines"--they weren’t(sic) even considered human---just another species of flora and fauna.” I have seen this claim made a few times in the past year and I have been searching for the documentary evidence on which it is based, with no success. Are you able to direct me to some primary sources that will tell me who considered that the Aborigines were not human, but a “species of flora and fauna”, and when this was? Thank you.

LEV...your claim about Simpson ..sources?

PASSY.

All I can say is "you poor bugger"

No..I can say more. You seem to be locked into not only an ideological dogmatic time warp that has been passed over by history, but a mindset very similar to a Jehovah's Witness (or a Mormon or Muslim) at one's door.

Let a simple example suffice.

You said: "a democratic society without bosses"

Now John... please book yourself into either Larundel (if ur in melbourne) or wherever the psychiatric disorder place is in your other location..and get some serious help. You have 'reality perception' problems.

NO BOSSES? r u serious? Mate.. put 2 people in a room, give them a task ..and you have to have at least ONE 'boss'...it's the nature of human society.

Let's give you the benefit of the doubt and concede that you might be thinking "Those bosses who have capital" hmm? Ok.. but then you have Mr Lenin, the partriarch of your revolution, gaining power, and slaughtering so many workers who supported him because they might now be a threat... and he and others becoming the 'new bosses' who control the national capital..and then try to turn everyone into mindless state drones, glazed eyed, and carrying out 'state' tasks with their humanity and creativity supressed, oppressed and depressed!

Honestly John.. trying to interpet the world through the overlay of 'class struggle' is infantile... The Socialist world simply replaced one pack of 'upper class' with another. "The politbuero".

Even blind Nellie can see this, yet, apparently with a straight face, you trot out all this rubbish and actually expect people to believe it?

Sadly.. just like when the 'sincere Muslim' reads

"and then, you may beat them" (naughty wives)

they can then say "See, Allah forbids domestic violence"

- you can make all these rediculous and wild claims, about Anzac day etc, 'class struggle' etc, with hardly a reference, source or document.

John.. people here do have brains.. please don't insult them.