Australia is said to have more sheep than people.
When it comes to voting it would appear that Australians follow the flock and vote as their fathers did or if they live in a labor or liberal area.Conditioned by their surroundings to vote a certain way.
In the recent Batman by election a number of independents and smaller party candidates were ignored and the Labor machine gained the majority.
Politics for Australians not as important an issue as finding and keeping a job.driving to work and spending time with the kids.
Sport has a much bigger following than politics despite the mainstream
media devoting pages and air time to discussing the latest intrigues.
Labor and Liberal parties have a bi partisan approach to the political fight.
When the Liberal party decided not to field a candidate in Batman.
I felt that Turnbull did not want to play cricket that day.
Bob Hawke won the Batman election in 1980 but there is no mention on
Wikipedia of the result but has Brian Howe as the labor candidate.
The Batman by election would not have occurred if it was not for Bob Hawkes hatred for British people and the fact that he excluded Dual citizens from standing for Parliament.
No mention in the mainstream media that still keeps facts from the Australian public.

" Bob Hawkes hatred for British people and the fact that he excluded Dual citizens from standing for Parliament."

I'd love to see a reference for that statement.

It's not news that Australians are politically apathetic. That's why we have the crooks and boofheads we do have in government. In SA last weekend, despite 16 years of Labor incompetence and socialism, the Liberal party received their lowest vote ever. The only thing that got them the the bare 24 seats to win was the change to the gerrymander that kept Labor in for 16 years. Despite the hype, Xenohon's mob got only 13% got of the vote, and the Greens 6%. The new Australian Conservatives got 3.5% and needn't have bothered at all.

In Batman, the choice was between another Labor union hack and a Green whose head would have looked good on a Russian postage stamp in Stalin's day. It's reported that only 76% of the electorate turned out; bit who could blame them when the government didn't even field a candidate.

80% of Australians get the idiot governments they deserve. The other 20% of us just have to suffer along with them.

Reply to is Mise. Hawke introduced the Australia Act in 1986. This act designed to stop appeals to the Privy Council in the UK. Legally cutting ties with the U.K. At the start of the Falkland Island conflict.Aussie sailors and officers wanted to join with the Royal Navy in the South Atlantic to defeat the Argentinians. A signal was sent to Canberra by RAN ships close by in the Pacific. The Defence Department recommended such action but Hawke told them they were not to help Britain. This action will be remembered if ever Australia is attacked. During his Oxford years Hawke is quoted as saying he hated English.

1. Bob Hawke was the member for Wills. He never contested or represented Batman.

2. The dual citizenship problem is caused by Section 44 of the Australian Constitution. It had/has nothing to do with Hawke or any actions by Hawke. He did not "excluded Dual citizens from standing for Parliament."

3. What you say about the RAN contacting Canberra about going to war against Argentina is a load of rubbish. The armed services know that it is solely the government's decision as to whether we go to war or not. I'd ask you to supply evidence for the silly assertion but I suspect that'd be fruitless.

sheesh.

If you're gunna mock the majority of your fellow citizens it might behove you to get at least some of your facts straight.

" During his Oxford years Hawke is quoted as saying he hated English."

Well, I've always been keen on English, but I never liked German so didn't learn to speak it; studying Tamil at the moment in advance of a trip to South India in a couple of months.

Although I am an Anglophile, I think that the act of cutting off Australian recourse to the Privy Council was a good thing. It was an insult to Australia. I would need more information on the Falklands claim before I commented on it.

ttbn, I don't get how in one side of the debate we all agree that the pollies are low lives. Yet you write you are happy we can no longer seek redress from the Privy Council or England. (should our pollies step out of line again. eg; Whitlam) I find it re-assuring and comforting knowing we have a strong overseer to watch over us in the event we ever get bullied. Although in the last war Churchill, the prick, was prepared to throw us to the wolves and deny us his assistance or troops. No I'm afraid the left is pushing on with a road to nowhere. More and more I hear the push away from Mother England. The left needs to get a reality check. I can't believe how stupid and gullible people are. We are a NOTHING country with the biggest chip on our shoulder. We are the little yapping dog to countries like the USA. We are all these things because we are too small and insignificant on the world stage. We are of the financial stature we are because of our resources and exporting of our non-value added goods. At 25 million we pretty much are amongst the bottom most smallest countries, because of such a small population. Forget the land mass. Not relevant. Indonesia is very small compared to us and yet they support many times more people. So I would much prefer the security of knowing 'Mummy' had my back. The plebs on the left keep pushing for a Republic. Why? Where are the benefits over what we have now? None. I can however tell you these scumbag pollies can't wait to get their hands on this country so they can really get fat off our backs and at our expense.

Altrav...

Amazing that you think the British uppercrust and royalty even care for us..

You are correct that old bulldog face Churchill was trying to keep our troops over in the European theatre when our homeland was in direct threat from the Japanese. Australia meant nothing to him and others.

Our long serving Traitor Menzies who continually kissed Royal backside didn't worry about Aussies copping the fallout from the nuclear bombs dropped at Maralinga. Yippee said the Brits those Aussie are so uninformed...

Many of us are probably still walking around with a glowing ember from that little excursion into crimes against humanity. The sad part is we are the humanity that the crime was committed against.

The mess still hasn't been cleaned up properly and they afforded no protection to our staff who participated or the aboriginal peoples that were exposed.

The Brits budgeted for 50% casualties getting our troops away from Gallipoli so we took responsibility for ourselves and departed that massive error losing no troops in the evacuation whatsoever.

What about the disgusting hiring of the model to kiss Charles on the cheek at the beach to get him accepted by us Aussies. What a disgrace!

When will Aussie wake up that the British Government and Royalty don't care about us! There is no protection for us sticking with them.

I like British people but I totally can't abide their masters.

I can't abide our pollies either so I am at least consistent and correct...lmao

As for the sheep argument...If you have only voted one way all your life - You are a sheep!

If you align yourself either left or right and not middle - You are a sheep!

If you think we shouldn't be self governing - You are sheep!

If you believe the news... You are sheep!

Baa! to most of you...lmao

Op2.

Thank you for that most insightful contribution; no doubt many of us are now more enlightened.

Well Issy,

I only come here to educate you on history, religion, the Bible, Science and every other topic possible.

I accept your sarcastic TY and look forward to educating you further...lmao

Did you actually go to school?...lol

If you didn't, I may have been a little tough on you...lmao

I do notice though that you run away sulking every time I prove you wrong. Your posts become short like this one that I am replying to.

The less you type the better for us all! It's a win/win...

You don't make a fool of yourself and we don't have to watch you making a fool of yourself! lol

You're not even very good at sarcasm...lmao

Keep smiling!

WOW! I just re-read your post Issy and because of our diagreements on nearly everything I treated it as sarcasm...I hope I was right!

If I was wrong though, and it wasn't sarcasm, then I was totally out of line with my comments even though they were sarcasm said as jest.

If I was out of line I apologise...

If I was wrong I can only improve from eher...

Feel free to kick my butt!

Op2

You have a butt?

I thought that you had laughed it off.

You are too gentle on me Issy...But that was funny...lmao

You could have said I am unique because I not only talk out of it I type using my thoughts from it...

Come on kick me harder...lol

OP2, I accept your personal opinion on your disliking our govt. I am way ahead of you there. What I am concerned with is that even though you may dislike the British royalty and all those in charge, it does not follow that they dislike us. This privilege is reserved for the British govt, not the Royal Family. Churchill was an ass but luckily he is just another arrogant, ignorant politician who is here today and gone tomorrow. Who do you think will be front and centre of a Republic if Australia goes down that path? More of the excrement we have been smelling for decades. No as much as people don't like the idea of someone overseeing us, believe me we would be far better off with Britain watching over us than not. For us to become a Republic we have to have a much larger population for starters, then all that follows with that. We are hurting now with these thieves running the show. Imagine how much worse it will become when they know they can do what they want unchecked. They will design the new Republic to give themselves unlimited powers and we will have no recourse. At least with the Privy council and the Queen as head of state, we do.

OMG!

Did you hear the Royals speaking up at Churchill?

Did you hear the Royals objecting to the nuclear tests?

Did you hear the Royals disagreeing with the way the Brits had planned the withdrawal of troops from Gallipoli?

Did you hear them arguing the effects on us of the Brits joining the European Union back in the day?

Did you hear them leading a defense against the aboriginal artifacts and skeletons stolen from graves?

The British Government is the Queen's Government...

I'm not saying that they don't like us and I don't believe the British Government doesn't like us...It has nothing to do with it!

They all have a simple Britain first policy as I would if I were a Brit...BUT we are Australians and I want us at the top of the tree not some fake thinking that they are our protectors...

The British Parliament and the House of Lords are rabble also... The Royals horrid treatment of Diana shows they are nothing to admire, and will always protect their own first.

Diana famously said "Well there were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded".

And was she hated by the Royals for her honesty! They turned on her like rabbid dogs and everyone forgets it...lol

OP2, I get it, but don't bring emotion to a debate as it will tilt the outcome into a personal one and not a truthfull, practical and factual one. The Royal family, by their own decree, does not get involved in day-to-day running of a country. Only when there is a perceived or actual threat to it's internal stability and security. So don't worry the Royal family have no interest in sticking their noses into our affairs. It is we who should hope they won't sever ties with us. Truth be known, they are just like any govt employee, they are happy playing solitaire on their work computers, all day, if they could, but for the fact that they have to attend to a consumers demand. Then they have to actually do something. The Royals are the same. They plod along doing whatever they do until a Commonwealth country seeks advise or assistance, Then they have to get off their buts and attend to the problem/request from that country.
I have been a monarchist for as long as I can remember partly because they legally and actually own the countries they rule. She comes from a long line of kings and queens who gained the right to own those countries through victories of war. So I see them as the owners of the Commonwealth countries. The extreme left is the main force behind the Republic because they can't stand the thought that someone who is king or queen, and better than them, 'owning' their country.
As for Diana and Fergy. They were commoners who were too stupid to 'play' one of the greatest roles in life. Diana was a 'bimbo' and way too unfit for the role she married into. So hubby was 'having it off with a horse', or is it a dog? So what? All previous royal males had their hobbies. Unfortunately he chose a, whatever. For this I am disgusted at him. I don't get it, he had this sexy looking hornbag in bed with him every night, and he prefers, what?

They probably vote more intelligently than about half the voters, & most certainly more intelligently than about 6%.

Whose emotional...You should stop ignoring the facts.

You should also stop making excuses for the Royals.

So any thinking Aussie is from the extreme left you say? Do you hear yourself? Lunatic right much?...lol

You monarchists must be from fairyland...lol It is you who has the emotional attachment t\in this debate.

Some of us are grown up enough to see a better future you scaredy cat fear moungerers are scared of progress. It's Ok we can handle it you just go back to polishing your Royalty memorial spoon set...lmao

I hope you don't believe yourself to be a moral person and I hope your wife reads this...I'm sure you won't object to her playing up behind your back...

Sorry Altrav but your credibilty just reached a negative number.

Two women who wanted honest marriages are now called stupid?

I suppose you support Andy as well?

http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity-life/royals/palace-in-damage-control-over-virginia-roberts-claims-she-had-underage-sex-with-prince-andrew/news-story/49599c934d08f1240ca09d121ec12141

Can you believe that it was struck off before evidence could be given? Who'd have guessed it would be prevented from going to court?

Seek help I think your cheese has slipped off your biscuit.

OP2, you have just made my point for me. My comments were based on observations, published articles and information garnished over many years. Yours are the ramblings of someone lacking in depth and breadth on a topic of discussion. Let's see. You couple 'any thinking Aussie' to be an 'extreme left'. You dreamed that one up by yourself, nothing to do with me or my point. A 'thinking Aussie' will have considered ALL the FACTS and come up with similar conclusions to myself. While I think of it. 'Two women who wanted honest marriages are now called stupid'. Yes! OP2 if you are serious your the one who has lost any cred. Listen, here's a thought. If you wanted an 'honest marriage' don't marry into a dishonest family. She, in typical 'bimbo' style thought......actually I don't know what she was thinking. I on the other hand think that her family/parents pressured her into the marriage. She was so air-headed she had no idea of life and it's realities. How do you think these leaders of countries succeed or survive? By being dishonest, that's how! But you already knew that.
I am not a monarchist because of some long held love or devotion to the mother land. OP2 your gonna love this. I'm Italian. HAH how do you feel now? No my preference is not emotional but rightful and historically, morally and ethically correct. I can hear you say, WTF is he on about? OK I'll put it this way. You buy/acquire/barter a piece land, then those around you tell you get out. No OP2 I am a little more aware than most. My comments are truthful and honest. If someone does not like what I say, too bad. If someone does not agree with what I say, that's OK. In which case I would want to be corrected if I am wrong. If I'm not then that's the end of it. Which category are you, once you remove the emotion from your comments?

Air!!

and not fresh, either.

To all those who wanted to defend the undefendable.Bob Hawke.
Yes, Hawke represented Wills not Batman.Similar demographic.
Working class with large public servant population.
Public servants can hardly be described as Working.
Labor and Green alliance area.
Hawke vetoed RAN intervention in Falklands Confict.
Yes, I spoke to a former Naval signaller stationed in Canberra who told me the story.
Interesting how my thread ended up as "Lets get the Royals" by the Hawke Labor Fan Club.

Altrav...The fact that you are Italian has no meaning whatsoever although in Italian culture, which is dominated by a false religion, the attitude to women is often flawed like yours.

The real fact is you are scared of change...So be it.

In your mind only your life's experiences are worthy of note...lol

I could never make your point because I could never be that wrong all the time...lmao

You blame the ladies who were the victims of the Royalty fiasco that is the British Royal Family. Victim blaming shows you know nothing from your life's experiences.

You are preaching women should be seen and not heard, and that women should just play the game....So much for you learning in life.

Do you rush home to mammas place every time you have a problem for counselling?...lol......Your attitude to women is simply insulting to your mother.

Contemplate that every time you wipe pasta sauce from the front of your shirt...You will need to do it that often...lol

You are one of the sheep, a monarchist, simply proving that monarchists are wrong on most things...lol

You are entitled to your views but you will be on the wrong side of history as the change will come eventually. Turnbull stuffed it last time and Howard sabotaged it.

It was like the perfect storm against freedom... Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumb undermining progress with their own dogmatic views.

Why do you think Howard hasn't got his gong from the Queen yet? He probably got a gong in secret...lmao

He got an OM and yet he lied and took us to war in Iraq based on those lies... So much for his distinguished service to the armed forces .. He has the blood and mental illness of our service people on his hands...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_Merit

He got an AC also that he should never have received... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_Australia

Still he has represented big business really well...lmao

Politicians getting these awards diminishes the awards!

Vive la republique ... I hope you see that in your day.

or in Australian

Long live the Bonza Beaut Republic of Fair Dinkum Aussies

OP2, I read your comments with interest and a slight smile. I think to myself, who are these 'Fair Dinkum Aussies'? The two 'mates' who get pissed all the time then belt the crap out of each other only to have forgotten about it the next day. Or the ones who can name all the friggin idiots in all the sports codes but haven't got a clue as to who is PM or what the govt is doing, because they say, 'that's what we pay them for'. Or the rest who are too busy sitting around with their skinny latte crappy frappy talking brain deadening BS as if they were a Rhodes Scholar. No I'm sorry OP2, until Aussies get off their arses and actually become informed on matters which affect them on a daily basis, now and in the future, they are not qualified to even vote. Any thinking man will tell you, Republics are formed for the good of the govt, NOT the good of the people. And yes, as long as we are under MUMMY'S roof and her authority, we ARE better off. Unfortunately we just might become a Republic one day and it will be a sad day because it will be mis-informed, un-informed yobbos like yourself that will be the cause of the disaster that will follow.

Ockerism isn't restricted to Aussies....

In fact most of the Italian kids I met tried to be more ocker than the ockerist of Aussie Ockers... Have you noticed that many Muslim kids are also very Ocker in speech. Look in the mirror!

Te Italian kids nasily attempts at "G'day Mate" always made me laugh. And if you ever got into a scrap with them they all liked to pretend that they had links to the mafia...lmao Scary...lol

One thing the import of Italians did though was it really improved our variety of foods if you like tomato with tomato in a tomato based dish...lol But honestly that was one of the big pluses...The foods they introduced broaden our choices.

So come on Mr Italian Monarchist were you one of those Italian kids who spoke worse than the Aussies?

Now when people hear me speak they think I have a very rare Aussie accent. Mine is not nasily and OS people say I have one of the classiest Aussie accents they have heard.

The OS women think my accent is sexy... I'm writing a song... Nice voice Shame about the Face...lol

Have you got the genes of Mussolini coursing through what's underneath your spaghetti sauce stained shirt keeping you as a rabbid right wing nutter and Royalist?

Be careful fascism isn't too far away from loony right wingedness...lmao

I'm glad that you take a keen interest in politics but try staying in the middle where common sense and intellect allows you to assess both sides without biases. Also try stop judging victims like Princess Di.

It will make you a better person like me...lol

Now back to Ocker speaking practice... You are letting down the team...mate...lol

OP2, love your candor. Your humour is appreciated. Keep it up and good luck with the song. Sounds like your doing OK with the women. Half your luck.

Thanks Altrav...Trust me I have plenty of spaghetti sauce down my shirt also.

I'm the cook in this household and I love Italian food! My favourite is a leg of lamb with mixed vegetables roasted in tomatoes, garlic, basil and Oregano. Yummy! Lamb done in an Italian style is delicious... I usually cook it all together for two hours in an oven bag so the lamb falls off the bone.

Glad you enjoy my humour...I try my best to be entertaining...lol

I can also be fairly ruthless with my comments but hey I can't help being flawed... I blame the Italian food...lol

I had a Zia and she was my favourite Aunty of them all and we had 12. Loved staying at her house - She made us feel so special...

OMG! Now I am going out to get a leg of lamb... I am feeling like Lamb Italiano tonight. See what you have done!...lol

Catchya!

Sorry I should give better instructions for my Äussies are sheep Lamb Italiano"... recipe.

You can use canned or fresh tomatoes in the sauce...
2 x 200g tinned tomatoes
1 x Onion
1 tablespoons dried oregano
1 tablespoons dried basil
4 cloves garlic to your taste.
1/2 teaspoon sugar
Salt and pepper to taste.

Cream, cheese or optional or for a change to the original recipe.
Add anything else you like in a pasta sauce.

Blend all ingredients together and poor over lamb
Place Lamb Leg in an oven bag
Poor blended ingredients over lamb and seal bag.
Cook for at least 2 hours so the lamb falls off the bone.

You can add 1 kg of mixed vegetables to the bag if you wish. This makes some of the veggies breakdown and they become squishy. If you like squishy go for it.

For vegetables that are less squishy add to lamb and sauce in baking dish after taking lamb out of bag. Cook till veggies are how you like them.

Once you bone the lamb into the sauce and cut it up serve over favourite pasta.

Leftovers can be frozen and they only get better with age up to 3 months.

Try without cream first day, add cream next day and enjoy that too.

Recommended veggies, Broccoli. cauliflower, red capsicum, chilli (if to your taste) peas, beans, corn, and anything else you choose.

OK that's it! Bon appetite!

OP2, I'm impressed. Once you've finished the song you might consider recipes or a cook book. Your description and explanation were so well done I could taste it just by reading your recipe. I gotta say that was well worth the read. I had little discussion with the missus after I read it, and she (she's a skip) picked up on a couple of your suggestions. Looking forward to her trying it on the next lamb shank? I can't help but wonder if you are a professional chef, judging by what I read and your apparent professional description/instruction. You certainly are a man of many talents. kudos to you sir.

No ALTRAV... I am not a Chef but I am very good at burning stuff...lol

I just stumbled upon this through an experiment I did. I had a leg of lamb and I wanted to do it a little differently.

So I decided to make "Australians are Sheep Lamb Italiano"...lol

One last thing... Before adding any tomato paste taste the sauce first. In the long cooking process at around 180 degrees C the tomatoes are concentrated from evaporation.

I hope you guys like it!