Sounds like some bitterness in your words @Lois Winters. This is the Soap Box thread..air what is on your mind.
I can imagine living thru the Great Depression must have been very hard. Post something of your family's experiences.
There are many Australians including myself that find our continuing ties to Britain, her queen Elizabeth and her family old fashioned and pointless a century and 20 years after becoming an independent nation. Australians can thank former Labor Prime Minister Gough Whitlam for our continued adherence to a foreign queen. Only a year into Whitlam's leadership his government passed the Royal Style and Titles Act of 1973 a document that officially made Elizabeth Queen of Australia. I believe this was done out of respect for a gracious lady and ruler. Problem is almost a half century later we still have this lady as our Head of State.. not a home grown person but a foreigner. For this Australians can thank former Liberal PM and monarchist John Howard for his derailing of the Republican Referendum of 1999. Instead of asking the Australian people if they wanted to elect a President of a new Australian Republic, Howard deliberately ignored that important detail and asked the Australian people if they wanted Parliament to elect the President. Naturally the referendum failed as John Howard knew it would. Twenty years later we Republicans are still waiting for another Republic referendum. Again the reason a referendum has not been revisited since is out of respect for Queen Elizabeth. I admire Elizabeth greatly.. but dear lady please leave the throne and give Australia the opportunity to finally stand on her feet proudly.
I was born at the height of the depression, Craig in 1933 to an attorney and a chorus girl. My paternal grandfather was the president of a bank and my maternal grandfather was a career U.S. Marine Officer. So, my family in essence did not have it nearly as hard as so many others during that time. However, since times were so difficult, no one seemed to know the difference. It was those without work who had it the hardest, but my father, who was connected politically, knew that with Germany's industrial and military build up, and Hitler at the helm, war was not far off. It wasn't until much later, he knew we were going to get involved in something with Japan. Little did we know just what. We began ramping up production in our factories to send supplies to England as we knew they were in for it. I can remember the day the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor as though it occurred just yesterday. We'd just finished our Sunday dinner and it was a fairly mild December day. I went outside to play with the neighbor children, when my father came to fetch me. I gave him a rather hard time as I want to play with my friends. He told me we were at war, and I looked around me and asked him, "where?" We live in New Jersey and it was very quiet where I resided. No bullets whizzing around nor bombs being dropped. Needless to say, he was not amused and practically dragged me inside. Other parents were calling their children in as well. When I was told Pearl Harbor had been bombed, I didn't even know where that was. Dad told me it was in Hawaii and my retort was, "so what?", that's a foreign country. I was eight year old at this time, Craig. Next, out came our huge atlas, I was shown exactly where this event took place and lectured on what was the difference between a foreign country and a U.S. Territory. Never forgot that. We had friends and relatives immediately joining the military and off to war they went. Not all returned, needless to say. We were more concentrated on Europe at the beginning but when it became clear that the Japanese where after Australia, we ramped up our sights on the South Pacific. We had rationing of everything, and it was somewhat like the depression all over again with shortages everywhere, but we got through it all and did not have the incidents on our mainland like Europe and so many countries in Asia faced. Thanks be to God. Only a brief summary, Craig. Time have indeed been good and bad throughout the decades.
Lois you certainly were lucky your family avoided the worst of the Great Depression. I recall my paternal grandfather telling my brother and I about the hardships he and his family endured living in a small Australian farming town. How the farm work dried up and he and his brothers were forced to pound country dirt roads looking for whatever work they could find to help the family. Some of his brothers were still in their early teens. They eventually lost the farm and the whole family had to live out in the open in a sort of tent city with similar destitute folk.
For some reason, I never realized those a bit older than us are considered a whole different generation. I've always considered them boomers as well. @Lois Winters That was a REALLY nice post!
I am pleased a Brit understands @Patsy Faye. In addition to continual use of colonial posts such as Governor (State) and Governor General (Federal) Australia still holds firm to using Royal in many institutional titles. Even our military. Our major defence Academy is the ROYAL Duntroon Military College.. Our navy is the Royal Australian Navy and there is Royal Australian Air Force while our locally made ships are Elizabeths not the Australian peoples.. HMAS adorns all Navy personel and hardware and stands for Her Majesty's Australian Ship. I know all this is again out of loyalty and respect for Elizabeth. But it is cringeworthy to we Republicans.
Patsy you must have something that makes you wanna get on your soap box. What about Brexit. We'd like to hear what a Brit feels about it and why up till now the whole process to bring it to a reality has appeared to an outsider like me.. somewhat of a shambles. I hear interviews and even your own people are bewildered. C'mon boomers and other gens this is not Craig Swanson's thread. Let's here what grinds your gears.
Well Craig, I'm not feeling down about it all now, as from tomorrow we will be 'OUT' after 3+ years of stress over it We thank Nigel Farage for all the hard graft and determination and to Boris for taking the helm and seeing it through If you'd asked me before this I'd have had a 'lot' to say @Craig Swanson Re - the Queen - she has no influence in Australia, does she …. Just a figure head really But, if you would prefer not to have that, then you need a referendum on it
More than a figurehead as due to our current Constitutional Monarchy and the act passed by Gough Whitlam in 1973, QE 2 is Australia's Head of State. Some say it is mainly a titular position with no real power. Not so as I understand the same mechanism that created the turmoil in 1975 when her representative influenced the removal of a popularly-elected Prime Minister is still in place in our Constitution. That was wrong then and is wrong today. I believe, she will stay even if a vote was held today such is the enormous respect the Australian people have for her. So I dont expect a referendum until she steps down. I also dont expect her to ever do that.
She may not step down but she's coming up to 94 She is a 'figure head' over here so has little influence
Are you a monarchist or shud Britain be a Republic Patsy? I have to say if I was British I'd be proud of and devoted to the monarchy and the Royal Family. But wavering towards a Republic as the RF costs the British taxpayer far too much to maintain them in privileged luxury. I was reading that Harry and Meghan had to return 5 mill pounds the taxpayer generously gave them to refurbish their home..
I’ve got most of my stuff off my chest while in my soapbox a week or so ago ....so give me time I’m sure something or someone will cheese me off enough to dust off my soapbox sooner than latter Thanks for stating the thread Craig
As stated before, no - I'm not a Royalist in the sense of flag waving etc .. But, I do appreciate the Queen for her loyalty to duty. As for the money from taxpayers, no problem as she brings in a lot of money to the country too. The main problem was 'insignificant' royals being paid for nothing worthwhile. This too will be resolved and put an end too. Lastly, I do like William and Kate and think they will be great representatives of this country