What a fair dinkum, true blue Aussie post mate!
How could I ever take this piss out of my Aussie mates!? NEVER!
Having spent a fair chunk of my life travelling this mad world of ours I can say with authority that Australia is the greatest country there is and Aussies are alright. The pride the average Aussie has in themselves and the country is incredible but it's not illusory as it is with other countries.
It saddens me somewhat that successive governments have tried to go down the UK/US model with politics in Oz but that may be because you folks are so distracted with the beauty of your surroundings.
Be proud of your pride it's well earned. TremendosPercy - Honourary Criminalian!
My Grandfather, on the left in the bottom photo served with AIF 2nd Pioneers Signals through the Somme and following campaigns. His brother was a veteran of Gallipoli, and listed as a charger at Beersheba. Thankyou for honouring their memories with your talk of mateship in the services, I know it was important to them.
This article well encapsulates the essence of being an Aussie. And we do like to take the piss out of authority.
Mate, this is fantastic. Thank you for taking so much time to share what being Australian means to you. I am sure you have reignited the passion in a lot of people who have read this. You could t be more right in so many of your points, it isn’t just about being, it is about living it. Thanks for entering the competition and for this post. Good luck!
Mate, it was from the heart and there is so much that I would like to write but I as I mentioned, I'm not much of a writer. So this is the best that I could do.
Win or lose, doesn't matter, I gave it my best and most sincere shot.
EXCELLENT COMP MATE..... IT REALLY GOT ME THINKING!
So THANK YOU!
It is good to remind ourselves of who and what we really are.
From this time forward, [under God,]
I pledge my loyalty to Australia and its people,
whose democratic beliefs I share,
whose rights and liberties I respect, and
whose laws I will uphold and obey.
Personally I would love to see this oath be a requirement for the right to vote in Australia for all citizens.
Pride that comes only from devotion and dedication to stand for something. That makes you a great Aussie, mate..(see even this ol dog can learn!)..but it also what allowed this world to become what it is - a place that less people are willing to stand for
There are plenty of folks in my country (USA) that want a voice, but refuse to use their legs - what I mean is the refuse to stand for anything "real". That is not just my observation here, but also along my travels as well. It seems that people all over the globe want to 'demand' democracy while sitting down - on their ass - expecting it to arrive gift-wrapped, on their lap.
I have to say that I have met many humans, from all over the planet, that stand for Liberty. They do that in a way that is genuine and true - taking freedom from one to give to another is not furthering Liberty, nor is it what some consider 'Patriotism'. Impeding upon the path of another is not Liberty at all. So, why are so many willingly sitting in the aisle?
Because we are ignorant. At some point pride was mistaken for prejudice and law has somehow been confused with morality.
I say: it is a beautiful thing to take pride in where you are from, what you believe, and being part of something that makes you feel good as it does the same for others around you.
Maybe that's why we face the problems in this world that we do? Pride=shame and people would rather leave behind their problems behind them - moving on to the next best place. Maybe if the world had more people that gave half a shit about their surroundings (their home!) and the people that they share it with - maybe....just maybe... People would'nt have to flee difficult circumstances in their home country as often.. Since when does running away from problems solve them?
I love that you shared so much in this - I'm learning and equally entertained. I busted a seam watching the 'Thong of Duty' vid 😆
Mate, you may not consider yourself a great writer, but you had me all the way through this one! I can only hope my nation can wake up to what is important and stand. Far too many willing to kneel and even more that can't get off their ass. Glad to surround myself with more people who know better. I commend all of you that stand to keep your country what you wish it to be. I'm in a place where people all over the world actually wish & dream about it going to the shitter and watch in hope today is the day. Unaware to many of those fools, there are way too many people willing to wade in shit and willing to stand until we're eyebrows deep.. We are here and we aren't running anywhere.
Morning read complete! Thank you, Jack. Hard to substantiate a short reply if you read any of this!! I know I couldn't. Feel like I know a lot more about you, mate. Time to hit the heavy bag now my blood is moving. ✌😎
Jack, what a fantastic post! It really resonated with me and being a Canadian on many of the same levels that you expressed as being an Assuie. Love the photo of your youngest with his slouchy.
Absolutely one of the best posts on Steemit I've seen yet. You can tell it was written from the heart and with emotion. Wow, blown away.
I hope that it's OK to borrow an Aussie colloquialism - Good on ya mate!
My first contact with Australia was the tv show "Skippy" which I saw as a kid in the seventies and then in the eighties of course "Crocodile Dundee" which was even here in Germany a blockbuster. Afterwards I read a lot about Australia but had no time to travel to your continent as it cannot be done in a one or two week trip from Europe. But last year I read the script of my grandfather from World Ware I in the hell of the French battles. And it was really a tragedy for all participants of WWI and WWII to serve in those conflicts. The only way to survive in those slaughterhouses was indeed a kind of becoming "mates" within their different troops in the battles. But the reality of these battles have been so dreadful that nowadays people cannot imagine what happened in those times. And thinking that young men from Australia travelled around the half of the world to fight in two futile World Wars is outrageous as the descendants of the responsible persons for both World Wars are still in power.
My Grandfather was one of the young diggers who sailed all the way around the world to fight in a war that was not his and for a cause that he soon realised was a joke. He was 16 on enlistment, 17 when he embarked, celebrated his 18th, 19th and 20th birthdays in the mud of France and Belgium. As a Pioneer, he saw the worst of it. First into an area, wait for the infantry and then move onto the next shit fight. He was a telegraph operator and sharpshooter, so was a fairly high priority target for the Germans.
His brothers both fought in the Light Horse, Percy from Gallipoli through to the Palestine uprising in 1919 and Edgar joined in 1917 when he was himself only 17.
Despite their involvement in the shit show, they never held it against the German people. They hated the British high command, not the Germans. Blamed them for their losses, and realised the lads on the other side probably felt the same about their commanders. In that spirit, therefore, they fought hard but without malice, and taught me that you could fight without hating your enemy.
What was most outrageous is that the King was the Kaiser's nephew, and whilst the men were dying in the trenches, they would have nice family gatherings.
I think that the stories of Aussies playing cricket with the Turks on the cliffs of Gallipoli and the Brits playing Soccer with your lads over Christmas, 1914, shows the lack of antipathy each side had for the other and is indicative of the fact that, if not for politics, we could have gotten along just fine with your mob.
I say a prayer for all those who fought, in both wars, on whatever side, every Anzac Day for the simple fact they were all doing as they thought was right, and doing it to their best ability.
As you can see from my name, my background is in many ways similar to yours.
My grandfather was killed in a British air raid/bombing during the second world war.
Yet here I am, an Australian who gave an oath to The Queen Of Australia.
I think that loyalty to your mates is one of the most important things in any situation, especially when your life depends upon it.
Life has taught me that.
I have learned the hard way. Again, this is nothing in comparison to what all went down during The Great War, which was labelled the war to end all wars, yet it was the catalyst to another world war.
The sad part in all this, when we talk about "war" is that too many people don't or just won't understand anything from a soldiers point of view, views based on personal experiences. The good thing for them is that they can't understand, because they have never been in the hot zone.
We could talk about this for days and still not change anything.
What a fair dinkum, true blue Aussie post mate!
How could I ever take this piss out of my Aussie mates!? NEVER!
Having spent a fair chunk of my life travelling this mad world of ours I can say with authority that Australia is the greatest country there is and Aussies are alright. The pride the average Aussie has in themselves and the country is incredible but it's not illusory as it is with other countries.
It saddens me somewhat that successive governments have tried to go down the UK/US model with politics in Oz but that may be because you folks are so distracted with the beauty of your surroundings.
Be proud of your pride it's well earned.
TremendosPercy - Honourary Criminalian!
God bless ya mate, and The Queen of Australia.
My Grandfather, on the left in the bottom photo served with AIF 2nd Pioneers Signals through the Somme and following campaigns. His brother was a veteran of Gallipoli, and listed as a charger at Beersheba. Thankyou for honouring their memories with your talk of mateship in the services, I know it was important to them.
This article well encapsulates the essence of being an Aussie. And we do like to take the piss out of authority.
Lest we forget.
We shall remember.
Mate, this is fantastic. Thank you for taking so much time to share what being Australian means to you. I am sure you have reignited the passion in a lot of people who have read this. You could t be more right in so many of your points, it isn’t just about being, it is about living it. Thanks for entering the competition and for this post. Good luck!
Mate, it was from the heart and there is so much that I would like to write but I as I mentioned, I'm not much of a writer. So this is the best that I could do.
Win or lose, doesn't matter, I gave it my best and most sincere shot.
EXCELLENT COMP MATE..... IT REALLY GOT ME THINKING!
So THANK YOU!
It is good to remind ourselves of who and what we really are.
Great post Jack. You've put a lot of effort into this and expressed yourself well.
It all came from the heart. Shame I didn't pay more attention when I was back in School, but it is what it is.
Thanks for the support and the compliment.
Mate nice post.
Personally I would love to see this oath be a requirement for the right to vote in Australia for all citizens.
Pride that comes only from devotion and dedication to stand for something. That makes you a great Aussie, mate..(see even this ol dog can learn!)..but it also what allowed this world to become what it is - a place that less people are willing to stand for
There are plenty of folks in my country (USA) that want a voice, but refuse to use their legs - what I mean is the refuse to stand for anything "real". That is not just my observation here, but also along my travels as well. It seems that people all over the globe want to 'demand' democracy while sitting down - on their ass - expecting it to arrive gift-wrapped, on their lap.
I have to say that I have met many humans, from all over the planet, that stand for Liberty. They do that in a way that is genuine and true - taking freedom from one to give to another is not furthering Liberty, nor is it what some consider 'Patriotism'. Impeding upon the path of another is not Liberty at all. So, why are so many willingly sitting in the aisle?
Because we are ignorant. At some point pride was mistaken for prejudice and law has somehow been confused with morality.
I say: it is a beautiful thing to take pride in where you are from, what you believe, and being part of something that makes you feel good as it does the same for others around you.
Maybe that's why we face the problems in this world that we do? Pride=shame and people would rather leave behind their problems behind them - moving on to the next best place. Maybe if the world had more people that gave half a shit about their surroundings (their home!) and the people that they share it with - maybe....just maybe... People would'nt have to flee difficult circumstances in their home country as often.. Since when does running away from problems solve them?
I love that you shared so much in this - I'm learning and equally entertained. I busted a seam watching the 'Thong of Duty' vid 😆
Mate, you may not consider yourself a great writer, but you had me all the way through this one! I can only hope my nation can wake up to what is important and stand. Far too many willing to kneel and even more that can't get off their ass. Glad to surround myself with more people who know better. I commend all of you that stand to keep your country what you wish it to be. I'm in a place where people all over the world actually wish & dream about it going to the shitter and watch in hope today is the day. Unaware to many of those fools, there are way too many people willing to wade in shit and willing to stand until we're eyebrows deep.. We are here and we aren't running anywhere.
Morning read complete! Thank you, Jack. Hard to substantiate a short reply if you read any of this!! I know I couldn't. Feel like I know a lot more about you, mate. Time to hit the heavy bag now my blood is moving. ✌😎
Got the adrenaline thumping!
Here's one that got our hearts pumping in OIF, back in 2003 and 2004.
Jack, what a fantastic post! It really resonated with me and being a Canadian on many of the same levels that you expressed as being an Assuie. Love the photo of your youngest with his slouchy.
Absolutely one of the best posts on Steemit I've seen yet. You can tell it was written from the heart and with emotion. Wow, blown away.
I hope that it's OK to borrow an Aussie colloquialism - Good on ya mate!
Thanks for the comment mate, it really means a lot to me that you appreciate the personal aspect of it.
If we ever meet, the next round of cold ones is on me!
:beers:
My first contact with Australia was the tv show "Skippy" which I saw as a kid in the seventies and then in the eighties of course "Crocodile Dundee" which was even here in Germany a blockbuster. Afterwards I read a lot about Australia but had no time to travel to your continent as it cannot be done in a one or two week trip from Europe. But last year I read the script of my grandfather from World Ware I in the hell of the French battles. And it was really a tragedy for all participants of WWI and WWII to serve in those conflicts. The only way to survive in those slaughterhouses was indeed a kind of becoming "mates" within their different troops in the battles. But the reality of these battles have been so dreadful that nowadays people cannot imagine what happened in those times. And thinking that young men from Australia travelled around the half of the world to fight in two futile World Wars is outrageous as the descendants of the responsible persons for both World Wars are still in power.
My Grandfather was one of the young diggers who sailed all the way around the world to fight in a war that was not his and for a cause that he soon realised was a joke. He was 16 on enlistment, 17 when he embarked, celebrated his 18th, 19th and 20th birthdays in the mud of France and Belgium. As a Pioneer, he saw the worst of it. First into an area, wait for the infantry and then move onto the next shit fight. He was a telegraph operator and sharpshooter, so was a fairly high priority target for the Germans.
His brothers both fought in the Light Horse, Percy from Gallipoli through to the Palestine uprising in 1919 and Edgar joined in 1917 when he was himself only 17.
Despite their involvement in the shit show, they never held it against the German people. They hated the British high command, not the Germans. Blamed them for their losses, and realised the lads on the other side probably felt the same about their commanders. In that spirit, therefore, they fought hard but without malice, and taught me that you could fight without hating your enemy.
What was most outrageous is that the King was the Kaiser's nephew, and whilst the men were dying in the trenches, they would have nice family gatherings.
I think that the stories of Aussies playing cricket with the Turks on the cliffs of Gallipoli and the Brits playing Soccer with your lads over Christmas, 1914, shows the lack of antipathy each side had for the other and is indicative of the fact that, if not for politics, we could have gotten along just fine with your mob.
I say a prayer for all those who fought, in both wars, on whatever side, every Anzac Day for the simple fact they were all doing as they thought was right, and doing it to their best ability.
Mein Freund,
As you can see from my name, my background is in many ways similar to yours.
My grandfather was killed in a British air raid/bombing during the second world war.
Yet here I am, an Australian who gave an oath to The Queen Of Australia.
I think that loyalty to your mates is one of the most important things in any situation, especially when your life depends upon it.
Life has taught me that.
I have learned the hard way. Again, this is nothing in comparison to what all went down during The Great War, which was labelled the war to end all wars, yet it was the catalyst to another world war.
The sad part in all this, when we talk about "war" is that too many people don't or just won't understand anything from a soldiers point of view, views based on personal experiences. The good thing for them is that they can't understand, because they have never been in the hot zone.
We could talk about this for days and still not change anything.
Tschüss
"Overgrown piece of flake" is the funniest description for a shark I have ever heard XD
(the rest of the post was all right too, weird things stick in my head but we all knew that already ;D)
Flake - the fish'n'chips special.
Well it is... sort of!
I could have put a photo of Jaws and wrote "Australian Guppy" but that would have been a little too much!
This is wonderful. I can see that being Australian means a lot to you.
You are great
Keep it up
Thanks. I'm glad that I got the message across.
If being an Aussie does not mean a lot to a person, that person is not really an Aussie, despite maybe haivng Australian citizenship.