To Advance Australia Where?

G'day possums,

Shane being Patriotic.

It's Straya Day  and for the first time we are being exhorted to sing the National Anthem at midday tomorrow.

That this rather Americanised concept of plastic patriotism/jingoism is gaining a foothold in this country at present is a definite indication that there's actually little to celebrate.

But as a loyal, patriotic and involved member of "Toim Striaya" I have penned an alternate version for tomorrow's festivities....

... To the tune of  Advance Australia Fair

Advance Australia Where?

Bogans all let us lament

That we are full of fear

We've privatised all in making wealth

For investors not from here

Our abundant natures gifts are raped

For compensation poor

Oft wrapped in flags of Chinese make

For ranting mindless slogans of hate

In words fully three and sometimes more

Advance Australia Where?

Below our smoggy Southern Cross

All things made wrecked by Rabid whim

And 457’s on the rise

Our future does look grim

We say to those fleeing shock and awe

“We’re bloody full so fuck right off

Illegal Queue jumpers welcomed here

Only if your Burqa’s doffed”

Still Oz Flagged wrapped in sentiment fake

Advance Australia Where?

Chained Indigineous People

It's interesting to note that until the 60's the Aborigine was classified under Flora and Fauna.

We popped down the The Greendale Pub to have a gander at their Striaya Day celebrations....My anthem would probably not have been appreciated by many...wrong audience. Hey-Ho.

Wombat Droppings 

or the chronicle of the inexorable slide of a country into Fascism

Rabid-the-Hun has been (allegedly) catching up on his reading because Campbell "Il Duce" Newman, Dictator of the Deep North will not invite him to participate in his election games.  Rabid's behaviour is rather suspect at the moment as "Il Duce" looks like losing his own seat and his Fascist rabble are perilously close to being made the opposition after only one term like "DoDo" Naptime was recently in The Tardis State of Victoria (Where-All-Goes-Backward) election. 

Newman has amused many of us with his defence of his regime by accusing Labor of receiving funds through the CFMEU Union  with funds allegedly  donated by Outlaw MC Clubs.
When pressed publicly as to where the evidence was for this, "Il Duce" said, ".... we should look it up on Wikki!"

Most of us were unaware that "Ozone-Hole" Hunt, Federal Pretend Environment Minister was advising the Deep Northerners on research method or that these "donations" were any different from receiving  cash "assistance" from mining companies or property developers in brown paper bags and envelopes.
 Making legislation retrospective to avoid friends' illegal practices embarrassing the government though, is quite another matter.

Rabid-the-Hun has, I understand, been been reading  Julius Ceasar By Will Shakespeare, particularly the "Ides of March" bit and  reportedly has been seeking alternative interpretations of the text from his lowly back-benchers.

It is also apparent that the pirate vessel, he Captains, the S.S. Liarbril is not steering too well as it keeps steaming  in circles, which is not quite what the driving instructions supplied by "The-Coot's-With-Queer-Ideas-From-a-Parallel-Universe" (aka the IPA) intended.

 First Mate "Bloody Idiot" Credlin is thought to be at blame for this although the Navigator, Joe "Cereal/Toyota-Killer" Hockey is obviously in difficulty reading charts and calculating Latitude and Longitude but does have some excuse as his assistant, "Horse-Shite" Coormann only issues direction instruction in either broken English or Belgian: only one of which does Joe "Cereal/Toyota-Killer" partially understand.

 Captain  Rabid said he has tried scraping some barnacles off the hull but S.S. Liarbril's plate is so thin that its hull is now in danger of collapsing and she is settling lower and lower in the muck it has churned up.
It is unfortunate that the IPA's original instructions were very limited in concept and sophistication and were not related to how to build things but only to disassemble.

Many passengers have left the cruise early and it would seem that the toy-maker, "The Ugly American" Murdoch and his minions at CWQIFaPU, (IPA) have not done their respective reputations much good.

 The stench coming from the boiler room at this time is not at all like the Coal these pirates so like, it's more akin to the funk of a wounded animal waiting for the Ides of March.

Breaking news: In the Australia Day Honours lists Captain Rabid has given Phil-the-Greek (Betty Windsor's other half) a gong, a knighthood! Now Australia's Prime Miniature bestowing a knighthood on a British Monarch's hubby might seem a little bit cart before horse  but that's the way things are being done around here. That it is an entirely ludicrous idea and likely to have more people crying out not just for 1/ a Double Dissolution of Parliament, 2/ a Republic, 3/ Revolution or 4/ Rabid-the-Hun's committal isnot too fanciful.
That his own crew might be brought that much closer to mutiny with this insane display arse-licking fawning is also not out of the question.

Hoo-roo Petals,

Shane.

..saying Watteau, Poussin? on this plastic Straya Di

G’day Possums… it’s Straya Dai

Shane defending our Sovereign Borders

A day here in Oz that increasingly we celebrate by wearing the flag, putting flags on our cars, having flags on hats and getting drunker than usual to remember the very first boat people (no, no, not the ones on Nauru and Manus Island, we don’t like them) who arrived at what was conveniently called “Terra Nullius”... which meant we didn’t push anyone off their land ‘cause they weren’t here, were they?  It’s a principle that still has its uses as exemplified by our dudding the Timorese out of a just return on their oil fields and spying on their negotiators.

Just a pity we have to defend ourselves in the International Court on two criminal charges…. …sorta spoils the day, really.

But more celebratory Down-Under stories later in Wombat Droppings.

Here are some new shoot results…. many thanks to Laura, Gus, Emma and Olivia for their work t’other day.

Technique is “dragged shutter” … two flash units were used one with brolly the other as fill, fired off the ceiling, shutter speed was 1/3 sec with ambient light from windows at left.

Originally, Poussin and Caravaggio were in mind for this shoot but when researching, Antoine Watteau kept popping up and it became apparent that his works with his actor friends and the “Fete Galante” style well suited ballet so there are C17^th and C18th influences to be seen. 

A'la Gilles

 

A'la Watteau

 

E as a Poussin deity

O as a Poussin deity

L as a Poussin deity

Wombat Droppings or Low-down Oz Politics

Apart from being at War with boat people and causing the Indonesians to send some Frigates and F-22's  to stop the Oz Navy getting lost in their waters our Prime Miniature, “Mr Rabbott” has been entertaining lots of important people in Davos, Switzerland with the Huffington Post reporting “Australian PM reveals his incredibly complex take on the Syrian civil war.'' His descriptions of the Syrian mess as “Baddies vs Baddies” and that “profits are good” left no doubt that the Great South Land is indeed a place of strange Fauna.

“Wer ist dieser Fick-Witz”? Klaus Schwab, (Economic Council Head) seems to mutter as he disengaged and fled from conversation with Rabbott.

Pleased to hear that "We’re open for business“... delegates then seemed confused on hearing that although Oz was only one of 8 countries in the world to weather the GFC without a major recession, the previous Government responsible, was very naughty and shouldn’t have done that. We should have followed World's Best Practice and gone into recession, too!

There is also no truth in the rumour that navy personnal belong to Ultra-Right-Wing racist groups! Or that they treat boat-people with anything less than humanity and care. Rabbott said so.

The Liarbrils perpetuate their myth of omnipotence, their economic sagacity, their "rightness" to be in control. In short, a sort of "Ming" Menzies '40's, "She'll be right!"  What's different this time, are the times; never before have we had such unknown future ahead of oil running out, a developing climate catastrophe, Capital in an upwardly feral spiral to the few and religious fundamentalism seeking a downward past for people who won’t think.

And the Aspirational Bogans can’t think… particularly about others.

Thinking about others implies a limitation of choices... others require understanding...

"F..K that, burn the Witch!" 

And let Leigh Sales read "Australian" editorials of climate change denials on ABC's 7:30 report.. that's good accurate, unbiased and credible journalism isn't it?

They're very simple, selfish, and uncivil because they are very frightened for time is running out.

Howard and Reith stroked the "uncivil" when Howard refused to alienate the Bogan racism of Hanson, and elevated middle class welfare as his "Circus" distraction and Reith lied about SIEV-X and "children overboard" whilst pretending to be have humanitarian concerns. Laws are being promulgated that are real echo’s of German law, 1933.

Now, Abbott is with Catholic training in dissimulation, cause and effect and; brutality as more than a metaphor, perfect for the role of a slogan headmaster to the new ferals who need little other than slogans.

Except the times are different….and the ferryman needs payment!

So let’s all wrap ourselves’ up in the flag this Straya Die and play the game of "Inverse Proportions"… that’s the game where you celebrate the myth of your country rather than look at its reality. Because the reality is looking rather thin in content and concept and synthetic patriotism is easier to manufacture than the effort of making the real thing.

Bewdy Mate….Cheers,

Shane.