During 1943, the Thomas Y. Crowell Company published a book by Corporal Thomas R. St. George, titled "c/o Postmaster," which was a humorous look at the story of a Yank who was shipped off to Australia and sat there at a remote post in Australia laughing about the SNAFU. Reading that book after learning the importance of the early battles in the Pacific during WWII, while visiting the War Museum in Canberra, it is obvious that for generals expecting a Japanese Invasion, it was a wise strategic deployment of allies' troops and not a paperwork blunder. Expectations of an impending Japanese invasion were best kept secret from America's civilians.
Writers are always striving to convey a sense of place and so perhaps we can inject a few words here that illustrate how Australia today is comparable to the United States in the "Wild West" phase of its history. On a bright December morning, in 2008, after nighttime noise in the hallway of a hostel in Kalgoorlie indicated that an altercation had occurred, two of the fellows, who were good friends, were suspected of being the ones who had the scuffle. They looked "pretty beat-up" but both the Falcon and the Bishop would only respond to inquiries about the noisy encounter by saying: "I don't know what you are talking about!" What made folks think it was those two good friends who had the fight?
If you go to Google News and scroll down to the links for other news pages, the one for Australia will deliver a much clearer indication of the recent disaster than you can find in/on American news media. Whatsamatta Rupert Murdrock? Is he also using the stoical "I don't know what you are talking about" Aussie macho pose? Or is he more interested in helping a certain potential Republican Presidential Candidate by keeping America's attention focused on the Egyptian Crisis rather than Obama's domestic agenda?
The great Greek humorist Plato once predicted that someday every man would be sitting in his hovel looking at his computer screen thinking that he (OK- or she) was accurately perceiving the world outside the 99th floor of his block. So it is that most Americans spent Sunday, February 06, 2011, worrying about the entertainment value of a Super Bowl without Joe Namath rather than checking up on the news from America's closest Ally.
Australia has sent troops to Korea, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan. What the hell does the tribal bickering in two far away countries (one is completely landlocked and the other almost is) have to do with the welfare of the island nation that is famous for koala bears and kangaroos? The reason they are there is because the US said they need them and friends don't balk when they are asked to help. Shouldn't that be a "two way street"?
Speaking of conspiracy theories from insane bloggers, this might be a good time to slip in the question: "Where was Felix Rodriguez on the day Australian PM Harold Holt went for his last swim?" (We don't think that certain files in Langley will ever be released by a Freedom of Information request.)
Here's another almost incomprehensible full of bits of arcane, obtuse, and esoteric material that baffles teabagging trolls. This columnist is a big fan of the guy who does the Brad Blog and fills in for Mike Malloy on his radio program when he is sick or on vacation, but (there's always a "but" in these columns, eh?) we would love to see/hear what would happen if one of Malloy's most popular callers, an Australian called "Blue," would be ever get the call to come in and substitute for Malloy. It seems to this listener that Blue would provoke Rush, O'Reilly, Hannity and a few regular liberal listeners more than Ann Coulter ever upset the liberals.
When the Internets opened and the pioneer bloggers wanted to "go beyond the black stump," the most optimistic declared that perhaps the fad would generate some "unique voices." Others feared it would limp along and eventually devolve into a homecoming/prom king popularity contest that would mirror the ratings races of the major media.
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