As much as I take pride in being an Englishman I take pride in also being an Australian. As one of the Australians who call this country home as matter of choice rather than someone who is an Australian by the accident of their birth I have a love of this country that has never been blunted by indifference.
I tell my children that they are growing up in the best country in the world, and it is the nation that we have become that even my leftist friends, who madly apologise for the arrival of Arthur Philip and the subsequent dispossession of the indigenous people, benefit from that we celebrate. We can certainly try to understand the events that shaped our nation but we live in the here and now and from where I stand it is pretty good.
Enjoy this day without shame.
Cheers Comrades
🙂
Iain Hall's SANDPIT 
Here, here, Iain, and thanks for the (hidden) link via the photo of Kernaghan. I here he’s a Queenslander now, but he originally came from this area – born in Corryong, I believe, real backwoods country.
Lee’s a great singer & entertainer and yes he does sort-of help out some rural communities (or so HE keeps saying) but I can’t agree with his selection as Australian of the year, not when you look at who didn’t get it.
Anyway, it’s no big deal in the scheme of things, Australia day is not about the Australian of the year, nor is it about the PM using it to enhance his own popularity. It’s about everyone appreciating what we have.
I’ll drink to that!
Me too!
Of course,…I’m sure you realise that if you aren’t prepared to apologise to Aboriginal Australia and take responsibility for the actions of previous governments, such as the Stolen Generation’, then it is hypocritical in the extreme to then be proud of the accomplishments of past generations such as Gallipoli etc, etc, for which you also have no responsibility.
🙂
SM you are of course wrong in your assumption that one has to celebrate, of mourn any historical events to appreciate the virtues of the Australian nation I celebrate the Australia that we have now and by any measure it is a fine nation and there is no better place for me to raise my children.
Iain, if you can appreciate the virtues of the Australian nation then you can certainly appreciate the tragedies and do the former rather than the latter on the grounds of not being responsible for the actions of past generations, is hypocritical in the extreme.
Furthermore, that this is a great place to raise your children has a lot to do with the actions of the left, who fought for a living wage, the franchise, votes for women, and against religous bigotry and racism.
Do you want to try this again because it makes no sense to me as it stands 😦
While you are so willing to attribute all manner of social virtue to the minions of the left we have a Labor government instituting government policies that restrict the free access of Australians to significant parts of the country on a purely racial basis, Good men and women of all political persuasions have made significant contributions to building of this nation don’t kid yourself that your side of the political spectrum are entirely paragons of virtue because I make no such clams about those of a more conservative persuasion.