Principled Discovery

Jul. 12, 2006

Open Letter to Australia

Dear Australia,

I do love your country dearly.  In fact, I have married one of your citizens which proves to be a forever interesting topic of conversation.  How I have managed to be married to an Australian for ten years without understanding your favorite song is beyond me, but it happened.  Maybe because what you call English is not what I call English. 

I hear that there has long been pressure to change Australia's national anthem from Advance Australia Fair to Waltzing Matilda. Advance Australia Fair may be a bit on the cheesy side, but that is the stuff anthems are made of.  Advance Australia Fair has fair moral principles of patriotism a nation can rally around and a shared vision of making a nation great. 

Waltzing Matilda does not.  You should be ashamed of yourselves.

For my fellow countrymen, who may have hummed along dreaming of dusty Man-From-Snowy-River types walzing with fat German ladies...Don't be fooled by the Australian's jovial good nature.  Or his irreverance for the Queen.  Or his celebration at Australia being the Land of the Long Weekend.  They are a nation of ex-cons and proud of it.  Let me translate:

Drifter Looking for Work

A drifter camped by a watering hole
Under the shade of a eukalyptus tree. 
And he sang as he watched and waited until his tea boiled,
"Who'll come a-drifting, looking for work, with me?"

[refrain]

Along came a sheep to drink at the watering hole. 
Up jumped the drifter and grabbed him with glee. 
And he sang as he stowed that sheep in his lunch bag,
"You'll come a-drifting, looking for work, with me?"

[refrain]

Up rode the landowner, mounted on his thoroughbred,
Down came the policemen, one, two, three. 
"Whose is that sheep you've got in your lunch bag?" 
"You'll come a-drifting, looking for work, with me?"

[refrain]

Up jumped the drifter, leapt into the watering hole
"You'll never catch me alive," said he,
And his ghost may be heard as you pass by the watering hole,
"Who'll come a-drifting, looking for work, with me?"

[refrain]

I really should have realized this.  A nation who holds up Ned Kelly as a symbol of national honor and pride shouldn't be trusted so quickly.

Sincerely,

Dana Hanley

P.S.

Carn the Tigers!
280390ck









Post A Comment! Send to a Friend!

Comments

About Me

"Democracy and socialism have nothing in common but one word, equality. But notice the difference: while democracy seeks equality in liberty, socialism seeks equality in restraint and servitude."--Alexis de Toqueville

Links

Home
View my profile
Archives
Email Me
My Blog's RSS

Friends

UndertheSky
TOSPUBLISHER
LovingHim4Ever
ByHisGraceInColorado
spunkyhomeschool

JillNovak
MamaBugs
Kellyque777
creativehsmom
schooldaze
belindaletchford
LisaQuing
redmom
meandmyhouse
GalacticBlogger
thehsmomof2
Titus2woman
Hutcheson
Manicmondaymomma
dswescott

nebraska
Cre8iveMom
lifeandtimesofanothermom
principledlearner
Raquel
NewHarvest
Michaela
rainbowdash

Honeybee
Dalaimama
SingingHisStory
loughman98
Lazycreek
iluvtheland
JennLovesJesus
mistresninos
Janne
Amber
leslienoelani
chickadee


lovetolearnmom
writmm

AmoScribo

TRINITYPREPSCHOOL
WalkInFaith
danib
telmar

dinomomm
HSmom0f4

Jocelyndixon
SuperAngel
RugbyHS
homeschoolingmommaof4

AussieinAmerica
home4mariah
littleskipper
Keri
onecrazymom
domesticangel
Entry 116 of 419
Last Page | Next Page