Hooray for Australia!

Discussion Open Forum
1

I’m not Australian, and I’ve never been there, but with their National Day coming up next week, it seems a shame that the main thread about them should be the “Stupid, Racist Australians” thread below (or above, depending on their respective popularity). So, what praises can we offer this fine country?

I study religion, and whenever I look for the nearest locations of various religions that Taiwan doesn’t have yet, I often find that the answer is Australia, which has

  • Subud centers (mystical movement from Java)
  • Caodai temples (spiritist, syncretist religion from Vietnam)
  • Co-Masonry (i.e. Freemasons that admit women as well as men)
  • the Liberal Catholic Church (German / Dutch Catholics who refused to go along with papal infallibility in the 19th century)
  • Swedenborgianism (followers of Swedish seer Emmanuel Swedenborg)
  • Theosophy (society started by Mme Blavatsky and her Tibetan Masters)
  • Alevis (roughly, Turkish / Kurdish folk Shi’ism)
  • Mevlevis (“whirling dervish” followers of Rumi)
  • Naqshbandis (yet another Sufi tariqa)
  • Gurdjieff groups (other than the Fellowship of Friends)

In addition, Australia is chock full of Tibetan dharma centers (so is Taiwan), has the nearest Orthodox Christian seminary (along with Japan) and full-fledged synagogue (along with Hong Kong), and has one of the eight (?) Baha’i Houses of Worship in the world. So, even though I’ve never been there, I am impressed with Australia’s obvious ethno-religious diversity and spiritual/intellectual ferment, and wish that their country were closer!

2

Australia, Australia, we love you. Amen!

3

Australia is fantastic. All those neat animals, especially the Sydney funnel-web spider, the box jellyfish, the kangaroo, and the drop-bear.

4

getting drunk on australia day :sunglasses: :sunglasses: :sunglasses:

only realy australian way to celebrate the day of federation.

5

A glowing example of how criminals, if put in the right environment, can thrive and have a positive effect on society!

6

image

Ozzies..they’re kinda like Brits…not hampered by social skills.

7

the bloody tree forgot to grow Tassie!

8

Plus, we gave the world Vegemite.

You lucky cunts.

9

Bollocks. The Kiwis stole the Marmite recipe from the poms, you stole it from them, and relabeled it. Bloody crims.

What you did give us, however, was Nick Cave and Rolf Harris, and the greatest leg-spinner in the history of cricket. Oh, and let’s not forget Donald Bradman.

10

:eh: Australia day is not a celebration of Federation.

January 26 is the celebration of the arrival of the first fleet. Everyone got rolling drunk and had a great time till they woke up with a spitting headache the next morning, looked around and said ‘Where the fuck are we?’

11

my bad thats jan 1. as a real aussie, i dont know much about the birth of our nation.

12

What’s a ‘real aussie’ ? I have a piece of paper is all.

13

Well they gave us the AFL… my favorite sport to watch. :notworthy:

14

I think most Australians are quite confident with their national identity.

Lucky is the word I would use to describe it. I feel very lucky to be Australian.

Anyway, it’s Friday. I’m embracing my Aussie, German and Pommy Cunt (I’m 50% PC) heritage and having a beer. :beer:

15

real australian aye.

16

Never been to the place but I like how they deal with idiots;

17

Vegemite is heaps better than Marmite. Marmite sucks, Vegemite rocks.

the Kiwis and the Poms can keep their pissy little jars of Marmite.

true.

Rolf Harris was a free giveaway, mate. We couldn’t stand the smarmy little prick.

18

Sam Kekovich is something good about Australia.

19

Three cheers for Crocodile Dundee!

20

… and today Barrie Humphries wins Australian of the Year in the Yook.

Awesome!