"The problem here is a totalitarian uniformity, a cult-like mentality such that even allies are enemies if they fail to follow the Exact Party Line. " - Phyllis Chesler

Thursday, October 15, 2009

These Are From Australia


































5 comments:

Angry said...

No they're not...

These are all from American cartoonists working for American publishers, published in American publications. They may well have been syndicated in Australia and therefore published in Australian publications too, but to simply say that they're from Australia isn't, strictly speaking, true.

Even if they were Australian, half of which you've posted twice, I'm not sure that I understand the point you're making.

Cheers.

A New Yorker said...

Angry i'm going to just be the blunt person that I am :
FUCK OFF!
Either you cite facts...or get the fuck off my blog. NOT ONE MORE COMMENT GETS UP WITHOUT YOU PROVING WITH CITATION. GO FUCK OFF AND FUCK YOUR OWN COUNTRY WITH YOUR RACISTS RELATIVISM IMMORAL BULLSHIT! GO SEND YOUR OWN COUNTRYMEN TO THEIR OWN GRAVES...OR BETTER YET GO DIG YOUR OWN!

Angry said...

Just a word on that last pic... which I find very disappointing. And I'll quickly add here, Lauren, that I'm not suggesting that you are responsible for it, this comment isn't aimed at you. It's aimed at the oft implied notion that the US is the world's lone saviour.

The implication is clearly made that the US alone is responsible for liberating all the countries listed. To paraphrase: 'Once again, courtesy of the US alone, another country is free.' It's helped by the American flag in the lower right corner, and that iconic image of raising the flag on Iwo Jima.

Why does it offend me? Because Australians fought and died along side the US in just about all those theatres of war.

In fact we, Australians, inhabit the one continent that has not experienced war, we came close to it with the Japanese, yet our record in fighting for freedom is second to none especially when you consider our relatively small population.

Australia is the only nation on earth that fought in World Wars I and II, Korea, Vietnam and the two Persian Gulf conflicts against Iraq from beginning to end. When it comes to the ongoing defense of the Western world, Australia truly is an underappreciated country.

Just saying.

Cheers.

Mum-me said...

I would think the bombing of Darwin by the Japanese amounts to 'war' in Australia. My friend's Grandmother also has very distinct memories of the chaos caused by the warning sirens going off when the Japanese mini-subs got into Sydney Harbour.

And if the Americans didn't come to our aid in the battle of the Coral Sea it is quite likely we'd all be speaking Japanese here today. Australians owe a lot to the Americans.

While I am proud of Australia's record of fighting for freedom in wars around the world, I can readily admit that because of our relatively small population we cannot make much of an impact on our own. I am also proud that Australia chooses to be one of America's allies, and glad that America is on our side!

Angry said...

@ Mum-me... well I saw it as an attack on Darwin and a U-boat parked in the bay rather than a war... the war with the Japanese wasn't fought on Australian soil. The Americans were attacked at Pearl Harbour, but their war with Japan wasn't fought in North America.

I wasn't suggesting we didn't owe the US our gratitude, all I was saying was that we fought beside the US in those campaigns. I was taking a swipe at the creators of the poster.

It's the same thing in a 2000 movie release called U-571, where the US undertook a mission to liberate a German Enigma Cypher Machine, and according to the movie they were succesful and managed to break the German codes and shorten the war... the Director said he was careful not to distort historical facts... the trouble is, the US had nothing to do with getting the machine and breaking the codes.

And as for your third paragraph, i agree wholeheartedly.

Cheers.