Latest Posts

Diggers not convinced Islam is peaceful

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Cultural sensitivity training fails, as it should.
The vast majority of Australian Defence Force personnel believes the Muslim religion promotes ­violence and terrorism, despite “cultural sensitivity training” by the ADF to have its soldiers take the view that Islam is a religion of peace.
Good. I see they’re not swayed by the views of the politically correct brigade.
The bombshell new study sponsored by the army finds that such “anti-Muslim sentiments” are “probably quite widespread” among Australian frontline troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, and that the military’s efforts to reverse this trend are counter-productive.
It might be a bombshell to some but those who inhabit the real world would wonder why on earth any one would be surprised that an Army that has been fighting Muslims for more than ten years would not think they are a religion of peace. All Muslim’s aren’t peaceful and Islam isn’t a religion of peace. The term Cultural Sensitivity Training is cop-out to the politically correct however Cultural Training by itself is fine. Prior to my sojourns to South East Asia I was lectured and read all I could about the Vietnamese culture  and whereas I accepted the Vietnamese civilians were sometimes peaceful I didn’t trust them. And no one suggested that communism was a peaceful ideology. The good Doctor’s final sentence is enlightening.
Dr Miller said more work should be done by the ADF to get a better understanding of the issue, but the problem was that “the open expression of anti-Muslim sentiment in the ADF can and has led to disciplinary charges and dismissal.”
So it’s an offence to be anti-enemy. Wow – we used to encourage it. Full article here Picture show Religion of Peace chaps winning hearts and minds
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Defence, General Musings

What’s sauce for the goose…..

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It has always been the case that soldiers are expected to be apolitical and I have always agreed with that ruling. Until now.
MP for Canning Andrew Hastie has been booted out of the Army Reserves after he defied a Defence request to remove photos of him in military garb from election campaign material.   Australian Defence Force members, including reservists, are banned from taking part in political activities while in uniform. The ADF says its policy is designed to ensure the armed forces remain apolitical.
Here’s why.
More than 100 Australian Defence Force (ADF) members, together with 50 Defence civilians, families, friends and allies of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI) community marched in the 2015 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade. The contingent was led by the most senior enlisted members of the ADF: Warrant Officer for the Navy, Martin Holzberger; Regimental Sergeant Major of the Army, Dave Ashley; and Warrant Officer for the Air Force, Mark Pentreath who volunteered to lead their members, alongside Parade Commander, Air Commodore Tracy Smart.
They marched in uniform.   2015 Sydney Mardi Gras …on a parade that supports a certain ideology. 2015 Sydney Mardi Gras And I, for one, think that’s political. I would think that most Aussies would see no problem with Hastie emphasising his service giving rise to an expectation that he is well trained in leadership roles. Conversely I would think most would be simply embarrassed by their nations military parading at the Gay Mardi Gras. I am. I am tired of gender politics being forced on us.  I don’t care what your sexual proclivities are, just that you do your job. What’s sauce for the goose…
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Defence, Gender Politics, Politics

Weird good, Christianity bad

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It’s apparently OK to support this type of weird stuff;
Safe Schools Coalition is about supporting gender and sexual diversity. Not about celebrating diversity. Not about stopping bullying. “About gender and sexual diversity. About same-sex attractive. About being transgender. About being lesbian, gay, bisexual – say the words – transgender, intersex. Not just ‘Be nice to everyone. Everyone’s great’.”
…but not anything that hints at Christianity;
The Queensland government will review religious education in state schools after claims a popular program was “soliciting” students to become Christian. Windsor State School principal Matthew Keong wrote a letter to parents last week, suspending the long-standing Connect syllabus at his school. Mr Keong said the program “contravenes policy that prohibits proselytising”. “Connect’s lesson materials go beyond imparting knowledge of Biblical references, and extend to soliciting children to develop a personal faith in God and Jesus to become a Christian or `Kingdom Kid’,” he wrote.
Latrobe Uni has reinstated Roz Ward the perpetrator of the Safe Schools program in Victoria.  The Premier obviously agrees with the program and this morning Roz was treated to a Guard of Honour provided by her acolytes. The picture shows members of the National Tertiary Education Union genuflecting in her presence. They must be from the Marxist sub branch of the union.
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Gender Politics

Help, the critters are killing us

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Perth, WA. A shark described by witnesses as more than 5.3m long has killed a 60-year-old woman at a popular reef off Perth’s northern suburbs, the second fatal shark attack in five days in Western Australia.
Yesterday’s death, the 15th fatal shark attack in Western Australia since 2000, has brought fresh scrutiny to the Barnett government’s divisive shark mitigation strategy.
The scrutiny is from the Greens and their mates on Sea Sheppard who believe that sharks are higher up the food chain than humans and that no one should try and make beaches safe. It is the shark’s domain, don’t you know! Well yes, it is.  Just as the North Queensland rivers are the croc’s territory, however it is also ours.  Humans have been going down to the sea and rivers since we started and using them as a transport route or a source of food. So doing nothing is not an answer.  Crocs in the northern part of  Australia need culling. There are more than 150,000 of the critters and local tourist mobs say there are more in the north than anywhere in the world. More than anywhere else because the Greens have the power of veto with anything that you can tag the word “Eco” on. I’m not sure that longstanding use of baited hooks – or drum lines – in regions such as Queensland is the way to go.  This article says no but since 2000 there have been 5 Queensland deaths compared to WA’s 10 and considering Queensland has a greater population then there has to be something in it. Australia has more crocodiles than anywhere else and more shark fatalities . Surely that’s a case to do something. Maybe this gives us hope- from Wikipedia;
Shark Shield is a personal electronic device that creates an electromagnetic field to deter shark attacks and is used by surfers, scuba divers,spearfishing, and ocean kayak fishing. The electrical wave-form used in the Shark Shield is based on a technology originally invented by theKwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board of South Africa in the 1990s, releasing the SharkPOD (Protective Oceanic Device or simply POD).The Shark Shield device was developed by the Australian company SeaChange Technology Pty Ltd, and commercialized by its trading company Shark Shield Pty Ltd established in October 2006.
Sea Change Technology are in South Australia
The field is projected from two electrodes, which create an elliptical field that surrounds the user. Both electrodes must be immersed in the water for the field to be created. Research conducted by The South African National Space Agency (SANSA) in 2012 estimated the Shark Shield electrical field to be approximately four to five meters in diameter.
Wow! The Safas have a space agency – who knew. The generated field doesn’t seem big enough to protect an entire beach but if the Safa’s Space Agency(I still can’t believe it) can do something, can CSIRO or private enterprise extend the range? Whatever, we need to do something and soon. Stop listening to the Greens, ignore Sea Sheppard, net the beaches and do some serious research. Here’s a chance for Malcom or Bill to do something to really help.  In the midst of a frenzied spendathon how about a bit of seed money for research. Link to The South African National Space Agency (SANSA).  A search for Shark Shield doesn’t get any results but it does prove it exists          
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General Musings

The long march home

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During the big wars of the last century Australian soldiers killed in action were interred in war cemeteries overseas.  The cost of repatriating 100,000 plus killed in WW1 and WW2 would have been prohibitive so the government policy remained as interment overseas. The soldiers were buried with their mates close to where they fell. During the Vietnam War when soldiers started being killed this protocol was still in place and soldiers were interred in War Cemetrys in SEA, notably Terendak, Malaysia. In May 1968 everything changed. A National Serviceman, Private Noack, was killed and when his father was told he would be interred overseas he  demanded he be brought back home. The Government complied but over the course of the war 32 soldiers were interred at Terendak Malaysia and one, Warrant Officer Conway, the first Aussie killed in Vietnam, was interred at Kranji, Singapore.  Up until 1966 Next of Kin were told they would even have to pay 500 Pounds to have their sons repatriated. An uncaring and unfeeling attitude by a government having trouble catching up with the times. After this date all of our mates killed were repatriated.  As a Infantry Sgt in 7RAR in Holsworthy NSW I led many a Burial Party for diggers of our sister Battalion, 5RAR. Bring them Home became a movement started by Jim Bourke who, against all odds, managed to locate all our MIAs and bring them home.  Developing from that various RSLs including the Northern Territory branch and other veteran organizations started agitating for the repatriation of those guys buried at Terendak and Kranji. It has finally happened. One of those coming home is Private Norman George Allen, a member of my Battalion, 7RAR, who was Killed in Action on 10 November, 1967 Welcome home Norm. A full list of those coming home can be read here      
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Defence, General Musings, Vietnam

Go back to the UK, you cow

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Roz Ward needs exposing before he does too much damage to our kids. If you haven’t heard of him then start taking notice, particularly if you a parent.  This weird bloke, because bloke is what he was born, is responsible for a programme in the Victorian education system that is supposedly designed to prevent bullying.  It is nothing of the sort, it is designed to normalize that which isn’t normal. In Roz’s own words;
“… Safe Schools Coalition is about supporting gender and sexual diversity. Not about celebrating diversity. Not about stopping bullying. “About gender and sexual diversity. About same-sex attractive. About being transgender. About being lesbian, gay, bisexual – say the words – transgender, intersex. Not just ‘Be nice to everyone. Everyone’s great’.”
There is nothing wrong with being gay, bisexual or a transgender but there is  a lot wrong with primary school kids being fed misinformation that asks them to imagine they are what they are not. To think gender fluidity, whatever that might mean, or to indulge in homosexual role playing. And;
I was the person who set up Safe Schools … in Victoria … To smooth the operation of capitalism the ruling class has benefited, and continues to benefit, from oppressing our bodies, our relationships, sexuality and gender identities alongside sexism, ­homophobia and transphobia.
From the US College of Pediatricians,
The American College of Pediatricians urges educators and legislators to reject all policies that condition children to accept as normal a life of chemical and surgical impersonation of the opposite sex. Facts – not ideology – determine reality.
From Latrobe Uni website
The schools make a commitment to challenging homophobia, to challenging trans phobia and to thinking beyond heterosexuality as the norm.
Hetrosexuality isn’t the norm?  Is he trying to say most people are homosexual, or transgenders…ridiculous. Pushing a Marxist agenda he went further and expressed disappointment that the Australian flag flying over Parliament, along with the rainbow rag, should have been the Red Communist Flag. Another Roz Ward initiative;
The Gender Fairy is a simple story about two children feeling the relief of being heard: Of two children who are taking their first joyful steps toward living as their true selves. It is an educational resource for all children and adults to understand what it might feel like to be a transgender child. For children aged four and up, The Gender Fairy is designed to be read aloud in the classroom, or at home. It includes notes for parents and teachers to aid discussion and learning, completed in collaboration with Roz Ward (La Trobe University).
I’ve got 4 year old grand kids and I’m quite happy to leave them play with dolls and Leggo. Sure as hell won’t be reading them The Gender Fairy, whether it be during their first joyful steps or any time later. More reading; The Quadrant has a fairly detailed expose of Ward and his Marxism and LGBTI ideology.
The founder and coordinator of the Safe Schools Coalition Australia (SSCA) is an avowed Marxist who lives in a fantasy world where communism supports free love and LGBTI lifestyles. The ascension of Roz Ward (left) to the position of sexuality commissar for Australian schools is therefore an unforgivable indictment of federal and state governments
After Roz Ward’s quip about running up the old commo flag he resigned from his post on the LGBTI Taskforce Education Reference Committee. That’s it – just that committee.  I want him removed from the education system totally and barred for getting any closer than 100 metres to any educational institution. Not much chance of that though with the Victorian Premier Andrews labeling all who complain about the progamme as bigots. From Miranda Devine
Yet Andrews has not ­retreated from his dictate that Safe Schools be compulsory in Victorian schools. Nor has he apologised for labelling as “bigots” critics of the program, which includes homosexual role play and gender fluidity training for children. “I get my advice on policy from the experts, not from bigots,” he said two weeks ago when boasting Victoria would not accept federal amendments to Safe Schools, which removed advice to bind breasts and tuck away penises, deleted links to gay sex shops and ­allowed parental input.
I fear we have lost the battle, the Marxist/Left Wing march through our institutions is virtually complete. Coming to a school near you – do you know that teachers aren’t already brain washing your kids? Poor fellow, my country.  
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Gender Politics

David Morrison still loopy

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Australian of the Year and former Army chief David Morrison says the term “guys” should no longer be used in workplaces. This man never ceases to amaze me with his disconnect with the world as we know it. Apparently we can’t call a mob of girls “girls” either.
Exclusive language, gender-based language or inappropriate language, has as much a deleterious or disadvantaged effect as something where you’re saying something blatantly inappropriate to another human being,” General Morrison told ABC News Breakfast. The #WordsAtWork campaign video depicts a group of women rolling their eyes at being called “girls” by a male colleague.  
He aims to crack down on language which excludes minority groups. What minority groups?  Guys or girls covers all the groups.  There are only two if we are talking about gender. It doesn’t matter what your sexual proclivities are; it doesn’t matter how you identify, the vast majority of humans are born male or female. Yes, there hermaphrodites, babies born with Congenital adrenal hypoplasia, Gonadal dysgenesis or Androgen insensitivity syndrome but seriously how often will someone have occasion to address a group of these poor people in the workplace? If this very unlikely chance come your way I’m sure everyone would be talking about how to address them and one simply takes heed of context. But in the workplace I think we can assume everyone is either male or female and thus could be addresses by any generic term that doesn’t offend.  If you are offended by being referred to as a girl or guy then better you seek employment at a University where these matters are deemed important. In the real world they don’t count, which, thinking about it, describes David Morrison  
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General Musings

Anzac Day 2016

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Albany, WA.  Gillett’s have been defending the country since the 1890s when my Grandfather and his brother enlisted in the Forts at Albany. The nation was worried about the Russians as they were snooping around the continent so they built a fort at Albany overlooking King George Sound. In 1791 Captain George Vancouver claimed the Southern Part of Western Australia for the British Crown.  As he explored the coastline, he discovered one of the world’s finest natural harbours and named it Princess Royal Harbour and King George Sound. During the 19th century, the loss of this strategic port to any enemy was identified as a potential threat to the security not only of Western Australia, but the whole of Australia.  As a result all the Australian states agreed to to pay for the construction of a fort and the British Government would supply the guns.  The Fort was opened in 1893 and was the first federal defence of Australia. There you go, the states can agree on something! The Princess Royal Fortress has two gun batteries dug into the hillside of Mount Adelaide -Fort Princess Royal ( 2 x 6 inch guns) and Fort Plantagenet ( 1 x 6 inch gun) . From 1893 to 1956 the guns of maintained their role as a deterrent and never fired a shot in anger.  Pity! Both these guys served in the Boer War enlisting from Albany and both survived.  They went on to serve in WW1 and one of them, my Great Uncle, in WW2. When the Anzac fleet left King George Sound in 1914 on board were two other Great Uncles, neither of whom survived their war. Both stayed in France My father, his brothers and my Mother’s brothers served during WW2 and Dad often came to the port of Albany when his RAN ships were escorting convoys or mine sweeping. One of my maternal uncles stayed at the River Kwai. In the early 60s I left to see the world, through the sites of a gun, as the wits of the day would have us believe. But circumstances had it that I would eventually serve in South Vietnam during my 25 years service. A mob of cousins also served in SE Asia in the RAN and Army and one even served in the RAAF. ( don’t know what happened there ) All of which s a bit of a load to carry tomorrow when I participate in the Anzac Day commemorations at Albany.  Marching along Stirling Terrace with the ghosts of my fathers on my shoulders makes it all the more significant.  I’ll go to the RSL later and maybe have a beer or two and remember my mates left behind in SE Asia and pause to toast my Fathers and their service and their mates they left behind. There were a lot. Thanks to them, in part, and men and women like them, we are free of the menace of Germans and Japanese and left to develop into a free nation.  Other nations are glad they served as well – just talk to the French and Pacific Islanders about that. Because of their service, and many other reasons of course, Australia has developed into an amazing place to live. Thanks guys. I normally spend the day with my mates from 7RAR but for family reasons I’m in Albany, far away from the main stream commemorations.  To all of you – have a good day and don’t forget to toast the boys we left behind. RIP
1
Defence

Ship Ahoy!

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Albany WA. I’m over in the west looking after my Mother’s estate and learning all about probate and wills.  In between I get some R & R and yesterday I signed on as crew on a tug.  I didn’t do any work, just took pics and asked questions, but you can get away with that when your cousin is the Captain. Cousin Len started when Albany had a whaling station and spent his days hunting and killing whales working his way up the ranks. After whaling finished he moved to tugs and now skippers the Karoo, one of two tugs working the port of Albany.
karoo

The Karoo

No helm on modern tugs, just a joy stick. The bar above his wrist adjusts the revs and steering is by rotating the control.  The two props rotate 360 degrees independently for maximum agility.  Len’s other hand is on the port control. That’s left for you landlubbers.  2,500 horsepower on each engine making it marginally more powerful than my Rangie V8. And more thirsty.   The engineer had spent 25 years in the navy so we had something in common.  He took me through the engine room and explained the process. Two cat engines are connected to the propellers via a z -drive IMG_1712which is a type of marine propulsion unit. Specifically, it is an azimuth thruster. The pod can rotate 360 degrees allowing for rapid changes in thrust direction and thus vessel direction. This eliminates the need for a conventional rudder and makes the tug very maneuverable. We sailed through Princess Royal Harbour out to King George Sound where the ships were anchored waiting their turn to be taken in. As an aside this is the harbour that the ANZAC fleet left from in 1914. (See map below)    
IMG_1708

One of four ships anchored overnight waiting for the tugs

The ship to be brought in weighed anchor and headed to the port under it’s own steam.  The two tugs come about and match the speed of the ship fore and aft on the port side.  The ship’s deckhand drops a line that is then connected to the tugs towing line on a huge winch that is marginally bigger than the one on my mate’s Nissan.  In fact it’s bigger than the Nissan. That line is hauled in by the ships capstan and that line hauls up the large towing hawser.     AURORA_LIGHT
The ship, Aurora Light, weighs in at 54,000 tonnes and is a woodchip carrier operating between Albany and Japan.  The two tugs now take the weight and slow the ship down as she enters Princess Royal Harbour and the Port of Albany. The Captain of the ship controls the tugs as they bring the ship to a halt level with the dock but a hundred metres or so away. Then by one pushing and the other tugging, they turn the ship through 180 degrees and then nudge into the dock.
   
albanymap

Map of Albany showing Princess Royal Harbour on the left and King George Sound on the right

  3 hours of bloke bliss, 5,000 hp under my feet and a competent Captain maneuvering the tug like an extension of his hand. A good day.    
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Travel
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