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Tynwald, the Isle of Man - The Hill That Refused to Go Indoors

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Written by: Op-Ed Monty
Hits: 617

A green hill in the Irish Sea has stood for 1,045 years. It has seen plagues, wars, invasions, kings, and empires. It has survived every human folly.

It is called Tynwald Hill, and it is the world’s oldest continuous parliament.

Once, it was simple: laws read aloud in the open air, petitions handed in by anyone who cared to show up, and every free person on the island hearing and judging in the same wind.

A parliament of the people, by the people, under the sky.

From Grassroots to Clicks

In 979 AD, the Manx gathered on a four-tier mound built from the soil of every parish. Every free man and woman heard the laws.

They listened. They judged. They held leaders accountable with their voices alone.

Read more: Tynwald, the Isle of Man - The Hill That Refused to Go Indoors

Lost With All Hands - HMAS Sydney 2 - 19 November 1941

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Written by: Op-Ed Happy Expat
Hits: 577

There are many ships of the Royal Australian Navy that are dear to the hearts of us older Australians. The Scrap Iron Flotilla that ran the gauntlet ferrying men and materials between Tobruk and Egypt, The Canberra, sunk by friendly fire in the Solomons, the Hobart going down against overwhelming odds in Sunda Strait but none compare with the adulation reserved for HMAS Sydney.

Today marks the anniversary of the sinking of HMAS Sydney 2. Lost with all hands following a heroic mutually destructive battle with the German raider HSK Kormoran on the evening of November 19th 1941. R.I.P.

Since 1901 there have been FIVE fighting ships of the RAN bearing the name HMAS Sydney. 

The second HMAS Sydney started life as the cruiser, HMS Phaeton until purchased by the Australian government in 1934 and re-named in memory of her predecessor. She remained in Australian waters until April 1940 when she left as part of an escort screen for a large Middle East bound convoy.

Read more: Lost With All Hands - HMAS Sydney 2 - 19 November 1941

A History of Whiskered Warriors - Fearless Felines and Combat Cats

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Written by: Op-Ed Shaydee Lane
Hits: 603

In military history, there are countless tales of bravery, valour, and unwavering dedication from soldiers who fought on the front lines.

But what about those fearless felines who have prowled the battlefield, armed with their whiskers and lethal claws? These purrsistent warriors have played some truly remarkable roles throughout history, and it's high time we give them the recognition they deserve.

Sometimes I think that we underestimate the role that cats, dogs and other animal and feathered friends play in our lives and in our world.

So sit and enjoy a journey into the history of cats and how they have evolved into being lazy, domineering, pampered  pets from their early incarnations as demi gods and deities. But when you think about it, nothing much has changed really....... they are still demi gods and worshipped deities...... But things were not always as they are.

They did actually earn their keep. 

Read more: A History of Whiskered Warriors - Fearless Felines and Combat Cats

Year 3399: Cavemen Reject Wind Farms, Choose Coal, Whale Applauds

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Written by: Op-Ed Monty
Hits: 579

After the Great Green Reset wiped out civilisation back in the 2020s, the surviving humans on Earth had returned to caves  -  mostly because tents kept blowing away in the renewable-powered storms. And so, in the year 3399, the last thinkers on Earth gathered for the Annual General Meeting of the Great Cavern Roundtable (an actual, literal round table -  thank the ancestors for inventing the wheel).

Many earthdwellers had moved to Mars on the Musk MAGA crafts captained by the legendary High Commander Trumpasaurus and Captain AD Vance.  Mars was now a thriving planet and people ate good food, lived in wondrous things called " houses "  and chatted all day long on a thing called Starlink, devoid of interference. 

Unfortunately, Earth had banned access to the broadcasts and of those that remained, many people had been wiped out by a virus called " Wokeness. " The virus caused functioning brain cells to dissolve into a puddle of swamp slime and procreation was severely limited due to the number of people who didn't know what a woman was so they killed all the babies just in case they were female. 

And so it was that the few remaining living creatures on Earth convened their annual general meeting to work out what should be on the agenda for the next year. 

Read more: Year 3399: Cavemen Reject Wind Farms, Choose Coal, Whale Applauds

When Fiction Becomes Reality: From Waves to Silence: The Hidden Cost of Ignoring Oil and Coal

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Written by: Op-Ed Monty
Hits: 607

On the night of 30 October 1938, millions of Americans leaned close to their radios and felt the bottom drop out of their world. Orson Welles’ War of the Worlds broadcast -  a fiction performed so convincingly it became a national panic -   proved something unsettling: people don’t fear what they know; they fear what they never imagined.

That moment matters now, more than ever, because we are living through a new kind of broadcast.

Not just from a radio tower called MSM, but from political platforms and activist pulpits insisting society can simply “transition away” from oil and coal  -  painlessly, quickly, without consequence.

It sounds comforting. It sounds noble.

And it is just as fictional as Welles’ Martians. The difference is, this time, when the panic finally hits, no announcer will step forward to say:

“Don’t worry. It isn’t real.”

Read more: When Fiction Becomes Reality: From Waves to Silence: The Hidden Cost of Ignoring Oil and Coal

Is it Lights Off for the Modern World?

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Written by: Op-Ed Monty
Hits: 573
Oil & Coal: The Twin Engines That Built Our World – And the Greens Want to Pull the Plug

Every time I hear some politician, influencer, or green-tinged academic lecture me about “transitioning away” from oil and coal, I look around my house and wonder what planet they’re living on.
Not this one, clearly.

Because on this planet -  the one with rain, dust, deadlines, tractors, hospitals, shipping lanes, and real people who need real electricity -  oil and coal didn’t just keep the lights on.
They built the modern world from the ground up.

These weren’t “dirty fuels.”
They were civilisation’s skeleton and bloodstream.

Oil gave us mobility, global trade, aviation, pharmaceuticals, plastics, cheap goods, emergency services ... basically everything that lets the 21st century exist.
Coal forged the steel that holds up our bridges and skylines, powered the factories that created prosperity, and still keeps grids alive when the sun hides and the wind sulks.

And now, suddenly, the fuels that dragged humanity out of the dark ages are immoral, because a handful of activists discovered hashtags and politicians discovered votes.

Well, pull up a chair and grab a beer.
Let’s have a proper yarn about what oil and coal actually did -  and what happens when a civilisation forgets the very things that built it.

Read more: Is it Lights Off for the Modern World?

Black Dye, White Lies and One Big Croc

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Written by: Op-Ed Ratty News
Hits: 611

Identity crisis cured by $2.50 DNA kits, cold beer, and one large crocodile

By Roderick (Whiskers) McNibble
Chief Reporter, The Dusty Gulch Gazette

Dateline: Dusty Gulch, 11/11/2025 at 11 am. (give or take a kookaburra’s cackle)

It was meant to be morning of thanks and gratitude in Dusty Gulch history.

Three magnificent orange biplanes - piloted by the legendary Sky-High Ducks, captains of hope and joy - were scheduled to swoop low and shower us with glittering canisters of pure, concentrated patriotism.

Children had drawn welcome banners. The CWA had baked 4,672 lamingtons. Even the emus had polished their toenails.

But evil, as it so often does in the Gulch, wore a cheap suit and a cheaper grin.

Prentis Penjani - self-proclaimed “Entrepreneur of Everything” - slithered in, lay a wreath on the War Memorial  wearing sunglasses mind you, and then headed into the Dusty Gulch Hardware Store during their Once-in-a-Lifetime Clearance Bonanza and bought every last drum of Midnight Onyx industrial dye. 

What was he up to? Read on and find out. You will be shocked! 

Read more: Black Dye, White Lies and One Big Croc

When Politics Syphons the Fuel Out of Australia – This Is the Story We Need Back

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Written by: Op-Ed Shaydee Lane
Hits: 597
The Day Seven Blackfellas Saved This Blonde Coastie’s Bacon – And Taught Me What Aussie Really Means 

It was about 30 years ago when I was living in a tiny town in the Channel Country. I was married to the local copper. We had only arrived in the town of 30 residents a few weeks before..... we still didn't have a handle on how to " fit in " with this isolated and unusual community of people.

We were coasties: people who came from a far distant place that never knew about things like kangaroo shooters, feral pigs and opal mining. To make matters worse, we were Kiwis. Even though we had lived in Australia for many years and called it home, we were still met with some cautious suspicion from the locals. 

In fact, in those days, I knew nothing about life in the Australian Outback. All I knew was that my husband was a policeman and he had applied to become an officer serving a remote community in one of the most extreme places in Australia. Where walking across the road could make you collapse from heatstroke.

I was in for a rude awakening. A baptism of fire. Literally. It was high summer, and the heat was extraordinary. 

Read more: When Politics Syphons the Fuel Out of Australia – This Is the Story We Need Back

" We didn't come for the local colour: We Came to become the Local Colour " Oh Really? Think Again Mate!

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Written by: Op-Ed Monty
Hits: 701

Our energy grid’s as reliable as a politician’s promise -  so don’t bank on your air con.

All of these migrants coming to Australia - do you truly know what Australia is like?  Or is it that you have no intention of every becoming a real Australian?  

Australia isn’t the skyline of Sydney or the laneways of Melbourne -  it’s the dust, the distance, the danger, and the kind of humour you need to survive it. You can’t call yourself Australian until you’ve faced the flies, the heat, and a local who calls you ‘mate’ with an expression you can’t quite read. Was it an insult or a greeting? 

So here is a Guide for a New Australian, who dares to venture into the heartland of the old Country. Somewhere that so many of us call " HOME. " 

If you’ve got visions of kangaroos hopping beside sandy beaches, just know: the Land Down Under is nothing like the cute, cuddly postcard you’re imagining.

Forget Finding Nemo - think Jaws meets Jurassic Park, with a little Arachnophobia thrown in for good measure. If you want to avoid permanent trauma, here’s why Australia is one trip best left un-booked.

Read more: " We didn't come for the local colour: We Came to become the Local Colour " Oh Really? Think Again Mate!

The 11th Hour Legacy: “Black Jack” Pershing’s Final Push on November 11, 1918 Still Divides America

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Written by: Op-Ed Monty
Hits: 627

The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month holds profound significance in American history, marking the end of World War I and symbolising a national moment of remembrance and commitment to peace.

On November 11, 1918, an armistice between Allied forces and Germany went into effect, ending hostilities in “the war to end all wars.” In the United States, this historic date eventually evolved into Veterans Day, a holiday honouring all military veterans. 

When the Armistice of World War I took effect, a deadly and transformative conflict finally came to a halt. The war had lasted four brutal years, reshaping nations, economies, and societies.

The U.S was profoundly impacted. American forces made significant contributions to the Allied victory, and the sacrifices of American soldiers were felt deeply at home in America. 

General Pershing's legacy is complex. He is celebrated for his commitment to military discipline and his successful leadership but remains controversial for the high costs associated with his decisions, particularly during the closing hours of the war. His insistence on unconditional surrender set a tone that some historians believe contributed to the harsh terms of the Treaty of Versailles, which some argue sowed the seeds for World War II. Pershing’s career thus stands as a testament to the high stakes of military command, where strategy and morality often intersect in challenging, far-reaching ways.

So who was this man, General John J. Pershing, known as "Black Jack" Pershing?

Read more: The 11th Hour Legacy: “Black Jack” Pershing’s Final Push on November 11, 1918 Still Divides America

Armistice Day - a Day of Remembrance - LEST WE FORGET

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Written by: Op-Ed Happy Expat
Hits: 655

I remember when Armistice Day was commemorated spontaneously, reverently and universally. As I approach my 91st birthday, I would like to share my thoughts with you about the 11th day of the 11th month at the 11th hour. 

As a kid at state (primary) school we were taught about the sacrifice of the soldiers who died in the war to end all wars and assembled at 11.00am to salute the flag, the Union Jack, and have 2 minutes silence with heads bowed. 

The Union Jack ceased to be the official flag of Australia in 1954 when the Flags Act was enacted, designating the Australian Blue Ensign as the national flag. Prior to this, the Union Jack was considered the national flag for about 50 years after Australia's federation in 1901.

But this was in the 1940’s when there were many veterans of WW1 still among us.

The eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month was instilled into us with the utmost reverence and seriousness.

 

Read more: Armistice Day - a Day of Remembrance - LEST WE FORGET

  1. From Social Credit to Crypto: A Voter’s Journey Through the Money Maze
  2. Champion of Sovereignty: E.D. Butler and the Fight Against Australia's 'Planned Surrender
  3. DUSTY GULCH’S LAST FREE SIGNAL: Roderick, VPN, and the Nancy Wake of the Outback
  4. The Great Dusty Gulch Cup

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