J. Marc Schmidt of Australia says that he doesn’t want a president.

“Our head of state ought to be one of us. We rejected the idea of our own president once, and with good cause, because a president is not what we need,” says Schmidt. “We need something more; a living, breathing symbol of our land.”

That said, Schmidt doesn’t want Queen Elizabeth II as Australia’s head of state, either. He thinks that Prince Harry should become an Australian citizen and become their king.

Read his article below:

Read more…

I wanted to take a moment to express my sympathies with the people of Australia.

The fires were out of control. No one knew how they started or where it would all end.

Now the fire is out, and the news is that they were started on purpose. The arsonist is now in custody, and for his protection he will not be named.

You know what I think? I think the Queen’s Commonwealth should release his name. Someone who has purposefully put lives in danger – both human and animal – does not deserve protection. Like pedophiles.

Then come to find out that this arsonist had child pornography. Dual disgust! Now I really feel that it is absolutely vital that he be named. People who are a threat to normal, peaceful society should be known. If they don’t want the consequences, they shouldn’t act like vile scum.

Simple.

That, and I want to see the Queen bean someone with her sceptre. That’s how justice should be meted out in Her Majesty’s realms.

Monday, 19th January 2009

The Duke of Gloucester will attend a meeting on ‘Disaster Management Response and Co-ordination’ at the Royal Society of Victoria, 9 Victoria Street, Melbourne.

Tuesday, 20th January 2009

The Duke of Gloucester will visit the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Jolimont, Melbourne.

The Duke of Gloucester Co-President, Cancer Research UK, will visit the Cancer Research Centre, Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne.

The Duke of Gloucester will attend a Dinner hosted by the Melbourne Cricket Club at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne.

Wednesday, 21st January 2009

The Duke of Gloucester will attend a Breakfast Meeting with The Royal Society of Victoria’s Young Science Ambassadors at the Melbourne Aquarium, Melbourne.

Thursday, 29th January 2009

The Duke of Gloucester Royal Patron, the British Museum will attend the preview of the Treasures from Shanghai Exhibition as part of Shanghai Week at the British Musuem.

Tuesday, 3rd February 2009

The Duke of Gloucester will attend an ‘aperitvo’ at Westminster Abbey, London SW1.

Tuesday, 10th February 2009

The Duke of Gloucester will attend the EU Sustainable Energy Conference 2009, Brussels.

via Royal diary search results.

In a speech to the US-Australia Leadership Dialogue in Sydney on 20 July 20005, the federal Health Minister, Tony Abbott said that while America has for over half a century been Australia’s most important ally, “…the importance of Britain – as America’s principal global ally, Europe’s most assertive military and economic power and Australia’s second-largest foreign investor and fourth-largest trading partner – has too often been underrated”.

Mr. Abbott criticised those who assumed that the American alliance enhanced republicanism [in Australia], a point argued by Mr. Keating’s speech writer, Don Watson in ‘A Quarterly Essay’.

Read more by Professor David Flint @ No Republic!

Crown Prince Willem-Alexander and his wife Princess Maxima are currently touring Australia to mark 400 years since Dutch explorers first landed there.

[ More ]

CNN.com – Cyclone hits Australia ‘like atomic bomb’ – Mar 20, 2006: “CAIRNS, Australia (AP) — Amazingly, there were no fatalities and only 30 people suffered minor injuries as cyclone Larry pounded northeastern Queensland state early Monday with winds gusting to 290 kilometers per hour (180 mph). Damage was expected to run into hundreds of millions of dollars.

Hardest hit was Innisfail, a farming city of 8,500 people 100 kilometers (60 miles) south of the tourist city of Cairns.

‘It looks like an atomic bomb hit the place,’ Innisfail mayor Neil Clarke told Australian television. ‘It is severe damage. This is more than a local disaster, this is a national disaster.’ (Watch how Larry tore into the Australian coast — 2:10)

The town urgently needed accommodation for people whose homes were damaged, a power supply to feed hospitals and other infrastructure, he said, adding: ‘We won’t even have any water to drink by tomorrow.’

There was no official count of the homeless Monday, but given the number of homes badly damaged, the figure could run into the thousands, Clarke said.

“