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For over a century, oil and coal have been at the heart of the global economy, driving industrial growth, powering transportation, and enabling unprecedented technological advancements.

These two energy sources, though often maligned in recent times due to their perceived environmental impact, have played indispensable roles in shaping the modern world. Let's be honest: we have gone from whales to wind turbines and somehow, whales are still being screwed over. 

So much of the quandary is down to ideology and politics rather than reality and commonsense.

Oil fuels our vehicles, planes, and ships, providing the backbone of mobility, while coal powers industries and generates electricity, driving factories and cities alike. Let us be realistic. Oil and coal are essential for mobility and industry. That is the reality. 

The history of kerosene and the subsequent development of the oil industry is a fascinating journey that began in the mid-19th century.

Kerosene, a once-unknown fuel, revolutionised lighting, heating, and industrial energy production, laying the foundation for the modern petroleum industry that continues to power the world today. 

Before kerosene was discovered, lighting and heating relied heavily on sources like candles, wood, and whale oil. Whale oil was the dominant fuel for lamps, but it was expensive and the whaling industry was becoming unsustainable as whale populations were being rapidly depleted.

As industrialisation gathered momentum in the 19th century, demand for a cheaper and more efficient source of lighting grew.....

I have often pondered why mankind decided to go after the humble whale. After all, the whale was out there, in the ocean, minding his or her own business and wasn't really causing any problem. Unless you were a seal, krill or plankton. In which case, you probably had a civil rights claim or two. 
Yet this gentle giant ( as far as humans are concerned ) was not bothering anyone. All the whales wanted to do was what they have done since God first had a great idea " I think I'll make a whale. "  and the whales just cruised around, having babies, blowing bubbles and migrating to warmer places and having a jolly old time.  

So what did the poor whale do to us? Well, let me tell you a whale of a tale and how the Industrial Revolution saved it.

In the heart of Australia’s wild Kimberley, where the sun scorches the red earth and rivers carve ancient paths through rugged landscapes, one family’s name looms large—Durack. They weren’t born to riches, nor did they inherit vast estates, but through sheer grit, ambition, and an audacious cattle drive across thousands of kilometres, the Duracks carved out an empire. Yet, for all their triumphs, they knew their castles were built on fragile ground, vulnerable to nature's whims and the shifting tides of fortune. This is the epic tale of the Duracks, the cattle kings who ruled the outback—until their grass castles, like so many before, were swept away.

Australia’s pioneering days were full of grit, determination, and larger-than-life characters, but few families have captured the imagination like the Duracks. Their story, immortalised in Kings in Grass Castles by Mary Durack, is one of endurance, ambition, and ultimately, the end of an era.

At the heart of it all was Argyle Downs Station, a vast pastoral property in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. It was the jewel in the crown of the Durack family’s empire, the result of one of the longest and most legendary cattle drives in Australian history. But today, Argyle Downs is no longer in the hands of the Duracks, and the original homestead site lies at the bottom of a massive lake, Lake Argyle, submerged beneath the waters of a changing world.

So how did a family from Ireland come to be cattle kings in Australia’s rugged north, and why don’t they own Argyle Downs anymore? Let’s go back to the beginning.

Read more: Kings in Grass Castles: The Rise and Fall of the Durack Empire

A True Australian Hero - Banjo Patterson

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Written by: Op-Ed Happy Expat

Published: 17 October 2024

Hits: 905

User Rating: 5 / 5

Banjo Paterson is the giant of Australian literature and folk law. His exploits in this field are so extensively well documented that I would not presume to add to them. However, in modern Australia, perhaps it is time to start celebrating people like him again.

What is less well known than his poetry is his contribution to the war effort in WW1 and to a much lesser extent The Boer War. His contribution to the successes of the Light Horse brigades was outstanding.

Banjo Paterson was a newspaper correspondent intermingled with a legal practice. When the second Boer War broke out on 11^th October, 1899 Banjo was a member of the NSW Lancers and sought to sail with the first contingent for South Africa. He was rejected for active service because he had only one good arm. He was well connected with the Fairfax family and asked to be sent to South Africa at his own expense for one month to serve as a war correspondent. One month was the limit of his financial resources.

Read more: A True Australian Hero - Banjo Patterson

1. A Heartfelt Letter to our so called Leaders
2. The Birth of the US Marines
3. The Philosophy of 41: Embracing the Incomplete, the Unexpected and the Almost....
4. Let's get Back to Normal. Please. This Holier than Thou Stuff is doing my Head in

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