In the United Kingdom, four students have recently been suspended from their school after slightly damaging a Quran, despite there being “no malicious intent by those involved” according to the BBC report. British police have recorded the event as a “non-crime hate incident,”
A boy had taken the Quran to school last week and given it to another pupil who read out passages on the tennis court. The book was then taken inside and fell on the floor before being put in a pupil’s bag. The book was the student’s own property. Yet this was deemed as a suspension-worthy offense by the school.
To escalate the situation more, a local government official, Usman Ali, claimed the book had been “desecrated” and it “needs to be dealt with urgently by all the authorities, namely the police, the school and the local authority”
When I think of ANZAC Day I think of my late Great Granpa.
Read more: As a young Patriot, I pay tribute to the men who fought for my right to live
“The American press, once the guardian of democracy, was hollowed out to the point that it could be worn like a hand puppet by the U.S. security agencies and party operatives….Disinformation is both the name of the crime and the means of covering it up; a weapon that doubles as a disguise.” — Jacob Siegel
How’s the war going? Huh?
Do you mean the war over in Ukraine?
Or the US government’s war against its own people?
It is not often that a hero can also be a larrikin and vice versa. But John " Scotty " Simpson was such a man. A deserter who found himself thrust into the horror of Gallipoli instead of implementing his plan to jump ship in England
John Simpson Kirkpatrick was an Englishman of Scottish parentage who wanted to get away from his wife.... so he joined the Merchant Navy in 1909. In 1910 he deserted from his ship when it was docked at Newcastle in Australia. He led an itinerant lifestyle as a cane cutter, coal miner and various jobs on coastal merchant ships. He also became a left wing activist with The Industrial Workers of the World. Hardly the stuff of heroes.
But he went on to become a hero.
Read more: Simpson and his Donkey - a larrakin who became a Gallipoli Hero
They say that things aren't what they used to be. One area where that is particularly true is children.
As a lad of a mere 90 years young, I look back on my own childhood and think that I was fairly spirited and independent, in thought and in action.
But I am a pussycat in comparison to one young Australian boy named Lennie. Yes, I remember when kids were tough. But this boy makes me humble.
Over recent years, ANZAC Day was subsumed by the Coronavirus lockdown and we were denied the right to celebrate it and honour our Diggers in the usual way by government decree.
As the day approaches it looks like this year it may be subsumed again by the furore of The Voice.
Either way, I expect that we will still get the usual collection of the bearded unwashed telling us how wrong we were/are for participating in any war because we should be celebrating peace.
These angry shots are not the first, nor will they be the last salvos we ordinary grateful citizens will be subjected to by this ignorant element in our society. Ignore them and roll with the punches.
Over the centuries, we have learned so much about the strength of the human spirit. That incredible ability to triumph over adversity, whether it be physical, emotional or mental agony... or all three at once.
As Easter is uppermost in our thoughts, so too is the concept of war. That conflict that drives us to delve deep and draw upon reserves that we often did not know we had.
Some time ago I had occasion to watch a movie called " The Ideal Palace. " It was based on the true story of a man in France, Joseph Cheval, (19 April 1836 – 19 August 1924) who built a " palace ' for his daughter, Alice.
Read more: A Story of Rebirth after Death and 33 years of Struggle
I dedicate this article to the women who fought, died and tragically were lost.
Alongside the brave men who did the same.
I dedicate it to the women who kept the wheels turning on the farms and in the mines and in the factories and in the family homes.
There is great equality in life and in death. But nowhere as great as in the love we feel in our hearts.
I was brought up around boats. My late Dad was a sailor with the Royal Navy and later with the Royal New Zealand Navy. Nothing weird about that except, like many sailors in those days, he couldn't swim.
Still, that was what he did as a young man during the latter years of the Second World War when he decided that he wanted to sail off, see the world, and hopefully be home in time for dinner.
CAN SOCIETY BE designed? Can an expert engineer alleviate people’s pains and struggles with a good-enough central plan and blueprint?
Minoru Yamasaki thought so.
The Pruitt–Igoe urban housing project, a 1950s effort to revitalize 'urban blight' in St. Louis, was a project doomed from the start—and the "one big failure" of Minoru Yamasaki's distinguished architectural career.
When I was a lad in Western Australia, the 5th of November used to be…
186 hits
Phar Lap, the legendary Australian racehorse, and President Donald Trump, the American business magnate turned…
263 hits
Beneath the still waters of Lake Argyle lies the ghost of a homestead — Argyle…
262 hits
I’ve started and restarted this article, pondered how to avoid hurting anyone’s sensitivities, and in…
279 hits
Forecast: Confused With a Chance of Bureaucracy - Microbursts, bureaucratic panic, and a wallaby with titanium…
357 hits
Beersheba is a name that should resonate with every Australian with the same ease and…
522 hits
How have we come to this mess in the Middle East? The strange thing is…
344 hits
From Bushfires to Bare-Chested Heroes Our resident Redhead proves that admiration, humour, and a little…
362 hits
In the mid-19th century, a flickering flame of innovation sparked a revolution that would illuminate…
388 hits
From the Valley of Death at Balaclava to today’s policy corridors, the brave bear the…
409 hits
Imagine women, beaten, humiliated, raped repeatedly in Nazi-run brothels, stripped of their dignity, and sent…
779 hits
Prentis Penjani’s Grand Debut – The Duck Was Just the Warm-Up Act By Roderick (Whiskers)…
401 hits
By Roderick “Whiskers” McNibble, Senior Correspondent (and dance adjudicator) Crikey, mates and matesses - you’d…
469 hits
I have often pondered why mankind decided to go after the humble whale. After all,…
462 hits
Critical Minerals: The Deal That Could Turn Australia Into the World’s Quarry There’s a new…
626 hits
In 1775, the U.S. Marine Corps was established to safeguard American ships and interests. …
442 hits
We stopped teaching goodness. Now we’re living with the consequences. There was a time when…
430 hits
In an Australia grappling with division and a search for identity, it’s time to rediscover…
489 hits
Ratty News: Dusty Gulch Dispatch — “When the Ghosts Came Rolling In” Filed by: Roderick…
475 hits
Eighty-one years ago this week, in October 1944, a tall, thoughtful barrister from Victoria gathered…
703 hits
On the evening of October 12, 2002, the peaceful tourist destination of Bali, Indonesia, was…
450 hits
Queensland and much of northern Australia are overrun with cane toads - an invasion so…
460 hits
Some time ago, a young boy visiting Redhead’s house asked to use the “dunny.” The…
500 hits
Have you ever wondered how and why the Youth of today are holding rallies , their…
464 hits
Over the last few weeks I have noticed that people are losing their sense of…
500 hits
By Roderick (Whiskers) McNibble, Ratty News Bureau Chief There’s panic, pandemonium, and political puffery in…
499 hits
Try herding cats sometime. You’ll crouch, whistle, wave treats, and for one delusional moment, think…
494 hits
From Network to today, the prophecy is clear: truth has been turned into a commodity,…
705 hits
I am personally horrified by what has happened since October 2023. This wasn’t just a…
542 hits
Much of Australia’s early slang comes from the convict culture of the late 18th and…
583 hits
In 1925, a small courtroom in Dayton, Tennessee, became the stage for a battle over…
680 hits