Re: Re: Re: Re: Canada, Australia, Argentina

[Rob Schaap <rws@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Asks Jim,

>did the dominions -- and the colonies -- have any choice in this matter?

Yep, we did.  The one thing about which I agree with Brad is that it was no
bad thing we went the way we did.  But we've actually had the sovereignty
since 1901 to decide for ourselves whether we'd enter wars, shoot our own
chaps, allow nuclear tests on Australian soil, and so on.  Generally we are
very weak at such decisive moments, and, when we're ultimately - almost
inevitably - exploited, soiled or embarrassed, we inevitably wholly blame
the superior.  It could easily be argued it was our fault our lads' guts
ended up all over Gallipolli and the Somme, that they shot Breaker Morant
and his like, that they wafted great clouds of radioactive filth all over
central Australia etc etc.  But I've never heard anyone put that argument.
It was all those bloody poms, y'see.

And now it's all those bloody yanks ...

Cheers,
Rob.