On ABC News the British Primeminister was at a gathering.

Made the comments that he sat beside our Primeminister at a function, commenting on yet

another woman attaining a top job.

Julia was reported to have said "well I am all for it if an other shelia gets a top job".

The audience laughed politely.

Will the UK ever get over the fact that Australia was a "penal colony of the UK"?

I am not of the same political persuasion as our Primeminister, however, respect the office.

Also remember that only 4% of criminals were transported to the "colonies", the other 96%

stayed on home soil.

Lastly, I have never heard 'shelia' used in the Aussie vernacular, it is as out dated as 'cobber'.

The First Fleet was in 1788, where the very first deportation of convicts from the Thames Barges took place,

along with many settlers and British Marines.

The convicts were destined for the US but they had a civil war getting in the way at the time, of British

deportations.

Some of these poor souls were 8 & 9 years old, others were sent to the
end of the Earth for steeling a handkerchief.

Oh shiv, thank god for cricket!!!!!

Tov dear,
just google "best country"
and you get lots of list of countries ranked on various topics.
Australia is in top 10 regularly ;-)

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I don't know half of you half as well as I should like; and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve.

We have a kind of inverted snobbery down here, everyone searches the genealogy records

trying to find a 'convict' in their family tree.

too no avail I am afraid, only 'settlers and farmers' in mine.

No, shelia is not a defamatory word, just a very out dated one.

Yes Romany, the transportation ceased because of the civil War, to the US.

I think it was the cheap shot by the UK Primeminister that riled me.

Totally bad manners against another equally ranking person, male or female.

I think it will be pretty dark if he is ever seated beside her again.

Is the discussed shelia same as sheila? Thank you.

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Brain-washing starts in the cradle. - Arthur Koestler

Love Serenade

HWNN, I loved that movie, when asked if he was a homosexual?

answered 'No but we are willing to learn'

As a Nation condescension never goes down well, down here, maybe the UK PM needs to join our Forum.

Basic English

Sorry excaelis, but its 'fair suck of the sav' (saveloy) or the ruff end of the pineapple.

Seeing as I am having a Pomme bitch, here is another old Aussie joke.

Where do you hide your money when a Pomme is coming to stay?

Under the soap!

Just a hint, it is not wise to fire up an Aussie lady! and our PM is a red head, born in Wales as well.

Hope you didn't get the wrong impression excaelis, I most defiantly did not mean you.

Hi Tovarish!

Sorry I didn't get onto this thread when it was going strong - somehow missed it.

I realise that our esteemed Prime Minister is an honourable man (rather like Brutus was an honourable man). However, although he has not quite reached President Bush's level of inanity, he is getting there.

No-one here takes any notice of what he says...
Not that I'm wingeing or anything...

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Though lovers be lost, love shall not, and Death shall have no dominion. - Dylan Thomas

percivalpecksniff wrote above:

Although I am a 'woiker', I am far from Labour. I think probably the LibDems made the promises before the last election which made the most sense. However, I have not (in 60 years) seen a set of election policies carried out - probably not always from the insincerity of the politicians.

I can see that the government is in a 'cleft stick' at times with 'the workers' pressuring one way and 'Capital' (those who do not actually produce anything, but make a profit from manipulation of currency) pressuring the other way. Also I know that 'the workers' who are doing the pressuring are a very small minority (and mostly do not actually work), and that the 'Capitalists' I described are also a very small minority, who pretend to represent the management of industry but do not manage.

It is the same in every country (though the 'pressure groups' may change) I'm sure.

Mr Cameron? - he has acquired a bit of a reputation for saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. I do admire his stand over Europe's finances, and feel that, like Margaret Thatcher and Brutus before him, he operates from his view of the good of the nation rather than individuals.

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Though lovers be lost, love shall not, and Death shall have no dominion. - Dylan Thomas

DragOnspeaker. Fair enough. Although I do not vote I do take an interst in politics. I also thnk that politicians, although they may mean well, are at the mercy of so many variables, and have to please so many interests that their job is almost impossible.

The problem with taking a party line is, I think, that it forces a person into being disingenuous sometimes, or telling downright lies.

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It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it. Aristotle

percivalpecksniff wrote:


Yes - and a lot of the lies come from the media, I feel (but this fits with what you say, as most newspapers etc are following one party line or another).



Methinks Mr Pecksniff engageth in a little irony here.

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Though lovers be lost, love shall not, and Death shall have no dominion. - Dylan Thomas

ceterum censeo carthaginem esse delendam

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"Before I speak, I have something important to say."Groucho Marx

loving reading your posts and learning from them - since receiving the permission to vote, I have always voted against the person I didn't want to win, but then I'm just an ordinary sheila with a small opinion

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I live in my own little world, but it's OK - they know me here...

Tovarish raised a point: is 'sheila' used these days? I need to know, because I have an Aussie character in my novel. I have him using the term, but mustn't be outdated.
Could Tov, or any Aussie, tell me what terms are in current use? My character is a city guy.