I want to talk about flags, in particular flags that are no longer used. Why? This pains me to admit, but Sheldon Cooper and I have many things in common; and one of them is vexillology. If you’re not familiar with the term, you will be familiar with what it actually means: the study or love of flags.
When talking about myself, I don’t have an elephant in the room; I have a herd of them. However one of those elephants is all about flags. It’s not really the source of conversation for a first date, is it? Or the second, or the third, or the fourth.
I remember eventually explaining my love of flags to my future wife, like I was confessing that I had a window licking habit. Her response was something along the lines of, “I didn’t know that about you, though it does make sense. I knew there would be more stuff. I knew it.”
I’m not an expert on flags, far from it. Though I do like learning about them and trying to identify them as much possible. Please remember I am a geek, and I have been very upfront about that from Day One. That fact that the title of my blog is called, Some Geek Told Me, is a huge red flag.1
Because of this, I thought I’d talk about some countries that have changed their national flag. There could be many different reasons for the change, from social, political, or cultural issues, or maybe someone smeared tomato sauce on it, so they needed to redesign it.
The point is a country changing their national flag, happens a lot more than you realise. I’m going to list some of the most famous national flag changes in the world, but as usual, there are some exemptions. I am not going to discuss a country’s flag change, where it has gone back to using the original version like Russia-USSR-Russia. What I’m talking about is a completely new design for a country’s flag, that is still being flown today.
Canada
Canadian Red Ensign (1957–1965): Image by Denelson83
The Canadian Red Ensign served as the unofficial national flag and symbol for Canada throughout the years, from as early as 1868. Canada had gone through several versions of this flag, with small differences with each one.
However there had been a call for an official flag of Canada to actually exist for decades, so during 1963-1964, the Great Canada Flag Debate was born. During this time, a new design for the flag was sought and after 3,541 entries, a winner was eventually found. On 15th February, 1965, the “Maple Leaf” flag was inaugurated as the official of flag of Canada. This flag could never be mistaken for belonging to another country, other than Canada.
Flag of South Africa (1928–1994): Image by Denelson83
Just like the different flags throughout Canada’s history, South Africa has gone through many versions. This changed in 1928, when the country adopted the Union of South Africa flag. The problem with this flag is that it’s tied to the Apartheid system that the South African government used, which was based on racial segregation.
With the end of Apartheid, a new flag was purposed for the country to move past the injustices, and look towards a brighter tomorrow. Over 7,000 entries were received and on the day of the 1994 South African general election; the first general election open to citizens of all races, the famous Rainbow Flag was first flown.
Flag of Southern Rhodesia (1968-1979): Image by Actarux
The next two entries are rather unique, because these countries didn’t just change their flag, but also their name. From 1895 to 1990, Southern Rhodesia was the name of this Southern African country. It had been a British colony 2 and over the years it was known as Southern Rhodesia, the Republic of Rhodesia, Rhodesia, and finally Zimbabwe Rhodesia; with a white minority government.
This changed when the country gained its independence from the United Kingdom in 1980, but also with a black majority government. Because of this, the country changed it’s name to Zimbabwe and the flag; to greater reflect and honour their African heritage.
Just like Zimbabwe, Myanmar has a troubled past. It has been part of the Pagan Empire, a British colony 3, been ruled by the military, and littered with civil wars. Having won its independence from the United Kingdom in 1948, the country was known as the Union of Burma. Fast forward to 1988, where the country received an updated version of their old flag.
After some voting, social, and economic reforms from the military junta, the country stepped into a new era. It was given a new name for three reasons:
1.) Myanma is the official name of the country in the native Burmese language.
2.) It was thought that the name Myanma was more inclusive of minorities than the name Bama.
3.) The military junta had long been suspicious of the casual Burmese language, which it had perceived as inferior; the English name “Burma” mirrors the Burmese name Bama.
Because of these reasons and others, a new flag was adopted in 2010.
The Republic of the Union of Myanmar Flag (2010-present): Image by Adam Lapuník from Pixabay
And that’s a wrap from me. I realise I missed many other flags, but are there some I should have listed? Please let me know your thoughts.
Thanks for letting me share my love of vexillology, because there is no known cure. Anyway, I’m off to persuade my dog to sleep somewhere else, other than my pillow. Read some banned books, eat some ice cream, and I’ll see you next Monday.
I want to talk about music, especially songs about historical events. If you’ve been following me for awhile, you will sadly know that I love history. I mean it, I love history as much as I love Salt and Vinegar; so that’s a lot.
So I was thinking the other day; in between reading Kaiju No. 8 and watching The Rugby Championship, of a new topic for the blog. Being the cultural influencer that I am, I thought about combining two of my interests like pizza flavoured ice cream or a biologists vs physicists football game.1
In my infinite wisdom, which is sprinkled with hubris and incompetence, I decided to list some of my favourite songs about historical events. To make the list, there are only three criteria:
1.) The song can be performed by an artist or by a band.
2.) The song needs to be about a real event that has taken place, at some point in history. There is one special exemption to this rule, because the song is about several events, not just one.
3.) I do realise there are hundreds of songs about historical events, that I won’t mention. This is only because the songs on my list, will be ones that I’m quite familiar with and like, or the event that the song is based on, is something that has interested me.
Songs about real people, do not qualify. My apologies to Rubin ‘Hurricane’ Carter, Andy Kaufman, Queen Elizabeth II, and the list, just like the road, goes ever on and on. That will be a separate list for another blog.
This song refers to two different incidents involving assassinations and massacres. The first are the two attacks on Sunday 21st November 1920, during the Irish War of Independence. In the morning of the 21st, Irish Republican Army (IRA) operatives assassinated British intelligence agents that were living in Dublin at the time. This resulted in 15 deaths and five people being injuried.
In the afternoon of the same day, British and Police forces converged on Croke Park, Dublin, where a game of Gaelic football was being played. There were at least 5,000 spectators at the game, when the British and Police forces started shooting. 14 civilians including two children were killed, along with 80 civilians with injuries.
The second is the Bloody Sunday massacre of Sunday 30th January 1972, when British troops from the Parachute Regiment opened fire on unarmed civilian protesters, in Derry, Northern Ireland. This happened during a time called The Troubles, which was also known as the Northern Ireland Conflict. 14 civilians were killed altogether, with 13 victims killed on the day, and another victim died later on, because of their injuries sustained during the attack.
Magna Carta: 800 Years: Ben Miller, Naz Osmanoglu, Lawry Lewin, Jessica Ransom from Horrible Histories (2015)
This song is from a television show Horrible Histories, which is based on a series of books. It refers to the signing of the Magna Carta in 1215, by King John, King of England. The document basically states that no person; whether they be a king or not, is above the law. For over 800 years, the Magna Carta has been the bedrock for justice and has influenced many other important policies, legislation and civil rights. If you want some more information, some nitwit wrote about it here.
Sink the Bismarck: Johnny Horton (1960)
This song is about the hunt to sink the German battleship, Bismarck. The Bismarck was one of the largest battleships ever built, and during the Second World War, it was the subject to one of the greatest maritime searches in history.
After sinking the British HMS Hood in the North Atlantic, on 24th May 1941, the Bismarck was the most hunted ship in the world. Eventually the Bismarck was discovered, pursued, and attacked, with the battleship being scuttled and sunk on 27th May 1941.
The cause of World War One! Origins Rap Battle: WW1 Uncut BBC (2014)
This song is actually a rap battle about the origins of the First World War, which was to commemorate 100 years since the start of the war. It features characters like Gaurilo Princip, the assassin; Emperor Franz Josef of Austro-Hungary; Joseph Joffre, Commander of the French Forces; Tsar Nichols II of Russia; Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, and George V of Great Britain.
The characters explain their motivations for being involved in the build up to the war, as well as throwing in some amazing insults and burns. The song does a fantastic job at detailing the origins of the war with humour, disguised as a history lesson.
Genocide (The Killing of the Buffalo): Thin Lizzy (1980)
This song looks at the organised slaughter of the North American buffalo during the Plains Indian Wars of the 19th century. The buffalo was critical to the survival of many Native American tribes, which was well known to the US government. Because of this, the government entered a campaign of hunting and killing millions of buffalo and bringing them to the edge of extinction. This was a way to starve Native Americans and have them enter submission.
2019: Count Binface (2019)
This song covers two different events spanning three years. The first refers to the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum, aka Brexit; while the second refers to 2019 United Kingdom general election, which at the time, was going to be held in December 2019.
The artist Count Binface, like Jonathan Pie, is not a fan of the Conservative Party. Utterly brilliant.
Spanish Bombs: The Clash (1979)
The lyrics for this song are based on the Spanish Civil War, which was fought in 1936-1939. Like all civil wars, the Spanish Civil War was extremely brutal, having the Republicans and others, fighting against the Nationalists and allies. The conflict resulted in 200,000 soldiers killed, but between 150,000-180,000 civilians were also killed. In total 200,000 people were murdered, which involved mass shootings, torture, and mob violence.
Battle of Hastings Song aka Norman Style: Kevin Eldon, Naz Osmanoglu from Horrible Histories (2015)
This is another Horrible Histories song, but it looks at the Norman Invasion of England in 1066 and the Battle of Hastings, between the Norman forces, led by William I the Conqueror, against the English, led by King Harold II. The Normans won the battle and King Harold died on the battlefield. William successfully conquered England, ending Anglo-Saxon rule over the country, and thus changing English, European and World History.
Zombie: The Cranberries (1994)
This song was created as a direct response to the deaths of Tim Parry, 12, and Johnathan Ball, 3. This happened on 20th March 1993, through an IRA bombing in Warrington, England. Two small bombs were placed in litter bins, near a shopping area when they were detonated. 56 people when injured, along with killing the two children. Previously on 26th February 1993, the IRA had committed another bombing, by destroying gas holders in Warrington, as part of the IRA’s campaign to get the British to withdraw from Northern Ireland.
And finally for the special entry; if I have a list of my top 10 songs of all time, this song is on that list.
We Didn’t Start the Fire: Billy Joel (1989)
This song is unique because it doesn’t just focus on one event, but rather multiple world events occurring from 1948 to 1989. The events span politics, culture, science and sports, and have left a lasting impression on the world, whether they are positive or negative.
It’s the chorus that haunts me to this day:
We didn’t start the fire It was always burning, since the world’s been turning We didn’t start the fire No, we didn’t light it, but we tried to fight it
So do you agree with the entries? Have I missed out your favourite song about a historical event? Please let me know your thoughts. Alright, that’s it for me today, because my dog stinks and is well overdue for a bath; so wish me luck. Thanks for stopping by, walk your dog, read some banned books, and I’ll see you next Monday.
1 The referee would be a geologist, because you wouldn’t be able to trust a chemist.
I want to talk about Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Why? That’s an easy one. 77 years ago this week, two atomic bombs were dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, in a bid to bring the Second World War to an end, with the surrender of Japan.
This is an odd entry for Some Geek Told Me, but since I’m a student of history, I can’t really ignore this. What I’m not going to be talking about is:
The development of the atomic bombs, through the Manhattan Project.
The justification behind the Allies’ decision to drop the bombs.
The Quebec Agreement or ThePotsdam Declaration.
The Allies warning the Japanese citizens of the bombings.
Whether Japan had the capability to defend itself, against an Allied invasion.
What this charming little blog will be about, is what the two bombs actually did to the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, along with the citizens. I know, I know, not exactly Jane Austen or Charles Dickens content, but more like Stephen King.
Let’s turn the page and begin now.
Hiroshima: 6th August 1945
At the time of the bombing, Hiroshima was the headquarters for the Chūgoku Regional Army, as well as the Second General Army. Given Hiroshima’s position for shipping and military resources, it was one of the targets selected to be hit.
Hiroshima’s population was near 345,000, which was made up of military personnel, citizens; including children, slave labourers and prisoners of war.
The weapon used on Hiroshima was a bomb with a 64 kg uranium-235 core, nicknamed Little Boy. It had the power of 15 kilotons of TNT.
On 6th August, at 8.15 a.m (local time), the bomb was dropped from the Enola Gay, an American Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber, at an altitude of 9,400 m. It fell for 44-45 seconds, before detonating at 580 m, which was directly above a hospital.
The result of the first nuclear weapon being used in warfare, was nothing short of horrific.
The ground level temperature surpassed7,000 °C.
70,000 people were instantly killed by the blast and the resulting firestorm, with under 10% being military personnel.
By the end of 1945, the death toll had risen to over 100,000, mainly through radiation and injuries.
Of the city’s buildings, 70% were destroyed (60,000), with another 7% damaged.
Nuclear shadows or blast shadows of victims, were created on the city’s footpaths and walls.
A mushroom cloud was created and rose to more than 12 km high.
The blast radius of the weapon had total destruction for 1.6 km, along with fires stretching across 11 km2.
Over 90% of doctors and 93% of nurses in Hiroshima were killed or injured.
For people looking for medical treatment from the weapon, many would die before any medical help could be given to them. This resulted in dead bodies lying around hospitals.
During the war, Nagasaki was an important seaport, which was one of the largest in Japan. Nagasaki was also home to four massive companies, that were involved in the production of various military technology and machines. These companies employed 90% of the labour force in the city. Because of this, it was selected as a target.
Nagasaki’s population was 263,000, which consisted of Japanese citizens, Korean citizens, Korean and Chinese workers, soldiers and prisoners of war.
The Nagasaki bomb had a 5 kg plutonium core, nicknamed Fat Man. This weapon had the equivalent power of 21 kilotons of TNT.
On 9th August, at 11.01 a.m (local time), the plutonium bomb was dropped from another American Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber, Bockscar. It fell for 53 seconds, exploding near 500 m, which was directly above a tennis court.
As Japan and the world were still reeling after the Hiroshima bombing, a new nightmare was about to unfold.
40,000 people were instantly killed by the blast, with 60,000 injured.
By the end of 1945, the death toll had risen to an estimated 80,000, mainly through radiation and injuries.
40% of the city’s buildings were destroyed.
The industrial area sustained 68-80% of its production was destroyed.
A mushroom cloud was created to the height of 16 km.
The blast radius of the weapon had total destruction for 1.6 km, along with fires stretching 3.2 km south of the blast radius.
Image by WikiImages from Pixabay. Photo of Nagasaki after the bombing, from a 1946 US report.
Casualties of the bombs could be collected under three main groups: radiation injuries, debris injuries, and burns.
Radiation injuries accounted for 10% of the deaths in Hiroshima and 6% in Nagasaki. Debris injuries accounted for 30% of the deaths in Hiroshima and 14% in Nagasaki. Burns accounted for 60% of the deaths in Hiroshima and about 80% in Nagasaki.
This information does even touch upon the massive reconstruction effort of Hiroshima and Nagasaki; the after care needed for the survivors, named as hibakusha in Japanese; the radiation and cancer research conducted with the survivors; the cultural and historical impact on Japanese society; or even the world’s reaction and response to the bombings.
One sad day, I’m going to have to explain what happened to Hiroshima and Nagasaki to UMC1 and UMC2. I don’t know how to explain it as a parent, let alone walking around with the knowledge as an adult, that the nuclear apocalypse of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was real. It’s not fake, this actually happened; not once, but twice.
The bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki changed Japan forever, but also the world. I think the legacy of the two cities is a twisted form of doublethink. Hear me now…
The destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki can show us an example of what the worst of humanity can offer; what terrible things we can do to each other. However, it also shows us how quite literally and figuratively, how humanity can stand up after being knocked down, and to start to rebuild in the name of peace.
Both statements are actually true. They can co-exist alongside each other in your mind, and that’s alright. Though I think, just maybe, its about what you want to focus more on: hate or hope.
Thanks for reading. I’m going to be doing some changes to the blog soon, if I’m smart enough to understand on what to do and how to do it. Until then, walk your dog, tell a stupid joke and I’ll see you next week.
I want to talk about war, in particular, some of the ongoing conflicts that are raging across this planet. Why? The Temptations and Edwin Starr had similar feelings towards it, as I do.
The thing is, I’ve been rattling this blog around in my antique head for awhile now, trying to decide whether I should write it or not. It’s not like I’m trying to glorify war, or celebrate it. It’s quite the opposite.
Because of this, I feel it’s important to highlight seven of the longest ongoing wars, currently being fought. Maybe you have never heard of them, or maybe you have. However, I think it’s extremely relevant to know about these things, because to quote Scarlet Johansson’s character in Lucy, “Ignorance brings chaos, not knowledge.” Being informed about something, equips you to make better choices.
This can certainly relate to nations or factions waging war against each other, whether you’re directly or indirectly supporting them. I’ve chosen one war from each continent, just to demonstrate that war is not trade marked; because as Billy Joel said, “It was always burning, since the world’s been turning.”
I’d like to point out, there are many wars currently being fought across the world, that have become humanitarian disasters, like the Yemeni crisis; the Tigray war; Chad; Syria; and Ethiopia. The only reason these conflicts are not on the list, is because they are quite recent, compared to the others. Sadly, these conflicts will be on a future blog.
The former nation known as Burma, Myanmar has been at war with itself since 1948. The whole situation is quite difficult to unravel, but there have been many different players and events in this debacle, ranging from the Empire of Japan; the British Empire; the Communist Party of Burma; Karen National Union; the Panglong Agreement; Aung San; the Chin, Kachin and Sha people; Military juntas; Burma Socialist Programme Party; Aung San Suu Kyi; the Rohingya people; the Tatmadaw; the People’s Defence Force; genocide; and one or two Coup d’états; among others.
The brutality of this conflict, has cost an estimated 150,000 lives from 1948-2011, with millions of people being dispossessed. This does not even include the Rohingya genocide, or the current military junta’s killings. Myanmar has a rich and proud history, but in the eyes of the world, the civil war is a problem that nobody quite knows how to solve or permanently end.
Europe: The Georgian conflicts with Abkhazia and South Ossetia (33 years: 1989-Present)
Since 10th November 1989, Georgia was been fighting on two fronts: to the west against Abkhazia; and the other to the centre, against South Ossetia. Abkhazia and South Ossetia, are both former autonomous regions of Georgia.
Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the region has been rocked with various ethnic conflicts. This has led to various factions to declare independence, which has divided not just countries, by also ethnic boundaries; the Russian invasion of Ukraine and Georgia in 2014 and 2008, are perfect examples of this.
Over the years, Georgia’s conflicts with Abkhazia and South Ossetia, have killed over 30,000 people, with tensions still running high between the neighbouring nations.
Africa: Lord’s Resistance Army Insugency (35 years: 1987-Present)
This is a brutal one to discuss. The Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) is a terrorist army that mainly operates in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan, the Central African Republic, and Northern Uganda.
Some of their crimes include abduction, murder, war crimes, child-sex slavery, mutilation, and recruitment of child soldiers. Their fight against the Ugandan government has spilled over to neighbouring countries, which in turn has brought in the United States military, the United Nations, and other international watchdog organisations.
Because of the actions of the LRA, over 100,000 people have been killed, over 20,000 children had been abducted, and over 1.5 million people have been displaced. The LRA have been reduced in size over the years, however their leader Joseph Kony, is still evading capture.
North America: Mexican Drug War (15 years: 2006-Present)
This entry is not a traditional war between two nations, over religious, political or ethnic issues. It’s about the flow of drugs; namely cocaine, through Mexico, via the drug cartels.
On one side, you have the Mexican drug cartels, which covers all of Mexico. They control a huge amount of illegal drugs for drug trafficking, and they are heavily resourced and organised.
And on the other side of the conflict, you can find the Mexican government; which consists of the Mexican Armed Forces, The National Guard, and Federal Police, and other police forces. They also an ally/ enemy in the Popular Revolutionary Army, whom hate the government, just as much as the drug cartels.
The United States government, and the Australian and Colombian Police, also provide training and support against the drug cartels. All of these groups are trying to stop the flow of the illegal drugs.
Since 2006, this unorthodox war has claimed between 40,000-400,000 lives, depending if you are counting homicides from organised crime or not. In 2018, the Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, stated that the war was over, but boots on the ground tell a different story.
South America: Colombian conflict (57 years: 1964-Present)
Just like the Myanmar Civil War, the Colombian conflict is complicated, because there have been several factions and groups involved over the years. The major players are the Colombian government, army and police, right-wing paramilitary groups, drug cartels, crime syndicates, and left-wing guerrilla groups.
These groups have changed and evolved over the years, but the constant theme is that they are still fighting each other. Each group has their own reason for fighting, with each one believing they are justified in waging war.
The problem is that Colombia is still suffering because of this. 220,000 men, women and children have been killed during the conflict, with 7 million people have been displaced, because of the fighting. An estimated 16.9% of the Colombian population has been identified as a victim of the war.
When will it stop? You tell me.
Oceania: Papua conflict (59 years: 1962-Present)
Even my beautiful continent of Oceania,1 has not been spared. The Papua conflict is about the island, Western New Guinea, also known as Papua; which belongs to Indonesia, and shares a border with the nation of Papua New Guinea. The disputed region is a province called Papua, because the Free Papua Movement, which is a group, trying to gain independence from Indonesia.
Indonesia has branded the Free Papua Movement, a terrorist organisation; because of its use of guerrilla warfare, against Indonesian civilians, police, and military. However the Free Papua Movement has accused the Indonesian government of conducting a campaign of genocide, against the people of Papua.
Overall, an estimated death toll is between 100,000-500,000 victims. And just like many of the entries on this list, there seems no end in sight for the violence.
Antarctica: Aquatic Mammal War (Orcas vs Leopard Seals)
The origins of this conflict has been lost to the mists of time. This is because either nobody knows how or when it started, or all human evidence has been removed or destroyed by special agents.
The Antarctica Aquatic Mammal War, or as I call it, AAMW; has been waged between two of the top predators in Antarctica; orcas and leopard seals. To my understanding, the Cold War between the USA and the USSR, was modelled and named after this conflict.
From what humans can understand, orcas and leopard seals have been known to engage in some minor fighting, but it’s really a war of attrition. Hunting in each other’s territories, tagging logos on ice sheets, and recruiting proxy allies, like dolphins and seals; have made this conflict very dangerous.
Each side is not above insulting each other. The orcas call the leopard seals, “otters,” while the leopard seals, insult the orcas, by calling them “sharks.” All it takes, is one drunk orca, or a cocky young leopard seal, to start insulting the other group at a sit down, and all hell breaks loose.
The orca’s current leader is called Dolores P. Switchblade, and the leopard seals are led by ‘Arry “the Janitor” McClane, because he always takes out the trash. Not even the world’s greatest natural science communicator, Sir David Attenborough, knows how to solve this problem.
Well that’s it. Hopefully there’s something in this rambles of a blog, that you might have discovered. Thanks again for reading, it’s appreciated as much as quarks appreciate the strong nuclear force.2
1 Oceania has always been at war with Eurasia; except that time it had always been at war with Eastasia.
I want to talk about the Ku Klux Klan. Why? Well, I mentioned them in my blog introduction, a long time ago. I said, “I want to showcase and discuss some of my personal heroes and icons, people that I think have made a positive impact on me; but also shaped and changed the world for the better. Remember, I did say I’m a geek. However, I do want to also highlight people or groups that have had the opposite effect; the Ku Klux Klan, I’m looking at you.”
I recently realised, that I still hadn’t discussed them, so I thought it’s time I rectified that. Now I am not going to explain the history and origins of that happy little sunshine group known as the KKK, because I feel we all understand that their message is filled with racism, violence, bigotry, prejudice, and stupidity.
And if you have never heard of the KKK; firstly, congratulations; secondly, do yourself a favour and look them up.
So what can be said about the KKK, that has not already been said before? People a lot smarter than me have made movies and documentaries exploring the KKK, in fictional and non-fictional contexts; and they have also written books concerning the KKK’s various negative impacts on history and society.
What can a white guy, living in the South Pacific, with the craziest eyebrows, this side of the 1984 Dune’s version of Thufir Hawat, add to the discourse? How about the KKK having three unintentional positive impacts on global society?
Now before you decided to stop reading this blog, please continue and have a little faith in where I’m going with this.
The first unintentional positive impact the KKK have had on our lives, is the power to unite people against them. Collective villains are easy to dislike or hate; Daleks, The Borg, Zombies, Nazis, and the list could go on. The KKK are a very easy target for people’s displeasure, which they deserve 100%.
The extremely badly written point I’m trying to make here, is that the majority of people dislike them. Whether you’re from left or right wing politics, and everything in between; straight or LBGTQ+; 15 or 95 years old; white or black, and everything in between; everybody across the different groups seem to all have one similar trait: they all dislike the KKK.
To unite people across society, and to share the same annoyance of the KKK, is truly positive. It must take a special group of fools, to piss off nearly everybody.
For the next positive impact, it’s all displaying the best and brightest of the white supremacy group. By this I mean, they are promoting the need for accurate spelling. What am I talking about? Well, the correct spelling of the word klan in English, is actually clan. So what the KKK have been doing, is running around, spewing out white supremacy garbage; but the entire time, one of the three words in their actual name, has been spelt incorrectly.
Whether this spelling was done intentional or someone down the line, thought it would be a great idea; the fact remains, the KKK spell clan, as klan. The unintentional positive impact is highlighting the need for correct spelling and the importance of education. Stay in school and do your homework; go Team Education!
The third reason is actually quite easy to identify: their clothes make them look like ghosts. Now I personally don’t know any ghosts, so I have no idea whether they would be alright being linked to the KKK or not. It does make me think though, what would happen if ghosts were asked about their connection to the KKK? Their response would be, “Hell no, they have nothing to do with us.Don’t you dare group those losers with us!”
I think there are very few things as funny, as grown men dressing up in sheets, explaining how superior they are, while others are not. This is the unintentional positive impact: making people smile and laughing at you, while you walk around looking like a broke arse ghost, with a racism addiction.
There you have it, three unintentional positive impacts the KKK with given us; because everything else they have given us, has been crap.
Anyway, I have to go; my children are fighting over imaginary cupcakes. Again. Thanks for reading and I’ll see you next week.
I want to talk about the Nazis. Why? To be honest, I don’t exactly want to talk about them, but things that have outlived them. I could try and explain who and what the Nazis were, but I think the majority of the world may have already figured what they did. I mean, if you want to fight some real world collective villains, your first choice would either be the Ku Klux Klan or the Nazis. They are so easy to hate.
I feel the Nazis have left a stain on humanity, that will probably never really wash off. That being the case, I wanted to point out a few things. I think some people have forgotten that the Nazis were originally a political party called the National Socialist German Workers’ Party or Nazi for short.
The far right party was founded in 1920, while Germany was still recovering from the First World War. In 1933, they were voted into power and ushered in what they called the German Reich or the Third Reich, which the Nazis claimed would last a thousand years. It lasted only 12 years, because it ended in 1945, with the end of the European campaign of the Second World War and the defeat of the Nazis.
Now someone may say that the Third Reich lasted only 12 years, but considering the Nazis had formed in 1920; at least to me, the Nazis had lasted 25 years. A quarter of a century, instead of a thousand years. I simply can’t stop smiling at that fact!
So the Nazis only lasted 25 years. That’s a long time, right? The funny thing is that there are many things and people that have actually outlasted and outlived the entire Nazi party. Now imagine if there was a list of these things and people.
Behold, may I present to you, 15 things that have outlived 25 years of the entire Nazi party:
The original run of the tv show, Doctor Who; refereed to as Classic Who (1963-1989: 26 years)
The length of time for Nelson Mandela’s imprisonment (November 1962-February 1990: 27 years)
The entire The Land Before Time movie series (1988-2016: 28 years)
The length of time it takes Saturn to orbit the Sun (29 years)
The Dark Tower novel series by Stephen King (1982-2012: 30 years)
The number 4 reactor at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine exploded, remains the world’s worst nuclear disaster (1986-2021: 35 years)
The first news story on an unidentified disease appeared in a newspaper, which was later named as AIDS. (1981-2021: 40 years)
The time it took to construct the Charles Bridge, in Prague, Czech Republic (1357-1402: 45 years)
The introduction of McDonald’s Quarter Pounder (1971-2021: 50 years)
The national flag of Botswana was adopted (1966-2021: 55 years)
The reign of Emperor Qianlong ofthe Qing dynasty (1735-1796: 60 years and 114 days)
The release of the 4th James Bond novel, Diamonds Are Forever (1956-2021: 65 years)
The current age of my Dad (1951-2021: 70 years)
The current marriage of the 39th President of United States of America Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter (1946-2021: 75 years)
The first appearance of Wonder Woman (1941-2021: 80 years)
Does this list change anything? No it doesn’t, except that it makes me feel happy to highlight that King Shark from The Suicide Squad, has existed for 27 years; 2 years longer than the Nazis. That’s embarrassing.
I want to talk about Kate Sheppard and in particular, a $10NZ banknote. Why? Because in New Zealand, Kate and her allies, did something that can still bring a smug smile and a wink to any New Zealander.1 She remains to this day, an important figure and icon in New Zealand; but in my humble opinion, to the world as well.
Before I rant on about this, I realise that all of the following information can be found on the internet and in books, so the information is easy to access, if you want it. The reason I’m writing this, is because I think she was an arse kicker and to me, that’s awesome.
Kate Sheppard National Memorial, Christchurch, New Zealand
Alright, let’s back the trailer up and try to explain what this is all about. Catherine Wilson Malcolm was born in Liverpool, England on the 10th March 1847/48.2 As she grew up, Kate revealed that she preferred the spelling of her name to be “Katherine” or just “Kate.” Kate’s family emigrated to Christchurch, New Zealand in 1868, after the death of her father. The family joined a church once they were settled in Christchurch and she later married Walter Sheppard in 1871.
From there, Kate became more involved in many different committees and organisations around Christchurch, as well as giving birth and raising their son, Douglas. One of the groups that she joined was the women’s suffrage movement.
At the time, the women’s suffrage movement was established in various countries around the world, with New Zealand being one of them. Their quest was for women to be treated and seen as equal, and to be able to vote in democratic elections.
The right for women to vote is taken for granted in many countries today, but in reality, you don’t have to go back in time that far, to a period when no countries allowed it. That was going to change, because this was something that lit a fire in Kate and her future in activism.
Kate joined the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union of New Zealand (WCTUNZ) and started campaigning for some employment and alcohol reforms, by creating petitions for the public to sign, then promoting them to Parliament.
These petitions failed in Parliament, so Kate and her allies came to the conclusion, until women were given the vote, Parliament would just keep ignoring their petitions. To be taken seriously, they would need to be seen as equals first. At the time, every single member of Parliament was male and little did they know, a storm was gathering and it was headed straight towards them.
Over the next few years, the women’s suffrage movement became the rallying cry for change in New Zealand. Kate and her allies began holding more conferences, writing to newspapers, running community meetings and lobbying Parliamentary members for their support of women’s suffrage; by travelling up and down the country.
Kate was becoming a powerful orator and writer on women’s suffrage, to the effect that she wrote many articles for newspapers, as well writing and sending a leaflet to every single member of the House of Representatives; titled Ten Reasons Why the Women of New Zealand Should Vote. To me, that’s so bad arse, but brilliant at the same time.
After a new bill in 1888, reinforced the exclusion of women to vote, Kate and her allies decided to, well…dial it up to 11. The women campaigned harder, connecting and reaching more citizens with their message of election equity. It was in this phrase of the movement that the national petitions were created.
Two national petitions were signed by women, for the right for them to vote. The first petition gained 10,085 signatures in 1890; and in 1892, the second petition had 20,274 signatures. Both petitions failed at Parliament. Not defeated by this, Kate and her relentless allies organised yet another petition!
In 1893, the third petition was the largest to ever to be presented to the New Zealand Parliament, at the time. By the end, the petition was 270m long and held 31,872 women’s signatures. The thing is, 31,872 does not seem a huge number by today’s standards; however the estimated population of New Zealand, at the time was around 698,500. Nearly 4.5% of the population signed the third petition!
The first page of the third Women’s Suffrage Petition, 1893.
That was enough for the subject of women’s suffrage, to be not just discussed in newspapers and town halls, but now over the dinner table. Grandmothers, mothers, wives, sisters, daughters, granddaughters and nieces, were asking their grandfathers, fathers, husbands, brothers, sons, grandsons and nephews, what their stance was on the right for women to vote.
The question of the women’s vote, was not something the Boys’ club could ignore anymore. Members of Parliament were being questioned by female family members. To me and quite possibly only me, I call this the Storm of 1893 and you can’t hold back a storm; not even Parliament could.
In 1893, the Electoral Bill was passed and on 19th September 1893, it became law. Although other states and territories had already done this around the world, New Zealand had become the first self governing nation in the world, to give the vote to all adult females. Even after 128 years, it still gives the nation a huge amount of pride.
There were many different women that campaigned for women’s suffrage in New Zealand. They included Ada Wells; Mary Müller; Lily Atkinson; Meri Mangakāhia; Annie Jane Schnackenberg; and many other courageous women. However, after this victory, Kate was seen as the leader of the New Zealand women’s suffrage movement.
Kate went on to became a pioneer journalist and editor of the White Ribbon-the first newspaper, in New Zealand to be published, managed and owned by women; remarry after her first husband’s death; continued her activism in politics; as well as leading several groups and organisations. Kate also met with different leaders of the women’s suffrage movement in the United Kingdom and United States of America.
Kate passed away on 13th July 1934 in Christchurch, New Zealand. She left no living descendants and was buried with her mother and brother. There has been quite a few commemorations to Kate over the years from memorials; busts; streets; football cups; pedestrian lights; plays; as well as making into several top 5 lists, for the greatest New Zealanders of all time.
A Kate Sheppard pedestrian light in Wellington, New Zealand.
So, we have now arrived at the question; what has Kate Sheppard got to do with $10? The answer to that is quite simple; she’s on it. Previously, the NZ$10 featured Queen Elizabeth II, but during the 1990’s, all of the banknotes were redesigned.
In 1993, the NZ$10 was released to pay tribute to the centennial of women winning the vote in New Zealand. Kate Sheppard was displayed on the front of the note, with one of her most famous and iconic photographs.
To me, I think it’s fantastic that she’s on it, because her image serves as a constant reminder to the people of Aotearoa that doing the right thing, isn’t difficult; you just have to persevere and be brave enough to do it.
The poet Jessie Mackay, once described Kate as “…the woman whose life and personality made the deepest mark upon New Zealand’s history.” There have been many truly amazing women over the years, who have all made a hugely positive impact on New Zealand, whether it’s through science, arts, race relations, sports or politics. Kate Sheppard has more than earnt her place among these inspirational women.
Anyway, thanks for reading and see you next week!
1 I know we don’t mean to do it, but as a nation, we’re pretty proud of this.
2 This sounds strange, but there are two different years attributed to her birth year. One account says her birthdate was 10th March 1847, while another states 10th March 1848.
I want to talk about Ukraine and Russia. Why? Because both countries have been making the news for the wrong reasons. Tensions still exist between these neighbouring countries, so I thought it would be a nice time to relax and try unravel the inter-connected histories of Ukraine and Russia. It’s time for a geo-political lesson!
Ukraine is located in Eastern Europe and it shares borders with Belarus, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Moldova and of course, Russia. Ukraine also borders the Black Sea to the south, though we will come back to that later. It also has the Dniper River running through the country from north to south.
Ukraine has a population of 43.5 million people1; Ukrainian is the official language; the capital city is Kyiv 2; and this is quite important, the major ethnic group is Ukrainians at 77.8% and the minor ethnic group is Russians at 17.3% These last two figures are from the 2001 Ukrainian census, however there was a 2020 census planned, but it was postponed to 2023, because of…you guessed it, COVID-19. It’s also a gateway between Europe and Asia.
Now with Russia, it’s the largest country in the world. It actually spans across Europe and Asia! It’s so large, it has 11 time zones. Seriously, 11. And I thought adjusting to Daylight Savings was difficult! Anyway, Russia shares borders with sixteen other countries, but also with the Black Sea and Caspian Sea among other bodies of water.
Russia has a population of 146.7 million people, including the Crimea in 2020; funnily enough, Russian is the official language; the capital city is Moscow or Moskva if you prefer; and to contrast with Ukraine, the major ethnic group is Russians with 80.9%, with Ukrainians making up 1.4% of the population.
So, we now know the layout of the two countries…but what is the issue between them? That’s a good question, but a difficult one to answer. I’ll do my best, but I’m sorry if I leave anything important out or get anything wrong. Alright, let’s do it.
Ukraine has a long, beautiful and proud history, so I don’t want to skip this; but in context of this blog and for time’s sake, I have to. We need to jump into our TARDIS and travel back to the Crimea War of 1853-1856.
This was a pointless war involving Russia against a British/French/Ottoman coalition. Among other things the war was fought over, one was access to the Black Sea and surprise, surprise, the conflict was fought on the Crimean Peninsula. This brought the geo-political importance of Crimea to the world’s attention.
We can now move onto 1917, at the start of the Ukrainian War of Independence from the Russian Empire. This was kicked off from the start of the Russian Civil War, which was preceded by the Russian Revolution.
The Ukrainian People’s Republic struggled from 1917-1921 against the might of Russia, which was going through political and social unrest. The consequence of this, was that Ukraine failed to gain independence and was absorbed into the new formed Union of Soviet Socialist Republics or USSR.
Under control of the Soviet Union and through Joseph Stalin’s agricultural policies, 3.5 million Ukrainians died of starvation during 1932-1933, known as the Great Famine or as the Holodomor. Later on through World War II, involving the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941; and also the Holocaust, over 5 million Ukrainians were killed. I also need to state that the Soviet Union lost over 20 million people in World War II.
Stalin also did two things that are key to the problems of today. First he authorised the deportation of the Ethnic Tatar people out of Crimea and into Central Asia. The other key point is that Stalin replaced these people with ethnic Russians, back into the Crimean Peninsula.
The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic; as Ukraine was known as, recovered over the years to become a leader in grain, industry and production. On 24th April 1986, a reactor exploded at a nuclear power plant, near the city of Chernobyl. The accident was the worst nuclear disaster in human history and the result I’m mentioning this, is because the accident occurred in Northern Ukraine. Yes, the Chernobyl nuclear disaster actually happened in Ukraine.
Fast forward to 1990, where the Ukrainian government voted to break away from the USSR, with over 90% of the vote, from an independence referendum; which the USSR then dissolved in 1991. The USSR was then reorganised back into the Russia Federation, or the country simply known as Russia.
Now, I don’t mean to skip over some events here, but I need to focus and keep going, other wise I will never finish!
In 2004, Ukraine went through the Orange Revolution, which produced large civil unrest and claims of Russian inference. This brings us to late 2013 to early 2014, and a low point in Ukrainian-Russian relations. To set the stage for this, two things need to be understood.
The first thing is the demographic of the Ukrainian population. Western and Central Ukraine is mainly populated by ethnic Ukrainians, so this is where the Ukrainian language is mainly spoken. As you move east and south from the centre, you start to see more Russian culture in these regions, along with the Russian language. This is highlighted within…surprise, surprise, the Crimean Peninsula.
The second point is our old friend, politics. You see, there are was a growing movement in Ukraine to create stronger ties with the European Union (EU) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO); basically Pro-EU supporters. However, to keep things balanced, there was a counter movement to strengthen ties to Russia and it’s influence; basically Pro-Russian supporters.
Ok, this is where it goes off the rails. In November 2013, the Ukrainian President, Viktor Yanukovych; who was a Pro-Russian supporter, backed away from an agreement that would bring Ukraine closer to the EU and strengthen their ties, with financial and political support. Now hold on to your seat, but Yanukovych wanted to go with financial and political support from Russia instead. To say this reversal of policy, did not go down well, was like when Eddie Brock was fired from the Daily Bugle; and named Peter Parker as the reason.
There were large protests against Yanukovych, by the Pro-European movement. This of course led to the Pro-Russian movement taking to the streets in support of Yanukovych. Having massive demonstrations to remove Yanukovych and support him at the same time, created civil unrest, which brought about violence and death. This became known as the Euromaiden Revolution and not a death metal band from Austria.
On 21st February 2014, Yanukovych fled the country, with the Ukrainian parliament voting to remove him from office, on the 22nd. So tensions are very high in Ukraine at this point. They were about to get a lot worse.
When Yanukovych had fled, the Russian President Vladimir Putin, began discussing invading South East Ukraine, especially the region of Crimea. This was because of three reasons: to protect the large number of ethnic Russians living there3; to protect the Russian Naval Fleet docked at the Crimean city of Sevastopol’s Naval Base; and to resist the new Ukrainian government, because to the Russians, the Ukrainians had ousted the legal head of state in Yanukovych, so the new government was “illegal”.
The Russian military entered the Crimean Peninsula and took over Ukrainian bases, while also seizing control of the region. Unmarked Russian troops started creating checkpoints across the region, as well as supporting Pro-Russian militia within Crimea. Because of this, the autonomous Crimean government, issued the 2014 Crimean status referendum; which basically asked if the Crimean people would like to join Russia.4
The result was that over 95% of the vote, agreed to joining Russia, which led to Russia annexing the Crimean Peninsula.
Annexing. In the 21st century, the annexation of another sovereign nation is still happening. How is that possible?!
Anyway, because of this insanity, armed conflict had began between Ukrainian and Russian forces, with militia groups being involved. The fighting has mainly been in Crimea and Donbas (Eastern Ukraine) regions. The conflict soon grabbed international attention went Pro-Russian troops shot down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 on 17th July 2014, killing all 283 passengers and 15 crew members.
Ukraine blamed Russia for shooting down the plane, while Russia blamed Ukraine for allowing civilian flights into the area. 143 victims were from the Netherlands and in 2020, the Dutch government took Russia to the European Court of Human Rights, because of this incident.
What has been dubbed the Russo-Ukrainian War, is still active today. Over 13,000 people have been killed and over 29,000 people have been wounded. In late 2014, fighting increased and in 2018, there was the Kerch Strait incident involving the Russian and Ukrainian navies.
In March-April 2021, Russia began a massive build up of troops, weapons and vehicles; along the Ukrainian border. The Russian government said the build up was just a training exercise, with thousands of troops been sent home. However, many thousands of Russian troops are still stationed along the border.
There has been international criticism of Russia’s involvement in Ukraine, with NATO condemning the invasion and various economic sanctions have been placed on Russia; whom have been imposing their own counter sanctions.
After seven years of fighting, there appears to be no end in sight. To me, it just seems a like lose-lose situation for everybody involved; especially for the dispossessed and homeless. I have no idea what it would take to end the conflict, I am not smart enough to see it.
However, I honestly hope there can be a peaceful and quick resolution to this insanity, otherwise other countries could be dragged into the war to stop it; which may or may not make it worse.
What I do know is that we, as a collective society, can not allow the annexation of another sovereign nation to continue in the 21st century. I feel that part of our global history, must remain in the past, if we have any chance of moving forward and working together as a species. Annexation is wrong and does not work, but diplomacy does.
Anyway, that’s it. I’ll get off my soap box now. In a lighter note, we are currently slowly marching towards the cold, dark maw of winter, so working on this blog will keep me entertained during the long nights. Winter is coming, so hopefully House Stark would approve.
Thank you so much for reading and see you in a fortnight!
1 The official population is closer to 41.5 million people, not including the Russian annexed areas of Crimea and Sevastopol.
2 There are two ways to write Kyiv. One is the Russian based “Kiev”, while the other is the Ukrainian based “Kyiv”. I have obviously selected to promote Kyiv.
3 Thanks, Stalin.
4 This referendum was illegal under the Ukrainian and Crimean constitutions.
I want to talk about war. Why? Because our national remembrance day is coming up and I’d like for UMC1 and UMC2 to attend an event. Now before I start waffling on with my little lecture about that, I do need to discuss our remembrance day and it’s history. I am going to try to do this without glorifying war, but also acknowledging the true horror or war. I’m also writing this from a country that is not at war currently or suffering through a civil war. With that said, here we go…
Our remembrance day is known as ANZAC Day and it’s observed on 25th April. It is marked in New Zealand, Australia, United Kingdom, Turkey, Canada, France, Malta and many, many other countries. It stems from the disastrous Gallipoli campaign in the First World War.
In a nutshell, the Gallipoli campaign was about the Allied Forces invading the Gallipoli peninsula, in Turkey. The idea was to weaken and knock the Ottoman Empire1out of the war, because they were supporting the Central Powers of the German and Austria-Hungary Empires. The Allies believed if they could take control of the Turkish Straits, they could also control the flow of supplies through the Suez Canal. They did this through naval bombardment and amphibious landings; though after 10 brutal months, they came to the conclusion, that it was never going to work and retreated.
Among the several Allied countries involved in the campaign, was a division of troops comprised of Australian and New Zealand forces, which became known as the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps; or also known as ANZAC. They landed on the shores of Gallipoli on 25th April 1915, which eventually became known as ANZAC Day.
The purpose of ANZAC Day and I can imagine for various different remembrance ceremonies around the world, is to honour the men and women whom gave their lives, in the defence of their own country or the protection of others.
I am not going to speak for every New Zealander, because I don’t know that many people, but also I won’t. Reflecting on ANZAC Day to me, has always been mixed with pride and sadness. I was taught at school a long time ago, that these people “…gave up their tomorrows, for our today.” In addition to this, ANZAC Day is strange for me, because it was also my grandfather’s birthday; so it’s a day of reflecting upon death and sacrifice, but also of life and heritage.
Through the large cities, big towns and small communities of this country, there are statues, cenotaphs, plaques and war memorials everywhere. For the majority of the year, I think people see them as part of the landscape or in the background of the country; like rivers, trees, rugby fields and beaches. However, for a small period of the year, we actually see them and give them the respect they deserve.
Over the years, ANZAC Day has come to commemorate not only World War I soldiers, but military personnel from all armed conflicts and peace keeping missions.
With the exception of 2020, ANZAC day starts with a dawn service at 6am. People wear poppies, speeches are given, prayers and hymns are spoken and wreaths are laid at different war memorial sites around the country. The Last Post 2 and the Rouse are played, two minutes of silence is observed; along with the reading of the fourth verse of Laurence Binyon’s ‘For the fallen’ and the singing of the national anthem. Some services also have fly overs and gun salutes.
Later in the day, in the various communities up and down the country, parades are held. These can involve the Army, Army Reserve, Air Force, Navy, Scouts, Air Cadets, Sea Cadets and possibly anybody else I have forgotten, so I’m sorry about that.
There is also the parade that everybody is there to see: the Diggers aka the Veterans. Surviving members of the armed forces that have served over the years, they put on their finest clothes, display their medals and march (walk or get wheeled) down the road; to hundreds, if not thousands of people applauding for them.
As the old soldiers march, you can see various emotions on their faces, like pride and happiness; but also a lot of sadness. To me, it’s like survivors guilt, as in they made it home, but their mates did not. There are a lot smiles at an ANZAC Day service and parade, but also a large number of tears.
Descendants of the soldiers also walk in place of their family member, whom has passed away or simply unable to be there. These people can also wear medals awarded to the family member and young children have been seen wearing them, marching with the veterans.
I have never been fortunate to experience ANZAC Day in Australia, but I understand it is very similar to New Zealand, in the way it’s commemorated.
This leads us to UMC1 and UMC2. For many millions of children all over the world, war is a daily event, so their knowledge of it, sadly is through experience. For others, war is an alien concept, that is very far removed from their lives.
This year, my wife and I have decided to take the boys to one of the services; either the dawn service or the parade. They are usually up causing carnage well before 6am. However having them fully dressed, fed and waiting in the early morning darkness, could be a step too far! Maybe the 10am service, possibly.
Anyway, the point is that if they are going to an ANZAC Day service, they would need to what it’s about; hence talking about war to them. UMC2 is nearly three, so we have decided to give him a simpler version of what his older brother received. UMC1 is nearly six, so we needed to explain the meaning of ANZAC Day, but also discussing the concept of war.
We discuss a vast array of subjects in our house, these usually pop up naturally when the children see or hear something and they come to us with questions. But war has never come up naturally, a fact that I’m very grateful for. We didn’t know exactly what to say to him, war is such an abstract concept when you are 6 years old and living in peacetime. So we sat and wrote down some key points we wanted to discuss with him. This was difficult, because how do you talk of war when all your parenting strategies revolve around talking things out and using compromise to find solutions to your problems?
Below are the key points we discussed with UMC1, so he could comprehend the concept. Please feel free to use these points with your children; if it helps of course, but you can always change, alter or adapt them to suit your family, culture or country.
ANZAC Day is a solemn, remembrance day and not a holiday to celebrate.
What ANZAC means is Australia and New Zealand Army Corps. It is our two countries working as a team, standing together.
Every 25th April, we remember the people that fought for our country and also the people that died.
Sometimes leaders of countries make “silly choices” and try to take over other countries. Sometimes they treat their people extremely badly.
The United Nations (UN) is an organisation, made up of different representatives from countries around the world. It is their job to talk to these countries and try to find peaceful solutions to these problems, but sometimes this does not work and a war can start.
War is when two or more groups or countries, fight about something in a physical way. This means trying to stop, hurt or kill the members of the other country or group.
Our defence force is made up of men and women in the Army, Navy and Air Force. Their job is to protect you from danger from outside of the country, but also to step in to help when other countries need support. They can do this by building new infrastructure like roads, schools and hospitals. They can also help the injured; support with resettlement and housing; and also supplying people with food. Not just fighting.
The Army has soldiers that work on land, the Navy has sailors that work on ships, while the Air Force has people that work on and fly aircraft.
I have made a small resource list to help children understand ANZAC Day/Remembrance Day, as well as the concept of war.
Books:
A Day to Remember by Jackie French and Mark Wilson.
ANZAC Ted by Belinda Landsberry.
Dawn Parade by Philippa Werry and Jennifer Cooper.
Grandad’s Medals by Tracy Duncan and Bruce Potter.
Lest We Forget by Feana Tu’akoi and Elspeth Alix Batt.
Lest We Forget by Kerry Brown, Isobel Knowles and Benjamin Portas.
My Grandad Marches On ANZAC Day by Catriona Hoy and Ben Wood Johnson.
Simpson and his Donkey by Mark Greenwood and Frané Lessac.
The ANZAC Puppy by Peter Millett and Trish Bowles.
The Last ANZAC by Gordon Winch and Harriet Bailey.
2 In military terms, the Last Post is a bugle call that signals the end of the day. It is also used at commemorative ceremonies like Remembrance Day and ANZAC Day.
I want to talk about the Magna Carta. Why? Because when I told my wife what I was going to write about, she asked if the Magna Carta was a Harry Potter spell. No, it’s not.
So…what is the Magna Carta? It’s one of the famous and most important documents in the world. However to me, and only to me; it’s an amazing piece of legislation that is still relevant in 2020, as it was when it was created in 1215. 1 To understand what the Magna Carta aka the Great Charter, truly is and it’s importance, we need to jump inside our TARDIS and travel back to the High Middle Ages; in particular, England.
So, let’s set the scene shall we? At that time, different countries around the world were using the feudal system. Feudalism was a way that land ownership and duties were administered and exchanged. For an example, in England, the king would own all of the land in the kingdom. Now, owning all of the land sounds great…but it’s not really practical. I meant being the landlord of the country; think of the paperwork!
Because of this, the king would parcel out land to lords, barons and nobles in exchange for service and soldiers. These lords would be called vassals, which they in turn would parcel out smaller sections of land to lesser lords, local lords and to the peasants.
Now King John was the ruler of England in 1215 and he wasn’t exactly popular. Because of this, he is remembered as being one of the worst kings in English history. He had been king for 16 years and in that time, he had lost various wars with France; gained an annulment for his first marriage; was accused of murdering his own nephew; starved 22 knights to death; implemented heavy taxes to fund his foreign wars; excommunicated by the Church and sleeping with some of the wives and children of his barons. Also he was supposedly an enemy, of one green cladded archer that lived in Nottingham Forest. 2
Anyway, the barons and lords of England were very tired of his shenanigans. If they refused to pay the taxes, King John would confiscate their properties or punish them severely. They needed to stop the never ending and increasing taxes, so they could avoid losing their lands.
The barons wanted everybody in the kingdom to obey the laws of the land. To them, nobody was above the law, not even the king. Because of this, the barons; led by Robert Fitzwalter in 1213, took their concerns to Stephen Langton, the Archbishop of Canterbury.
After a meeting with the barons aka the rebels, 3 Langton went to see King John, to remind of the Charter of Liberties. This was a set of rules, laid down by Henry I in 1100, for a king to be bound by, to safeguard certain rights for their subjects. Langton wanted King John to honour that charter, but in a surprise to nobody, King John did not share the same ideas as the Archbishop or the rebels.
WASHINGTON – MARCH 03: A copy of a 1297 version of Magna Carta is on display during a press viewing at the National Archives March 3, 2008 in Washington, DC.
King John looked to Pope Innocent III for support and protection from the rebels and their allies. However, after two years of negotiating and stalling, the rebels were sick of the situation; they decided to create a solution. In May 1215, the rebels met, broke their allegiances to the king and started a military campaign against him. They captured London in the same month, which forced King John back to the negotiating table.
On 10th June 1215, King John met with the barons at Runnymeade, to discuss reforms and they did this with a document. After some editing and discussions, the Great Charter was signed on 15th June 1215, by King John, the barons and various other people. 4
Magna Carta has been annulled, reinstated and had many revisions over the years, but what is so special about it? I mean, it was created over 800 years ago, how is it relevant to governments and their citizens in 2020? The answer is all about legacy.
There are many clauses in Magna Carta, but the two most famous ones are about liberty and rights:
“No free man shall be seized, imprisoned, dispossessed, outlawed, exiled or ruined in any way, nor in any way proceeded against, except by the lawful judgement of his peers and the law of the land.
“To no one will we sell, to no one will we deny or delay right or justice.”
This is profound because of the changes Magna Carta would bring, not just to England, but to the world, throughout the centuries. The Great Charter helped in creating the first Parliament of England; it was used in creating the Petition of Rights in 1628, to challenge King Charles I and was used at his trial; the United States of America’s Declaration of Independence of 1776, was based on Magna Carta; it led a movement in England for all men to have the vote, which in turn became a movement for women to have the vote, years later.
The importance of Magna Carta had also gained strength internationally, because subjects of the British Empire, began to demand the same rights granted to British citizens, under Magna Carta; many leaders around the world, fighting for freedom, were citing Magna Carta for their rights; and 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was created, based on Magna Carta, to promote the rights of people all over the world.
Over the years, Magna Carta has become a beacon for justice, liberty, freedom and rights the world over. Not bad for a document that is 805 years old. Though to be fair to Magna Carta, the world and Judge Dredd, the greatest piece of legacy the Great Charter has given us is quite simply this: That everybody must obey the law and that nobody is above the law; not even a king.
Thanks for reading and see you in a fortnight!
1 I’m not an expert, but I think Judge Dredd would have approved of the Magna Carta.
2 Does the name Robin Hood ring any bells?
3 The answer is no. The rebels did not have X-Wings nor did King John have a Death Star.
4 Even though King John did sign the charter, he actually didn’t believe in it or follow it.
SOME GEEK TOLD ME 
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