This is completely anecdotal, as it's based on my own observations while
visiting Australia in 1986 while in the US Navy.
We were welcomed with open arms. Really.
When we were out in Brisbane, four of us sailors went into a bar there, and
wound up having our bar tab settled by an Aussie couple in their 50s (they
insisted, paid it before we could even get the bill). When we tried to pay
them back, the husband stopped us. "When we were children here in Brizzy
during the war, the only thing standing between us and the Imperial Japanese
Fleet was U.S. Navy."
On Sat, Apr 3, 2010 at 9:25 PM, Eric Chambers <nqexile@yahoo.com.au> wrote:
>
>
> "buildsnburns"
> buildsnburns@yahoo.com <buildsnburns%40yahoo.com> wrote;-
>
> The new thing I learned about Australia was that the marines slept in
> the soccer stadium.
>
> I think Peleconos is proud of his Greek Heritage, and rightly so.
> Something that bothers me though--and anyone here from OZ can enlighten
> us, and perhaps slap me around--is that until the post-war years
> Australia would not allow immigrants from Mediterranean countries in
> because they were considered of a somewhat inferior race.
> _________________________________________________
>
> I haven't yet seen the show, I don't think its screened here yet.
>
> Somewhat O.T.
> Soccer was at that time almost unknown here, as I think was the case in the
> US.
> If they were in Melbourne they would have bivouacked in an AFL
> (Australian football league or Aussie Rules stadium) or more likely at the
> time a cricket stadium.
>
> Until post WW1 Australia was primarily an English-speaking Anglo-Saxon
> Society. There were people here from other cultures but they were decidedly
> in the minority.
>
> Post WW2 the country deliberately embarked on a huge Migration program. The
> phrase, 'Populate or Perish' was used.
> The primary source of 'new Australians' was the Mediterranean countries,
> Italy and Greece primarily. Melbourne is supposedly now the biggest Greek
> city in the world outside Athens. (The Children of this Generation of
> non-Anglo Australians now hold powerful positions in Academia, industry and
> government) The changes in cultural practice caused a lot of friction,and
> that's still going on now, as we got used to Vietnamese, Lebanese, South
> Americans, South Africans in the 60's and 70's, and now Russians,
> Indonesians, Sudanese, Indians, Pakistanis, Chinese and the list goes on.
> Sound familiar?
> Australia has a similar area to the continental United States with a total
> population of only 20.6 million, slightly more than New York. approximating
> New York. That means the changes,which are enormous, penetrate deeply. Our
> rednecks aren't any happier about it than rednecks anywhere else.
>
> Australia did prohibit migration from some Asian countries in the early
> part of the last century.
>
> Eric
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>
>
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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