Should Australia become a republic?

[mellie]

Singapore is a republic.
Perhaps the confusion is due to that Singapore is a member of the commonwealth. As is Malaysia, and Malaysia is a constitutional monarchy.
And that when Singapore gained it's independence from the UK in 1963 it was still governed by Malaysia and Malaysia's system. But then in 1965 Singapore gained independence from Malaysia as well.
Result is that Singapore is independent, a member of the commonwealth and is a republic.

Wrong...

But I didn’t expect you to understand the individual systems of government around the world anyway Aussie.

When it comes to systems of government, ... If it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck and walks like a duck, it isn’t to say it's a duck.

Again, Singapore is not a true republic, it's a constitutional parliamentary system re-badged.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliamentary_republic

For if it were a true republic, it wouldn’t be enjoying the prosperity and stability it currently is.

[mellie]

About the Singapore Government

Singapore is a sovereign republic, with a legal system based on the English common law.

The Constitution lays down the fundamental principles and basic framework for the three organs of state, namely, the Executive, the Legislative and the Judiciary.

The Executive comprises the Cabinet, which is responsible for the general direction of the Government and accountable to Parliament

The Legislature comprises the Parliament and is the legislative authority responsible for enacting legislation. More information on the history of Parliament, Parliament House and activities of the House can be obtained from its website.

The Judiciary's function is to independently administer justice. The Judiciary is safeguarded by the Constitution..

The Prime Minister of Singapore is appointed by the President of Singapore under Article 25 of the Constitution. The President, acting on the advice of the Prime Minister, also appoints other Ministers from among the Members of Parliament.

The Prime Minister is the effective head of the executive branch of government. He chairs the Cabinet, which is the central decision-making body of the executive government. It is an organ of state and central to Singapore's system of government. Click for more information on the Cabinet appointments.

From the horses mouth....

http://www.pmo.gov.sg/content/pmosite/a ... hQHHbx5MxA

[dick tracy]

Some people will advocate that the world is flat.
Afterall it looks flat, and they will even prove this with a carpenter's level.
These flat earthers only delude themselves in their quest to convince others of their misunderstanding of events.
And we all know that the world is flat, as afterall we can read about in a book.

[mellie]

Some people will advocate that the world is flat.
Afterall it looks flat, and they will even prove this with a carpenter's level.
These flat earthers only delude themselves in their quest to convince others of their misunderstanding of events.
And we all know that the world is flat, as afterall we can read about in a book.

Again....

From the horses mouth...

http://www.pmo.gov.sg/content/pmosite/a ... hQHHbx5MxA

[dick tracy]

Governments & Corporations often try to change public opinion with their spruiking of propaganda.
Corporations are often exposed when they do this, and even government agencies have been.
When governments are exposed they often try to prevent the truth from surfacing or even insist on the lack of credibility of the whistleblower.
Governments are forever forcing their views on the public and attempting to (re)educate and change the history of events (eg Lee Harvey Oswald, Saddam & Osama).
Government bulletin boards are very much infiltrated with subtle and not so subtle version of government facts.
Fox Mulder "The truth is out there", it is only a matter of finding it and not simply accepting what the government wants the people to believe.

[mellie]

In Singapore, the presidential role is almost purely ceremonial and apolitical.
Whilst Singapore refer to itself as a Sovereign Republic, it's a parliamentary republic and operate similarly to constitutional monarchies.

So when someone proposes the question, should Australia become a republic, they should probably be more specific, and articulate the system of 'republic' government they propose.

Because not all republics act and behave like true republics in the strictest sense, rather are effectively constitutional monarchies re-badged /de-crowned.

I think the confusion here rests with individual interpretation of what being a republic means.

Be it symbolic/ceremonial or legislative.

I'm focusing on the system of government .. how it functions, governs, not being one for sentimentality or the superficiality of holding a referendum for want of changing our name and flag.

We are fine the way we are!

[Aussie]

Mellie, cease with the strawman shit. No-one said it was not a sovereign republic. My point is/was that it is not a 'constitutional Monarchy,' as you claimed it to be.

[mellie]

Mellie, cease with the strawman shit. No-one said it was not a sovereign republic. My point is/was that it is not a 'constitutional Monarchy,' as you claimed it to be.

I said the government functioned like a constitutional monarchy.... it comes down to semantics and symbolism really.

Aussie,
If I bought you a Lexus for Xmas, removed it's badges and replace them with say.... BMW badges, would the car not still be a Lexus, or would you insist it were now a BMW?



Sure, you like a few others here can drive around spruiking that it's a BMW...and how much better BMW's are compared to a Lexus.... but at the end of the day, it's still a Lexus Aussie, it has Lexus running gear, it's just that it's been re-badged.


Similarly, the Singapore government is still a Lexus, even if it's ceremonial president drives a Lexus to work with BMW badges.

[Aussie]

Constitutional monarchies are among the happiest, more stable, less corrupt in the world.
Does it surprise you that among the 10 richest countries in the world, 7 are monarchies, not republics Chard?

Australians are happier than Americans, and we'd like to keep it that way.

http://newsfeed.time.com/2013/05/28/aus ... try-again/ <---- By your own admission

Thanks, and we're happy to do business with our American allies, but Australia can do without a republic.

God bless America- 'Just Sayin'...!

My last post on the matter. Mellie, can you please confirm that today is Wednesday?

[mellie]

You just don’t get it Aussie.

Yes, 7 out of 10 of the richest countries in the world have a government modelled on the Westminster, Constitutional Monarchy system of government.

Sure, some have re-badged their systems of government, and have elected a president for purely ceremonial purposes, but it's still a Lexus Aussie.

Gotta love the contradiction of trying to mix the Westminster system with a republic....


You are looking at the badge Aussie, not the system of government (running gear) itself.
And why?
Because you are either defiant or inept.
A little of both I suspect...this and would like nothing more than to drive a re-badged Lexus to the polls, if you thought you could get away with it and noone would notice.