Falkland Islanders to hold referendum over sovereignty

[MichaeltheGreat]

[Alexander's Horse]

It gets better, Captain Cook had earlier raised the flag in Botany Bay but just as Captain Phillip, commanding the first fleet, was having his little flag ceremony in infant Sydney town on 26 January 1788, a French explorer named La Perouse showed up and anchored in Botany Bay. This after millenia of nothing much happening on the east coast of Australia...

http://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/napoleon/exploration-and-discovery/la-perouse

The presence of La Perouse was quickly discovered by foraging parties because he anchored near the "Tank Stream" which became Sydney's water supply. The meeting was amicable but the Brits rushed back to build a fort on the site on Botany Bay where La Perouse had been seen just as soon as they could.

That part of Sydney is known to this day as La Perouse. He consoled himself by going off to claim New Caledonia for France while the natives weren't looking

[MichaeltheGreat]

Ah, for the good ol' days.

[Alexander's Horse]

This grab stuff by showing up and not noticing anyone around while you put up your flag could be very lucrative back in the day

Captain Phillip found a bunch of natives in Botany Bay, which was a bit inconvenient, so he went to the next inlet up the coast, Sydney, ostensibly looking for a reliable source of freshwater and put up his flag there

Australia was still declared Terra Nullius.

[MichaeltheGreat]

If you're the first one to actually touch it, which would be rather hard if it's a house. But if it's an island in the ocean that is legally terra nullia, and you have some authority to act on behalf of a sovereign government (as did a captain of a King's ship), then yes. At least under good ol' admiralty law. Nowadays, all the little UN and lawyer type buggers make it a lot less fun.

[MrFun]

So basically, I can go walk around a city block, touch a house that I like, and then I can lay legal claim to it?

[MichaeltheGreat]

From what I've read, the offshore gas field is huge. If the Argies were smart, they'd start lobbying for independence and offer guarantees of respecting sovereignty, blah blah blah for trade agreements. It's certainly a lot cheaper to supply and support development from Argie ports than from the UK.

[Alexander's Horse]

Only disagreement there would be the "another century" part. Given the potential resource value now, and the ability of the islands to be economically self-supporting, why would the Brits ever give it away to the Argies? Especially once oil and gas (probably worth way more than oil) are extracted and all that infrastructure is put in place. The Falklands would likely be a cash cow for much longer than a century.

Galtieri should get the Johnnie Rose Memorial Argentinean Buffoon General award though.

I was tempted to say "forever" but a century really amounts to the same thing in political time. The economic equation has changed totally since the war and the war showed Britain still had some lead in its pencil, those dead sailors, commandos and Welch Guards cement it, so yes the Falklands are now pretty much "forever England".

[Alexander's Horse]

see Ben, you can argue and be friends too lol

[MichaeltheGreat]

I notice they were very careful with the wording.

[Dauphin]

you said seaman

http://www.dft.gov.uk/mca/mcga07-home/shipsandcargoes/mcga-shipsregsandguidance/mcga-mnotice.htm?textobjid=618970139B471E7D

Not funny at all.

[Sava]

shower first

[Tupac Shakur]

Rusty trombone.

[Sava]

reacharound?

[Tupac Shakur]

I love you, man.