Here are some trivias on Australia:
1) Australia has the highest proportion of immigrants of all countries. 1/4 of all Australians are foreign born, but you won't sense it by appearance because as many as half of them are born in Britain and New Zealand. In fact, NZ passport holders constitute the largest group of foreigners living in Australia.
2) Politically the culture is the most American of all non-US Western countries. The Liberal Party and National Party are the most conservative of all major centre-right political parties besides the US Republicans, while the Australian Labor Party is the most right-leaning centre-left party save US Democrats (this alone doesn't say much considering the nuttiness of Howard Dean, BarbaraLee, Dennis Kununich, Hillary Clinton etc, but it says a lot that Australia is on the right-wing side relatively speaking. Most rank-and-file Westerners sneer at Australia "Australia? It's just a second United States!"
3) For good or bad, like Canada, Australia is dominated by two cities, Syndey and Melbourne. Fortunately Sydney is politically largely moderate and Melbourne is like Toronto. And in addition, smaller states have proportionately more influence due to elected and politically power-wielding Senate and equal state participation. The disease of leftism affects Australia far less than Canada as a result.
4) Culturally speaking, Australia follows British norms but with American hearts. An example is sports: they play cricket with American-type of seriousness and competitiveness. The result? the gaps between Australia and second most powerful cricket-playing nation in the world is wider than the Pacific Ocean.
They sure do have a lefty press...
John Howard has left them wringing their hands!
God Bless our Aussie allies!