More made-in-Canada mirconationalism: the Republic of Rathnelly

The main street of the Republic of Rathnelly, circa 1967.

Patria's Ministry of External Affairs has for many years recognized the Republic of Rathnelly, a made-in-Canada micronation that dates from the summer of 1967, when about 400 residents of Rathnelly Avenue in midtown Toronto, and several nearby streets, decided to secede from Canada.

On June 12, 1967 the Toronto Star reported the front-page news:

“[Rathnelly] seceded in a bloodless, post-breakfast coup and seized control of the five blocks west of Avenue Rd. and north of the Davenport Rd. tracks”.

A small army—the Republic of Rathnelly Irregulars, which was made up of uniformed kids— claimed a nearby park and renamed it Freedom Square. A space rocket fleet made out of cardboard was assembled on one of the front lawns, and barricades went up at the end of the street, closing it to traffic.

The street festival-cum-declaration of independence even received a visit from Mayor William Dennison and Metro Controller Margaret Campbell, and the two governments officially entered into talks.

“As tankards of Rathnellian mead—the republic’s only liquid assets—were handed round, statesman met statesman in an attempt to hammer out a treaty,” wrote the Star. In the end, the two sides reached an agreement, and the Republic of Rathnelly peacefully rejoined the city and country at midnight.

Apart from the obvious micronational fun, including correspondence with then-Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau, the Republic of Rathnelly served a useful purpose in uniting the neighborhood. By forming a little country, the Rathnelly Area Residents’ Association brought neighbors together and attracted attention to local issues such as the city of Toronto's plans (ultimately scrapped) to build an expressway that would have cut through the Republic.

In 2011 the city of Toronto, while not officially recognizing the Republic of Rathnelly, erected street signs bearing the Republic's coat of arms.

World Radio Day is coming, February 13

The United Nations organization UNESCO has proclaimed February 13 as World Radio Day. The day will be celebrated in Patria, where radio - particularly AM and shortwave - is still (to borrow a phrase from honorary Patrienish citizen Parvati) "rooted, vital and expansive", to say nothing of relevant in the so-called online age. Patria is the home of legendary AM stations since the early 1920s such as PMC (846 kHz) in Castoropolis: a classic full-service news, sports and information station in the model of KMOX back in the day. In Patria, you can hear Jungle Party House Leader Jim Rome and even American right-wing windbags such as Rush Limbaugh on AM stations. You will also find in-depth sports talk if you need to know more than just the scores about the Castoropolis Centurions (Patrienish Hockey League) and Cæsarea United (All-Patria Football Federation). Sorry, no Bible-thumping gospel hucksters in Patria, but there's no lack of "all bhajans all the time" Hindu stations like Radio Jaagriti-102.7 in Trinidad.

For World Radio Day 2016, UNESCO has stressed five key themes to bring radio to life:

1. Freedom of expression and journalists’ safety should be disaster-proof.
2. Radio empowers survivors and vulnerable people, being mindful of their right to privacy.
3. Radio has social impact and provides access to information. People’s right to information should be protected.
4. Radio saves lives. 
5. The immediate accessibility of radio frequencies is essential to saving lives. These frequencies should be protected in times of emergency.

Note the emphasis on radio in times of life-threatening emergency. In case of war or insurrection, one of the first things to be censored, restricted or shut down completely is the Internet. In case of a natural disaster such as an earthquake or flood, one of the first things to go down is the power grid, making it kind of hard to recharge your trusty smartphone or even access cellphone service (another reason for not killing off landlines completely). Your battery-powered, solar-powered or wind-up radio is your best friend in times of trouble, whether man-made or act of God.

As it was in previous years, note that the official World Radio Day logo of a stylized microphone looks a lot like a Shivalingam. Whether this was done intentionally or not, Shivaratri 2016 does not come until March 7 or 8. More often than not, this great festival dedicated to Lord Shiva falls during the month of February.