F59
Americanisation of Australia.
December 28 2011
Comments
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RHP User
14 years ago
I'm with you Jennylee, I totally fed up with all the Americanisms. Fries and cookies are another two that I forbid in my house. In Australia we have chips and biscuits.
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RHP User
14 years ago
It could be as simple as most computers defaulting to the English (US) dictionary and when people correct a spelling mistake, it drops the 'u' etc.Jenny, as for the dress of today's youth, did you, when a teenager follow the fashion trends of the day? Kids today are like kids from every decade, they will want to wear what they see in TV, in magazines, in the movies. And if they know it pisses off their parents, more the better!
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RHP User
14 years ago
Unfortunately it's just the fad these days. I went to the surf shop to buy a new cap, and blow me down it's all these flat brimmed big motif 50 cent style crap that looks bloody awful. Kids running around talking like gangsters, baggy pants, backwards caps, etc. It's a bloody shame and I tell ya my kids won't be part of the trend!
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RHP User
14 years ago
Australia was founded on the backs of homeless suicidal thieves, namely convicts, so I do find it apt - and appropriate. We are a giant melting pot when you really think about it. We have no real identity anymore, except paul hogan. We were founded on british interests, therefore we either have to side with the english or the americans. And personally I prefer american culture to english culture, in terms of fashion, though traditionally the english music was better. Queen Vs Motley Crue, nuff said. The only thing that really defines us as a country is the fact that we let too many foreigners in, and ironically enough its not the boat people that are the problem, its the 63,000 illegal immigrants that jump on planes to get here, the majority of which are either english or american. Its really quite racist to hang onto any sense of national pride, considering we're nothing but an amalgam of english custom and american trend, when you really think about it. There's a McDonalds on every corner, a Starbucks, a Subway, a KFC... all american fast food chains. A Sizzler, A Dominoes, A Pizza Hut. We are nothing if not the bastard unwanted english, irish, scottish and presumably welsh, all of us either descendant from common thieves, or their keepers. I used to work in an australiana store, most of the goods we sold were made in china. Patriotic aye? Then there was another place I knew in brisbane, an australiana store run by asians. G'day and Konichiwa to you too mate. Yeah, whatever. Though here's something you may find interesting. We're the only country the world over, to eat its own coat of arms. I suppose thats something. And when you really think about it, how many 'drovers' do you know? I honestly don't know a single one. This, is supposedly our heritage. The outback, the great outdoors... puh-lease. Its a fucking marketing pitch we use to trap the tourists. Meat pies, thongs and singlets and beer... these things aren't particularly or even uniquely australian. Aside our unique wildlife, what do we really have? The opera house, (obviously designed by a wog, most probably italian), the sydney harbour bridge (again, probably designed by another fucking foreigner, not that I'm racist... I'm a proud aussie lol...), thats about all I can think of, thats supposed to be uniquely us. Sydney has one of the worst prices for real estate anywhere in the world, not that its anything to be proud of, so does the gold coast come to think of it... and thats not just national, thats in the world. Look at the TV we watch, how the hell can you expect Neighbours and Home and away to compete with Seinfeld and Frasier Re-runs, I Dream of Jeannie, and Get Smart? The Simpsons, Family Guy, Futurama, House... the list goes on. I have a Billabong cowboy hat, noted that Billabong is an australian brand, not that it means jack shit, because its still all made over in india or china somewhere. But the point is, I have it and even though it makes me look like a goddamn redneck, I still wear it out occasionally, because its patriotic. Though personally I do find myself preffering a baseball cap because it doesn't look anywhere near as gaudy or ridiculous. Sure we have aussie rules, and even cricket, even though cricket is an english game when you think about it... but who the hell is even proud to claim aussie rules football? Thats not even real freakin football compared to the good old fashioned american gridiron. Its an insult to even compare the two. Though you know what really sickens me, that as a nation, we are far more proud, and knowledgable about our sportsmen than we are our academics and our intellectuals. Says a lot about as a 'culture' and I use that word loosely. Though if you can point out to me one thing that is exclusively australian, and I mean exclusive to us as a culture, as a people, then I will happily bow down to your righteous argument... although for that to work, you'd first need to define what our 'culture' is? Oh this should be good... And Ps. I wear my baseball cap with pride. Long live america and the NWO. Whats next? A black man in the white house?
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contemplating1
14 years ago
Hi Jennylee, I guess I should firstly say my heritage is neither British nor American.... But yes, it does bemuse me that I see so many trying to tear down the Bristish history off our flag....Supposedly to show we are an independant, free thinking people......Only to see the newer generation in a way trying to hoist the American one up instead...So I agree...wtf? Lets be unique! Take care....
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RHP User
14 years ago
for putting up a convincing debate. I do agree whole heartedly with what you have penned even though I refuse to high five my kids and just cannot stand all the american sitcoms on tv at the moment.
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RHP User
14 years ago
I'm American and damn proud of it....and I live in Perth Australia as I am specialized doctor whose skills and experience was required by your country. I love Australia I do but I will not deny my country my heritage my customs or the way I speak spell write etc. Would you if you came and lived in NYC my hometown ? Live and let live I say ...there are more pressing concerns going on in the world !!
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RHP User
14 years ago
Well the first five posts were great. But we dont discrimate .... Seems petty and small minded "arse" or "ass" The British do have great comedy.....lets keep it in the positive. To the poster above "My grandfather died in WW2 with the USA beside us in real life" We have NP with the USA culture.
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RHP User
14 years ago
yea... its not right... it feels like little california when you're out and about, but what do you do? modern media is to blame...popular music, movies and literature, even games...all use American english.....but.. rather than protest it, just flow with it, as its not something we can fight....every generation has moved that little bit more to a 'world culture'.... its just picked up pace with the advent of both the internet and the mobile phone...........
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luvsilver
14 years ago
Didn't you know Nick that Motley Crue is now considered classic rock!
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Tomyg
14 years ago
Having served our country, having been directed by forigen states, I believe that if we continue to denigrate our language, history, politics and way of life we will be overcome.There is no respect for anyone or anything. Those who understand Banjo Patterson, the Southern Cross, the Great Ocean Road, the Outback, our oil and gas fields would already know we have been sold out. Americans - fair in person - ruthless in business and politics, its about the dollar, so f..k you all, no control over there own country, to busy being the world police (and failng). Be pruod for we are both nations of rebellion, but stay within our culture, for we will need to defend it sooner rather than later. Wake up and smell the wattle.
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RHP User
14 years ago
I don't know where you read I was against America, SLK27. My brother-in-law is American, my husband owns a classic Mustang and I really enjoy American cinema. None of this means I want my national identity quashed and, Nick, you're one of the youths responsible for allowing that identity to slip away. There is far more to Australiana than convicts. If you love the American lifestyle so much, do what millions others have done and emmigrate there, don't try to create it here. Yes, Justenough, it would be petty and small minded to create a forum based solely on wanting people to say 'arse' instead of 'ass' but this was a single, small example of the substantial issue that has concerned me. Mooka, has your computer ever once stopped you from typing in 'gaol'? Mine never has. I did dress in the style of my peers as a child but we weren't trying to emulate criminals and we still spoke the same then as we do now and our parents did before, we didn't try to sound like American gangstas. I am genuinely dissapointed to see our national individuality disappearing.
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RHP User
14 years ago
Right on. Totally Agree. People who think that patriotism is nodding to convicts in your billabong hat need to stop babbling nonsense, open a book and learn a thing or two. About the stockade, about what really went down at glenrowan, about what really classified one as a convict back in the day, about the sacrifices made at gallipolli, learn some australian folk, learn how close we were to being taken by the Japanese in ww2, go to a dawn service and learn why people still talk of anzacs and will forever instead of throwing coins at each other in a drunken stupor dressed in Aussie flags as capes once a year and calling it patriotism. It's half the educational system's fault, churning out ignorant fools who think beer & thong references are Aussie, wouldn't know why the eureka stockade happened, but know what happened on "house" & "family guy" last night.
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RHP User
14 years ago
Inside Job just pray who don't let our financial systems develop in a similar fashion here in Australia. Plenty of positive things to do with America way too many to list really. Various problems around the planet illustrate how linked we all are these days.
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RHP User
14 years ago
The English language is nobody's special property. It is the property of the imagination: it is the property of the language itself. ~Derek Walcott we speak something thats not Autralian, or American, or English........... we just speak/write/whatever, to be understood. most of us here have our roots in a nationality other than Australian, many of us speak a second and even third langauge. what we now speak and write is a conglomeration of all of these things..........its not one language at all..... its just the language we use..... its 'on loan' so to speak...as its an unfinished product. my backgrounds Irish/Welsh..........My wife is a Geordie. if we spoke our native tongues, neither of us would understand the other very well at all........the English language as we learnt it here in Australia, differs from state to state.... our parents learnt something much more formal and strict than we ever did....our children dont even learn how to write with pen and paper any more. its not like it was, and never will be again, and in 20 or even 30 years from now, our children will complain about the very same thing..........as our parents did before us...........
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RHP User
14 years ago
We eat USA food, we buy our clothes in china we go to Bali all the time for holidays rather then spending our dollars at home. We sell our mineral wealth to make a hole in the ground and for the cashed up bogan to buy a car not made in Australia. We may bitch and moan but we do not put our hands in our pockets to keep the so called image of Australia the Lucky country. We buy our goods online so that cuts down on employment. We like USA music and USA movie so our consumerism dictates our culture. As for that old aussie myth of the drover I was a drover when I was young they called it a jillaroo then and the guy was the jackaroo. The irony was that I worked on a huge station in the northern territory and yes it was owned by people from Arkansas, I have worked for Chines worked for Greeks, Italians, you name it all the cultures that make up an “Australian” yes we are a country of Mutts! As for immigration, yes nick the boat people are a minority but they still cost around thirty grand to process and then get social security plus funds from Medicare and immigration when needed and also take up funds from charity groups. The worst are the student stay overs, most from India and china not the USA. Just look around you in the big cities of the world its a melting pot of culture Culture changes it always has, look at the changes in indigenous peoples of Australia, do you not think they were happy with the change in language, food, clothing? That’s the nature of man, we change and with the invention of air travel and now the internet then it changes at a rapid rate As for the USA, we may not agree with all things USA, but we consume it anyway. I lived in a town where it was half Aussie and half USA and it was fantastic. My daughter just came back from two years in England and now we get three kinds of accent at home, USA , Aussie English. Her grandfather is German, her grandmother Spanish but my kids considers themselves aussie. Just take what you like from any culture and adapt it to your own needs and go from there. Look at religion how many are Christian, Buddhists,Hindu yet all aussie I have learnt through life that change is forced on us all at times, and those that cant adapt to change are often very stuck in a ever shrinking world.
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RHP User
14 years ago
Thankyou for your comments Jennylee and trust me I truly understand what you are saying..that you are a proud Australian and wants to promote Australiana - I applaud you for that as Im a damn proud American and will hang onto that no matter which country I reside in....I love this adopted country of mine too and Australia will always have my allegiance as well, but I ask you this...have you asked your American brother law from refraining from using the word cookie, have you asked him to correct his spelling etc., have you given up watching Modern Family on TV ?..think sometime soon your husband will give up his Mustang and replace it with a Holden Commodore ??? - you are also embracing Americanism without even knowing it......every time you go to Maccas and agree to have "fries with that"..and this is America's fault how ??? Mike/Shel stated it perfectly quote: every generation has moved that little bit more to a 'world culture'.... its just picked up pace with the advent of both the internet and the mobile phone...........countries are becoming smaller and borders arent as definite anymore....if you take away Aermicanism...what exactly are you going to replace it with ????? because as Nick Wildes beautiful post states...Australians have indeed lost their culture !!! This is a country that idealizes sports heroes - I always thought a hero was like that young paramedic that was killed this week ..he risked his life (and lost it) to save another...in America we call them sport stars because thats what they are...gifted stars.. You have lost your identity as a nation and yes you do need to hang onto what you have..your words, terminology , lifestyle etc....but most of the time, as a nation you have chosen to sell out....hell you dont even own Vegemite anymore....guess who does...??? and your youth embrace and I say embrace the American Way of Life...you have to ask why is that ? As TomyG said...Americans - fair in person - ruthless in business and politics, sorry but it is what it is.....our countries are roughly the same age...the difference is that Australia was settled as a penal colony...and most of you descended from them or alternatively from the 10 pound UK programme of the 60's that led to mass immigration of the UK citizen to your shores........we on the other hand fought a war of independance from the British, we won and thrived as a nation who are intensely passionate and patriotic.......take America out of the equation and what have you got left? ...a broken Russia, a Communist China (think Tiannamen Square) who Australia is best buddies with (because they need Iron Ore and WA has it) and a hardened North Korea and who knows which way they are going to topple at the mo...oh and a Britian who only a few months ago was in anarchy Yes please Australia..do hang onto your identity , this is a awesome country ...but Im sorry you do need to find it again...like it or lump it..your greatest amabassadors were Steve Irwin (RIP) and Paul Hogan....who has replaced them ??...oh yeah The Wiggles....even your greatest opera singer..Joan Sutherland chose to live in.....Switzerland.. Ive noticed since Ive lived in Australia (3 years now) that Amercian bashing is a sport here..I was at a bbq (cookout) a few months where a fellow guest ( Australian) who I had never met before pretty much held me personally responsible for the War on Terror...without even asking me what my political view was...he had a opinion on everything American - good for him ( its exactly what my father who fought along side Australians for ..fought for..freedom of speech.... and its what my brother who is a US Marine is fighting for in that nation call Afghanistan.) .so we can ALL have free speech be it ass or arse......he too questioned America being the world police...ok..so we are, so what ?...would you rather be our Allie or be at war with us ?????????????????...think if Australia was invaded tomorrow by another country America would stand by and do nothing..of course we have interests in Australia to protect, so of course we would be on your doorstep.,.....but we are also Allies.....remember if it wasnt for the dropping of two bombs on Nagasaki and Hiroshima which effectively ended the war in the Pacific...Australians would be eating sushi for brekkie, lunch and tea and Japanese would be the second language..or perhaps the first. You were being invaded in Sydney harbor (harbour) Darwin and had a massive breakout in Cowra of the Japanese....do you all not still buy your Panasonic plasma Tv's regardless ?? And dont even start me on what this guy said about 9/11 to me... I am a New Yorker and I cannot comment..it still hurts too much.....I lived, breathed, worked and lost colleagues that day and I wish no act of terrorism...on ANYONE....War is not the answer....what did John Lennon write ?.....Imagine there's no countries..its easy if you try....idealism verus realism..be more afraid today that some guy in Sydney only today wants Shi'ite law introduce thru - out Australia.....now that is scarey I know Im ranting but when it comes to my country I will, Im proud and passionate.......in closing I just want to correct Nick....most of the illegal immigrants here are BRITISH, KIWIS and ASIANS...sorry thats a fact....we have no reciprocal agreements with Australia regarding Medicare, Social Security etc..so when a American comes here he has to be sponsored to work and vice versa if you come to the United States...he cant afford to dole bludge here ( a unqiuely Australian term) because he is ineligible for any benefits...if his illegal, he must have brought a hell of a lot of money with him to survive or is working for cash in hand...Im amused that you can live in Australia for umpteen years and not reliquish your British or NZ citizenship and can draw pensions from both countries... I love Australia ..it is my home now..I love the people, your beautiful diverse scenery, your food, your laid back lifestyle and your freedom, but please forgive me if I chose to hang onto my 20 odd years of American education..and chose to to spell CENTER logically and not CENTRE...WTF ??? and as for celebrating Thanksgiving..is it not a nice holiday of which we say thankyou for all our blessings and dont start knocking Halloween..that orginated in Ireland believe it or not..and we just ran with it... Thanks to all the Americans expats living in Perth like " Eyes of Texas " emailing me their support Ive stepped off my soap box now. ...but I am whistling Yankee Doodle Dandy, whilst stuffing my face with Oreos, drinking my coffee with Half and Half in it, with Ellen chatting away in the background on the TV, whilst browsing thru the "New York Times" online on my Ipad which was invented by that small insignifcant company called Apple TEAM AMERICA...........................FUCK YEAH !!!!!
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RHP User
14 years ago
It feel as though everyone is talking about the 'America' that they see on TV.... Russell is American and grew up in Colorado and the Midwest. We have spent a lot of time all over the states, from the West Coast to the East Coast. We have just recently getting back from 6 weeks on a road trp in the southern states(Texas/ Louisiana/ Geogria/ Tennessee / Mississippi /Missouri /Alabama /Arkansas/ Kansas/Oklamhoma) and every state is unique and different. There is no one 'American Identity'...I wish that the America we have seen, one with friendly, generous real people that cook amazing BBQ and soul food, and have fantatsic community spirit, is the American that could be portrayed more often on TV. It is not all like LA or New York at all..... I don't at all feel that there is anything wrong with finding identity with other cultures or feeling that another cultures facets personify you. We are all global people. We can be proud of our birthplace and still feel drawn to another place. My family are Welsh and I feel more at home in the UK than here a lot of the time, especially as we now live in Cairns, which is a world away from my childhood growing up in a very British part of Perth, surrounded by first generation '10 Pound Poms'. Mich x
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DonnaBrett
14 years ago
We are proud Aussies but we also totally love all things American..(ok not that baggy pants looks..eewww). We've been there quite a few times and would love to be able evenly split our time time between here & the US. Americans get such a bad rap...but they are from our personal experience the friendliest people we have met. The Americanisms picked up by our youth is just a biproduct of us living in a smaller world nowadays. Just accept it...besides we have never understood why we put extra letters in some words like nieghboUr, humoUr etc when in fact..you don't need them..it's just a waste of ink LOLAs for Ass or Arse....we prefer Ass....the other just sounds crass..and besides we think if you look into it, that term really originated from the term Jackass, as in the animal...there's no such animal as a Jackarse!! LOL
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RHP User
14 years ago
SLK27, I have read both your posts carefully but still can't see your problem with what I have written. I don't wish to deprive you off your American pride and don't suggest that you should leave your identity behind and embrace ours. Sure Americans bought vegemite and you are proud of that. Why shouldn't my hubby buy a Mustang if he wishes, or a Porsche. We also have a classic Jaguar saloon. Why buy a Commodore to promote Australia when Holden is owned by General Motors and has Chevrolet engines. I'm every bit as proud of my country, a country you have chosen to live in, as you are of yours. Before you climb back onto your soapbox, put the shoe on the other foot and imagine if I were telling you to suck it up and ignore the disapearing culture of your people as you are suggesting I do. Sure, the blame lies greatly with us for allowing it to happen but that's exactly why I'm making a stand. ....And without the profanity, c'mon,Aussie, c'mon.
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RHP User
14 years ago
Again Jennylee I am totally respectful to your post and your points are valid....but I quote your opening line of your original post being "I've noted lately that people keep using american terms and spelling when posting their views in the forums." ...and so I say..what if one does ?????????????? so what ??? in case you havent noticed...Australia and indeed America is a melting pot now of many cultures and religions...and sorry but when I immigrated here, I didnt sign a document stating I must give up who and what I am..... ...I speak Italian as well, will I get blasted if I chose to write this post in Italian ??..kinda silly cause I have to assume that most people here do not speak Italian as their first language, hence I choose to post in English...American English..so the majority of readers will identify..but would I be slammed for posting it in another language...probably not by the Italian speaking community !!!! My point is tolerance..as I repeatedly said in my second post ...I love this country and I urge Australia to rediscover and hang onto your culture..if you know what it is....Ctowntwo made a brilliant observation of Australian patriotism and Tuscan Red more so on how your nation no longer puts its money where its mouth is !!! these are facts..... Surely I am entitiled to write, spell etc as I was educated on a public forum..without criticism...tolerance (live and let live is the key), what next..spelling Nazis ????????? I came to Australia on an exchange programme so my fellow Australian work colleague ( a swap) could study my expertise in the US...it wasnt a given choice initially ...more a career opportunity..and anyone who has ever left behind their country will tell you how difficult it is to straddle two cultures...to try and fit in and fight the loneliness of being different and of being accepted..to learn new ways of doing things (in my case medical procedures) , of communicating..hell even driving on the road.....and I could speak the language when I stepped off the plane....kudos to anyone who comes here for a better way of life... and also has to learn to speak English ...I applaud you... So I say hang onto the part of Amercanism that suits you, our food, our cars, our tv, our cinema, etc etc, but please let me hang onto that part of Americanism that suits me....and if when and how you ever visit the States... (I am assuming that you havent - a assumption on my part) you will like poster MitchnRuss said...find that Americans adore Australians and are fascinated by you...and when you tell us a shrimp is prawn ..we dont laugh...we dont try and insist thats its really a shrimp..we note that is a prawn and we try and impress our Americans friends with our new found word....prawn !!! and then we tell them how awesome Australians are..even if at times you talk way too fast for us and we struggle at times to understand your slang...but guess what we try and understand....we do... You put a post up criticising peoples approach to a forum, it was your opening line and then went onto to state how kids dress today, emulating "gangstas" and you say thats a American thing, no its a fashion thing..blame Xbox. .......you must expect replies that do not sit well with you and BTW.,..yep we own Vegemite......we are more than happy to hand it, no give it .....nope....throw it back at you...what were we thinking ???????????? Sorry to spit my pacifier...(oops dummy) ....Im off now to shake my booty (oops arse) and go have a good old Southern Wild Turkey to calm me down......SHEEEEESH !!!!
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RHP User
14 years ago
So much for not getting back on your soapbox, ey. Which of the two of us is intolerant?
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RHP User
14 years ago
I've seen many multi national fairs, right here in Australia, where people of many nations celebrate their culture with displays of music, dance and costume. What do we display? How are we recognised internationally? What national characteristics have we preserved? I recognise that there is a growing trend towards an international culture but still other contries are preserving their traditions while we are discarding ours.
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RHP User
14 years ago
What culture it is that Australia should be preserving? JennyLee has asked why we dont preserve our culture well what is it that you would have Australia preserve JennyLee? What traditions? The Melbourne Cup? Was once a great race and today is a sad replica and another excuse for yet another public holiday. Public Holdiays themselves? They seem to be an institution in this country.The appear to be thriving and there is certainly no shortage of them. Lending a mate a hand? Still goes on in the bush (country) where I live. Drovers? Still plenty of them out west. To the person who said they were Jillaroos and Jackaroos...wrong....they are actually the people who work on the stations. The Drover takes the stock on the road...to graze in the long paddock. A hard life but some still do it when the seasons and economic climate is right. SLK27....New Zealand and Australia have a reciprical tax and social welfare system, have had for over 20 years. I have no idea of where you get the information that a person can claim a pension in both countries from and British citizens need a work permit. 12 months I think it is that they get. Yes 90% of illegal immigrants arrive in this country at our airports. l JennyLee. Please tell us...what traditions, what culture is it that you want us to put on display?
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RHP User
14 years ago
Barbadian, Indian parents, lived in 5 countries and now i call australia home....I thought it was the multicultural nature of this country that made it great?Not a question about being usa vs australia or indian vs australia or neptune vs venus....In my 10 years here i have run into a few americans but i have ran into so many more italians, greeks, spaniards, english and all those sorts and the slang i pick up tends to come more from europe....i was raised in a predominatley black people environment and also we have a huge influence from america....look at all the shows on tv and the internet streaming radio and youtube and all these things that young people and even my silly ass are exposed to these days....the idea of america is a consumer society just like most of the western world and this is so much more prevalent in america than in any other city i have lived in so hence you have bombardment of advertissments and people trying to sell you shit all day long...after hearing something 10 0000 times you start to pick it up and it sounds less annoying and more audibly pleasing...I still can't get over the "how you going" phrase we use in australia....whenever i hear it i think "i'm not going anywhere dammit....i just got here and i want a mojito!"But then again if i talk to some of my indian friends in other countries and i hear the indian accent i crack the fuck up because ithe way i speak is caribbean/american so thank god i don't have an indian accent!I personally love all the little idiosyncrasies we get with people from all over the wolrd....makes me wonder what they sound like when they are fucking :) and however you slice it or dice it "fuck me harder baby" that sounds good in any accent, and also with any variation in terms of slang used :)
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RHP User
14 years ago
Chilli: So long as you mention "Squirting" - I just realised I dont give a damn WHAT cultural identity you adopt!! :)
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RHP User
14 years ago
I'm sorry jennylee but I do not see how replying back to your post shows intolerance on my part. I am responding to the subject matter of which I am passionate about which you raised and i am commenting/ defending and I'm am entitled to post as many times as I like as are you. I'm all soap boxed out ..... Today I apologize if my facts are wrong as Handmaiden pulled me up regarding pensions. My "facts" were via my bemused and some what inebriated English g/f who probably did explain fully but I heard partially yesterday......the wild turkey had kicked in....Handmaiden excellent post and I hope the Op answers you accordingly. Ms Chilli great observation and food for thought. Methinks you are quite rite In closing I hope jennylee that even though we have a obvious difference of opinion which is what makes forums so readable that you will allow me to comment on what awesome tits you have !!!! They are lovely.
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RHP User
14 years ago
Australia is the ARSE end of the world!
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RHP User
14 years ago
Yes, it is difficult to describe what is disappearing, I agree. It's in the details. It's in billy tea and dampers, anzac biscuits, lamingtons and pavlovas. It's in shorts and thongs. Zinc across the nose. Acubras and drizzabones. Swagmen and the Aussie drawl. Not things of great importance, I know, but these are just examples. I dislike glorifying outlaws but even though Ned Kelly was an arrogant murderer he was unique and iconic. The bravery of Australian soldiers at Gallipoli. Skilled Aboriginal trackers like Mogo and Mollydobbin. The tent embassy. We do have a heritage and it is being eroded. Quite opposite to what SLK27 has accused me of, I don't blaim the Americans for this. My critisism is directed at my fellow Australian nationals, especially the youth but not exclusively, who are lazily allowing all this to slip away and replacing it with Americanism because they are immersing themselves in U.S. film, music and television.
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RHP User
14 years ago
I am very proud of Australian culture and I don't feel it is under threat at all.However, I do feel that trying to preserve our culture will threaten those same parts which are being preserved. The true culture of Australia moves and changes and develops, as it always has. Trying to preserve culture is like picking flowers from the forest and taking them home.I love that we have a Prime Minister who has a strong Aussie twang in her voice and who talks to us slowly as if we are all idiots. I love that while I always buy good quality wholegrain or rye bread, I heartily enjoy a BBQ sausage on a slice of crappy Tip Top white bread with sauce and onions, and can say g'day to my mates without feeling like a stereotype.The differences are being diluted though, certainly. I love the differences between states - accents and words and signs and mannerisms, but it's less distinct than it was even 15 years ago.To the person who mentioned they hope we don't have severe financial problems as America has, consider our very large housing bubble and distinctly undiversified banks and economy which rely mainly on housing and mining with an ever-increasing middle-class-welfare load to support.I'd like to see poor spelling tackled like their/they're/there before we worry about the usage of american words and spelling.What's most important is that we don't become an impersonation of ourselves. It's impossible not to have a culture and our country/location itself ensures our culture is unique, just as every culture everywhere is. If it really bothers you, then my advice is to kill your TV. I've been without one for five years now and it is the main portal of American culture into our lives. Much better without it.Jeez, now I feel like a BBQ sausage on white bread... maybe I'd better get myself to my local hardware store... oh, I mean Bunnings... heheh!!
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RHP User
14 years ago
I can remember my thoughts on the way back home on the plane from a bussiness trip in the USA. Why cant we be a state of USA, I found their culture and people tops! I dont think we would lose our culture, same as the different USA states have their own culture. But like other posters have said with communication, internet, global community, global financial system its all getting knitted together ever so closely. And closer every day. I dont think we can stop what is happening and USA is my prefered option, consider the other non western cultures? We will hang onto some Aussie ways...the same as the different states in the USA do.
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RHP User
14 years ago
"It's in the details. It's in billy tea and dampers, anzac biscuits, lamingtons and pavlovas. It's in shorts and thongs. Zinc across the nose. Acubras and drizzabones. Swagmen and the Aussie drawl. Not things of great importance, I know, but these are just examples. I dislike glorifying outlaws but even though Ned Kelly was an arrogant murderer he was unique and iconic. The bravery of Australian soldiers at Gallipoli. Skilled Aboriginal trackers like Mogo and Mollydobbin." l l They are just not in the major cities and I would not expect to see them there. Well some are... like lamingtons, anzac buscuits and pavlova. I caught the ferry to Manly today and many were wearing shorts and thongs. No zinc on noses but then technology has advanced a little more than that now. All of these things including swagmen are still out there in the bush. Swagmen were just homeless men in the depression anyway. There are plenty of homeless people today. They just dress differently and catch trains instead of walking. l By the way, the jury is still out on pavlova. I have heard the occassional kiwi lay claim to that one. Anzac buscuits are also multi-national so can not claim Australian identity on that one sorry. After all what does ANZAC stand for? Australia New Zealand Army Corp. We still wear akubras and dirz-a-bones in the bush. Not city wear though is it? maybe you just need to get off the beaten path a little bit more often.
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RHP User
14 years ago
Akubra is a brand name...........the hats are 'Stetsons', made under licence for the American Stetson hat co..... Thongs...or flip-flops....or jandals.....are Japanese in origin, adapted to mass production by a Kiwi company in the mid 50's.....Dunlop made them here from the late 50's, as they were proving popular elsewhere.........go to India, and see how many wear thongs.......you could say its their national shoe....... ANZAC biscuits are based on a Scottish recipe....for "rolled oats biscuits", and were originally named "Soldiers biscuits". "Billy tea" is accepted as being an Australian icon...as a brand, and for the 'billy' we make our tea in..........and also because wive/mothers etc posted their men their ANZAC biscuits and the like in them, as they were air and water proof and virtually indestructable......sensational. Zinc oxide cream was marketed here by Johnson and Johnson.....an American owned company.... damn! lol... Driza Bones....are the invention of a Scot living in New Zealand that was later perfected in Australia...... go figure? things that we assume are uniquely Australian........sometimes arent..... like our language, they are borrowed from elsewhere...........more evidence of a 'world culture'.... thats been quietly developing since early last century. as a 'nation' we are only 110 years old. federation was Jan 1 1901. but we arent really a 'nation' at all..... we are still, to this day, a 'constitutional monarchy'..........we govern ourselves, but pay homage to a Queen in a far away land, and have, as her representative, a Governor General.......our flag echoes this, with its Union Jack in the corner....the 'republicans' would take us to a new national identity, should they ever have their way........but thats not going to be soon...is it? I'd say our culture is more like a poor imitation of the culture of the UK....England, Wales, Scotland........and especially the mischevious and irreverent Irish.... we are more like the men of the "Emerald Isle" in attitude, humour, stubbornness and fierce bravery, than any other group of people......but all thats tempered by the modern mix of ethnic backgrounds, cultural heritages, and by the number of languages again being spoken all around us.... we have much to share, much to still learn, and much to remember and preserve...........but it doesnt deserve harsh words of intolerance and bigotry to do so..... theres this very fine line that runs between 'national pride' and 'discrimintaion'............"nationalism" should only ever foster positive emotions and words.....as its entirely about rejoicing who you are, and where you live.... "Aussies" come in all shapes, sizes,races,religions and cultural backgrounds.......if you wish to protest the influence of American language and culture on the Australian 'identity', then you damn well better be prepared to protest the influence that every culture has had on us....from the japanese to the dutch to the sth africans to the kiwis and even the vietnamese and pacific islanders....(and italian,german,french,chinese,polish,indian,afgani,etc etc etc) Mike.
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