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Tales From The Other Side - Alternative Culture to enlighten a mediocre mood

Alternative Culture and ideas, ready to be injected into your Reality.

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Tales From The Other Side - November 2007

Wimps and Sooks Cause All The World’s Problems

November 29th 2007 12:26

Bloody Sooks

I had an interesting conversation with someone the other day. They were explaining their opposition to foreign students on campus. They were not the sort of person I regarded a racist by any stretch of the imagination, so I continued to discuss the matter.

They said that they were sick and tired of having to pussyfoot. They wanted to be able to be themselves without offending anyone.

I asked what these students had done to them in response to her being herself. She said that they hadn’t so much done anything to her. However, she felt bad for offending them when she acted herself, or spoke loudly about culturally sensitive issues.

This is where I said that she didn’t have to feel bad about offending people simply for existing and being herself. And she said ‘yes she did’, because she didn’t like making people feel bad.
The interesting thing here is that this individual was not turned against international students because of any underlying Xenophobia. She was simply uncomfortable with those of the group who made her feel bad about her own national identity.

Now I don’t mean to simply have a go at her and call her a wimp, or a sook. That’s not true, and not helpful. What I mean to point out is that sometimes an anger at a group of people may just be a tool of self preservation for our own feelings.

Let’s look at Muslims. They, at least as we widely perceive them, don’t like a whole lot of skin being flashed around. They don’t seem to be too flash on Allah jokes or cartoons. They don’t like pig flesh being eaten. Or drinking of alcohol.

One can imagine the feelings of a straight talking, beer guzzling, snag munching, bikini wearing, piss taking Aussie Sheila, who doesn’t like to offend others. It’s not that she hates Muslims – but rather she hates to be hated by Muslims, and does not like to publicly flaunt what may be considered offensive in front of them. It is not real Muslims she opposes – but the way in which her (sometimes accurate) view of Muslims creates feelings of guilt and shame for expressing her own independent cultural identity.

In the end, I would really have to say this; you should never feel as though you should need to change who you are, or feel bad about who you are to appease others. Live and let live only works if we not only let others be as they are – but reserve that right for ourselves, instead of getting caught up in the nasty cycle of guilt and blame.

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Posted By: Brenton - Category: Miscalany

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Micronations

November 26th 2007 09:51

Luke has discusses Micronations before in a number of his posts.

What is a Micronation? A Micronation is a small area that acts effectively acts as a country, but is not officially recognized as such. The best known example is Tibet.

Some other Micronations…

Sealand. 550 square metres of space, inhabited by the Bates family. The area has been claimed as an independent nation since the nineteen sixties, yet is still considered legally part of the United Kingdom.

Sealand’s history is very much in the making. 2007 makes the proposed sale of the principality (actually transference of custodianship for legal reasons). Word is offers of 8 digits are being considered. Jealous much?

An Image of Sealand following a devastating Fire

The Hutt River Principality. You have to love an Aussie who just decides, nup, to hell with it, I don’t like these wheat Quotas – I’m going to secede and become my own country. This is pretty much the story behind the Hutt River Province. The line from the Australian Government is that the Province is just the business venture of an eccentric but talented individual.

Tibet. Tibet typically isn’t regarded as a micro nation, but it’s worth a mention. I think the situation is best articulated on Wikipedia here; “Tibet is today controlled by the People's Republic of China (PRC). As an exclusive mandate, Tibet is also officially claimed by the Republic of China (Taiwan). However in the Tibetan sovereignty debate, the government of the People's Republic of China and the Government of Tibet in Exile disagree over when Tibet became a part of China, and whether this incorporation into China is legitimate according to international law.” For more info, follow the link.
LINK.

The beauty hiding the brutality

Image by Peter Vigier, Creative Commons with an Attribution License.

Transnistria. I first read about this place in the novel ‘The Game’ by Neil Strauss, who details some adventures in Transnistria while telling us all how to score with the ladies. The place is a leftover from Communisms heyday, who preferred to declare themselves independent than accept the decisions of their homeland Moldova. The Game promoted a fairly dark view of the Micronation. At one point the protagonist cracks it with the Guard and tells him to just ‘throw him in jail.’ Later on a local tells him that he should not have done that, as Transnestria doesn’t have jails. Asked where they keep prisoners, the local mimes a gunshot to the head.

Another individual has also given a first hand account of Transnestria. Simon Reeve of the BBC Presented a series entitles Holidays in the Danger Zone: Places That Don’t Exist. He presents a much different view of the Micronation, as a small, friendly and fiercely proud nation. One car dealer offers him a free car if he can convince the Government of Morocco to legally recognize Transnestria as an independent nation. He also explores some of the more interesting aspects of Transnestria – namely that it is able to retain it’s independence thanks to Russian military support, including a ‘secret’ Russian Military base in it’s territory. Simon Reeve goes to find this base and is escorted back by guards… but safe, and alive and amazingly, without having any film confiscated.

Travel Warnings do exist for Transnestria, and it does have a record of violence.

The Transnistrian parliament building in Tiraspol. In front is a statue of Lenin.

Image by Monk, licensed under creative commons Attribution Share Alike License.

Sovereign Military Order of Malta – Honestly I would love to talk about this one but it’s actually quite fuzzy in my head still. Honestly the best you could do is read if for yourself – “Link to the Wikipedia page is HERE” What I can tell you is they are a religious knighthood from way back, whom have been granted permanent observer status at the United Nations.

Micronations are a major issue in today’s world, especially in regards to how the very process of international communication and co-operation can be managed. While the future of those I listed and many others, is uncertain, it is certain to be interesting.

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Posted By: Brenton - Category: Politics

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10 Life changing Books and Films

November 22nd 2007 09:40

1. Marabou Stork Nightmares – Irvine Welsh – Book.
Marabou Stork Nightmare is a rare thing. It’s a brilliantly written piece of fiction from the author of Trainspotting (which for the record, I despised with passion). The novel’s protagonist is in hospital, in a long term coma, fluctuating between three levels of consciousness. When he’s close to the surface he is aware of his family speaking to him by his bedside. To avoid this awareness he tries to sink deeper into a fantasy world, where he and a friend are hunting the evil Marabou Stork. However to reach these deep recesses of his mind he must first pass through his memory, where the story of how he came to be lying in his coma slowly, shockingly unravels.
It’s an explicit, shocking and somehow touching exploration of what creates and constitutes evil, the nature of emotional pain, and offers an explanation to the eternal question of ‘how can people do such terrible things to each other?’.

2. Dogwood – Movie.
Dogwood is another classic example of hammering a point and being successful at it. The film is shot in classic Brechtian style and features a very unhappy looking Nicole Kidman. It’s another moral tale, this time telling a parable warning against sympathy for one’s aggressors. It’s a moral that warns us against the arrogance of our temptation to forgive everything done by those we wish to help. It's almost preachy, but instead but it packages it up in a way that makes the concepts so simple you just want to sidle up to your TV and say ‘teach me forever.’

3. Life of Pi. Book.
This is a story that will make you believe in God. Not my claim – the suggestion is made at the start of the book, in the author’s introduction. While the claim is certainly exaggerated, there is every possibility that the book will change the way you interpret and interact with faith.

4. Children of Men – Movie.
Children of Men is much more than just my most favourite movie ever. It’s a startling observation of Government corruption, the power of fear and racial discrimination. But far more than that, it is a stunning acknowledgement of the position of children in shaping a healthy meaningful society.

5. A Clockwork Orange – Book.
If you’ve seen the Movie, good for you. However, it’s the book that’s interesting in this regard. Few people realise that the movie was based on the original American version of the novel – published with it’s final chapter omitted. The book is, like the movie, a fascinating analysis of the nature, value and danger of free will, and the repression thereof. What’s truly striking though is Burgess’ conclusion- calm and collected, and with an air of wisdom. Read it, and it may change the way you feel about youth crime.

6. AdBusters – Magazine.
If you’ve been reading Adbusters for quite a while, and are thinking I’m about to tell you to go back to it because it’s not actually saying the same thing over and over again? Sadly, no. If you’re familiar with AdBusters then you know what you’re in for. If you’re not familiar with it though, there’s a lot of value in having a peek. If you’re like most people, you’ll discover an alternative view that has potential to influence the way you see the world. Also, have a look at their shoes... ironic, yet awesome, in a bid to bring down Nike.

A Billboard from Adbusters

7. Hero – Movie
The movie is so good looking and tasty that the message, as with many of the others, just kind of creeps up without you noticing. The message again is one that I ultimately disagree with, but it’s worthwhile to give a bit of pondering time to the interpretation of militarism it portrays.

8. Non Fiction – Chuck Palahniuk
It took a while to pick out a Chuck Palahniuk book. Fight Club is the easy answer, but thinking about it, Non Fiction is the real winner for potential life change. This series of essays observes many of the themes found in Palahniuk’s wider publications. Influential articles include the experience of discovering visual prejudice for the first time, using steroroids, discovering a ghost, attending a sex show, along with such goodies as an interview with Marylyn Manson. However, the real impact of the book lies in the reoccurring theme of Community. Palahniuk proposed that all his books have been connected by one strand – they provide frameworks for communities. Fight Club was men coming together to fight, Lullaby to destroy poetry, Haunted to write. An inspiring look at why and how people come together.

Non-Fiction, American Version

9. The Game – Neil Strauss – Book.
This is more one for men than ladies. The Game is a book on how to pick up girls. However, in a way it is also more than that. It’s a book that can give every man on Earth the advice to survive in society – how to think, act and interact to achieve social competency, if not success. Of course there will be some who go mad with it all and become insane pick up artists. However, most people will choose not to take it word for word, but instead gain a greater appreciations on what rules the world of social convention, and how you can use it to your advantage in life. I would give a copy of this to every awkward grade nine in the world and I assure you we’d have a better society.

10. The Yes Man – Danny Wallis – Book.
Say yes more. That’s the moral of the story. However, this book, unlike many other ‘inspirational’ novels, stays with you, as it illustrates it’s moral with a down to Earth sensibility and an occasionally tweaked sense of humour (at one point, our protagonist meets with a bully who used to punch the kid in wheelchair in one arm to give him a dead arm, because he liked to see him go in circles). It’s a true story (no doubt one with some considerable creative licence going on) and focuses on Danny Wallace, a man whose chance encounter with an old man on a bus gives him the inspiration to ‘say yes to everything’. From then on he ends up trying to tickle the moon in Amsterdam, attempting to anger a Buddhist Monk and proposing his own TV show. It’s brilliant.

So there you have it. Why are you waiting? Go get inspired!

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Posted By: Brenton - Category: Pop Culture, Film

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Brechtian Theatre

November 15th 2007 12:11

Brecht.
Bertolt Brecht was a famous an incredibly influential dramatist and stage director of the early 1900’s. His styles was strongly influential, and can be best seen in his own well known play ‘The Caucasian Chalk Circle and in the film Dogville.

CAUCASIAN CHALK CIRCLE.

DOGWOOD (SPOILERS)

Brecht’s unique style is known as Brechtian theatre. One of the main ideas of the genre was that the Audience could not be separated from the subject of theatre through the illusion of the fourth wall. This was known as Verfremdungseffect, and was used to, in the words of Brecht, “prevent(s) the audience from losing itself passively and completely in the character created by the actor, and which consequently leads the audience to be a consciously critical observer."

This could be achieved in many ways. Sometimes the cast would ‘spontaneously’ burst into song. The events of a scene would be described before the scene began to avoid allowing the audience to get involved in wondering what would happen. Actors would break the fourth wall by addressing the audience directly, using Didacticism. These elements combined would help create an emotional separation that instead encouraged audiences to use their minds to truly interact with the message of a piece.

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Posted By: Brenton - Category: Pop Culture, Film, Miscalany

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Anti-Americanism in Australia

November 12th 2007 00:58

Anti-Americanism is probably the most legitimised form of Racism in Australia. I would say that the most common is probably against Aboriginals, with anti-Asian or Arab sentiment coming pretty close to the top too.

However, these other forms of discrimination or racism are generally kept more under wraps, more secret. Unless you were an attention seeking politician, or right wing shock jock, you would not bring up these criticisms in a public forum.

There are three ethnic groups Australian’s will generally rip into loudly, proudly and publicly. Kiwis, Poms and Seppos. (New Zealanders, English and Americans). However, while the first two seem to be usually in good humor, the Yank bashing seems to have a real undercurrent of bitterness and sincere anger.

A shirt recent(ish)ly gave this phenomenon solid grounding. It was blue with white writing; “I’m afraid of Americans”. This T-Shirt was worn, out and about, in public. Had it been any other nationality – Asians, Aboriginals, Africans – it would have been deemed racist. But for Americans, it was accepted.

So what do Aussies have against Seppos? I would say two things.

Firstly, the Aussies have the same issue with America that most other nations have. Politically America appears indulgent and arrogant, oblivious to the often destructive impact of it’s foreign policy. This provokes anger internationally, and Australia is no different.

The other issues is that all races and ethnicities have their good points and bad points. Aussies for example, I love for our easygoing attitude, and I become frustrated with, for our aversion to the foreign and unknown (a trait in itself partially responsible for Anti-Americanism). Americans, as they have been portrayed in Australia by the media, personal anecdotes, and unfortunately on occasion, by themselves seem to have two predominant negative traits – arrogance and seriousness. These two negative traits are, though, two of the negative traits most passionately loathed in anyone, by Australians.

The first of these, Arrogance is so abhorred in Australia that it is widely referred to as ‘Tall Poppy Syndrome.’ This is why programs such as the Chaser, which routinely mock public figures, are so popular.

A tall poppy, it is said, must me cut down to size. When you have a view of Americans widely based on Arrogant archetypes such as these folk–

It’s not too much of a stretch to see why the cutting of tall poppies may become a bit frenzied at times.

For the second point of seriousness, Aussies are prone to discourage those who take life or themselves too seriously. This is often another source of great amusement to Aussies as can be seen in this Brittish documentary, in which a family is so worried about eating English food, they bring their own American food with them. Kind of the natural antithesis to 'she'll be right mate'.

In conclusion, Aussies, as a general rule are more prone to taking the piss, than actual hatred of another race, and usually a well placed Bush joke or ‘Yay Mum!’ will identify you as one of the good guys. However as always, there will be racist dickheads who will judge you for being a yank. Just cop it sweet and give as good as you get, and make sure you represent the very best of your nation, not the worst.

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Posted By: Brenton - Category: Politics, Pop Culture, Film

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A Stoopid Criminal (& Guess the Baby)

November 8th 2007 13:54

Every now and then somebody does a deeply amusing post on ‘guess what this stoooooooooopid criminal did? I used to laugh at them all. I still do, a lot of the time – let’s face it, some of them are pretty funny. Like the dude who threw a brick at a window of a liquor shop, which bounced off the reinforced glass, knocking him out until the cops came. Ah, how I lol.

However, there is a sour tang to the humour. Nobody plans to be a criminal. Dude who’s robbing a bank probably wasn’t seeing this down his future path when he was 5 years old

[ Click here to read more ]

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Posted By: Brenton - Category: Politics, Pop Culture

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Smokers Rights

November 5th 2007 00:41

My friend is a smoker. To be honest this just kind of pisses me off. However, I’m going to try to write an article here with minimal sarcasm in it.

For a pretty long time I’ve been a proponent of people having the technical right to use drugs. My friend makes no small point about pointing this out passionately, every time I have a go at smokers

[ Click here to read more ]

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Posted By: Brenton - Category: Drugs, Health, Miscalany

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Chindogu

November 1st 2007 07:19

There is very little that can compare to the pure awesomeness that is Chindogu. Chindogu (From Japanese Chin – Unusual and Dogu – Tool) are inventions that serve a purpose, however, one that ultimately is useless. This is usually because use of the devide would be so technically difficult (such as the solar powered cigarette lighter) or would cause too much social embarrassment (such as the face framing spaghetti protection mat) that they are effectively unable to be used for their real functional purpose.

This description though, is inadequate in its simplicity. The Chindogu society offeres a list of requirements something must reach before it may be considered Chindogu, as can be found here

[ Click here to read more ]

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May 2009

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