Australia vs. USA Culture

[oldman]

Steve, the cases and sources you cite would stand along any internationally, but how many people actually read them?
It's all very well to say that the great unwashed of America get their news from Fox, but look at the degradation of the mainstream 'news' in Australia.
There was a time when 60 Minutes wasn't a punchline to a joke.

All true alakaboo, but that was a long time ago now.

There was a time when Jon Stewart wasn't more incisive and editorial than the newsreaders on Channel 9.

I'm doubting that one though ala. He's one insightful comedian. Laurie Oakes would struggle to match his intellect, and couldn't tell a joke to save his life.

Sydney Morning Herald and the Oz are less interested in analysis than saying something oldhat, and citing themselves "as reported in The Australian last Tuesday" or some bollocks like that. Never mind that Jim Lehrer discussed it a month back..

Absolutely.

ABC TV news has totally gone to the dogs. It looks like A Current Affair now compared to the old days.

[oldman]

btw, that peterbowes hardcock giving the seppos stick is no relation - just over here http://blasphemyrottmouth.wordpress.com ... /#comments

admirable stuff though _ I invited them over here for a chat but one look at Dino and the rest of you mongrels put the wind up them, pity that.

Go hard Laz.

Couldn't be arsed checking anything else there if that is the standard. Makes our more nonsensical offerings look rather sublime.

[Clif]

Laz has been workign them over. They keep having to return to their own den to work out what the hell is going on. Onya, Laz.



ps. sorry skipper

[otway1949]

And AC/DC took off from Australia as soon as they could.

and when Phil Rudd the Aussie-born drummer left, none of AC-DC had actually been born in Australia.

Off course without a Rudder, AC/DC, or the Labor Party.

[Little]

The "culture" attributed to any society is due to the contributions of about .5% of that society, the rest are mindlessly following their own interpretations of what that .5% actually represent. In other words, 99.5% of people in any society are just dumb fcks going about their business trying to earn a dollar so in their spare time they can pretend they're cool by copying their choice of what they feel is appropriate from the top .5%.
Raciam may or may not be part of that.
Every society has had some high achievers in the arts, sport even religion or humanity. How they are embraced or by whom is the indication whether the rest of that society is "cultured".
I think in Australia, we're generally pretty ignorant. Just my view, but Big Brother, thr Footy Show, Hey Hey It's Saturday, they all got pretty big ratings from time to time compared to the ABC.

[oldman]

An interesting hypothesis, but I disagree.

I would say that culture is what the 99.5% of the populace are really doing, and the other .5% are trying to abrogate the term culture to their own ends, to help them feel a part of the society that they basically aren't a part of, and haven't been able to fully accept because they want to belong.

I would suggest that what that .5% are doing may be and has been termed 'high culture', but really that is just elitist rubbish.

Culture, it means what I want it to mean when I want it to mean it. Same as everbody else. It seems the word has no meaning at all.

[Little]

That's the chicken vs egg thing, Olds. Take Hey Hey for example. Is Daryl Sommers a cultural icon for coceiving that grand show, or is he just feeding off the general public's desire for more "culture"?
Or is say, Ian Fairweather a dud painter because the vast majority can't be bothered taking a minute to think about one of his pictures.
History will record things a little differently, so, I guess culture, in the end, is what we're told it is by the intelligentsia, or at least those who are recording what they think the people in the future will be most impressed by.
Those ancient Romans...from what I've read, they were a bloody cultured lot. But I reckon 99.5% of them were living like pigs in squalor with no idea who Michelangelo was and their "traditional" ways of life just a means of barely staying alive.

[jimmy]

^^^^^^ You can't really blame them for not knowing who Michaelangelo was though. Seeing as he was born about 20 yrs after the Roman Empire crumbled.

[oldman]

Take Hey Hey for example.

No, god no, you can't make me do that.

Is Daryl Sommers a cultural icon for coceiving that grand show, or is he just feeding off the general public's desire for more "culture"?

No, he is not a cultural icon.

Having no ideas left, and with commercial TV long since having turned into a regurgitation machine, and boomers entering their dotage, he thought and was able to convince the Ch9 execs that digging up the rancid bones of what used to be a good children's Saturday morning show was a grand idea.

And to an extent he was right, which is just unfathomable.

[TMC]

My son and his wife and their grandson live in Canada.

Jesus you're 62 and your a great grandparent. This is why I am never moving to Queensland. While the UK may be drowning in a sesspit of chav culture at least they don't procreate as early and as often as those from the great red north.

[carvin marvin]

Though the auto industry started here, the more successful it became, the more it destroyed the place that nurtured it.

The above line is from David Byrnes journal, about Detroit titled "Don't forget the motor city''.

A cultural metaphor.
Corporate rape of the planet.

Here is the link to the story.

http://journal.davidbyrne.com/

[Little]

Speaking of Obama, whether you like him or not, he seems like a good bloke trying his best to do the right thing. Go back through the Republican presidents this century, though, and they all seem to have this shameless "I'm here to rule the world and make myself some money" thing going on, all made to appear perfectly acceptable by buddies like Rupert Murdoch etc. Of course, your average American voter falls for the fear and greed rhetoric. You can't really blame some poor bstd who's had his country blown up for wanting revenge on these cunce, can you? They can't have too mant friends left, surely.

[Grooter]

ps. hello from China where I am the odd one out and experience systemic racism on a daily basis (White LaoWai) Every nation-state harbours racism. Arguing over who is more racist misses the point. Even one instance should be picked up on.

Check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0Ti-gkJiXc

If I had a dollar for every time I was called a gora in India I'd have enough to buy a decent dinner as well

Anyway I'd take Australia over America any day, at least if I get in an argument with someone I'm not thinking that I might get shot

[mustkillmulloway]

obamas a ledgend...his done so much improve the usa

bringin a medicare like plan into being....giving free health for all yanks

will foreva be his greatest achievement plus his the first non irish/scottish president

like a real american

p.s who else is expecting kids knock on there door this Halloween

here..in copy cat oz

[monkey]

Read the article in today's SMH on the pr*cks backing the "Tea party" movement in the states. Obama's going to have to mobilise and motivate the lazy masses if he wants to get back in.

[dUg]

p.s who else is expecting kids knock on there door this Halloween

here..in copy cat oz

ta for the heads up fong... I had completely forgotten.

That's 12 days worth of cat faeces I can collect in the litter tray. Should be ample.

[Beanpole]

The thing is America just has more depth because of scale. So for every one screwball there are 100 over there but also 100 more interesting tangents to any one style or point of view. We are practically an extra state these days anyway. Except the bottom hasn't just fallen out of our economy.

Ever since I was a teenager I've taken California to be a precursor for what was going to happen to the East Coast of OZ. The Nth NSW Coast in particular. My only regret is not acting on that idea more.

[Deesee]