Say what? What you talking about? Let me prove it to you. See, look. I was right. It's a bloody Asian driver.
I proceeded with a rhetorical question to my then 15 yr old daughter.
"You ever been to an Asian country, love? Ever tried crossing a street in Bangalore? No? I have hon and I'd have felt safer wading through a crocodile infested river in a bikini.
A proportion of Asian drivers simply refuse to align with our Aussie road rules and common etiquette. It's the equivalent of erratic behaviour to be the first in line at a Boxing Day sale. Heck, my friend Amporn is one of the worst. She knows it. I know it. And I take the piss out of her whenever she rocks up cussing herself because she's copped another bloody fine."
What you heard from me was an observation of a reality. A reality that you witnessed, by the way. A crank on cultural differences? Absolutely. Because, you know, when in Rome.
Now, racists, on the other hand, are nasty people that do nasty things to people that they believe have no rights to equality. Period. So it's wildly offensive and insulting to call someone a racist when they're not a bloody racist.
We're multicultural here and we made it work because we can call out our cultural differences while having a laugh in the process. Geez, we even invented nicknames. By the way, we're half Pommy bastard, half Wog, hon."
Little did I know, a decade ago, that intellectuals aiming to immortalise themselves with a radical invention would continue to vigorously brainwash an entire generation of youngsters with bizarre distortions of meaning.
"Intellectuals" that have never worked a day in the fields with labourers from all walks of life. Those genius commoners that had found a way to unite their cultures with good 'ol fashioned humour sprinkled with a shake or two of taking-the-piss: that magical social mechanism that has the power to stimulate self worth and bridge great divides.
But this particular group of pseudo-intellectuals weren't content inventing delusional imposter definitions on a handful of words - racist, trauma, gender - they wanted it all. Comedy, the last bastion of social cohesion, had to go.
This is the part where I tell you to flesh this out into an essay and you tell me no:)
re multiculturalism: it sounds wonderful, but it actually describes (and I just discovered this a couple years ago) a situation where people of different races live in the same space but all in their own bubbles and under different value systems (like little countries within countries). Whereas pluralism is where different races live in the same space but coexist and live under the same value system.
😆 you got that right. All good. Fleshing it out in my book :)
Re multiculturalism. That something-like-that is what we once had here in Australia before pseudo-intellectuals decided to scrap everything and reinvent the wheel with their insane notions.
There’s a saying: everything can be medicine or poison. And the idea of diversity has both a positive and negative manifestation. I think in the right places and with the right balance (something America never quite got a grasp on), diversity can be a huge strength. But on the flip side, take your average social justice warrior. Would they want a Trump voter at their dinner table? Of course not. Would they invite a man who believes in sharia law? Of course not. But they’ll still cry Islamophobia at the drop of a hat (and the word hat just autocorrected to gay so we’ve come full circle).
Even the ads while streaming content are in Spanish, unsolicited mind you - lol. I took Spanish in high school too, my brain can't decipher the rapid fire delivery except for the blaring standout in the phrase 'Bienvenidos a JIMMY JOHNS." I feel like they should just say JIMENEZ JUANS or something for overall flow.
"I find it almost impossible to view that word in print (“ICE”) without imagining a bunch of electric blue beer cans with arms and legs dispersing tear gas on a mob of unruly illegals." - ha! exactly!
I lived in Italy for a while and spent a year learning Italian before I landed. They appreciated it and often mercifully bailed me out by speaking English. However, I ALWAYS spoke Italian first. Let the chips fall where they may. Another word comes to mind when speaking of a cohesive culture --assimilation. I wanted to assimilate to Italian culture because I love it. I didn't want to be a cunt walking around waving an American flag demanding they speak English. (Or worse, burning theirs.) So, long story short--you knocked another one out of the park. Well done.
I think the ongoing "civilizations" on planet Earth possibly started as a big, risky experiment that some very powerful ETs or EDs (Extra Dimensionals) or possibly Archangels (...whatever...) decided to implement, in which they imported many different humanoid races to this one planet to see what might happen. (Whereas, presumably, on most other populated planets there is not nearly the same amount of "diversity".) They could hardly have called it a success, but possibly they are just too fascinated by all the diverse problems that have arisen and so just haven't been able to bring themselves to call the experiment off.
Ya know what, it might actually be a smashing success:) Who knows? It's all relative, and we have no idea what kind of civilizations are out there. I think we're actually doing pretty good, all things considered. It could really be far far worse
True, it really could be far, far worse, but sadly, I think it's getting there, or at least, too close already to that point for comfort. The above is just a hypothesis, but my mind keeps going back to it.
I spent some years living in foreign countries . Coming back to America I felt foreign also for a while. You were expected to learn the language of the people and country you were in. It was the honorable thing to do. Language itself is being usurped , as are the meanings of words themselves . Erased , altered or gate-kept. It's Ontological manipulation I think. I appreciate different languages, but the English language is being dumbed down on a few levels , not just with what's said, but what it means.
Thanks Chris. I’m pretty disturbed by the manipulation of language these past few years. Instead of reducing language to reduce thought (1984) the strategy appears to involve co-opting words and recasting them as something else entirely (“violence” “white supremacy” etc). It’s very sinister.
Oh dear, I'm about to say something nice about Medium, which is the ability to highlight something in particular and then comment on it. Cutting and pasting is so much work. As per usual, I'm feeling non-binary right now in that I agree with a lot of this and disagree with some. Yes, countries need laws to function and it is incumbent on every citizen to understand the language in which those laws are written. To not is wilful ignorance and as they say, ignorance is no excuse. Which reminds me of my German teacher, who was Dutch. The fact that he was teaching us meant his English was impeccable. However, he always used to joke about being pulled over by the police and doing the whole "No speaka da English!" and they'd just let him go. It was Australia in the seventies. And yes, I'm thinking of becoming a wizard, hopefully with a more scientific leaning. That said, proper, rational analysis often falls apart when it ignores initial conditions, something that it is virtually impossible to get a handle on when we start talking about human beings.
Now that I've dispensed with (some of) my feelings, I going to go and have breakfast.
Sorry, one last thing. This Substack comment box is crap. Why can't I see what I've highlighted and delete it? Looks like the pointless Medium comment is going to have to stay.
I miss the highlight option too Robert. And I like how the payment structure is set up there. I'd pay $5 here a month to do something similar here. The bastards kicked me off the platform. I've thought about going back under a new name and writing kink:)
This is very, very good!! And don't roll your eyes at the infantile response. It's loaded. Meaning I'm left dangling in reverence after reading it. And that's very, very good.
“But what I could have never imagined was that I’d need to know Spanish in order to navigate my own country.”
While again (we’ve had this talk before), I can’t totally agree with everything you say here, I’m also not offended, and I admire your honesty and also understand your satire. But that sentence above, yes. I’m 100 percent on board with that.
It IS America we live in, after all, and while I actually love diversity, I feel like an outsider here now and that’s not fuckin normal.
I might be talking out of both sides of my mouth here, but I don’t know how else to say what I’m trying to say.
But Mike- I do have a few questions.
The fuck am I gonna do with that four years of Spanish that I took? Because I do speak it very well.
Can I still love Shakira?
Please do ask for permission next time you crank yo dick thinking about me. You do, right? 🤣
Thanks man. I'd like to think that's how I'd behave in Italy or anywhere else. Our illegals here are like spoiled kids who have been enabled too long. I have mixed feelings about mass deportations, but I can't offer any other solutions. I'd be more inclined to speak out on their behalf if they were, generally speaking, assimilating and showing some basic respect by learning and using English etc. What brought you to Italy?
Liberal: You went to France and didn't try to speak French. No wonder they were rude, you were being a stupid American!
Also Liberal: We can't expect illegal immigrants to speak English. That would be racist!
"You can't say that Mum. It's racist."
Say what? What you talking about? Let me prove it to you. See, look. I was right. It's a bloody Asian driver.
I proceeded with a rhetorical question to my then 15 yr old daughter.
"You ever been to an Asian country, love? Ever tried crossing a street in Bangalore? No? I have hon and I'd have felt safer wading through a crocodile infested river in a bikini.
A proportion of Asian drivers simply refuse to align with our Aussie road rules and common etiquette. It's the equivalent of erratic behaviour to be the first in line at a Boxing Day sale. Heck, my friend Amporn is one of the worst. She knows it. I know it. And I take the piss out of her whenever she rocks up cussing herself because she's copped another bloody fine."
What you heard from me was an observation of a reality. A reality that you witnessed, by the way. A crank on cultural differences? Absolutely. Because, you know, when in Rome.
Now, racists, on the other hand, are nasty people that do nasty things to people that they believe have no rights to equality. Period. So it's wildly offensive and insulting to call someone a racist when they're not a bloody racist.
We're multicultural here and we made it work because we can call out our cultural differences while having a laugh in the process. Geez, we even invented nicknames. By the way, we're half Pommy bastard, half Wog, hon."
Little did I know, a decade ago, that intellectuals aiming to immortalise themselves with a radical invention would continue to vigorously brainwash an entire generation of youngsters with bizarre distortions of meaning.
"Intellectuals" that have never worked a day in the fields with labourers from all walks of life. Those genius commoners that had found a way to unite their cultures with good 'ol fashioned humour sprinkled with a shake or two of taking-the-piss: that magical social mechanism that has the power to stimulate self worth and bridge great divides.
But this particular group of pseudo-intellectuals weren't content inventing delusional imposter definitions on a handful of words - racist, trauma, gender - they wanted it all. Comedy, the last bastion of social cohesion, had to go.
This is the part where I tell you to flesh this out into an essay and you tell me no:)
re multiculturalism: it sounds wonderful, but it actually describes (and I just discovered this a couple years ago) a situation where people of different races live in the same space but all in their own bubbles and under different value systems (like little countries within countries). Whereas pluralism is where different races live in the same space but coexist and live under the same value system.
Something like that...
😆 you got that right. All good. Fleshing it out in my book :)
Re multiculturalism. That something-like-that is what we once had here in Australia before pseudo-intellectuals decided to scrap everything and reinvent the wheel with their insane notions.
My truth
Slam
Is not yours
Slam
Because you’re a cunt
Slam
And I’m not
Slam slam slam
Brave!
I see you interpreted this as a manifesto.
There’s a saying: everything can be medicine or poison. And the idea of diversity has both a positive and negative manifestation. I think in the right places and with the right balance (something America never quite got a grasp on), diversity can be a huge strength. But on the flip side, take your average social justice warrior. Would they want a Trump voter at their dinner table? Of course not. Would they invite a man who believes in sharia law? Of course not. But they’ll still cry Islamophobia at the drop of a hat (and the word hat just autocorrected to gay so we’ve come full circle).
well said Jonathan.
ultimately I prefer diversity of thought. that’s the sort of thing that excites me.
Even the ads while streaming content are in Spanish, unsolicited mind you - lol. I took Spanish in high school too, my brain can't decipher the rapid fire delivery except for the blaring standout in the phrase 'Bienvenidos a JIMMY JOHNS." I feel like they should just say JIMENEZ JUANS or something for overall flow.
Jimenez Juans LOL!
"I find it almost impossible to view that word in print (“ICE”) without imagining a bunch of electric blue beer cans with arms and legs dispersing tear gas on a mob of unruly illegals." - ha! exactly!
And we should really stop sprinkling pubes in their quesadillas, Jorge…”
🤣🤣🤣🤣
I lived in Italy for a while and spent a year learning Italian before I landed. They appreciated it and often mercifully bailed me out by speaking English. However, I ALWAYS spoke Italian first. Let the chips fall where they may. Another word comes to mind when speaking of a cohesive culture --assimilation. I wanted to assimilate to Italian culture because I love it. I didn't want to be a cunt walking around waving an American flag demanding they speak English. (Or worse, burning theirs.) So, long story short--you knocked another one out of the park. Well done.
I think the ongoing "civilizations" on planet Earth possibly started as a big, risky experiment that some very powerful ETs or EDs (Extra Dimensionals) or possibly Archangels (...whatever...) decided to implement, in which they imported many different humanoid races to this one planet to see what might happen. (Whereas, presumably, on most other populated planets there is not nearly the same amount of "diversity".) They could hardly have called it a success, but possibly they are just too fascinated by all the diverse problems that have arisen and so just haven't been able to bring themselves to call the experiment off.
Ya know what, it might actually be a smashing success:) Who knows? It's all relative, and we have no idea what kind of civilizations are out there. I think we're actually doing pretty good, all things considered. It could really be far far worse
True, it really could be far, far worse, but sadly, I think it's getting there, or at least, too close already to that point for comfort. The above is just a hypothesis, but my mind keeps going back to it.
I spent some years living in foreign countries . Coming back to America I felt foreign also for a while. You were expected to learn the language of the people and country you were in. It was the honorable thing to do. Language itself is being usurped , as are the meanings of words themselves . Erased , altered or gate-kept. It's Ontological manipulation I think. I appreciate different languages, but the English language is being dumbed down on a few levels , not just with what's said, but what it means.
Thanks Chris. I’m pretty disturbed by the manipulation of language these past few years. Instead of reducing language to reduce thought (1984) the strategy appears to involve co-opting words and recasting them as something else entirely (“violence” “white supremacy” etc). It’s very sinister.
Oh dear, I'm about to say something nice about Medium, which is the ability to highlight something in particular and then comment on it. Cutting and pasting is so much work. As per usual, I'm feeling non-binary right now in that I agree with a lot of this and disagree with some. Yes, countries need laws to function and it is incumbent on every citizen to understand the language in which those laws are written. To not is wilful ignorance and as they say, ignorance is no excuse. Which reminds me of my German teacher, who was Dutch. The fact that he was teaching us meant his English was impeccable. However, he always used to joke about being pulled over by the police and doing the whole "No speaka da English!" and they'd just let him go. It was Australia in the seventies. And yes, I'm thinking of becoming a wizard, hopefully with a more scientific leaning. That said, proper, rational analysis often falls apart when it ignores initial conditions, something that it is virtually impossible to get a handle on when we start talking about human beings.
Now that I've dispensed with (some of) my feelings, I going to go and have breakfast.
Sorry, one last thing. This Substack comment box is crap. Why can't I see what I've highlighted and delete it? Looks like the pointless Medium comment is going to have to stay.
I miss the highlight option too Robert. And I like how the payment structure is set up there. I'd pay $5 here a month to do something similar here. The bastards kicked me off the platform. I've thought about going back under a new name and writing kink:)
If you’re writing about the data science of kink, you should be on a winner.
This is very, very good!! And don't roll your eyes at the infantile response. It's loaded. Meaning I'm left dangling in reverence after reading it. And that's very, very good.
I'm trying to picture you dangling...
Made me laugh...
“But what I could have never imagined was that I’d need to know Spanish in order to navigate my own country.”
While again (we’ve had this talk before), I can’t totally agree with everything you say here, I’m also not offended, and I admire your honesty and also understand your satire. But that sentence above, yes. I’m 100 percent on board with that.
It IS America we live in, after all, and while I actually love diversity, I feel like an outsider here now and that’s not fuckin normal.
I might be talking out of both sides of my mouth here, but I don’t know how else to say what I’m trying to say.
But Mike- I do have a few questions.
The fuck am I gonna do with that four years of Spanish that I took? Because I do speak it very well.
Can I still love Shakira?
Please do ask for permission next time you crank yo dick thinking about me. You do, right? 🤣
I love ya, kid.
What do you mean you can't agree with everything I've said? Of course you can.
Crank sounds painful. I'm offended.
Thanks man. I'd like to think that's how I'd behave in Italy or anywhere else. Our illegals here are like spoiled kids who have been enabled too long. I have mixed feelings about mass deportations, but I can't offer any other solutions. I'd be more inclined to speak out on their behalf if they were, generally speaking, assimilating and showing some basic respect by learning and using English etc. What brought you to Italy?