Not a footy topic, so don't get upset... being Australian

Remove this Banner Ad

sbagman

Club Legend
Nov 17, 2000
2,574
4
Scumshine
Other Teams
Fitzroy
Hi all,

I've read some interesting comments spanning many different topics which touch on the same thing... being Australian and what that means. Being an Aussie in exile, and coming from a different background than alot of people on this forum, I'd like to be reminded on what people think being Australian actually means... what they like and dislike about Australia. An honest, thoughtful view, not just the usual "We're the best" stuff.

No personal abuse or complaints about how this isn't (directly) related to footy. If you're not interested, don't respond.

Cheers,
Sbagman.
 
The word Australia or Australian is just a word,it more unless tells the rest of the world geograpically where we are.

We are no different to the rest of the crap in the world.
We are violent
We are conceited
We are racist
We have become dog eat dog and thuck you jack.
The only thing im grateful for is that we are no where near the rest of the populated
world cause if we were,we would be neck deep
in racial and religous and political wars.
We are not australian how can we be, when we all aspire to be americanised.
We have become greedy and we worship money and believe you me it is the greatest of evil.How can we be proud of who we are when we dont give a shit about heroin addicts this hideous drug is killing our children
our next generation of young australians.
How can we be proud to be Australian when the city streets of a night time all over this country are filled with the destitute and homeless.Whilst all political parties piss money on themselves and nonsical projects.Our welfare system is a joke infact its a national bloody disgrace,Its almost becomming a crime to be poor and uneducated.
The rich are becomming more vocal in slamming
those who are in need.Our political leader cannot even apologise to a race of people
whom for centuries have been made 2nd class by us the white europeans.The aboriginal is the true Australian,We my friends are tennants and bloody shameful ones at that.
We were unique a long time ago when we cared for each other,shared with each other,We all moan and groan and generally take things for granted.We are a nation of dobbers and a nation of sooks,have a look around australians for we are no better than the crap in the rest of the world.
But i am proud of one thing as a nation we got together and destroyed the greatest evil of modern Australian time and that was Pauline Hanson.



------------------
There are only two kinds of people in this world-COLLINGWOOD SUPPORTERS,and those who wish they were!
SHITE here comes COLLINGWOOD to kick your ass forever BLACK AND WHITE,ha ha ha jealousy will be the death of you,SHITE!!!!!
 

Log in to remove this ad.

Magpie Joffa,....hmmmmmmmmm ok,
This is a country, a place where many many people live. There are always going to be problems, thats no reason to bloody be so pessimistic about our country.
The BIGGEST problem I have with your idea is that you say that the Aboriginies are the only true Aussie's and that we (you know us white guys and gals) are just tennats. Speak for yourself mate because Im an Aussie, always have been and Aussie and always will be.If im not an Aussie then what am I? Where's my country?
Where you an Aussie when Cathy Freeman won a gold medal at the olympics or where you a tennant of Australia?
I certainly was an Aussie, and I still will be when the next kid dies from a heroin overdose. Incidently have you done anything to help the herroin addicts? Have you helped those sleeping on the streets? Are you planning on being the next Prime Minister to improve our political system?
Yep Magpie, you are a moaner you are a groaner...why dont you freakin stop your sooking AND DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT?!
Because YOU are no better than the rest of the world....thankfully many Australians ARE doing something about it.
As for the 'sooky, racist, violent tennants of Australia' well they can just go jump.


------------------
Eagles Rock!Go Ben and Jaxon!
 
Hang on there BJ

1) You have said nothing on your views on being Australian. I want your views, not your response to someone else's. Joffa has a right to feel the way he does.

2) I think there is an element of truth in what he is saying. We have a Prime Minister who won't apologise to the Aboriginals, we voted to keep a monarchy, and we still have the Union Jack on our flag. Make all the excuses you want about all this, but the fact is the Prime Minister IS, by definition, representitive of Australians (not all), we voted against a republic, and still have the flag of a nation which may have destroyed our link with the true heritage of Australia. Why we voted to retain links with "mother England" I'll never know. A German can live and work in the UK without restrictions, while if an Aussie is found at Heathrow with a CV and no work permit he's on the first plane back.
 
I know some of the stuff magpie joffa says is true. I just replied to the stuff i had a problem with....well most of them.
I dont feel like writing my views on Australia at the moment which is why I didnt, maybe later....I havent got the thoughts at the moment.
I was just sticking up for me!


------------------
Eagles Rock!Go Ben and Jaxon!
 
HEY BJ
I will be dissapointed if this ends up a slanging match.I will respect everybodys views on how they see Australia as it is today.How can we improve anything without a reasonable and healthy debate.Im not going to apologise and im certainly not going to try and defend anything i have just said,what we all have to do is stand back and look in. like i have done and believe you me its not pretty.And we would be flirting with a greater danger to say otherwise.
thanks BJ
joffa

------------------
There are only two kinds of people in this world-COLLINGWOOD SUPPORTERS,and those who wish they were!
SHITE here comes COLLINGWOOD to kick your ass forever BLACK AND WHITE,ha ha ha jealousy will be the death of you,SHITE!!!!!
 
hey I dont think you should have to apologise, I was never asking you too either.
And I never was slanging you! I was just telling you to speak for yourself after you stuck all those 'we''s at the begining of each post.
Your the one who is saying you are racist, sook,groaner etc. I was just saying dont labell all aussies like that....besides you dont even consider yourself an Aussie.
Have your opinion for sure, I dont expect it to be the same as mine. I was just having my opinion on what you said is that ok?

As for "what we all have to do is stand back and look in. like i have done and believe you me its not pretty.And we would be flirting with a greater danger to say otherwise."....

sorry mate I am totally lost in what you are trying to say there!
peace
BJ

------------------
Eagles Rock!Go Ben and Jaxon!
 
Being Australian simply means that you regard Australia as your home country. Which I do. Because it's where I live.

There used to be all sorts of rhetoric about what an Australian was supposed to be. Fair go, mate. And all that. Well, I guess the rhetoric is still there. John Howard trots it out whenever he's trying to win some votes. But it means jack shit.

I have to agree with most of what Joffa said. If there was ever a time when Australians believed in a "fair go" (and I'm not sure that such a time ever really existed), then that time is long gone.

An Australian, these days, seems to be a person who is motivated primarily by greed, although this is sometimes done in order to provide for family. The family unit continues to be one of Australia's sacred cows ... but it's very much a nuclear family isolated from all other families. It lives in suburbia ... owns a car, or three ... is obsessed with the notion of private property ... hates the idea that anything can be communally owned ... and lives in continual fear of having what it owns taken away from it.

Australians are sad, really.

It's my ambition ... one of these days ... to go to an ANZAC Day footy game ... and refuse to stand for the national anthem. I haven't done it yet ... because I reckon it would really piss a lot of people off and I'm actually quite scared of what might happen. So, for the sake of the peace I stand for the frigging thing. But when I do, I feel like a hippocrite. Because I don't believe in this country any more ... It has lost the plot.

But Australia is still my home. And therefore I'm still Australian.

No doubt, all the so-called "patriots" will tell me to f*ck off to Cuba or somewhere. But Cuba isn't my country. Australia is. And it really pisses me off what all you jingoistic morons have done to my country ... You've turned it into a frigging circus.

So, what's an Australian?

I used to think I knew the answer to that once. But I don't.

And frankly ... I don't care.

Hang on ...

I know ...

An Australian is ... Glen McGrath.

There you go ... your typical Australian is Glen McGrath.

A totally obnoxious arse-hole.

------------------
**floreat pica**
 
you guys, i see what you are saying in some respect but its kinda in the same light as saying an aussie is a blue singlet, stubby shorts thong wearing yobbo who wears a wide brim corked hat and who sits on the couch with a beer in his hand.
thats not what and aussie is,
and in my point of view a money hungry, racist, suburbian isnt want an aussie is either. You cant just go around STEREOTYPING like that and not expect it to get up people's noses.
ok this is what I think an Aussie is, an Aussie is someone who calls Australia their home. They may have strong ties to other countries but when it comes down to it, Australia is their home. Other than that I dont think you can define what being an aussie is. You cant just say oh an aussie is blonde haired blue eyed or an aussie is a money hungry racist because thats just not true....sure some aussie are blonde and some aussies are racist but not all. So I want to know, How can you guys say that an aussie is money hungry and racist....Im an Aussie and so basically you are telling me that Im money hungry and racist and you expect that Im not going to say something?
BJ

------------------
Eagles Rock!Go Ben and Jaxon!
 
Sorry, BJ.
I was just in a bad mood.
Point taken.

Really, like you say, if you consider Australia to be your home then you're Australian. And that includes all sorts ... the good, the bad and the ugly ... and Glen McGrath.

------------------
**floreat pica**
 
I think you're missing the point here BJ. I want people's impressions on Australian society as a whole, which doesn't exactly mean every person has to conform to it. Sure, we are all different, but surely you can make some observations about Australians in general. And what it means to you. I feel sad that patriotism in Australia is so low that the only thing people identify with as being Australian is living in Australia.

I was waiting for someone to give me a reason to come back.
 

(Log in to remove this ad.)

Nah, don't come back. This country's had the pork fritz.

Italy would be an interesting place. Why on earth would you want to leave there to come back to this sad place?

Keats was right. Arse-end of the universe.

------------------
**floreat pica**
 
Ok people, I will have my say, people will say I am a bleeding heart etc. No matter where we come from we are all Aussies, we have to respect each other & look after those less fortunate than ourselves. I know at times people think druggies, unemployed, homeless people, homosexuals, etc aren't worth the time of day, you are wrong, we all have to live under the same planet,let's have a bit of compassion & tolerance for our fellow human beings (and pit bulls, sorry Chris had to throw that in). We can make this world a better place.

------------------
mantis

[This message has been edited by sandie (edited 17 January 2001).]
 
Originally posted by AlfAndrews:
Nah, don't come back. This country's had the pork fritz.

Italy would be an interesting place. Why on earth would you want to leave there to come back to this sad place?

Keats was right. Arse-end of the universe.



Pork Fritz.......Says a lot abut which part of Australia !!!!!!!!!!


Stralia ...MAYTE ! She's bute, She'll Be right ! Love it ,Mayte...
 
I'm an Aussie who has lived in the UK for three years in the 80s and now in the US for about 18 months. I can't wait to get back to Australia in 6 months for the following reasons:
Australia DOES have a welfare system and few homeless people compared with most of the rest of the world.
Australia is NOT violent on a world scale - 7 people were shot in a mass killing here in Philly a week or two ago and several of my friends didn't hear about it because it barely rated a mention on the news, one of my friends was held up at gun-point here last month, there was a fatal shooting two blocks away from home a few months ago and I live in a "safe" neighbourhood.
Australia is the most successful multi-culturally diverse society in the world (must give Canada an equal first rating here).
Australians are debating indigenous issues at a level seen nowhere else in the world - you want to see how bad it can be then visit a Native American settlement or try to find references to them in a mainstream US newspaper.
Australians are remarkably tolerant of change in society and of different elements in society, eg Sydney's *** and lesbian Mardi Gras, the reconciliation walks, Chinese New Year parades, pro-choice re abortion, anti-discrimination legislation, etc.
Racism, though present, is less insidious than in the US and Europe where it is frequently systemic - it was no coincidence that black neighbourhoods in Florida had road-block car searches in and around polling booths on election day which discouraged many people from voting (and with black votes in Florida running at 90% to Gore the result of the presidential race was very likely determined by that action), my visa extension in the UK took a letter whereas a Ghanaian friend required letters and interviews and personal financial guarantees from her parents, Germany and France and even the Netherlands are having mass demonstrations in the streets to keep immigrants out, etc.
Australia is uncrowded - try going to the beach in Britain or Europe and finding seclusion, drive three hours from Philadelphia and you're in New York or Baltimore or Washington DC, visit the beautiful Smoky Mountains in Tennessee (as I did at Christmas) and see Pigeon Forge a 6 mile strip of hotels, bars, factory outlets, amusement parks, fast food outlets, souvenir shops and other trash on a six lane highway (a little different from the Blue Mountains or the Dandenongs or Adelaide Hills)
Entertainment options are cheap - food is cheap and high quality (eg try lamb here at USD15-20 a pound - about AUD50-70 a kilo), sport is cheap (eg ice hockey - worst seats- USD45, football season membership USD2000), numerous close beaches and parks (free - no private beaches in Australia), etc.
The environment in Australia is relatively clean - try looking through the haze in summer in Europe, or smell the streets in the US, check out the smog in Dallas or LA or Houston or.... or Shanghai or Hong Kong, take a look out the window and you'll see green trees and lots of them all year round.
Australia is still closer in heritage and society to Britain and Europe than it is to the US despite the "Americanisation" process which is supposed to be swamping us.

And the worst thing about Australia? Endless whinging from people who've never set foot outside the country but still believe it is the "arse end of the world" because the stupid tabloid media told them so.
 
There are two Australias.

There is the urban Australia - a cleaner imitation of a thousand other cities around the world.

The urban Australia suffers from insecurity and feels it must look abroad for its inspiration.

The urban Australia sits in a foreign-looking cafe, drinking foreign coffee and pretending to be Paris or Rome or New York.

The urban Australia is nervous, and fickle and flighty. Always in a hurry to get somewhere but having no idea where it is going.

The urban Australia is greedy but ashamed. It talks of equality as it wastes money on cigarettes, trinkets and toys.

The urban Australia is desperate for answers that are only a couple of hours drive away.


And there is rural Australia

Rural Australia is unique. There is nothing like it anywhere in the world.

Rural Australia is proud and patriotic. It honours our nation's history and its parenthood. Rural Australia 'knows' in its heart that this is the most beautiful land on God's Earth.

Rural Australia is a country football ground, where the son of the labourer kicks out from full back to the son of the doctor. It is drinking Australian beer with your mates, or tea from the thermos with your friends. It pretends to be nothing else.

Rural Australia is not wealthy and not in a hurry. It is worried about when the rains will come, nervous about when the banks will come, and frustrated about when the roads will be fixed.

Rural Australia is generous and friendly. There may be not much money but it is always there for a mate in trouble.

Rural Australia knows that anything it doesn't have, it either doesn't need or is only a short trip away.



------------------
TT - Obligatory bad-tempered Richmond supporter
 
For much of the 70s-90s Australia was a country that punched above its weight for a fair and just society (and provided a great example for other western democracies) - the introduction of Medibank (and then revamped into Medicare), the opening up of universities to people not born of privilege, the fight for equal pay, the extension of the welfare net. during the beginning of the 90s we started grappling with issues of nationhood (should we be a republic?) and the great shame of how we have (and in some cases continue to do so) treated our indigenous brothers and sisters. The last 5 years have seen this country shrinking in stature so that any discussion of national identity almost automatically has to relate to a cricket field rather than illuminate the fact that we have gone from being a compassionate, smart nation that is concerned about everyones future to one which has a bleaker more selfish outlook. Things can change again - let's hope they do.
 
As someone who has worked all over this country & have travelled & worked overseas I think that Tin in Philly, BJ & Tiger Tank have summed it up well.
Sorry Alf but this stuffed country is still the best place in the world to live & work.
What does have to be changed is the negative complex the country has.



------------------
Goatmaster
the prime minister of the principality of Mooball
 
take your hat off tim the country we live in is beyond doubt the lucky country.sure i agree we have changed in attitude from being a "know worrries mate"care free country to more of a sofisticated complex country.
which is sad because of the care free attitude we had that do it no matter what attitude however now days we are turning into wingers which is driven by the all mighty dollar and the pressures to succeed and the one thing that we all dread which is sadly getting more common is the fear of losing our jobs.
however im proud to be an aussie i am proud waht my grandparents and your grandparents did for our country during the wars to sacafice their lives so we can live in this great country we have been blessed with.
poeple we may have changed in views and the way we live but WE ARE ALL AUSSIES
and thats somthing to be proud of
cheers!
 
Im pretty pissed at tim_still_philly

Ok mate things are bad where you are
but with the state of Australia at present can you assure me that ten years from now
that Melb Sydney or perth wont end up being another philadelphia?

BJ
I dont know for the life of me why you are having problems understanding with what im trying to say here,In general our society is out of control it is violent it is drug ridden and yes we are a racist group of people we tend to have little tolerance to those that were not born here and i find that very sad,Who ever thinks because we were born here that it gives us the right of ownership is a fool and a very sad fool.

TIM_still_in_philly
Fair go mate i feel so sad for the community you live in it it sounds cold and uncaring
a bit like the path we are going down but mate per capita we are no better,it is estimated that thousands upon thousands in this so called lucky country(thats gotta be a joke)are homeless,We to have lunatics running around mass killing innocent people a bit like where you live i suppose,for example,queen st massacre,hoddle st massacre
and the tragedy in tasmania.We to have our very own black ghetto its in a suberb of sydney maybe some one else can help me cause i have forgotten the name of the place.For people to say this is a great place to live well you are right to a certain degree,But to turn a blind eye to the problems of Australia BJ, is very much flirting with a great danger that will see us become another America within the next decade.
And i say again we are only Australian cause its the place in which we live it doesnt mean we are a better race of people than anyone else infact far from it.
 
I agree that Australia has a lot of problems which we have to work through and that we have been moving towards a more selfish society which has to be changed before we go down the same path as the States.
But I have been to countries where you are actually fearful of being attacked. In some countries I've been to (PNG, Panama, and to a lesser extent USA) you see guns everywhere and it's surprising how quickly you get used to seeing guns all the time, problem is it's not always the cops and security guards you see with the guns. Several times in the States me and my brother would happen to walk into the wrong inner-city neighbourhood and you knew that you'd have to get out quick or else you'd be the next victim.
A good thing about Australia is the gun laws, they have helped keep the crime levels a lot lower than they could be if the guns laws were more lenient.
Redfern is the suburb which was a bit of a ghetto but it isn't really as bad as the media make out a lot of the time except for one or 2 blocks which have (or are going to be) redeveloped, the Aboriginal Housing Board there were going to redevelop the area known as the 'Block'.
Unfortunately in Sydney over the past couple of years there have been other suburbs which have gained a reputation for crime and its taken the heat off Redfern a bit.
 
Interesting topic, and I've liked reading everyone's replies.

Magpie_Joffa I understand where you're coming from, as the drug rates for teenagers get higher every year, and there is quite a bit of racism in this country, but we really are the lucky country. Most countries in the world envy Australia.

I recently met a girl from South Africa, who was in Melbourne for an exchange program. She said she was amazed at the caring nature of Australian people, and the fact that we are able to go into the city at night. Sure, there are lunatic people around, but that happens everywhere in the world. This exchange student told me that everyday after school they go straight home, because there are gangs on the streets of Cape Town, which are renowned for rape attacks.

This is just an example and I'm not saying that you're views are wrong or whatever, but I personally feel really lucky to have been born in Australia.

The only part that really pisses me off is the fact that we are trying to become America, and if that's the case, then in the near future, we're going to be screwed.
 

Remove this Banner Ad

Not a footy topic, so don't get upset... being Australian

Remove this Banner Ad

Back
Top