There is a single group of people amongst the most hateful, bigoted and closed minded in the world. This has nothing to do with religion, ethnicity, location or gender. The people i am referring to are people who trawl through news websites and leave comments when given an opportunity.
These appear to be the same people no matter the topic. Preaching their hate and supporting their own agenda - even if it has nothing to do with the subject at hand. A story on cricket will collapse into a discussion on federal politics and, in America, a story about a funeral will descend into a debate on gun rights in freedom. Lately, the conflict in Syria has given ample opportunities for people to reveal their vast knowledge on the subject. Somehow, Pete from Panania believes he knows more than those in government throughout the world and would be able to solve all of the problems.
Often these people are referred to as trolls. I do not like this as it dehumanises them. you take away their human aspect and then you begin to make excuses for their words. These are people. Real people. Albeit ones that have the time to comment on stories throughout the day - probably at their employer's expense.
Recently there was a double homicide in Glendora with two homeless men stabbed late at night in a car wash. I read with interest and it was a big story in a sleepy town. It shocked me that the first four comments were all jokes. today i read an article about the poor Australian shot in Oklahoma. At the bottom, the comments quickly descended into a left versus right debate on racism and gun laws. I was sickened. Where was the respect? People bringing up the Trayvon Martin-Zimmerman case and very few paying tribute to a life cut tragically short.
There are a few different kinds of these people: those who peddle hate believing they are right and making a difference; people spruiking supposed intellectual superiority; people sucked in and who end up being aggressive and personal when others are not reasonable; and those simply stirring the pot. Neither of these are any better than any others. They are all clumped in the same bottom of the barrel, group.
Henry Rollins said something memorable and en pointe when i saw him in Sydney. He said that these people only speak on account of their anonymity. They have avatars such as Patriot_03 or TruBluAussie and say offensive things about subjects they know very little. The kind of stuff they would not dare say if they were accountable or needed to leave appropriate sources.
Who is to blame and how do we fix it? The news websites do need to shoulder some blame here. You will not find the comment option below bland stories without minority groups or political input. The media outlets blow the dog whistle and, as the readers can remain anonymous, they respond resoundingly.
The people themselves may be beyond help. The fact that they have time to leave comments all through the days speaks volumes. The existence of conspiracy theories and that you can kind a fundamentalist group for everything online provides the views. These news sites are the outlets.
Cut off the outlet, cut off the power. If only the news websites had the moral fibres...
Do me and yourself a big favour. When it comes to commenting on news websites, please, just say no.
Tuesday, 27 August 2013
Friday, 16 August 2013
Glendora, my new home.
I have found myself in a quaint, queer location to live for the next five months or so. Glendora, the town where Laura grew up, refers to itself as the pride of the foothills. Located about 30 - 200 minutes from LA (depending on traffic), smack bang in the bible belt of California and with the mountains to the north, it is somewhat similar to the town of Spectre in the movie Big Fish. People are happy and friendly and the little town is perfect. Why would anyone ever want to leave?
My final sentences are said with the same sort of sentiment Donald Horne used when he referred to Australia as "the lucky country". Glendora is very nice but there is a whole world out there that seems to be passed by and many appear content to not journey outside of the Orange County. It also appears to be the town that the Democrats forgot. From speaking to people to seeing bumper stickers, there is a lot more NObama going on than PrObama. Yesterday i saw a car with an "OMG" (Obama must go) sticker beside another which was peeling and clearly someone had tried to pull off. The remnants read "Romney 2012" and i saw this as a nice metaphor of the difficulty it is to take away the stain of the Conservative parties once you let it stick to you once.
The people are friendly, very friendly, and it is often a happy experience to go for a drive, go to the shops or stop off anywhere in general as someone is likely to strike up a conversation and just be downright pleasant. There is a clear style, at least with the boys. There is a big emphasis on trucks and guns with beer and women probably coming a close third and fourth. The So-Cal goatee is ever present and you are likely to find tattoos on people although not of the neck variety (which i often came across in San Jose). Most of all, a Dodgers hat or shirt is assured.
Driving can be a real treat and not just because of the wide, open streets and lack of roundabouts. In the last week, i know two people who have seen bears when they are out driving. And not up in the mountains or something but both on roads which i have to use every day to get to work. Why, more often than not over the past two weeks i have gone past peacocks when driving to work! The cute little downtown section (which consists of a single street) is also a very nice area to drive down, have lunch or have a lot of beers at T Phillips. The quaintness is often reiterated in small ways by things you do not expect to see. Driving along near where we are staying, we have found lemonade stalls on weekends run by little girls with help from their parents. 50cents for a cup with free re-fills they tell us. This kind of old school charm is irresistible to me and naturally, we left a little tip.
Glendora is somewhat well known for several reasons. These are the things that i find queer. It is a bit more than a simple, small town and it is interesting that such a small, quiet town can have numerous claims to fame. Firstly, Route 66 dissects the town. The famous West to East freeway which no doubt brings in tourists, business and provides names for businesses (from bars to car washes to discount stores!). On this famous Route lies an equally famous store called Donut Man. It is a small, delicious establishment with famous donuts containing peaches and strawberries. It is claimed that Elvis frequented the store (or at least his minders) and it probably assisted in his downfall.
There is also a castle in Glendora. A crazed man apparently resides there and always wanted to live in a castle. So, when he came into enough money, that is exactly what he built for himself. It takes up a huge block of a corner and school children supposedly go on "field trips" (excursions) there. As mentioned earlier, Glendora is in the bible belt of California and there are many, many churches and places of worship found throughout the area. As well as this, there are a lot of schools given the relatively small area.
Speaking of schools... as i mentioned, Glendora is dissected by Route 66 which is also a bit of a socio-economic dissection with (generally) the nicer part of town to one side. There are many rich areas and a lot of money floating around. So much so that most all of the 16 year old school kids drive around in BMWs, Audis or other cars which i could only dream about getting behind the wheel of as a teenager! A privileged life, that is for sure!
Something which i find pretty astonishing is that, no matter what time of day you leave your house, you are bound to find heaps of people exercising. People running, biking, walking.. .they are everywhere! And it makes me feel like people are often self conscious but also healthy, i suppose. Surely a pro outweighing a con. The exercise apparel stores must make an absolute killing in the area and although i have not gone to a gym, i can only imagine most people have two or three memberships.
Glendora has been good to me and i hope it continues to be. The people are great although i can see a tendency of people getting "stuck". However i suppose this is similar everywhere else in the world. People can definitely make a life for themselves here but it is not something i see myself doing down the track. The people, events and weather make it enjoyable to be here. Without Laura i would definitely not have stayed here as my penchant for bigger cities is an insatiable beast of desire, but i am glad i did. It is good to get new perspectives, meet new friends and understand what makes these places tick.
To Glendora, on a temporary basis, i give a big tick.
My final sentences are said with the same sort of sentiment Donald Horne used when he referred to Australia as "the lucky country". Glendora is very nice but there is a whole world out there that seems to be passed by and many appear content to not journey outside of the Orange County. It also appears to be the town that the Democrats forgot. From speaking to people to seeing bumper stickers, there is a lot more NObama going on than PrObama. Yesterday i saw a car with an "OMG" (Obama must go) sticker beside another which was peeling and clearly someone had tried to pull off. The remnants read "Romney 2012" and i saw this as a nice metaphor of the difficulty it is to take away the stain of the Conservative parties once you let it stick to you once.
The people are friendly, very friendly, and it is often a happy experience to go for a drive, go to the shops or stop off anywhere in general as someone is likely to strike up a conversation and just be downright pleasant. There is a clear style, at least with the boys. There is a big emphasis on trucks and guns with beer and women probably coming a close third and fourth. The So-Cal goatee is ever present and you are likely to find tattoos on people although not of the neck variety (which i often came across in San Jose). Most of all, a Dodgers hat or shirt is assured.
Driving can be a real treat and not just because of the wide, open streets and lack of roundabouts. In the last week, i know two people who have seen bears when they are out driving. And not up in the mountains or something but both on roads which i have to use every day to get to work. Why, more often than not over the past two weeks i have gone past peacocks when driving to work! The cute little downtown section (which consists of a single street) is also a very nice area to drive down, have lunch or have a lot of beers at T Phillips. The quaintness is often reiterated in small ways by things you do not expect to see. Driving along near where we are staying, we have found lemonade stalls on weekends run by little girls with help from their parents. 50cents for a cup with free re-fills they tell us. This kind of old school charm is irresistible to me and naturally, we left a little tip.
Glendora is somewhat well known for several reasons. These are the things that i find queer. It is a bit more than a simple, small town and it is interesting that such a small, quiet town can have numerous claims to fame. Firstly, Route 66 dissects the town. The famous West to East freeway which no doubt brings in tourists, business and provides names for businesses (from bars to car washes to discount stores!). On this famous Route lies an equally famous store called Donut Man. It is a small, delicious establishment with famous donuts containing peaches and strawberries. It is claimed that Elvis frequented the store (or at least his minders) and it probably assisted in his downfall.
There is also a castle in Glendora. A crazed man apparently resides there and always wanted to live in a castle. So, when he came into enough money, that is exactly what he built for himself. It takes up a huge block of a corner and school children supposedly go on "field trips" (excursions) there. As mentioned earlier, Glendora is in the bible belt of California and there are many, many churches and places of worship found throughout the area. As well as this, there are a lot of schools given the relatively small area.
Speaking of schools... as i mentioned, Glendora is dissected by Route 66 which is also a bit of a socio-economic dissection with (generally) the nicer part of town to one side. There are many rich areas and a lot of money floating around. So much so that most all of the 16 year old school kids drive around in BMWs, Audis or other cars which i could only dream about getting behind the wheel of as a teenager! A privileged life, that is for sure!
Something which i find pretty astonishing is that, no matter what time of day you leave your house, you are bound to find heaps of people exercising. People running, biking, walking.. .they are everywhere! And it makes me feel like people are often self conscious but also healthy, i suppose. Surely a pro outweighing a con. The exercise apparel stores must make an absolute killing in the area and although i have not gone to a gym, i can only imagine most people have two or three memberships.
Glendora has been good to me and i hope it continues to be. The people are great although i can see a tendency of people getting "stuck". However i suppose this is similar everywhere else in the world. People can definitely make a life for themselves here but it is not something i see myself doing down the track. The people, events and weather make it enjoyable to be here. Without Laura i would definitely not have stayed here as my penchant for bigger cities is an insatiable beast of desire, but i am glad i did. It is good to get new perspectives, meet new friends and understand what makes these places tick.
To Glendora, on a temporary basis, i give a big tick.
Tuesday, 6 August 2013
Music is the language of us all!
Over the past three weeks I have had the ridiculously incredible opportunity to see three of my all time favourite acts in three different venues throughout California. At every one of these gigs I had several reality checks. The fact that I was seeing the show. The fact that I was in California. And the fact that I was able to share these with Laura.
First cab off the rank was The Cat Empire at the Avalon in Hollywood. We walked over some of the stars and took in the amazing juxtaposition of homelessness and fabulousness staring each other in the eyes. The night marked the two year anniversary of me and the cricket boys meeting Laura and Amanda (who was accompanying us!) in Hawaii. True to form, we started the night with a tequila shot. The lead up act, That1Guy was the kind of curious, out of this world experience I have come to expect with Cat Empire lead ups. A young fella playing a large pipe which may have had a past life involving a loofah and shampoo. His lyricism and sound had to be seen to be believed.
As great as he was, the Cat Empire were what we had come to see. Their mix of brass, keys, drums, bass and baritone is always the perfect recipe for a dance party and feel good vibes. They preached fun, happiness, equality, soul and rhythm. We left jumping, smiling and rejoicing at what we had just seen. They just put you in the mood to enjoy everything and really reinforced that music IS the language of us all.
The following week we drove out to the OC State Fair to see the Flaming Lips in an amphitheater show. It had been four years since I had caught up with them and my adoration has grown a great deal since. I checked them out, on spec, at splendour in the grass after reading how brilliant their live shows were. I have not stopped talking about them since and they did not let us down. Wayne Coyne walked past us to check out the fair as we were walking in. He looked like he had been dressed by Lady Gaga with big hair, shimmering blue suit and glitter mixed in his face makeup. They sang those sad sounding songs which find a way to be uplifting and inherently positive, all the while playing tight music and giving us a laser and light show that would rival the Sydney New Years fireworks. They told us that we realized. They spoke about tolerance, acceptance, happiness and overall love. Obviously the most important thing. They flew in on their little spaceship, reminded us to live for the now and make the most of it. Also, I have to make mention of the Growlers. The opening act who mixed their clearly marijuana induced, surfy tendencies with alternative music and fun props.
Last night was a performance I have been very excited to go to. Getting to see Xavier Rudd in California was mind boggling. The way i talked about going felt like i was just heading to the pub to catch up with a mate. A small, intimate venue and the chance to share one of my heroes with Laura. We arrived to find table seating and asked to have a meal there, which meant we got preferential seating. We found ourselves three and four back from the stage just to the right of centre. It was worth the chicken teriyaki I partly choked down. The opener was Nahko and Medicine for the People who I had heard great things about and was looking forward to seeing. The biggest compliment I could give is that I can understand why Xavier chose them to tour with him. His words were inspiring and his voice is one which you can not ignore. They sang of similar themes to Xavier - saving the earth, harmony, love and making the most of your life.
Xavier finally came on to his war chest of guitars, drums and didgeridoos. It is quite imposing to see one man in front of so many instruments but it is an entirely different experience to see him play them all at once! It was a quiet, chilled little venue and the mix of ages spoke volumes about how transcendent his music can be. There is no target audience except for humanity. He played for two hours solid and played with the crowd, got people on stage to dance and whipped up a frenzy. His voice, his message and his sound gave me goosebumps for just about the entire performance and I felt lucky to be able to experience it.
The obvious question is "who was the best?" but there isn't a clear answer. I think, with "do you realize??" and "messages", I probably heard my two all time favourite songs. Then you have "sly" and "in my pocket" from the cat empire too. It was a group of wise, content and passionate people. People I would like to see collaborate. Not necessarily musically. Just get them together, let them do something, let them live. We will all be better due to whatever they end up with.
Live music gets me every time. It gives me a rush, it makes me feel creative and it makes me so happy. These past three weeks have made me want to be a better person, a better friend, a better boyfriend and leave this earth with no mark. To keep it pure. The group contains some of the most inspirational, fun and cool people I know. It is no secret that I want to be like them. Everyone should strive to - the world would be a better place.
First cab off the rank was The Cat Empire at the Avalon in Hollywood. We walked over some of the stars and took in the amazing juxtaposition of homelessness and fabulousness staring each other in the eyes. The night marked the two year anniversary of me and the cricket boys meeting Laura and Amanda (who was accompanying us!) in Hawaii. True to form, we started the night with a tequila shot. The lead up act, That1Guy was the kind of curious, out of this world experience I have come to expect with Cat Empire lead ups. A young fella playing a large pipe which may have had a past life involving a loofah and shampoo. His lyricism and sound had to be seen to be believed.
As great as he was, the Cat Empire were what we had come to see. Their mix of brass, keys, drums, bass and baritone is always the perfect recipe for a dance party and feel good vibes. They preached fun, happiness, equality, soul and rhythm. We left jumping, smiling and rejoicing at what we had just seen. They just put you in the mood to enjoy everything and really reinforced that music IS the language of us all.
The following week we drove out to the OC State Fair to see the Flaming Lips in an amphitheater show. It had been four years since I had caught up with them and my adoration has grown a great deal since. I checked them out, on spec, at splendour in the grass after reading how brilliant their live shows were. I have not stopped talking about them since and they did not let us down. Wayne Coyne walked past us to check out the fair as we were walking in. He looked like he had been dressed by Lady Gaga with big hair, shimmering blue suit and glitter mixed in his face makeup. They sang those sad sounding songs which find a way to be uplifting and inherently positive, all the while playing tight music and giving us a laser and light show that would rival the Sydney New Years fireworks. They told us that we realized. They spoke about tolerance, acceptance, happiness and overall love. Obviously the most important thing. They flew in on their little spaceship, reminded us to live for the now and make the most of it. Also, I have to make mention of the Growlers. The opening act who mixed their clearly marijuana induced, surfy tendencies with alternative music and fun props.
Last night was a performance I have been very excited to go to. Getting to see Xavier Rudd in California was mind boggling. The way i talked about going felt like i was just heading to the pub to catch up with a mate. A small, intimate venue and the chance to share one of my heroes with Laura. We arrived to find table seating and asked to have a meal there, which meant we got preferential seating. We found ourselves three and four back from the stage just to the right of centre. It was worth the chicken teriyaki I partly choked down. The opener was Nahko and Medicine for the People who I had heard great things about and was looking forward to seeing. The biggest compliment I could give is that I can understand why Xavier chose them to tour with him. His words were inspiring and his voice is one which you can not ignore. They sang of similar themes to Xavier - saving the earth, harmony, love and making the most of your life.
Xavier finally came on to his war chest of guitars, drums and didgeridoos. It is quite imposing to see one man in front of so many instruments but it is an entirely different experience to see him play them all at once! It was a quiet, chilled little venue and the mix of ages spoke volumes about how transcendent his music can be. There is no target audience except for humanity. He played for two hours solid and played with the crowd, got people on stage to dance and whipped up a frenzy. His voice, his message and his sound gave me goosebumps for just about the entire performance and I felt lucky to be able to experience it.
The obvious question is "who was the best?" but there isn't a clear answer. I think, with "do you realize??" and "messages", I probably heard my two all time favourite songs. Then you have "sly" and "in my pocket" from the cat empire too. It was a group of wise, content and passionate people. People I would like to see collaborate. Not necessarily musically. Just get them together, let them do something, let them live. We will all be better due to whatever they end up with.
Live music gets me every time. It gives me a rush, it makes me feel creative and it makes me so happy. These past three weeks have made me want to be a better person, a better friend, a better boyfriend and leave this earth with no mark. To keep it pure. The group contains some of the most inspirational, fun and cool people I know. It is no secret that I want to be like them. Everyone should strive to - the world would be a better place.
Saturday, 3 August 2013
Four Months Departed
Unbelievably to me, I am fast approaching the four month mark away from home. This is the longest period i have ever spent away from home and it is bewildering to think how quickly the weeks have passed me by.
Only now has life fallen into some sort of routine. I do not know if routine is the right word for this actually. Last weekend i was in Las Vegas, on Wednesday i was at a gig at the OC State Fair and on Monday i am going to another gig. That is some sort of routine... Pretty much, i just still feel like i am on holidays as long as i am not at work. Frequently i am going out mid-week, having a few drinks, seeing some sights and almost being a tourist. Work is enjoyable though. The actual tasks as much as keeping busy and having a use.
The three months prior presented a massive opportunity for me. As I was not working and had no real engagements at all, there was a lot of time i had to delegate. In this time I could have written my piece de resistance, gotten super fit and desirable, taught myself to play guitar, become and excellent chef... the options were limitless. The only limit, the sky.
Alas, I did not do any of these things. Instead I watched baseball, ate too much, drank too much, spent too much and had trouble getting to sleep before 3am. Was it laziness? Jet lag? Homesickness?Lack of motivation? A combination of them all?! Who knows! Do i regret this time seemingly wasted when Laura was working or studying, Australia was sleeping and the Giants were not playing? Short answer yes but i am going to try and justify it!
I have worked out at least two things about myself due to this time and these are both aspects of me which i am okay with. Firstly, I am chill enough to cope with downtime. I am absolutely able to relax and, come the right time, I will be the best damn retiree around. At this point my mindset will change from "there is nothing i can not do!" to the more realistic "there is nothing to do!" and i will be fine with that. My body will cope.
Secondly, my new life has been 5,000x busier since beginning work. I exercise, i write, i cook, i socialise, i play. Maybe it is me desperately trying to regain hours lost to work but either way i do a lot more and want to do more. by doing things, i am motivated to do even more again. Perhaps this is not just me but something in human nature thing (not the Motown group) but either way it is a promising development for me getting the most out of my remaining time in the United States.
I suppose self discovery is one thing but putting things into action is another. Hopefully i would not waste such an opportunity in the future when it comes to spare time. I think the ball just needs to be set into motion. And as the immortal Mick Jagger has proven, a rolling stone gathers no moss.
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