There’s a lot of press surrounding a music festival that’s happening in Brisbane in February and for once it’s not about recreational drugs or the ridiculous cost of alcohol. This time it’s about the fact this is a neo-nazi festival. Hammered occurs on (or around) Hitler’s birthday and attracts neo-nazi skinhe and white supremacists people from all over the world to listen to music and generally meet up with like-minded people. It’s the 3rd year that it’s been held in Queensland and the 20th year that these guys have been organising events and gigs in Australia.
Let me be clear: I loathe and detest racism and especially white supremacy. It is abhorrent in every conceivable way and in my opinion they should just blow up the venue where the festival is being held to rid of the words of the these revolting people. It boggles my mind that there are enough neo-nazi’s in Australia that they can hold an entire festival, though admittedly you can call just about anything a festival these days, so long as there’s a few bands and some merch and food stalls.
People are petitioning for the festival to be banned, and I don’t blame them. The thought of a large group of like-minded, bigoted idiots coming together to share their racist ideals and opinions leaves me cold. But can it be banned? Apparently the State Government can’t ban the festival because in itself, the festival is not illegal. Which is fair enough. While the festival and the people attending go against everything I believe it, they have the right to their own beliefs. Hate speech, while deplorable, is not illegal unless someone is directly victimised. But on the other hand, how likely is it that this festival will result in some form of illegal activity? Sure, you have to apply directly to the promoters to be interviewed before they will disclose the location of the festival to you, but surely the location will slip out and there will be people going to protest the event which could easily result in verbal attacks or physical violence.
After much inner debate I feel that the festival, as wretched as it is, should be allowed to go ahead. Allow me to explain why before you shake your fist at me! First of all, these people will be neo-nazi’s/white supremacists no mater whether the event happens or not. Cancelling it will not make them say “Maybe I shouldn’t be a neo-nazi any more, since it’s clearly not welcome in Queensland, therefore I am going to change my racist ways immediately”. In fact it will probably just anger them more and there’s nothing worse than an angry bigot! Then there’s a fact a lot of the attendees probably lead quiet lives and use this event as an outlet for their beliefs. While most people disagree with their beliefs, if they are otherwise decent, contributing members of the society then what harm does it do if they attend a festival such as this? Then there’s the fact I have not heard of any issues arising from previous events and after a bit of searching couldn’t find any news articles about there being multiple arrests because of fights between these guys and protesters.
I had a look through a forum where they promote the festival from last year, and while their whole philosophy (ie. the fourteen words) enrages me beyond belief, they don’t seem to be worried about anything but having a good time. So while I wish people like this did not exist, I have to reluctantly admit there is no good reason to cancel this event. All this media attention has done is spread the word to many more people which undoubtedly means it’s been exposed to a heap more racists who were previously unaware of the event/sub culture. Ideally I’d rather hear nothing about it in the press and let them do their thing and let it remain a small sub culture that will eventually die out and be a distant, embarrassing memory.
What are your thoughts on banning the Hammered festival?
About Ruby
My name is Cara (but you can call me Ruby) and I like the colour pink, swearing, fist shaking, daggy dancing and 90s RnB music. Often all at once. I live in Brisbane which is always warm and is famous for its zombies.
YAY! It’s 2012. Which is significant for me for a few reasons (ie. I turn 30, though if that Mayan calendar thing is actually true, we all die two days before my birthday). I also have some big plans for this year which I am very excited about (I will go into further detail as they start to pop up).
The first, exciting thing I have done so far was finally upgraded my poor 6 year old HP laptop for a brand spankin’ new HP desktop. I’m not computer savvy enough to worry about building my own computer and HP have proved themselves with how well they work for me. So now I will be able to get back into graphic design stuff (did I mention the fact it’s a touch screen computer? Coz it is!) and also VIDEO EDITING! I am pretty darn excited about the though of this, as I haven’t been about to do much proper editing with my old laptop. I’m not entirely sure what I will be editing exactly, but I will make sure it’s good :D
Also to start off my year with a bang, I am off to Melbourne for a few days. Which is going to be SO MUCH FUN. I haven’t been there since early 2008 and as an old school Victorian (I lived in country Vic until I was 9 years old) it holds such a dear place in my heart. I also went with someone who is no longer my friend and also wasn’t very much fun, so I am excited to share this visit with good friend Miss Mia Doll. I plan to go shopping, see some sights and go out and relish in how much trendier and more exciting Melbourne is compared to poor sleepy Brisbane. There will be a massive post to follow!
To celebrate the new year and because they were well overdue, I got my nails did. I knew I wouldn’t be bothered doing any designs of my own so I got them to add some cute little sparkly bows on my ring finger nails. They look MUCH better in real life, but until I get Photoshop working on this computer, I had to use this dodgy photo of them. I have decided this year I am going to get WAY into nail art and experiment a lot more. So if you know me in real life, hit me up so I can do your nails and get lots of practice!
OK well I really ought to pack, since I really haven’t started and have to be at the airport by 7am tomorrow morning. I look forward to sharing my exciting new adventures with you all very soon!
On Tuesday night Australia had it’s Census night, something that only happens once every five years and aims to “accurately count the number of people in Australia, their key characteristics, and the dwellings in which they live”. For a survey-loving nerd like me, it’s something to look forward to, especially as this is the first time I’ve done it as an actual adult (I was overseas during the last one in ’06 and before that I was just a gangly teen living with my parents).
So it was with great disappointment that I completed the eCensus, since the lazy girl didn’t give us a paper form (yes I have the damn internet but I like paper forms!) when I realised just how little data they really get from us. They could collect some really interesting data from us all, stuff that would reflect the real Australia and help make some really important changes to how things are run in our country. But instead it was all about where we live, who we live with, if we work and where, if we’ve studied, what’s our religion and have we had babies. BORING.
This is the sort of thing I would have liked to have seen on the Census this year:
What is you sexual orientation?
Do you support gay marriage?
Do you regularly practice your religion (ie. attend church each week, daily prayer sessions etc)?
(If not currently working) Are you currently on maternity/paternity leave?
(If unmarried) Do you plan to ever get married?
(If currently childless) Are you planning to have children?
Should Australia become a republic?
Did you cry at the end of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows?
There are endless possibilities and we’d learn a huge amount about the people who live in this country if the questions went a lit bit deeper than “What religion are you” or “do you have a job”. Then there’s the fact a lot of the questions don’t delve deep enough, like whether or not you’re on maternal leave which is why you’re not currently working. Or as this person points out, the fact there are different levels of disability than being unable to look after yourself and needing assistance from another human being to complete certain functions. And I mean, what better way to help decide if gay couples should have the right to marry than to ask the Australian public what they think about it? Imagine how much Australian politics would benefit if we could all give our opinion on matters such as the carbon tax, stance on refugees and whether or not we should become a republic? Of course there’d need to be an option of “no answer” for the boring lot who can’t stand the idea of innovation or revealing the tings they actually believe in. But I think most people would be very receptive to these sorts of questions.
In 99 years when all of our info becomes public, the people of the future will learn little to nothing about how society was in 2011 except X amount of people walked to work on Tuesday 9th August 2011 and 40% of Australians still think it’s funny to write “Jedi” or “Pastafarian” as their religion. YAWN. There was so much potential and it was wasted. I can only hope thing will spice up in the 2016 census, and get asked questions that will actually help shape our damn nation and not to see what mode of transport I took to get to work on that day (which incidentally did not reflect the way I usually travel to work every day and pains me greatly).
What questions would you have liked to see on the 2011 census?
What a sad day. A talented musician plagued with a deep sadness that prevented her from successfully fighting her battle with drugs and alcohol passed away at the tender age of 27. As Tammy said, “She sang the blues so well because she knew it so well”.
It saddens me that so many people think “Oh well, she was a drug addict, it’s no surprise really and I don’t feel bad for her”. In my opinion, people don’t choose to be come drug addicts, there is something inside them that makes them feel the need to kill themselves slowly with harmful substances. I’m sure she didn’t wake up one day and say “I am going to start doing drugs for a bit of a laugh so that it makes me extremely sick and ruins my career”. She was a tormented soul who couldn’t deal with the fame and the horrific paparazzi who hounded her ceaselessly. Her outlet was drinking and taking drugs and it eventually killed her.
She was so extremely talented and until the addictions ravaged her, she was a gorgeous young woman who had a bright future ahead of her. If only singing about her woes had been enough to get her through the dark times. I try not to look at the photos of her where she is emaciated and a shadow of her former self, because that was not who she was. Instead I look at her in happier times and listen to her music and think about what could have been had she had the strength to pull through.
I had never heard of this event before until a work mate mentioned it to me today. Her friend is keen to take part in the rally and asked her to help support the cause, but my workmate was feeling conflicted about what she thought of the event. We had a great discussion about our thoughts on what SlutWalk stands for, and even had some male perspective thrown in from another work mate.
If you’ve never heard of it, it is essentially a rally for women who have had enough of the perception that a woman deserves to get raped because of the outfit she was wearing or the way she was acting. It is also claimed they take back the world “slut” so that the meaning becomes that of someone who enjoys sex, as opposed to the negative meaning it currently has.
I have to admit, I am very conflicted about this as well. As I have said in previous posts, a woman should be able to walk down the street completely naked without fear of being raped. And if a girl wants to wear a short skirt, dance suggestively and have a party pash while extremely intoxicated, she has ever right to do so without running the risk of EVER being raped. Men should be able to handle their desires for sex, they should be able to look at a girl in skimpy clothing and not want to rape her. But I am also a realist and feel that women who can’t handle their alcohol or give off a vulnerable vibe need to be more mindful of how they’re perceived in order to lower their chances of being attacked by the kinds of people who are out there with rape on their minds.
I also absolutely abhor the word “slut”. I think it is the most repulsive word. I find it far worse thasn the C-bomb because of what it means to most people and how it gets used. To me a slut is someone (male or female) who has frequent, unprotected sex without any regard for their own well-being, let alone that of their sexual partners. But that’s not how most people think of the word nor how they use it. It’s a word used specifically for women (if ever it gets used for men, it’s always male-slut) and is used for any female who happens to enjoy having casual sex. It doesn’t matter that she uses protection or even if knows the guy/s, the fact she’s having sex with men who aren’t her boyfriend more than once in a blue moon is something to look down upon and use a foul name to describe her character.
I don’t know how they expect to reclaim the world slut, because it was never “ours” to begin with. It’s not like the word faggot (another one of my most hated words) that actually means a bundle of sticks. Nor the word “cunt” which is a slang word for vagina and in my opinion, should not be considered the worst swear word, because there’s nothing wrong with vagina’s, thank you very much! The word “slut” has negative connotations and can never be reclaimed. It didn’t once mean something nice and innocent, it’s always meant the same awful thing. I’ve never heard the word used in anything but a hateful, demeaning and misogynistic way and I don’t want it reclaimed, if ever that were possible. If I had my way the word would be wiped from everyone’s memories and never used again.
I feel they are going about this the wrong way. As my male workmate said, rapists usually aren’t targeting women for what they’re wearing, they’re targeting the vulnerable. Why would they target a girl confident enough to wear a micro mini skirt when they could go for the meek girl who’s covered up but obviously wouldn’t put up much of a fight? This perception that women who wear “slutty” outfits or stumbles around drunkenly after a big night out and then get raped were “asking for it” is not the opinion of the rapists, but of the general public. Even in this modern day and age, many people still have the old-fashioned and sexist idea that a woman is asking for sex (consensual or not) when she wears certain clothing. These ideas are hideously old fashioned but they’re also deeply ingrained in many people, so having a march called SlutWalk isn’t going to make them say “Oh, they’re right, a woman should be able to wear what she wants and not get raped for it”. More than likely they think all of the participants are being hysterical feminists or that they’re just trying to justify their wicked ways with a protest.
I appreciate what the SlutWalk is setting out to achieve, and I hope I am wrong and it does raise awareness on the matter and converts some peoples way of thinking about women who enjoy sex and/or likes to wear skimpy clothing. But I really do think there’s a good chance they’re doing just as much harm as good by drawing attention to and essentially reinforcing the negative stereotypes of promiscuous women by calling it SlutWalk and then having half the participants dressing as “sluts”. If I didn’t have plans tomorrow, I’d go on the walk and see what it’s all about, in case I am missing something that would allow me to be more enthusiastic about the event. After all, anything that encourages feminism in younger generations is a good thing, and for that I am thankful for the SlutWalk phenomenon.
For now I will leave you with an comment left on an article on the Brisbane Times which sums up my feelings about the whole thing quite well:
This reminds me of bra burning, something that still defies a reasonable explanation. This action will do little to change the minds of arrogant men and disappoints others by it being a manic over-reaction.
I would like to know what you think on this issue, and if you’ve attended one of the SlutWalks. Am I being too sensitive because I hate the word “slut” so much? Or do you agree that this could be done in a different way with an even more positive outcome?
OK so we all know about Rebecca Black and her unfortunate song Friday. I am actually of the opinion it’s not that bad, I mean it is pretty crap but it definitely is not the worst song someone has sung and posted on Youtube in all seriousness. In fact if she got a few singing lessons and wrote her own songs (I’m 100% sure a 13 year old could write better lyrics than the dick who wrote Friday) she wouldn’t be that bad.
So in defence of an innocent teenager who is the laughing stock of the enture internet, I would like to present to you all, the worst music videos on the internet as picked by me:
Treasure by Namata
This is, in my opinion, one of the greatest things to ever get uploaded to Youtube. It is so bad it’s AMAZING! The only bad thing about it, in my opinion, is how it can stay stuck in my head for days after listening to it just once. I really hope this guy gets a record deal one day. And that he never stops dancing like that because it is mesmerising.
Give It To Me by Madonna (feat Pharrell)
Bad songs and music videos aren’t just for the realm of the pathetic wannabe popstar, here we have a stunning example of how one of the most famous popstars of all times paired with one of the best urban producers can get it so wrong. The song itself makes me want to scrape my ears off with a soup spoon, let alone the eye-raping video. Good lord Madonna, they’re called pants, try wearing them for a change now that you’re 50 years old.
No Way No Way by Vanilla
How about this little treasure from the late 90s. Anything that samples Mah Nà Mah Nà that isn’t aimed specifically at kids has got to be bad and this is just about the worst. Actually, it’s been voted the worst music video a number of times. Check out those outfits… I was sure that sort of stuff went out of fashion in 1993 but clearly Essex is a good five years behind everything ever.
Je Suis Une Dolly by Dolly Rockers
Well I don’t even know where to begin with this little treasure, also a talentless British girl group. Sometimes Pommy accents make songs sound brilliant, but most of the time they make a song sound like complete arse. Uneducated, chavish arse. And look at how wacky they are, dancing on the tube! I find it amusing how 60% of the reaction shots are of people looking appalled, the rest of pervy men taking photos on their phones. Which incidently, appears to be how this clip was filmed. Oh and look, they actually got a budget and remade the same clip with a new song.
Party Like a Millionaire by The Millionaires
Want to know something really sad? Ke$ha wasn’t the first one who started trash-pop. Oh no, these young ladies were around before she got her big break with Tik Tok and before she ruined my eyes/eardrums with We R Who We R (seriously, that is not a song, it is autotune over the sound of a garbage truck with bad product placement scattered everywhere). I can’t even comprehend this song, I mean, what did their parents think when they heard the first line? As much as I hate Ke$ha, at least she keeps the tight-pussies and hard-dick lyrics to herself. Meanwhile, if you’d like to make yourself feel smart and extremely articulate, take a look at their Millionaires Dictionary video. Good god.
Bearforce1 by Bearforce1
OK so I’ve focused on the ladies way too much. How about something that is aimed so specifically at a certain target audience, it pretty much alienates about 99.9% of the entire world. I personally don’t think it’s that bad, in fact for a gay bear dance song, it’s probably the top of it’s game. Also, their pastel shirts and white pants are just adorable. But if you’re hoping to make your straight, male friends uncomfortable, this clip will do the trick.
Imma Be Rocking That Body by Black Eyed Peas
This clip just proves that no matter how much money you pour into a music video, the shittiness of the song still radiates through. Seriously, can someone explain to me what the hell is going on here? And then try and explain how the Black Eyed Peas became this bad? I don’t even think it’s Fergie’s fault any more, they’re all responsible for turning the group so shit. Someone needs to confiscate their SFX mic and explain to them songs don’t need to change style 7 times to keep the youth of today interested.
Because I could probably keep adding to this list forever, I will leave it with this hilarious version of Friday. Gang Fight!
So if you’re one of those Rebecca Black haters, please just think about what Simon Cowell said about her and her song:
He advised Black not to “listen to anyone over the age of 18. I’m being deadly serious. Whatever she’s done has worked. Whether you like her or not, she’s the most talked-about artist in America right now. Nobody over the age of 18 should understand her or like her. So she should just do it her way.”
Bad music videos ain’t anything new, there are millions out there far worse than anything a 13 year old Californian girl could ever hope to create. Instead of hatin’, celebrate how she is just adding to the list of hilarious awful tings we will all reminisce about when we’re old folks.
Did you think you were going to get away with me not mentioning Lady Gaga or her new single? HA! I was almost last for work this morning as I stumbled upon it as I was doing my breakfast-and-facebook thang and chose to watch it instead of leaving on time.
I wasn’t sure how I felt about the song when it came out, but as expected it has grown on me and I really like it now. I can’t say I love it yet but I know I will, just like I did with Poker Face (I thought it was terrible and sounded just like Just Dance but bow thoroughly enjoy screeching it loudly at inopportune times). I was delighted by her performance of it at the Grammy’s and so was very excited about the video. Like with the song, it took me a few tries to make a decision and yeah, I love it. It’s a bit crazy and I admit I do not get a lot of the symbolism and stuff, but it’s weird, dark and quirky which is fine by me. I LOVE the skeletons in suits, I want to do that for Halloween this year! I also couldn’t get over Gaga’s body – oh my lord. If I had an arse half that good I;d never wear pants either! And her stomach. Goodness me. Let’s just say I worked extra hard at gym tonight after watching that video a few times!
The downfall with the clip though, is her dancing. She is not a dancer and even though I’m sure she practices a lot, she never will be. I cracked up at the 5:53 point when she’s spazz dancing for no apparent reason. I just think she should worry less about having elaborate dance routines in her clips when it’s just not her forte. She’s a singer and a performer, so let’s leave the dancing to those who need it to pep up their otherwise boring-as-hell film clips!
I thought it would be a bit of a laugh to tell you about the random stuff that am scared of. We all have those irrational fears that seem ridiculous to just about anyone else. Not like clowns (man, am I the only person who’s not scared of clowns?) or public speaking. I mean the fears you have that are completely unfounded and very unlikely to happen. Like those freaks on Maury who are scared of rubber chickens and cotton balls or whatever. I have a few good ones which I thought I would share in the pitiful hope you will also share and help me feel like less of a wuss.
Escalators
I find myself filled with dread whenever I ride an escalator. Particularly when they’re going down. This dreadful mental image of me falling down them replays over and over in my mind and I picture my teeth kitting one of those terrifying, jagged edges and all my teeth being knocked in and my face being busted up. I also feel the same way, though to a lesser extent, about stairs. I think I am just worried about my face being ruined forever :(
Opening Garage Doors at Night
Now this is a very unique one! If every I open a garage door at night, I fear that there are wild dogs (wolves?) on the other side who will maul my legs off. I think this EVERY TIME I open a garage door at night and have done so for as long as I remember. The funny thing is, I once told this to my sister as we were opening the garage door when we were younger and she freaked out. Aw yeah, spreading those irrational fears to all I know and love!
Getting Caught in a Bus Door
We’ve all heard those horror stories where a kid’s jacket is caught in the doors of a bus and they’re dragged along the road until they are DEAD. Well I think about that every single time I’m on a bus. Not with trains though, strangely enough. Though I do worry about dropping valued possessions on train tracks and going down to fetch them when a train comes and fucks me up. I was stoked when I saw a sign in Japan indicating they had long pincer things to retrieve dropped possessions from the tracks so that I didn’t have to risk death.
Ladders
I don’t know if this means I have vertigo or not but I am terrified of climbing down ladders. Getting up them is OK but getting down from the top of a ladder is an absolutely terrifying experience for me. And if I’ve gone from a ladder to get on top of something high, then have to climb down onto the ladder… well just forget about it! I cry and feel sick and just can’t do it. The rare few times I have found myself stuck on something with a ladder waiting to get me down, I have had to have someone gently coax me down and tell me exactly what to do so I don’t fall and die/wig out. I wonder if this fear has a name? And if anyone else is terrified of climbing down ladders?
The Dark
I am shit scared of the dark. No matter how much I try to tell myself there’s no one there and I’m being an idiot, I can’t help but think the Blair Witch is going to come and get me (seeing that film allowed me to finally explain to people why I refuse to ever go camping because as far as I’m concerned, that’s exactly what will happen to me if I ever do). It’s not just outside darkness that scares me either, inside I am scared I will trip on something, step on spiders or get abducted by the serial killer hiding behind the kitchen counter. The dark is a mean and scary place.
Getting stuck in clothing forever
I suffer from mild claustrophobia, small spaces do scare me a little but nothing like how I feel when I think I am stuck in a piece of clothing. Have you ever tried something on that was either too tight or just really confusing and you thought for a second you were stuck? Well that is a fucking nightmare to me. As soon as I start to feel stuck in a a top or dress or whatever, I start to panic which only makes it worse (like a finger trap). The same applies to being stuck under bed sheets forever and especially sleeping bags. If it takes me more than two seconds to free myself I might as well just die then and there.
Goats
I wouldn’t say I’m terrified of them, but the big ones scare me because I have a very traumatic memory of being headbutted against a wall by an angry one as a kid. I don’t recall doing anything to it or even going near it for that matter, but that goat got me good. I’m sure if I got headbutted by one again I’d probably react the exact same way I did when I was 6 – scream and cry until my dad scares it off :(
EDIT: I have just thought of another one! James Bond’s invisible car at intersections. I’m not kidding, when I am merging or at a busy intersection, I always have this dreaded feeling that James Bond’s car from “Die Another Day” is there an will result in a horrific car crash. As a result I always heck for a shimmer in the air just in case the most improbable scene from a James Bond film ever has became a reality.
Submarines and moths
OK not really but I I’ve known people who are scared of both and it helps me not feel so dumb about mine :D
So now it’s your time to share. Do you have an irrational fear that you know is completely ridiculous but still find yourself crippled with terror when faced with said fear? If so, I wanna hear ALLLL about it!
Well the worst is now over and it’s now time for Brisbane to start cleaning up the areas affected by the floods. I’ve registered as a volunteer but have been told by a few sources that there have been so many volunteers there may not be enough work to delegate to everyone. I can’t even imagine that, too many volunteers? That’s just fantastic and I send hi-5′s to all thsoe who have donated their time and energy to getting Brisbane back to normal. I’m hoping I can go help out my friends who were affected tomorrow.
I have to admit I have been a bit disappointed in how little attention this has been given from people in other parts of Australia and the world. I wasn’t expecting everyone in the world to collapse to the ground yelling “WHY???” to the sky and donating all of their saving to the disaster relief fund. But I kind of expected a little more attention than what I’ve seen mentioned online. Of all of the blogs I read every day, only one mentioned the floods at all (Gala Darling, and she’s a kiwi living in NY) while everyone else has seemingly ignored the matter. Is it because there wasn’t a significant loss of life? Because Queenslanders have the “it’ll be alright” kind of attitude so people don’t realise how big a disaster it was? Or is this how it always is, and I’m only noticing because I saw the impact these floods had first hand? I don’t recall how much attention the fires in Victoria got in 2009 as I didn’t read a lot of blogs or use Twitter back then. And come to think of it, I’m not sure how much attention Haiti got during it’s earthquake disaster last year and I’m wondering if it was also largely ignored by bloggers and non-affected people like I feel the Brisbane floods have been. Not to say people don’t care about them of course. I just don’t know why it’s not being mentioned more to raise awareness, particularly by people other Aussies.
I guess all I’m saying is, if you know someone who may have been affected the the brisbane floods, make sure you contact them and find out if they are OK. And if you have a blog that has a significant number of readers, let them know what’s going on and encourage them to make a donation if they can. It won’t turn people off and it’s only going to do good, so start making some sort of fuss. We got smashed pretty badly and it’s going to take a lot of money and time to get things back to normal and every cent will help. Plus the floods are continuing around the country and things may only get worse still.
OK, that’s my rant for the day. If you want to get a good perspective of how Queensland has been affected, check out these great interactive before/after photos as well as the gallery on news.com.au. Please note my mum lives in Ipswich so those first few photos in the gallery are pretty shocking for me. Thank god my mum lives on a hill, as many of her neighbors (many elderly) lost everything.
