A Nation of Racist Drunks?

[Voulan]

See that's why you should come to New Zealand. We're just the same but people don't realise it. Plus there are less Australians, which can only be a good thing.

I always figured the same thing as well. We have a relatively big drinking culture, but I have no real idea about racism. I've traveled a lot, and haven't seen any blatant racism anywhere, including Australia (but then, there you go).

 

[Qitz]

Pretty much sums it up.

That said, if they are in IT, most people aren't exactly chipper when calling in there in the first place.

 

[MrTub]

They chose to do drugs, they chose to drink, and they chose to actively discourage their children from breaking the cycle.

Just like you or anyone else would have done in their position if there's no chance for a real education, no chance at work, etc.

And in true USA tradition, they blamed the symptome rather than the problem, and many villages have banned alcohol.

How do they get an inferior education if they are going to the same schools as the rest of the country?

 

[octafish]

I think it has a lot to do with the fact that we've only been a multicultural nation for, I believe, less than half a century. The close-minded ideals of the past couple of generations is still present, particularly in the media. In fact, our politicians rely on the people's underlying fear of outsiders.

Do they ever. I'm Australian, and I never used to think of Australians as racist until I got back from a circumnavigation of the world about six years back. Since then, this country's begun to seem more and more racist as time goes on. I mean, seriously, "Stop the boats" is one of the big issues both sides of the political spectrum love to toss around, and it's the biggest bullshit excuse of an "issue" ever. Started off with John Howard misrepresenting information and playing on an undercurrent of xenophobia that, it seems, is big enough in Australia for a pitifully small number of refugees (not asylum seekers, these guys are almost universally legitimate refugees, even if they haven't been processed and declared as such by the UN) to be one of the most important issues of the Australian government. It's ridiculous.

Then there was high school, where the term "Asian" seemed to be held as the single biggest insult it was possible to give, where a sizeable portion of my grade seemed to hold Aborigines as lazy drunkards living off Government welfare and refusing to do anything to make any money for themselves, and where Muslims seemed to be regarded as 100% terrorists. As someone who'd travelled a lot even then, met enough Asians and Muslims (it says something that I actually sorta wince internally these days every time I use the word "Asian", worried that it might be insulting, just as I'd be rather reluctant to use the term "******") to know that everything said was nothing but a blatant lie, a good chunk of high school was decidedly uncomfortable for me.

So yes, I do think Australia is racist, but that we're conditioned to believe that we're not. All that stuff about this being a multicultural society, how we're told from the day we're born that we Australians are an accepting bunch while simultaneously, it seems, being told to hate anyone who isn't a nice, white, Australian-born citizen, it's all there just so we can feel better about ourselves and feel good while simultaneously being incredibly prejudiced. Now, there's a big chunk of Australian society that aren't racist, but going by the official polls when it comes to the whole refugee business it's obvious that the number of racists in this country could actually be in the majority.

Yes, you need only look at the policies of the two major political parties to see how racist Australia is, and we are only getting worse. It is a shame as there are good poeple in politics but they are being driven by opinion polls rather than doing any leading on this issue. As for drinking? Sure, who doesn't?

 

[Squilookle]

When it comes to racism in Australia, especially towards Indians, the only people worth seeking the opinions of are Indians who actually LIVE here. Most of the Indians I come into contact with day-to-day seem perfectly happy with how things are. Especially taxi drivers, who I can happily chat with for the 40 minutes it sometimes takes to get back home.

The truth is we just don't put up with call centres. It doesn't matter where or who they are, if they're invading out private space by calling our homes ten times a day to sell something, then they are scum. Since almost all telemarketing over here is done by Indians, it's hardly surprising that some people associate the Indians with Telemarketing, and vice versa. It's not right to think that way, of course, but you can see why it happens.

 

[MrTub]

How do they get an inferior education if they are going to the same schools as the rest of the country?

Because poverty keeps them outside of private schools. And this may upset one or two nationalists, but the state sponsored education in the US well and truly sucks.

Additionally, concentrating low income groups like that drags down the level of schools and such, creating a negative spiral. And because people can't travel far, they have to attend those even worse schools, getting dragged down by them in turn. And so on, and so forth.

Wut? when did I ever say anything about US? I thought we was talking about Australia (fyi Im from Sweden)

 

[WolfLordAndy]

Maybe they're not so much racist... as much as they hate god damned Indian call centers?

I hate international call centers whenever I'm just trying to phone my local bank and have to go through an international call center in either India, Scotland or Ireland!!

 

[Rems]

We are pretty racist unfortunately. And we do actually have a drinking problem (our teen binge drinking levels are off the charts) and compared to many other first world countries we are pretty technologically backwards in regards to the communications sector- ie phone lines and internet.

It's not really too surprising. The White Australia policy- where only white people were able to immigrate was only abandoned in the 70's. Look at general levels of intolerance of other cultures particularly middle eastern, hell look at the cronulla race riots. The amount of fear generated by 'boat people' when we have one of the lowest refugee intakes.

 

[Griffolion]

In my local paper, the Sunday Mail, one article disturbed me. In India, call centers are training their staff on how to deal with Australian customers, saying we're quote "the dumbest continent in the world," we "drink constantly" and are "quiet racist." One comment that got me was that we are "technologically backwards." Now as someone who has 5 consoles, a smartphone and a tablet device, I felt insulted. What do you lot think?

Here's the link to the story http://www.couriermail.com.au/business/indian-call-centre-staff-told-australians-are-dumb-drunken-racists/story-e6freqmx-1226100445960

As a UK citizen, your title instantly made me think of my own country. And no, in my eyes, Australia in general can do no wrong, you're all stupidly attractive surfer guys/babes who have barbecues at Christmas time. But get your politicians sorted out with the whole game banning thing.

 

[THE_NAMSU]

I don't know about Australia (I thought you were going to say Britain was known as full of drunk racists >_>), though India is pretty racist themselves. They make Bollywood movies where they present Muslims as killers, terrorists and so on, and make the hero hindu
E.g. I think this movie was Dabang (for people who watch bollywood), it had Salman Khan playing as a Hindu police man who was trying to take down this gangster, who is Muslim in the film, and he was made to say some racist lines like "I pray 5 times a day, and I kill 5 times a day."
Also I think the Indians make loads of jokes about Sikhs (not as bad, but in bollywood films they are always presented as retards, which my mum told me they do on purpose because of the stereotype).
Edit: Ninja'd!

As a UK citizen, your title instantly made me think of my own country.

PS I do live in the UK too, just judging from how people at my school and locally (even though the locals tend to be eastern european drunks...).

 

[Lizardon]

We're not racist, we just hate calls from call centers.

Honestly though, you can't really lump 22 million people together as all being dumb racist alcoholics because of where there live.