UbuRovias: Out of interest, which other countries do this?

Malaysia has the Rukunegara. We had to recite this bit (in Malay) every Monday at assembly for the 11 years I was at school:

We, her peoples, pledge our united efforts to attain these ends guided by these principles:

* BELIEF IN GOD
* LOYALTY TO KING AND COUNTRY
* UPHOLDING THE CONSTITUTION
*... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 1:59 PM on November 16, 2009

Same thing happens in Malaysia - African students get tons of abuse, and that's just the stuff that shows up in the papers. I'm Bangladeshi and growing up I had no end of crap lunged at me because I was the same race as "those goddamn migrants stealing our women and robbing our houses". My dark skin didn't help matters - I wasn't attractive enough to rise above the racism. People who knew me at school often tried to make me mixed-race or Malay or a diplomat's daughter, because those... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 2:21 PM on November 13, 2009

I'm on there as an Aardvocate (haven't really seen anything that different from being a normal Aadvark user). It is a bit hit-or-miss - I get a lot of questions I can't answer, and I have had the occasional troll. But it's useful for quick ponderings, or if you're trying to recall a name or something in a different language.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 2:10 AM on November 10, 2009

Is this an ARG?
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 4:10 PM on November 9, 2009

autoclavicle: the makeup here tends to be in bright theatrical colours - to stand out rather than to hide features. I don't often wear makeup myself but stuff like this is perfect for my performance work. It's less about "look like the Perfect Woman" and more "here's how to achieve this costume style in makeup".
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 5:12 PM on November 7, 2009

Tons of behind-the-scenes photos of AromaLeigh's makeup. Whee, sparkly.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 5:27 PM on November 7, 2009

dejah420: this is what Kristen had to say in response to the FDA ruling comment:

Tiara, to the person in this thread who claims to have been making mineral makeup for a decade and states that all cosmetic companies must have million dollar clean rooms and pay 50k per product for FDA approval, that couldn’t be more inaccurate and in fact, not a single word of it is true whatsoever.

That can be verified by the FDA’s Cosmetic Guidance, Compliance... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 11:17 AM on November 8, 2009

dejah420: Oh, I'm not a friend of hers; I only heard about her after this controversy over Doe Deere. I'm just interested in all angles since this is an area I don't know much about. It'd be good if you could post that on the Mineral Makeup Mutiny blog as well.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 12:51 PM on November 8, 2009

My Aboriginal acquaintances on Facebook are livid and there's some great discussion on how Blackface also affects Indigenous/Aboriginal communities. However the only media coverage of that seems to be a spat between drag queens.

I'm South Asian in Australia and to be honest I haven't had as much of the overt crushing racism I did back in Malaysia (where I am an absolute minority). That said, I have encountered more implicit racism - surprisingly from people who claim to... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 8:52 PM on October 8, 2009

Liffey: Blackface was, and still is, a major problem for Aboriginal people in Australia. It's not exclusively an American problem.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 9:48 PM on October 8, 2009

uncanny hengemen: What the fuck are you talking about? Citation needed.

I'd direct you to a discussion about this on a friend's Facebook page but it's private. I'll ask if there's any more discussion (aside from a pithy article on drag queens). I did theater studies in uni and remember our lecturers telling us of days when they'd rather put someone in blackface to play an Indigenous character than actually hire an Indigenous actor.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 11:02 PM on October 8, 2009

Real prejudice in the workplace, for example, against minorities seems rare, is there any evidence of large scale ongoing oppression against ethnic groups in Australia? Where is it?

Young Sudanese Men Experience Racism in Australia (pdf)
Fear, racism show Australia's ugly face
India fear over Australia attacks
Adelaide Institute (Anti-Semitic, AIDS-denying)
2005 Cronulla riots
Stolen... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 12:22 AM on October 9, 2009

they wore tan makeup to look - they hoped - as though they were Australian Aborigines.

Then why not just hire Australian aboriginal actors? Because at the time they weren't even considered as people. Because of racism.

My goodness, MeFi is full of the fail today. You want racism? Tada, all in one thread.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 12:28 AM on October 9, 2009

uncanny hengeman: Are you seriously suggesting that Aboriginal people are not currently denied opportunities, jobs, and fair representation because of their race and ethnicity? That they're all getting uppity over nothing?
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 1:00 AM on October 9, 2009

koeselitz: THANK YOU. Your comment summed up the issue *perfectly* about why doing any sort of (ethnic)face act is problematic. A few months ago I had a conflict with my burlesque teacher - who should really know better given her academic background - who was part of a stereotypical China Doll act that did not involve any ethnic Chinese being performed at an event not known for being culturally diverse. (Least you could do at a Medieval Fayre was actually *be* medieval!) And now I'm trying... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 5:20 AM on October 9, 2009

Is it true that blackface in the UK refers to a disguise for when you are in the dark? I've been having a discussion with someone over their blackface routine and someone came in saying I'm being too simplistic about British culture.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 2:28 PM on October 10, 2009

I sent in a picture of my parents that my sister had posted on her blog (it's the middle photo) - my dad looks pretty groovy. They haven't posted it up on the site though.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 6:58 PM on October 5, 2009

Darren Hayes chimes in.

Also: Nina Paley of Question Copyright claims that artists are not inherently obliged to be paid for their art. Or should they?
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 11:54 PM on September 22, 2009

The other issue here is that it's terribly difficult for new and emerging artists to gain enough capital to afford the time & money needed to create their art. I'm starting out in performance art and geez! Costumes and travel and training add up exponentially, and the current job market (for ANYTHING) is overloaded with applicants. Anytime I get a paid gig (one tonight to sell merch - not much, but it helps cover for my birthday yesterday) is a bonus.

You have a lot... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 4:25 PM on September 26, 2009

Oh hey, I'm in this book. I wrote the piece on Myth and Magic. They approached me after I wrote stacks of comments on the original entry (which was linked to above).

For those of you going on about "Stuff White People Like": Myself and at least one other contributor are Malaysian. And I've had issues with my uni's chosen academic sources being so heavily Western-centric while making other cultures "exotic" and only good as sources of appropriation.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 3:50 PM on September 4, 2009

Sigh. I'm facing this right now. I'm breaking into performance (with a side of arts management) and a lot of performance/stage assisting work just doesn't pay. No one has any resources to pay you! It doesn't help that there's been quite a number of funding cuts recently, which has put a lot of organisations on the edge.

I've just graduated in a foreign country and I've spent pretty much the whole year so far looking for jobs. My final semester involved doing 3 work... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 1:41 PM on August 22, 2009

Finally! I'm considered trendy! *chucks razor*
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 3:06 PM on August 21, 2009

(what's the pun on Tails' name, aside from him having two tails?)

Man, I loved Sonic. My dad bought a Megadrive for my cousins and that was the game it came with. We played it ALL THE TIME, till the wee hours of the night - my female cousin and I needed her brother to clear the water zone, then we were fine.

And I liked the cartoons...

That MJ/Sonic connection is awesome. Who woulda thought. Also, all this and no mention... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 5:23 PM on August 17, 2009

Previously on the Lie Detector:

JACKIE O: I, I apologise to anybody out there who has been offended with this segment that we’ve done all week, I know it’s probably gone too far and I do apologise about that.

KYLE SANDILANDS: What sort of a dork have you turned into overnight?

posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 6:59 AM on July 29, 2009

The most grotesque media exploitation imaginable
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 10:39 PM on July 29, 2009

Not the first time Kyle's been caught in an on-air controversy



Yesterday’s controversial radio segment was not the first time Kyle Sandilands broadcast a family’s painful sexual history.

While Sandilands said he and co-host Jackie O were "stunned" yesterday when a 14-year-old revealed on-air that she had been raped, the pair were reportedly embroiled in similar controversy in 2001, when they worked for B105 FM... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 12:13 AM on July 30, 2009

Kyle and Jackie O Show suspended indefinitely; Sandilands unable to work

There's some preparation happening on Twitter for a protest outside the studios to bring them back on air.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 5:10 AM on August 2, 2009

You are awesome!
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 11:57 PM on July 29, 2009

The Brisbane City Council library computers all use IE6 only. I asked for Firefox support and got this:

Thank you for submitting your request to Brisbane City Council regarding the use of Mozilla Firefox on Council library computers.

Library Services uses Internet Explorer on Council computers because it is Council's currently preferred and supported software. At the moment there are no plans to change this software but we appreciate your... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 12:28 AM on July 23, 2009

Limkokwing University's doing this - starting in Malaysia and opening clones in London, Bostwana, and possibly New York. The response hasn't been so great.

There's plenty of US/Australia branches in Malaysia and Singapore too.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 11:50 PM on July 22, 2009

Huh, I used to lurk at LJSecrets. I never thought they'd ever be Mefi-worthy.

There's also BlogSecrets on Tumblr if anyone wants more text than graphics.

The Anti-Sec hack is wrecking a lot of the secret posts tho.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 9:56 PM on July 10, 2009

DU: That's what SuperCool School was set up to do.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 6:22 AM on July 10, 2009

Huh. Well on the one hand, the part about not earning the advanced commissions is rather dodgy, and if Baines is to be believed, his GiveMeaning project (which I have seen linked by other non-profit people online) is equally as dodgy.

But then you get stuff like what mecran01 quotes, and it may just be a case of ignorance rather than malice - idealism unrooted in maturity.

If he is as much of a git as some people here are making it out to be,... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 8:35 AM on July 7, 2009

Blazecock Pileon: their informant Mr. Wishbone obtained testing kits from labs that test for casein, shellfish, and eggs. They used the same procedures food manufacturing labs use to make sure their equipment is cleaned out of prior ingredients before making another batch of food.

They cleaned their kitchen thoroughly, kept food in ziplock bags and handled them with gloves in ice cases meant for donor organs, and were very meticulous in ensuring that there was no... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 2:16 AM on July 5, 2009

The discussion about humane killings being an oxymoron makes me wonder if a lot of the big deal surrounding death to animals and so on are related to a large part of human society regarding death as taboo and undesirable? If death wasn't so feared, if it was seen as normal and a welcomed stage in life like adolescence and puberty, would there be a big deal about "killing" anyone?

Plants don't grow for our benefit either, so how do we justify the choice to eat... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 6:36 AM on July 6, 2009

Heh. I subscribe to quite a number of these on Tumblr. There's a Fuck Yeah blog for almost everything - I even started Fuck Yeah Burlesque which seems to be the only FY that actively incorporates videos.

There's actually been a strong group of fat-girl tumblrs that have come up in reaction to Fuck Yeah Skinny Bitch. My friend started Fuck Yeah Death Fatties somewhat tongue-in-cheek; however, she's passionate about body acceptance and the people she showcases are usually... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 6:12 PM on July 3, 2009

Michael Jackson inspired my hero, Darren Hayes. His tribute to Michael is pretty much what I could have written for Darren. If it weren't for Darren and his music I have no idea what would have happened to me in my teen years.

Thanks for inspiring my hero, and for inspiring many other heroes for many other people. Your legacy lives on.

.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 7:04 PM on June 25, 2009

If I understand this correctly, they're sending a message to ad agencies that do public service announcements (PSAs) on things like world hunger and deforestation and win awards for them, saying that they're not actually fixing anything and that they should "create social advertising" that does. In other words, it's a PSA that says that PSAs suck and that the ad world needs to make better PSAs.

Halloween Jack's got it. Osocio is a blog that... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 8:41 PM on June 21, 2009

I don't see Rod Stewart's comment as particularly egregious - maybe his passion for trains outdoes his interest in music.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 7:27 PM on June 21, 2009

I was a subscriber too and my family had stacks of the stuff (math, you're not alone). I'd read it for ages - it was the main source of reading material at my age that wasn't going to run out anytime soon.

My main memory though was all the "YOU HAVE A CHEQUE FOR $1 MILLION" sweepstakes things they kept sending my dad. I liked the random games they had you do to figure out what you won, but my dad was always so annoyed at their constant spamming.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 8:33 PM on June 19, 2009

I bet you can't turn his wedding invite into birds.

(disclaimer: it's my sister's.)
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 7:59 AM on June 17, 2009

There are a couple more Fallen Princesses pictures on her site, though it is in Flash (sorry ZaneJ).
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 5:19 AM on June 14, 2009

I've been to fetish parties and have seen people being stepped on, though without the carpet outfit. At least he's found a way to monetize his passion.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 3:55 AM on June 14, 2009

Has anyone ever seen any third-world craftspeople on Etsy?
posted by smackfu

I've bought a kaftan off a Malaysian seller for my boyfriend's mum, and I've seen many other sellers from just about every country on the planet.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 5:58 AM on June 13, 2009

I wouldn't say they were disinterested; they were probably keeping serious faces for effect. It can be hard to *not* crack up.

(and let's not get into the ol' "burlesque = fancy stripping" canard again.)
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 9:04 PM on June 8, 2009

I've been hypnotised by my psychologist when we decided to try hypnosis (she had recently been certified for it) after a couple of years of CBT that were going OK but could use a booster since I had a relapse. It was basically like guided meditation, with prompts about feeling more confident in myself, having more self-esteem, being able to handle depression, etc. It's certainly helped me be more relaxed, if nothing else.

I'd certainly welcome hypnosis as a way to manage... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 11:11 PM on June 7, 2009

Who are all the people saying that curry's a UK phenomena? I grew up on curry in Malaysia and my family's from Bangladesh.
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 9:23 PM on May 31, 2009

I remember a Little Archie Christmas Carol-esque strip that had Archie in the Future married to Veronica and parent of many kids. WHY ARCHIE WHY
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 12:09 AM on May 28, 2009

The comments in the "previously" Mefi post are making my head hurt. Bigotry ahoy! and wtf borneo cannibals?
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 6:03 PM on May 23, 2009

Sounds like Nattie and I are the only Darren Hayes fans around here. Alright then. *moves along*
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 6:14 AM on May 18, 2009