Originally Posted by spartacus

The meaning of a word is imbued with the context in which it is used.

Originally Posted by copa

In Oz is is just another word that has been shortened like they do to 100s of other words.

Originally Posted by chrissystevo

I have been discussing these things with my wife and a couple of friends over the past few weeks and have decided to put them down in writing on here. I am prepared to take all the flack and criticisms that come my way, but remember they are only my opinions.

1) This is my biggest bugbear and the thing I think all people interested in coming to Australia should seriously consider. Everything has a cost, and every cost seems to be excessive. We have had to pay to have all of our utilities connected from phone line, broadband, electricity etc. I was gobsmacked when I was told by our electricity company that I could not give them a meter reading over the phone, they would send somebody out to read it and charge us $30. Our children will be starting school in a couple of weeks and as well as the 2 new uniforms we knew we would have to buy we also have to shell out $100 each to cover books etc. Perhaps we were spoilt in the UK as these were provided by the schools. Groceries, clothing, books, dvd's, cd's etc arer all hideously expensive here.

2) Lack of choice. In addition to, and probably causing the above, there is little choice when it comes to things like groceries, utilities etc. There are one or two massive companies (Woolworths, Coles etc) who have a monopoly and can afford to charge what they like and the suckers who live here are forced to pay it.

3) Go slow attitude. Even though you have to pay for everything, everything seems to be done at such a slow pace. Phone to get the phone line in your house activated, takes three weeks to send somebody to do a 10 minute job.

3) Drink. From what I have seen there is a massive drinking culture and problem here. Go to the Bayside area parks at the weekend or the Currumbin Rock Pools for a few hours on a Sunday afternoon and every other person will have a bottle of beer in their hand. I was on a train around 10pm on Friday late (so not too late) and I lost count of the number of drunk people on the train swearing and shouting the whole time. My wife was on a train Saturday night to be greeted with the sight of a young girl filling carrier bags with vomit whilst her friend took pictures of her!

4) Racism. Sorry but I think the Australian people are very racist. In the time I have been here I have seen things said on television and written in newspapers that we would never see and hear in the UK. Ok perhaps we have gone too far but I think the Australians have some way to go. Again on the train on Friday night a bunch of drunk teenagers were giving grief to the security guards (both asian) and calling them pakis. When one of the group told them this was a bit out of order they justified it by saying "we're aussies, this is Australia, this is what we do, if you don't like it, f%&k off!". This seems to be the common response here.

5) Weather. One of the big plusses for Australia. It is wonderful to be able to go out in the warm sun and not worry about wrapping the children up in layers etc, worry about getting rained on etc. However it very often becomes too hot and humid to go out anyway and the only thing you feel like doing is sitting in an air conditioned room. When you are out you can only spend limited time in the sun for fear of burning and are then scrabbling around looking for shade. The constant need to put sunscreen on also becomes a bit tiring after a while.

6) Wildlife. The varied and abundant wildlife is fantastic. However when you have fruit bats and crows scrambling about on your roof at 4am it isn't so wonderful. Checking your shoes and toilet seats for spiders is a pain, spraying insect repellant that doesn't work is a pain, getting bitten by mozzies and flies is a pain, having to be on guard that your dogs don't try and eat a cain toad as they will die is a pain etc etc!!!!

7) Others. I HATE having my bag looked in when I leave a shop and generally refuse to show them. It is as though everybody is considered a shoplifter and needs to prove otherwise. The place is stuck in a 1980's time warp. I haven't seen as many mullets since I last watched UK Gold! Poor infrastructure - I hate the fact that you can't use your debit card at lost of places such as train stations, food courts etc. Australian TV and radio is crap!!!! And why do they stop a film or programme every 10 minutes to put on a commercial, which are also annoying?

Anyway there you go a summary of my thoughts and opinions. Feel free to comment or discuss

Originally Posted by bcworld

I'm not sure how you can definitively say that this is always the case - do you know the context the term is used in all cases and in this case. As has been mentioned it's all about context...I don't have a problem with an Australian cricket commentator referring to the Pakistani cricket team as Pakis...fair enough. In all likelihood, the train security guards were Indian, why call them Pakis? And I know Australians who use Paki in a derogatory context, as well as other expressions....which you would probably just tell me meant they thought the person looked like a block of cheese?

Originally Posted by chrissystevo

I have been discussing these things with my wife and a couple of friends over the past few weeks and have decided to put them down in writing on here. I am prepared to take all the flack and criticisms that come my way, but remember they are only my opinions.

1) This is my biggest bugbear and the thing I think all people interested in coming to Australia should seriously consider. Everything has a cost, and every cost seems to be excessive. We have had to pay to have all of our utilities connected from phone line, broadband, electricity etc. I was

.........

Anyway there you go a summary of my thoughts and opinions. Feel free to comment or discuss

Originally Posted by copa

"pakis" isn't an insult here. It would have been like someone saying "f**king kiwis" or "f**king brits" ... it's the "f**king" that makes it rude... not the "pakis"..

If you really really don't like it here... go home.

Originally Posted by Devlin

This is the typical response you get when you criticise Oz. Oz is my home and I left.

I'm Australian and using the term Paki is offensive - even in un-PC Australia.

Originally Posted by Professional Princess

My husband was on the train into central London a few years ago and these Muslim guys started talking to him, it all started off nice enough - they were asking my husband which country he was from etc.

They then started moaning about the UK and Western society in general, talking about how awful the women looked in their tarty clothes and how the country was run - suggesting that the Islamic way in their country of origin was a better way of doing things.

Imagine their horror when Mr PP said 'If you really dont like it here then why dont you go back to your country?' He also said he couldnt understand why anyone would move countries and expect it to be of the same standard, same culture as the one they have moved from.

We were asked by someone when we moved to Australia if Mr PP was going to live where there are other people from his country of origin/Muslims - as in a small community? Mr PP said no, he wanted to embrace his new life and not his old culture and fit in with the Aussie way of doing things.

In the UK, you hear it many times and I have said it myself that foreigners should fit in with our society and accept our way of life, not necessarily embrace it but accept it and dont try to change it.
A relative of mine was complaining in the UK about lots of Polish shops opening and Polish newspapers being sold. When I told her that there are British shops here and there is even a magazine called the 'Whinging POM' - she said 'Oh thats different'.

Except that its not is it?

We expect migrants to fit in and adapt to the UK way of life, we dont like it when foreign communities develop, shops opened etc - I freely admit that I dont, I lived about 25 minutes from Southall and hated the fact I would often get abuse if I wore a short skirt in certain areas there. If a foreigner in the UK objected to having there bag searched in a shop - I am sure we would be up in arms about it.

So why is it when we move to Australia we do exactly the same - build our own communities, open our own shops, complain when our bags are searched - oh yes, one woman in Target in Fremantle actually said as she went out of the shop 'I am British for Gods sake, do they think I am a thief?' (Mr PP could not believe what he heard).

On one hand we have the British complaining and rightly so, that our identity has been somewhat diluted in the UK in favour of the ethnic minorites, how we dont seem to have the same level of British pride in our country for fear of being labelled a racist.

On the other hand you have the Australians that seem to be so fiercely proud of their country that everything is 'proudly Australian owned and made'. People have commented on this site 'what have they got to be proud of?'

Well perhaps the Aussie pride might go overboard but is that so bad to have such pride in their country?

And if foreigners have to fit in with UK society, shouldnt it be the same with Australia?

I am not saying people have to like it, but make the best of it and try and fit in. Sure there are things about wherever you live that drive you mad (drink driving is my 'thing' I hate), but you take the rough with the smooth.

But one thing is for sure, it cannot be one rule for us and another for others.

Originally Posted by chrissystevo

1) ...I was gobsmacked when I was told by our electricity company that I could not give them a meter reading over the phone, they would send somebody out to read it and charge us $30....

Originally Posted by chrissystevo

2) Lack of choice. In addition to, and probably causing the above, there is little choice when it comes to things like groceries, utilities etc. There are one or two massive companies (Woolworths, Coles etc) who have a monopoly and can afford to charge what they like and the suckers who live here are forced to pay it.

Originally Posted by chrissystevo

3) Go slow attitude. Even though you have to pay for everything, everything seems to be done at such a slow pace. Phone to get the phone line in your house activated, takes three weeks to send somebody to do a 10 minute job.

Originally Posted by chrissystevo

3) Drink. From what I have seen there is a massive drinking culture and problem here. Go to the Bayside area parks at the weekend or the Currumbin Rock Pools for a few hours on a Sunday afternoon and every other person will have a bottle of beer in their hand. I was on a train around 10pm on Friday late (so not too late) and I lost count of the number of drunk people on the train swearing and shouting the whole time. My wife was on a train Saturday night to be greeted with the sight of a young girl filling carrier bags with vomit whilst her friend took pictures of her!

Originally Posted by chrissystevo

4) Racism. Sorry but I think the Australian people are very racist. In the time I have been here I have seen things said on television and written in newspapers that we would never see and hear in the UK. Ok perhaps we have gone too far but I think the Australians have some way to go. Again on the train on Friday night a bunch of drunk teenagers were giving grief to the security guards (both asian) and calling them pakis. When one of the group told them this was a bit out of order they justified it by saying "we're aussies, this is Australia, this is what we do, if you don't like it, f%&k off!". This seems to be the common response here.

Originally Posted by chrissystevo

5) Weather. One of the big plusses for Australia. It is wonderful to be able to go out in the warm sun and not worry about wrapping the children up in layers etc, worry about getting rained on etc. However it very often becomes too hot and humid to go out anyway and the only thing you feel like doing is sitting in an air conditioned room. When you are out you can only spend limited time in the sun for fear of burning and are then scrabbling around looking for shade. The constant need to put sunscreen on also becomes a bit tiring after a while.

Originally Posted by chrissystevo

6) However when you have fruit bats and crows scrambling about on your roof at 4am it isn't so wonderful. Checking your shoes and toilet seats for spiders is a pain, spraying insect repellant that doesn't work is a pain, getting bitten by mozzies and flies is a pain, having to be on guard that your dogs don't try and eat a cain toad as they will die is a pain etc etc!!!!

Originally Posted by chrissystevo

7) Others. I HATE having my bag looked in when I leave a shop and generally refuse to show them. It is as though everybody is considered a shoplifter and needs to prove otherwise. The place is stuck in a 1980's time warp. I haven't seen as many mullets since I last watched UK Gold! Poor infrastructure - I hate the fact that you can't use your debit card at lost of places such as train stations, food courts etc. Australian TV and radio is crap!!!! And why do they stop a film or programme every 10 minutes to put on a commercial, which are also annoying?

Originally Posted by chrissystevo

Anyway there you go a summary of my thoughts and opinions. Feel free to comment or discuss

Originally Posted by fish.01

The bayside is traditionally one of the chav areas of Brisbane.