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Month: May 2017
Why are people in Australia racist?
I of course knew that as soon as I opened this question, I’d get several replies saying “no we’re not”. White Anglo-Celtic Australians (and these days, White Non-Anglo-Celtic Australians) are not the people to ask this. No, we don’t burn crosses in our yards. Yes, we did give Aboriginal Australians the vote, and we even […]
Is gender dysphoria a recent phenomenon?
I should be careful about opining here, but this is a discussion that, as it happens, I’ve had recently with a couple of trans women. Gender dysphoria–or at the very least, awareness of gender/sex mismatch—seems to be very old, given the number of attestations of gender-diverse instances in human societies, and of androgynous cultural artefacts. […]
What’s the most unforgettable food that you have eaten in a foreign country?
I’ve had the opportunity to travel a bit in my time; and because Australians are food snobs, I’ve used the opportunity to sample what the locals eat. I’ll put down two memorable meals. The first was in Amsterdam. On my last day there, I opened up my Lonely Planet guide book, flicked past the hoity-toity […]
What are two truths and a lie about you?
Hokay. Let’s dance. Yes, my first name really is the same as my surname. Just like my three firstborn cousins. I did not speak to my parents until I was 2. While I was being wheeled in by the nurse to see the doctor about it, I was reading out the room numbers to her. […]
What texts and experiences shaped the development of your political views? What were the seminal factors in the growth of your civic sensibilities? What books most influenced you? What events?
I am somewhat surprised to have been A2A’d this by four people. That my politics should be of interest at all, though I haven’t expressed my politics here coherently, is likely more a token of their esteem than my interest. I am somewhat mortified to have been A2A’d this by four people. Unlike the other […]
What are some stereotypes about linguists and linguistics majors?
In my experience in Australia, we slotted readily into the stereotype of Arts students in general. (Well, I didn’t: I was a refugee from Engineering.) Leftie do-gooders, dressed down, partial to cheap wine, mostly laid back. Answered 2017-05-10 [Originally posted on http://quora.com/What-are-some-stereotypes-about-linguists-and-linguistics-majors/answer/Nick-Nicholas-5]
Have Australian politics stabilized or will we see more prime ministers with shortened terms?
Polling for the major parties even and low at 37%. Parties eroded both from their radical flanks (Labor by Greens, Liberals by host of right wing parties), and from centrist populists (Nick Xenophon). Liberal Party split between moderates and conservatives, with conservatives openly sniping at Turnbull or breaking away, and several conservative pretenders waiting in […]
Who is the most feminine woman you know?
A2A by Emlyn Shen. Now, I am cis. Emlyn is trans. Inspired by this tweet, pic.twitter.com/A47L9UBDtn — jordan (@redazarath) May 2, 2017 —I asked a trans friend of mine. I would have asked Emlyn herself, but she A2A’d me, so that hardly seems fair. Nick: You’ve reflected on femininity; you’d have a much better informed […]
What were the biggest highlights of Australia’s cultural history?
Ooh. That’s a tough one, and I’m going to want backup on this. The nationalist writers of the 1890s: Henry Lawson and Banjo Paterson. Culturally defining figures. At the same time, the Heidelberg School of painters (back when Heidelberg was on the outskirts of Melbourne, instead of suburbia); just as strongly defining of Australia’s self-perception, […]
Are there any Armenian restaurants in Australia where one can get pure Armenian food?
In Melbourne: “Pure” Armenian? There was an Armenian Cafe restaurant before I got together with my wife, but that’s long closed. There’s Sezar | Modern Armenian Restaurant, which is Nouveau Armenian (Nouveau, as most upmarket ethnic restaurants in Melbourne are). We’ve been once, and it wasn’t strikingly “pure”. Pleasant, though rather heavy. It’s next door […]