I’ve mentioned on more than a few occasions that Europe is grappling with issues of racism, which is something of a euphemism for “full fledged white supremacy movements.” What with my repeated references and the major role that this obviously plays on a cultural and political field, I figured it’s high time I actually break it down for ya.
The UK
You’d think that a nation that’s invaded all but 22 countries, maintained the largest empire of all time, and started multiple wars with underdeveloped nations to force them to buy drugs would be a bit more understanding when the people from those countries tried moving to the UK to build better lives for themselves. Instead, the flow of immigrants into Britain has resulted in a massive backlash from the “native” English (you know- the ones descended from Angles, Saxons, Jutes, and Norman immigrants). United under the fear that the empty house next door might be rented out by a family with brown skin and funny accents instead of a family with white skin and funny accents, Britain has seen the rise of bigoted groups in both the forms of political parties, such as the “British Nationalist Party” [BNP], to straight up gangs of violent racist thugs, such as the self-proclaimed “English Defense League” or “EDL”. But hey- we’ve got similar problems across the pond- what’s the big deal (other than, you know, the attempts to turn Britain into a whites-only nation, through violence and intimidation if necessary)? Continue reading →
Posted in America, Europe, Islam, morality, politics, race, religion
Tagged Anders Brevik, Angela Merkel, anti-semite, anti-semitic, apartheid, Arabs, ban, bigotry, BNP, Britain, British Nationalist Party, burka, Csanad Szgedi, EDL, English Defense League, european parliament, European Parliment, Expulsion, Fascism, Fascist, France, Great Britain, Holocaust, holocaust denier, Hungary, Immigrants, Islam, Islamization, Jobbik, KKK, Klu Klux Klan, law, Marine Le Pen, Minaret Ban, multiculturalism, Multiculturalism has failed, Muslims, nazi, neo-nazi, Nick Griffin, Norway, prejudice, refugees, Roma, segregation, Switzerland, Turks, UK, Utoya, Veil, white supremacist groups, white supremacy
2014 will see the XXII Winter Olympics held in Sochi, Russia. Or at least, such is the current proposal of the Russian state and the Olympic committee. Personally, I’d like to keep that from happening.
Here’s why:
Russia isn’t exactly a beacon of freedom and human rights today (or since 1929, for that matter). In spite of having the basic decency to offer former-NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden something of a safe haven, the modern Russian Federation has more than a few dents in its reputation.
And its cars…
While massive corruption has been an issue for a long time, and while Russia is no more free from the ugly face of white supremacism than any of its fellow European nations, a few recent events stand out as especially damning. Continue reading →
Posted in Economy, Europe, lgbt, money, morality, politics, sports
Tagged 2014, apartheid, Assad, BDS, bill, Boycott, David Cameron, duma, Edward Snowden, Equality, gay, Homosexual, human-rights, law, neo-nazi, Obama, politics, propaganda, Pussy Riot, Russia, Russian, Snowden, Sochi, sochi russia, Stephen Fry, Stoli, Stolichnaya, Syria, Winter Olympics
GORDON: Ladies and gentlemen, things are happening in England.
No, no that.
I’m talking about the recent decision by the Cameron government to make pornography blocked by default on British internet service.
EVAN: To segue into us talking about this in earnest, I thought it’d be good to go into our personal experience with this.
No, not that. Continue reading →
Posted in bizarreness, Europe, Evan and Gordon Talk, internet, morality, politics, pornography, sex
Tagged Block, BNP, Britain, Cameron, censorship, children, commercial, current-events, Daily Sun, David Cameron, EDL, government, Internert, law, parenting, parents, politics, porn, pornography, society, State, Tabloid, UK, under-age, Web, Youth
Many people were introduced to the concept of Human Trafficking via the movie Taken where Bryan Mills’ (played by Liam Neeson) daughter is kidnapped and groomed for prostitution and he has to save her by killing everyone who has an accent.
Good Luck
Around the same time I watched the movie Taken I read a book called Invisible Chains by Benjamin Perrin. The book is a well documented account of Perrin’s investigation into human trafficking in Canada, an investigation that began internationally but ended up in his own backyard when he was “shocked to learn of a case of human trafficking in his hometown.” The book delves into several specific cases, and by specific, I mean horrific: “a 14-year-old from Ontario sold for sex on Craigslist; young women from the war-torn Congo and Colombia trafficked to brothels and massage parlours in Canada; a 21-year-old from Alberta who went missing in Las Vegas in 2006.”
Continue reading →
Posted in Canada, Europe, morality, politics, sex
Tagged abolitionists, Canada, Culture, decriminalization, feminism, human trafficking, Invisible Chains, legalization, morality, Nordic Law, politics, prostitution, Red Umbrella, regulation, regulation model, sex, sex trade, sex work, sex workers' rights, Taken, victimization, Violence
As with many elements of modern culture, I walk the blurry line between fandom and general enjoyment. I like plenty of stuff, but I wouldn’t say I love anything. I enjoy comics- more than the average man on the street- but I’m definitely not on a level where I could seriously discuss comics with someone who’s actually into them (as Evan can attest). I enjoy heavy metal, but I couldn’t name the leading band of the past couple years or tell you the difference between Finnish black metal and Swedish death metal.
This is neither, just for the record…
Even though this gets me simultaneously branded as a nerd by people who aren’t fans of _______ and a poser by people who are, I nevertheless get a pretty unique perspective on things. I can see how they work- what their appeal is- without getting objectivity compromised by being too emotionally invested.
Now I think I’d be hard pressed to think of a better example of this than Doctor Who.
Continue reading →
Posted in bizarreness, Europe, technology, television, writing
Tagged aliens, cardiff, cult status, dalek, Doctor Who, Dr Who, fantasy, fixing, GIF, improving, pacifist, production value, science fiction, space, special effects, television, time travel, weeping angel
Over the past few weeks, this issue of cultural appropriation has exploded onto the scene, largely in reaction by the Native American community to the casting of Johnny Depp as Tonto in The Lone Ranger, though the resolution of a battle between clothing designer Paul Frank and indigenous right’s group Native Appropriations doubtlessly fueled the conversation.
Now I know you’re all saying, “Gordon, you lightning bolt of the gods made flesh, slow down a second. What on earth is a ‘Cultural Appropriation’?”
Well readers, in and of itself, the term just means the adoption of certain cultural elements by another culture. In most use, however, it’s used to describe one culture essentially taking an important symbol or tradition from another and using it for their own purposes (usually profit- surprise, surprise).
Continue reading →
Posted in art, bizarreness, Europe, media, race
Tagged appropriation, arabic, belly dance, cultural appropriation, Culture, dance, logo, middle eastern culture, middle eastern dancing, middle-east, native appropriation, native appropriations, nicki minaj, One Direction, orientalism, paul frank, tattoo, the cleveland indians, The Lone Ranger, yin yang, Your Fave Is Problematic
Culture War Reporters 