November 21, 2008 NO!!
So new commenter Pim tells me that Tracy Grimshaw asked on A Current Affair (in regards to the ‘excessive coverage’ of Indigenous issues apparently contained within *Australia* the movie): “Haven’t we apologised enough?”
No. No. NO. NO. NO. NO.
Also, dickhead, even if we HAD (and SHOWN our remorse rather than just letting the P.M speak it) does that mean that we get to ERASE it from our history? That all movies after that point just stick their fingers in their ears scream LA LA LA and pretend it didn’t happen? What THE?
Tags: Australia the movie, it's PART of our history people, NO we HAVEN'T apologised enough, Tracy Grimshaw
- 14 comments
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Fuck Politeness 
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penguincakes
said
HOLY CRAP
WOW NO
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hysperia
said
Yeah and as if apologies really DO anything anyway!
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fuckpoliteness
said
I think it was important to do, but no, it is not enough. I just…someone kills your kid. You finally get an apology. You MAY even decide to *forgive* but could you ever forget? If you wrote your biography would you leave that out? If someone wrote their story/your story and left it out would you not feel PISSED at that erasure? And it was so much MORE than that, so systemic, so relentless, so viciously cruel, so callous and dehumanising. Gaargh, Tracy Grimshaw, GAAARGH!!!
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apublicblogging
said
It feels like the talking heads are becoming bolder lately, in their expression of racist and sexist sentiments.
To ask if we’ve apologised enough just screams ignorance as much as anything else, and totally aside from the fact that many people in this country did not support the apology in the first place.
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fuckpoliteness
said
Yes. Perhaps one could argue that Mr Rudd has “apologised enough” (though I’d still disagree). But it certainly was NOT an uncontroversial apology, there were plenty of panic-merchants (OMG what about the compenSAtion it will expose us to??? And you bet your ARSE White Australians would be demanding compensation) and detractors (the get over it crew – and I’d like to fucking see YOU get over that!)
ALSO: how exactly is Lurhmann’s film an apology? Has he SAID he intends this film to be his *apology* to Indigenous Australians? All I’ve heard is “relaunch Australian film industry” blah blah boost “tourism” blah blah, “epic romance” blah blah “hey look how white our romantic leads are” blah. And he’s alleged to have changed the entire ending due to bad reactions in a test screening. Jebus. Imagine if he HAD intended it to be his apology – would he have ditched THAT if test audiences (filled with Grimshaw types) had not reacted well??
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apublicblogging
said
There are people who think that any film with Aboriginal people in it can pass for some kind of apology.
When I saw Nick Cave’s The Proposition a few years back, people said what a wonderful way to apologise to Aboriginal Australia, even though the film in no way attempted to address the issue of colonialism and dispossession of land.
I thought Rabbit-Proof Fence did it quite well, but again, I have issues with a privileged white man walking into Aboriginal communities and cherry picking children that fit his ideal stereotype. I’d prefer to see Aboriginal communities with the resources to tell their own stories if they so choose.
I’ll probably end up going to see this latest crap just so I can indulge in a critical analysis of it.
Speaking of cultural narratives, I can recommend a little theatre production called Tales of Love and Hate, about the Cronulla Riots. I saw it last night and I think it’s on at Bankstown tonight.
http://www.urbantheatre.com.au
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apublicblogging
said
Stories of Love and Hate, not tales.
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fuckpoliteness
said
Yes: *we* included *you* ok, and *we didn’t have to* so accept this *apology* please!
I couldn’t bring myself to see The Proposition, I don’t do well with extreme violence, particularly sexual violence and word was it was FULL of it. SO…ugh.
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apublicblogging
said
Well there was some contextual violence, no extreme sexual violence though, not that I’m giving Nick Cave a free pass, because he’s a sexist prick and the whole thing was really a bit of a privileged white man’s wank over what he thinks is His Country’s history.
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fuckpoliteness
said
It’s late and I’m super tired. I’ve just typed and erased three rants about the lyrics of Cave and Cohen (one with a link between Crow Jane and The Gimp scene in Pulp Fiction and the way a white guy doesn’t mind utter exploitation/degradation of a female/feminised body…as long as it’s an Othered body, in order to set up a ‘cool revenge’ scenario).
I love many songs of Cohen’s and Cave’s, but yes, I hear you…playing around with the idea of taking some of Cohen’s songs and singing them as a woman to a woman to try and subvert the ‘Oh aren’t you a pretty wee thing, and of course I’m the poet. The man. Moved but never altered. I see your beauty, but I define it and am always ready to move away from it if it threatens to impact me in any way’ crap. Stuff to be salvaged by subversion. But yeah, there are songs of his and of Cave’s that I just…don’t even wanna redeem.
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apublicblogging
said
I only know a few people who are familiar enough with feminist theory *and* Cave’s lyrics, to be able to critically analyse his work, but it could definitely make for a cool discussion.
I’ve been a fan since the Birthday Party days but my enjoyment of his work has been on a steady decline over the last few years due to the increase in my awareness of patriarchy.
His most recent works are overtly sexist imo but people at NC websites have their heads too far up his arse to be able to talk about that, or the obsession he has with mutilated sexy female bodies.
Actually it’s the awareness of patriarchy and commitment to feminism that prevents me from enjoying a lot of the music that I used to love.
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apublicblogging
said
Wow, from Tracy Grimshaw to Nick Cave. So didn’t see that one coming!lol
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fuckpoliteness
said
Yeah I know. And WOW do you get looked at like a big ole crazy freak for mentioning it! (Not you personally, you know, Capital Y You). Sigh. But man! I have ideas, and no time to develop them! I’d like to write a long paper on Cohen’s models of love called True Love Leaves No Traces looking at gender, masculinity and the need to be autonomous/untouched/unmarked, to always be ready to leave. Gargh. Half formed thoughts!
Meantime, I like that if I just sing his lyrics with a little tweak here and there it alters the meanings as it becomes lesbian love stories, and evens out gender stuff a little and can change the meaning of the dynamics between the two characters in his songs quite a bit. And the ‘cheek’ is that much more cheeky coming from a woman! 🙂
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fuckpoliteness
said
Hmm…your comment regarding the jump from Grimshaw to Cave got stuck in the spam cue and has now jumped in between some comments so it’s a little jumbled and not-so-sense-making.