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The United States vs Australia

Convict eyes on the Land of Liberty

"Americans maintain their sense of being God's own country with a manifest destiny to lead the world to freedom and democracy. Australia has no global ambitions, and those related to the region are for stability and economic advancement rather than dominance" - John Langmore (politician)

"I don't think of myself as either American or Australian really, I'm a true hybrid. It's a good thing for me because both of them are really good countries." - Mel Gibson (actor)

Australians and Americans have quite a different attitude towards the group. For example, the author of this article was once giving a presentation to an Australian university class. To explain the difficulty of building a patriotic image for a brand in Australia, he draped an Australian flag over his shoulders and struck a pose as if looking at the sunset in an American aftershave commercial. Noting that the class looked unimpressed, he took the flag off his shoulders and enthusiastically polished his arse with it. The class started laughing. He then asked if anyone was offended. A chorus of nos went up. A lone voice said that, although he wasn't offended, he was disappointed. The lecturer, who had previously worked for the defence forces, gave the presentation a distinction. It the same thing had been done in America, expulsion from the university would have been a distinct possibility.

It should be stressed that it was not a liberal arts class full of 18-year-olds that had an ideological opposition to everything. It was a post-graduate marketing class full of students that should have been able to appreciate the importance of respect, loyalty, teamwork, and constructive thinking. Unfortunately, the students had been raised to believe that it was more worthy to disrespect something, than respect it.

Unlike Australians, Americans do not find polishing one's arse with the national flag to be an act of hilarity. For Americans, not only does it show a lack of consideration to the values of others, it also shows an innability to appreciate the benefits of a group working together to achieve a common goal.

From CIA World Fact Book

History

“Wherever, at the end of some new understanding, you see the Government of France or a man of rank in England, in the United States you will be sure to find an association…If it be proposed to advance some truth or foster some feeling of encouragement of a great example, Americans form a society.” Alexis de Tocqueville 19th century

America has always had a diversity of strong groups, and strong conflict between those groups. After Europeans discovered the Americas in the 15th century, Spanish, French, Dutch and British colonists competed for slices of the new world. Inevitably, the countries came into conflict with each other.

 At a grassroots level, conflict also occurred between citizens of each country. A group of pioneers would set off to build a new town along some river. After building a town, some kind of ideological conflict might emerge and instead of resolving it, a group would just leave the town and establish a new one further up the river. Two towns would then develop homogenous cultures that were relatively hostile to other cultures.

Towards the end of the 18th century, the various American factions united and gained independence from colonial powers. After gaining their independence, the continuation of domestic disagreements led to a continuation of domestic wars and conflict.

From all the wars and the pioneering dreams, America developed strong group identities, and individual Americans developed a strong psychology of joining groups. In some regards, America evolved into a European style union. It had lots of pockets of cultural diversity, but within those pockets lived individuals with little exposure to diversity. When needing to deal with diversity, the Americans acted like the Europeans by resorting to violence.Occasionally, individuals from the groups defused out to mix with individuals from other groups to create something new. It was these individuals who harnessed the value of America's diversity and in turn made America a strong nation.

Due to its harsh environmental conditions, Australia developed in a very different way to America. Prior to the English, Australia was discovered by Portuguese, the Dutch, the Spanish, Indonesians, and the Chinese; however, the countries looked around the barren landscape populated by nomads and decided Australia had nothing of value. When the British discovered Australia in 1772, they decided it would make a great dumping ground for criminals. In 1788, the first load of criminals was dumped in Sydney. Convicts continued to be sent to Australia for a further 80 years. France discovered different parts of Australia, but acted like the other European countries by deciding Australia had nothing of value.

Because Britain was the only European country to show an interest in it, Australia was never a battlefield for Europeans as was America. Furthermore, because the land was poor, Australia never had pioneers setting off to build new towns along the river to escape persecution or to avoid group conflict. Instead, most Australians remained trapped in the same coastal cities that were built with Convict labour. In these cities, the main conflict was between those of Convict descent and those not tainted by criminal ancestry.

In some ways, the colonial conflict has never been resolved and as a result, Australia remains an individualistic nation that lacks a group psychology to conform to culture. Australia still has its "wardens" that want to flog the country, its people and any conception of community pride. Australia also has its rebels who dislike the wardens. As neither personality wants to share a group with the other, it has been difficult for individual Australians to create cultural expressions accepted by all or feel the sense of family that is usually associated with a national identity.

Patriotism

Americans are very patriotic people. Some of the patriotism can be attributed to the impressive array of American achievements that include landing on the moon, stopping Nazi Germany, inventing the internet and winning 30 per cent of noble prizes. Some of the patriotism can be attributed to American history, and the emotive rallies that were initially used to unite diverse groups into once force capable of overthrowing the English. Some of the patriotism can be attributed to American psychology, which has always fostered a strong identification with the group. The group psychology that was initially cultivated on a racial, religious, civic or state level, has now been transferred to a national level.

Although patriotism can unite Americans, it can also divide them. Each American subculture has a tendency to believe its culture is what America is about, and they will fight to preserve that culture by using the American flag as a rallying symbol. For example, many American Christians believe that America is about obeying god’s laws. Many atheists believe America is about escaping god’s laws. Texans may believe America is about the cowboy culture that refused to surrender at the Alamo. Californians may believe America is about the Hollywood dream. New Yorkers may believe America is about holding the golden lamp to the citizens of the world that want to breath free. As each subculture asserts its own respective definition of American patriotism, it can come into conflict with subcultures that have a different definition. In the past, such conflicts were dealt with by simply moving up the river to found a new town or initiating a civil war. In modern times, such an option is no longer available.

For many Australians, patriotism is a negative concept. In the colonial era, patriotism was a threat to British rule and discouraged accordingly. Today, a variety of justifications are used to argue that patriotism has no place in Australia. For example, at the 2007 Sydney Big Day Out (a music festival held on Australia Day) organisers argued that the Australian flag was symbolic of racism and needed to be banned. According to promoter Ken West,

"The Australian flag was being used as gang colours. It was racism disguised as patriotism and I'm not going to tolerate it."

Patriotism brings Americans many advantages that are denied from Australians. Individual Americans are inclined to ask what they can do for their country rather than what their country can do for them. This includes such things as helping a compatriot with talent bring glory to America in sport, in science or in the arts.

The lack of patriotism in Australia results in many individual Australians asking what they can get from the government rather than asking what they can contribute to the Australian community. Unfortunately for these people, there is a limit to how long tax-paying voters are prepared to subsidise freeloaders that they feel no sense of community with. In recent years, Australia has had numerous campaigns aimed at ending government funding for the arts, for the humanities, and for sport. It has also had campaigns to reduce taxes and tighten access to welfare.

English accent

The diversity of accents in a country is a reflection upon the country's diverse social identities. In America, different regions and different races speak English with different accents. The northern regions speak with what is known as a general American accent. The southern regions speak with a southern American Accent. The differences in speech are believed to have originated in the American civil war.

In addition to regional variance in language, America also has racial variance. American blacks have a distinct dialect known as ebonics. Not only is the accent different, so is the syntax. For example, instead of saying "There are apples" or "There is water", they will say "there be apples" and "there be water."

 In Australia, there is no variation in accent according to region, race, or socio-economic class. Instead, the accent varies according to ideology and gender. Two Australians can grow up side by side but end up speaking different versions of Australian English. 10 per cent of Australians speak with what is known as a broad Australian accent (Bob Hawke.) These people usually have a positive attitude to Australia. Around 80 per cent speak with a general Australian accent (Nicole Kidman.) Around 10 per cent speak with a British received accent (Malcolm Fraser.) These people may proudly declare that they don't say "g'day". The Australian men who speak with the accent have a negative attitude to Australia.

Contrary to myth, Australia has no regional variance in accent. Each Australian city has roughly the same mix of the three accents (even though they have very different migrant histories.) Likewise, children of migrants do not speak with ethnic accents. As for Aborigines, some continue to speak pre-colonial languages. Of those that speak English, the majority do so with Paul Hogan style broad Australian accents. Finally, there is no socio-economic difference in speech. Billionaires born with silver spoons in their mouths are quite likely to speak with the same accent as tradesmen.

Billy Blue - A black Convict that became Australia's first celebrity. Billy has been honoured in the naming of many streets, pubs and landmarks in Nth Sydney.

Black white conflict

Blacks of African descent in Australia have always carried a different social image to those in America. A good example of the difference was seen on the Australian gold fields in 1854. A collection of miners from a diverse range of nationalities rebelled against the British. The miners were crushed and survivors arrested. One of the men arrested was John Joseph, a black man from America. Joseph had been arrested along with other American nationals; however, because he was black, the American government did not secure his release as it did for the other American citizens. Joseph stood trial and was subsequently found not guilty by a jury of his peers. He was then was carried around the streets of Melbourne in a chair of triumph by over 10,000 people.

Australia's fondness for blacks of African descent has never really waned. In what had become known as the Calypso Summer, Frank Worrels 1961 touring West Indian cricket breathed colour into the all white game. Although losing the series, 90,000 Australians lined the streets of Melbourne in a ticker tape parade biding the Windies farewell. In the 80s and early 90s, the Windies' popularity continued to grow to the extent that a large percentage of Australians chose to support the West Indian team over that of their home country.

The different attitudes to blacks can be explained by Australia’s Convict foundations. In America's founding era, whites constituted the majority of the population, and were the first class citizens. Blacks were the disliked minority. On the other hand, nearly two generations into Australia's urban era, nearly 80 per cent of the population was a Convict, Emancipist, or of Convict descent. As a consequence, the majority of the population were second class-citizens, and the exclusive free settlers were the disliked minority. Race was insignificant compared to the stigma of Convict ancestry.

Ethnic labelling

Americans are more likely to use an ethnic classifier, such as African, Chinese or Vietnamese, when referring to non-white Americans. In Australia, the use of ethnic classifiers is rare, especially for black people. For example, Australians with African heritage, such as Marcia Hines, George Gregan and Andrew Symonds, are referred to as Australians, not African Australians.  In what can be attributed to the influence of American television, some Australians will refer to a black person in Australia (perhaps a Sudanese immigrant) as an African American.

Polarisation

Australia’s urban society commenced in an extremely polarised manner. On one end of the spectrum there were the "pure" settlers and on the other there were the Australians of convict decent. Unlike Australia, America’s urban society commenced in a relatively harmonious form. Pioneers found solidarity in their church groups.

With time, Australia has evolved to become relatively homogeneous while America has become extremely polarised. Although Australia has ideological divisions, these are no where near extreme as the ideological divisions in America that find expression in the Democrat and Republican Parties.

Australia became less polarised because it introduced political measures that made it difficult for extremists to gain political representation. Compulsory voting was one such measure. In America, voluntary voting means that the extremists are great assets to a political campaign. It is the extremists that get out to vote, and convince others to vote as well. To keep the extremists happy, the American political parties must pander to their interests, and this can result in a polarised society. In Australia; however, the extremists are not really important at all. The political party that they have chosen can simply take them for granted and ignore them. The party can then devote its resources on the swinging voters that will decide the election. As a consequence, it is the moderates from the middle-ground that need to be kept happy.  Both parties therefore position themselves as moderates.

Preferential voting is another innovation that keeps extremists out of Australian parliament. The system forces voters to rank candidates in order of preference. When the ballots are collectively tallied, it is the candidate that is the least hated, rather than most liked, that represents the people. In the 1990s, the system kept the extremist Pauline Hanson out of parliament even though she won the most votes in her electorate.

Cultural reflections - Cowboy battles Indian for America. Convict escapes and lives with Aborigines

Indigenous conflict with colonists

Although America developed a Cowboy and Indian culture that was expressed in comic books, movies, paintings, novels and children’s games, Australia never developed a similar Stockmen and Aboriginal culture. Instead of developing culture based on conflict with Aborigines, Australian colonists developed a culture that built its credentials by associating itself with Aborigines. For example, most Australian paintings depicting Aborigines and whites show them acting in quite a friendly manner. In regards to song, Waltzing Matilda, (a song of nationalism from the 19th century) used Aboriginal words like billabong, jumbuck and coolibah. Most of rural Australia was named using Aboriginal words like Canberra, Wollongong, or Ulladullah.

The different outcome can be attributed to different environmental influences. Australia's poor soils and frequent droughts made the land unsuited to high-density farming communities. As a consequence, most colonial farmers lived an isolated existence with only sporadic contact with nomadic Aborigines for human company. It would have been unwise for these farmers to pick a fight with Aborigines when they didn't have strong communities to back them up. Furthermore, the Aborigines offered these farmers their best hope for some friends, sexual partners, or farm hands. Friendship was more in their interests than conflict.

Kangaroo and buffalo - One is easy to herd, farm and kill on mass. One is not.

As well as not being conducive to high-density farming communities, the Australian environment also contained a host of native animals that increased as a result of farming. The kangaroo was one such animal. The farmer's dams gave kangaroos permanent water supplies that helped them survive drought. Likewise, the cutting down of trees increased available pasture that kangaroos could graze upon. Even though farmers wanted to kill the kangaroos as pests, or build fences to keep them out, the kangaroos simply jumped the fences, drank the water, ate the grass, and then hopped back into the bush where they remained a valuable food source for Aborigines. Consequently, the colonists and natives never had to fight over food as they did in America.

Even though there was relative little conflict between colonists and Aborigines, modern white historians, such as Henry Reynolds, Robert Manne and Lyndall Ryan, have fabricated evidence of conflict. The fabrication of history can be partly attributed to the continuation of ideological conflict that commenced in the penal era. By portraying Australian colonial society as awash with violence against Aborigines, the likes of Henry Reynolds, Robert Manne and Lyndall Ryan can demean Australians who have some national pride, which in turn asserts the superiority of their own ideological thinking.

Aside from being seen in the fabrication of Aboriginal history, the conflicting ideologies can be seen in two movies dealing with Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal relations in modern society. In Crocodile Dundee (1986), an Australian male speaking with a broad Australian accent built his cultural creditability by giving Aborigines respect and being accepted by them. In Priscilla Queen of the Desert (1994), left-wing gays built their cultural credibility by stereotyping Aborigines as victims of Crocodile Dundee characters. When exposed to gay culture, the victimised Aborigines cheer it on as if they are testimonials in a sales campaign.

Australians who liked Crocodile Dundee didn't like Priscilla, and vice versa. The left-wing fans of Priscilla are also the ones who stereotype Aborigines as victims but deny them respect.

Corroboree 1) Crocodile Dundee (1986)- Outback man gains status by becoming Aboriginal and by showing respect for tribal culture.

Corroboree 2) Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994) - Aborigines are stereotyped as social outcasts like homosexuals. The homosexuals perform a dance and Aborigines clap them on like testimonials in a sales campaign. The homosexuals' status comes from assimilating the Aborigines to a gay lifestyle.

Political correctness

Political correctness is confined to the world’s immigrant nations. Of these nations, America is by far the most politically correct. The political correctness is so extreme that McDonalds restaurants don’t sell "white coffee" or "black coffee." They sell "coffee with cream" and "coffee without cream."

American political correctness can be attributed to well developed Jewish, black and migrant lobbies that jump on anything that even remotely damages their interests. With the lobbies always ready to pounce, Americans have become quite timid in regards to what they are prepared to say. The political correctness even extends to how Americans may talk about Australians (who don't even have a lobby in America.) For example, the CIA World Fact Book makes no mention of Convicts when talking about Australian history. Presumably, the authors were scared about offending Australians if they mentioned the truth.

In some regards, failing to mention Convicts is polite because there are some Australians who are very uncomfortable with their Convict heritage. According to American author Bill Bryson,

"I can personally affirm that to stand before an audience of beaming Australians and make even the mildest quip about a convict past is to feel the feel the air conditioning immediately elevated."

Although the Convict heritage is a lag for some Australians, it is liberating for others. Status can only be stripped from people who have it. Consequently, those who accept that Convict heritage denies them status can speak quite freely without fear that they have anything to lose.

Chopper Reid character in the Ronnie Burns half-hour

Another interesting side-effect of not having status is that many Australians are more happy with people who they can see as mutual scum. A story told in the Australian Slanguage, by Bill Horndage, illustrates the point:

"Professor Michio Ochi...related an incident which happened when he visited the New South Wales town of Young:

'My wife and I were standing beside the car. A young boy walked past and sang 'Ching-Chong Chinaman'. I didn't want to ignore this, I had to make a decision on the spot so I called back to him 'You bloody Aussie bastard'. "

In an paradoxical kind of way, the actions of Professor Ochi would probably have endeared him to the boy, and all those Australians who have heard of the story. To return an insult with interest has a strange way of making Australians feel comfortable.

Although the lack of political correctness might be a Convict trait, it is equally likely that it is an Aboriginal trait. The writings of a colonial military officer, Watkin Tench, record the sense of humour of an Aborigine known as Arabanoo:

"If the slightest insult were offered to him, he would return it with interest. At retaliation of merriment he was often happy; and frequently turned the laugh against his antagonist. "

The origins of the word Moomba, the name for a Melbourne cultural festival, also illustrates how Aborigines liked to make politically incorrect jokes about the new arrivals. When Melbourne's founding fathers were looking for a name for their festival, they asked Aborigines for a suitable word, and were subsequently told that 'moomba' means, 'lets get together and have fun.' In hindsight, the founding fathers should have been suspicious that 'lets get together and have fun' could have been expressed in two syllables. In reality, 'moom' means 'bum', 'buttocks', or 'anus', while the suffix 'ba' means 'in', 'at' or 'on'. It seems then, the local tribes got together and had fun as they laughed the whitefella's 'in the bum' festival.

Praise the lord

Americans tend to be very complimentary people. They may praise others for their artwork, sporting ability, ideas or their country’s achievements. Although the American’s willingness to praise others could be seen as a sign that Americans are easily impressed, at times it is difficult to believe the sincerity of their praise. For example, American golfer Tiger Woods once expressed his admiration for Australian Adam Scott, and said that he wasn’t as good as Scott was at the same age. Such a view would seem unlikely considering that Tiger is arguably the greatest golfer of all time, and was a star from an early age, while Scott is merely an honest toiler.

Americans have an outstanding record of achievement and surely the achievements of people from other countries would seem diminutive in comparison. Perhaps Americans have decided that being polite is superior to being honest. Alternatively, perhaps they have become so accustomed to hearing compliments that they just can't stop themselves from being complimnetary as well.

Australians are quite different from Americans in the praise regard. In Australia, you are far more likely to get a criticism than a compliment. Even if Australians are impressed, they often keep their admiration to themselves.

Christianity

In 2006, numerous churches across Australia displayed the slogan:

"Jesus loves Osama."
 
 After the slogan appeared, talkback radio received a few calls from concerned citizens, but otherwise nothing happened. In America, religion is so intertwined with politics that if a Church said that Jesus loves Osama, the Church would have more than just a few concerned citizens on talkback radio to contend with.

The anti-institution element of Australian Christianity can be traced to the days of the penal colony. Whereas American Christian leaders were firmly on the side of the general population, Australia's Christian leaders were very much against them. Instead of looking at the Convicts as humans to be helped, the Christians looked at them as sinners to be punished. In response, the Convicts returned the hostility.

An early example of the mutual hostility can be seen in the rein of Governor Hunter. Hunter was a morals crusader who frequently ordered Convicts be flogged for petty crimes. Although the Convicts were able to put up with the floggings, they were pushed to breaking point when they were ordered to attend Church on Sundays. They responded by burning the Church to the ground. More anti-institutional sentiment could be seen in the scorn for Samuel Marsden – a reverend of the colonial era. In New Zealand, Marsden is celebrated as a great man who brought the gospel to the Maori. In Australia, he is remembered as the "flogging parson". The Convict men said of him:

"He prays for our souls on Sunday, and takes it out of bodies during the rest of the week."

The black sheep straying from the flock

Americans have a strong herd instinct which expresses itself in a desire to turn themselves into followers. Some of the herd instinct was seen in the Salem Witch Hunts of the 17th century and again in the communism witch hunts of the 1950s. Some of it has been seen with the formation of cults. Some of it is seen in American movies where the president is always depicted in a positive light, and other Americans will sacrifice their own lives in his defence. Some of it is even seen in the actions of crowds at live music festivals where a singular individual will take a lead, and the rest of the crowd will cheer them on and then follow the lead.

Whereas Americans have the white sheep mindset, the Australian tends to have the black sheep mindset. When the back sheep strays from the collective flock of black sheep, rather than follow it, Australians will just let it be. For example, in the 1950s, Australians voted on whether Communism should be banned. The majority of Australians voted no, not because they were communist, but because they hadn't jumped on the anti-commi bandwagon. The lack of inclination to follow is also seen in Australian movies. If a prime minister ever appeared in an Australian movie, there is no doubt he would be belittled rather than celebrated. At music festivals, Australians dance in a form of collective individualism. In an individual jumped up to take the lead, rather than follow him or her, the crowd might tell the wanker to get off his high horse. If the individual just does his or her own thing, and doesn't expect anyone to follow then they will just be left alone. Silverchair, an Australian band, once commented that in America the audiences tended to have a leader. In Australia, there never seemed to be any kind of leader at all.

For Australians, the lack of a herd instinct has made it quite difficult to create an easily recognisable culture. Although individual Australians have created some great artistic expressions, the expressions have not been assimilated by fellow Australians. As a result, they have remained individualistic, rather than social, affairs. America is the opposite. America has created easily recognisable music styles, fashion styles, food styles, painting styles and movie styles largely because so many Americans will follow the lead of a creative individual.

Seeing shades of grey

Americans are more prone to being judgemental than are Australians. Perhaps this judgemental mind set comes from their tendency to see the world in black and white. For example, some Americans have no trouble labelling nations such as Iran, Iraq and North Korea as part of the axis of evil. Similarly, many Americans have no trouble labelling George Bush as an evil man.

Internationally, this confidence has motivated America to support righteous causes in foreign countries, and subsequently involve themselves in foreign wars. Domestically, the confidence has also led to the creation of controversial issues that polarise Americans in distinct camps with strong opinions in regards to what is "morally" right. Gun control vs right to bear firearms, abortion vs free choice, intelligent design vs evolutionary theory, capital punishment vs life in jail.

Aside from being judgemental, many Americans exhibit a religious style desire to be a "good" person with an almost missionary belief to impress people. They may try to impress people by being helpful, demonstrating their conformity to their bible, showing their patriotism, outlining their ambitions, or even making a concerted effort to belittle George Bush. They donate money to charity then tell everyone about it, or see a therapist and proudly talk of getting in touch with their emotions. Even if they are not asked, they like to talk about their achievements. If they haven't achieved anything, they may apply the American philosophy of "until you make it, fake it."

Many of America's cultural traits can be traced to the country's puritan beginnings. Some of the puritan thinking lives with the Thanksgiving traditions. Some of it lives in the noble inscription on the Statue of Liberty:

"Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me. I lift my lamp beside the golden door."

Some of the puritan thinking lives with the American constitution that enshrines noble ideals of liberty, freedom of expression and the right to bear firearms.

America's problem is that noble ideals are not suited to every situation and sometimes two noble ideals can be in conflict with the other. Free speech sounds great, as does free worship but when free speech denounces religion then the noble ideals are in conflict, and more conflict emerges when religion denounces another race. Similarly, while it may be great having a noble inscription of holding a lamp to the world's under classes, unless America becomes like Jesus and invents a bread basket that never runs out, the world's under classes that continue to knock at America's door will continue to be turned away. Americans will then be criticised as they struggle to live up to the high standards that they have set for themselves.

The controversial issues of America are not even debated in Australia where apathy is king or issues are discussed in shades of grey. In Australia, people who see the world in black and white have always been belittled. In the Convict era, a reverend was mooned by 300 women when he was preparing to give a moralistic speech. In modern times, Australians with extreme left or right views in regards to refugees, nationalism or Aboriginal issues have likewise found themselves alienated from the mainstream population. Australia has no Bill of Rights and attempts to create one continue to be resisted.

Like America, history has been important for Australia. As Australia has convict foundations, it doesn't have the noble stories that inspire conformity and inspiration. It doesn't have any noble inscriptions on a statue of liberty, nor heroic tales of saving the world that people can rally around. Instead, it has he scum of British society. Unfortunately for Australians, there just hasn't ever been much emotional resonance in pulling out grandpa's ball and chain in order to relive the spirit of the founding fathers.

Due to the Convict history, flag-waving patriotism is largely lacking in Australia. (As mentioned above, polishing your arse with the flag may well be greeted with laughter instead of condemnation.)

As for pride in history, most Australians ignore their Convict heritage. This act sometimes makes Australians appear insecure about themselves and perhaps explains the lack of the confident American swagger. The English like to ridicule Australians about Convicts, while Americans usually avoid mentioning the stain for fear of offending Australians. Sometimes; however, they may tell Australians not to worry about it as America once had some British Convicts as well.

In the actual Convict era, when history was alive, perhaps the problematic nature of morality made the Convicts more open minded. The situations they encountered read like the moral dilemmas tested in a psychology class. Would you steal to feed your starving family? Which is worse? Promiscuous sex or violence? Stealing a loaf of bread or sending someone to the opposite side of the world for stealing a loaf of bread? Stealing food or not giving food to a starving child?

The problematic nature of morality revealed itself in Convict expressions such as:

"The law locks as the man who steals the goose from the common but leaves the greater criminal loose who steals the common from the goose"

and folk songs like the Wild Colonial Boy:

"He bade the Judge good morning, and told him to beware,
That he'd never rob a needy man or one who acted square,
But a Judge who'd rob a mother of her one and only joy
Sure, he must be a worse outlaw than the Wild Colonial Boy."

Humility in a world of excellence

In the past 100 years, no country achieved as much as America. It has put a man on the moon. It has been a production line of phenomenal athletes in tennis, golf, athletics and it even surpasses Australia in swimming. It has invented computers, the internet and the aeroplane. It is the undisputed world leader in the entertainment industries. In almost every field of research, be it psychology, computers or mathematics, America has been at the forefront of thought and innovation. While it may have 300 million people, it has been punching above its weight in terms of what it achieved.

America is a country set up to allow talent to rise to the surface. Myths such as the American dream propose that everyone can succeed; be they an immigrant, a pauper, or a religious weirdo. The myth is not just a fable and Americans have worked hard to ensure that it has an element of truth. Some of this hard work is reflected in the constitution that protects liberties. Some of it is reflected in the university scholarship system, which ensures that anyone with talent can go to university, and cultivate their talent. Some of it is reflected in the general thinking of the average American who is very supportive of their compatriots that aim high.

On the downside, talent is rare and some people really shouldn't be encouraged to believe that they have any. Furthermore, dreams fail for 99 per cent of the population. When the dream fails, Americans have a tendency to become neurotic and stressed about their failure. Not surprisingly, an abnormally high number of Americans have therapists or feel the need to see psychiatrists. (Even stranger, they almost seem proud to tell people that they have problems and are seeing shrinks.)

Australia is very different from America in this regard. Publicly, an Australian may joke about "going for bronze" or "striving for mediocrity in a world of excellence." They might not really be setting their sights low, but their lofty ambitions are kept private. Australia is not a country where talent is nutured by the community around it. This lack of community support has led to many great Australian inventions being lost to Australia. In 1894, Lawrence Hargrave made the world's first powered flight. If he had had community support to refine his ideas he would have invented sustained and controlled powered flight at least a decade before the Wright brothers.

Australians have been at finest when, as an underdog, they have wanted to cut down a tall poppy. (At the very least, Australians seem most proud of an achievement when a tall poppy has been lopped.) In cricket, Don Bradman was a freak of nature. In no international sport has one athlete been so statistically ahead of all others around him. Bradman's motivation seemed to be to humiliate the pompous English. He once said:

"When you play test cricket, you don't give the Englishmen an inch. Play it tough, all the way. Grind them into the dust"

In more cases of an underdog emerging triumphant, in World War II at Tobruk, Australians were the first nation to inflict a defeat on General Rommel. In the Kokoda campaign, Australians broke the spell of invinciability that the Japanese had woven over the Allied nations. In 1983, the yacht "Australia II"  ended the Americans 132 year dominance of the America's cup. At the 2000 Olympics, Australia became the first ever nation to defeat America's 4 X 100 freestyle team.

The bigger the hat, the smaller the property

Americans are masters of aversive psychology. Aversive psychology is a mind trick whereby people over-represent insignificant details that allow themselves to affirm an image they have of themselves. For example, a fatty may walk into McDonalds and order a Big Mac, Sundae, French Fries but then have a "non-dairy creamer" in their coffee because they are trying to lose weight. Americans use aversive psychology when forming their self-conception of their level of racial tolerance, freedom, and conformity to religious beliefs.

In Australia, there is deep suspicion of aversive psychology. Perhaps this is a legacy of the colonial era when it was used by Christians who showed the Convicts such inhumanity while preaching the label of the bible. The convict's cyncism to such Christians was reflected in their scorn for Samuel Marsden, whom they referred to as the "flogging parson. " According to the convicts:

"He prays for our souls on Sunday, and takes it out of of bodies during the rest of the week."

Since the colonial era, the Christian Church has remained a focus of ridicule as it has a long history of being big on labels, but small in substance. (There are some exceptions. For example, The Salvation Army is held in high regard because it has changed its emphasis from judgement, to practical Christianity by rolling up of its sleeves in service of the poor.) As a result of this cyncism, public expressions of worship are denounced in Australia. In the words of Robert Hughes:

"Any political candidate who declared God was on his side would be laughed off the podium as an idiot or a wowser."

The suspicious mind that is untrusting of the Church is also revealed with suspicion of people who wear fashionable clothes to show how "rich" they are, or people who talk about their achievements to show how "successful" they are. It is also revealed in sayings such as:

"the bigger the hat, the smaller the property", "the smallest dog barks the loudest" and "actions speak louder than words."

Puritanical thinking not leading to a puritanical outcome

In 2004, a Quantum/AustraliaSCAN found that more than 60 per cent of Australians were "permissive" about sexual mores, with only one in 10 espousing a more "restrictive" approach. By contrast, only four in 10 Americans were "permissive". Almost the same number were puritanical in their desire for more restriction.

Despite being less puritanical in thinking, Australia seems to be more puritanical in outcome. The rate of HIV infection in Australia is 1.2 per 100,000 population; almost 1/12th the American rate of 14.7 (Avert.org). Australia's divorce rate is 2.7 per 1,000 population; significantly lower than the United States' rate of 4.3 (Australian Bureau of Statistics). In Australia, there are 0.25 paternity tests for every 1,000 people; almost 1/5th the U.S rate of 1.2 tests per 1,000 people (Professor Michael Gilding, Swinburne University of Technology). Australia's murder rate is 1.7 per 100 000 population; almost 1/4 of the American rate of 6.3 (Australian Government Institute of Criminology.)

Perhaps America's higher rate of puritanical thinking is in response to social ills caused by the devil's greater focus on their country. Alternatively, perhaps America's puritanical thinking is part of the cause of the social ills. Either way, it seems there are more prayers going unanswered in America than there are in Australia.

The insular world policeman

Whenever there is injustice in the world, it is America that is asked to help. When Christians were persecuted in Egypt, it was the Americans who answered their call. When the Koreans were faced with execution at the hands of a communist insurgency, it was the Americans who gave them a fighting chance. When mainland China threatened to invade Taiwan, it was the Americans who let the mainland know that such a use of force would not be tolerated.

While America's good deeds have won it some admiration, it has also made it many enemies. The Islamic world sees it as meddlesome, or only after its oil reserves. South Koreans see America as responsible for keeping their nation divided. The Vietnamese see Americans as muderers. Many Africans minorities, who America hasn't helped, accuse America of forgetting about them.

American foreign policy, whether it be motivated by money or a genuine desire to help, has now seen Americans soundly disliked the world over. Not surprisingly, most Americans have no desire to leave America and experience the condemnation that most countries have for them. As Australia has only involved itself in foreign issues to show support for a major power like Britain or America, it has been sparred most of the hostility directed at Americans. (*Facilitating the independence of East Timor from Indonesia is perhaps a minor exception. As a result of the facilitation, many Indonesians now hate Australia. Even some East Timorese hate Australia on the grounds that Australia didn't come soon enough, or it only did it to gain a better deal for its resources.) Because Australia has generally lacked the power to interfere in other country's affairs, Australians are not as disliked as Americans. As a result, they are far more comfortable leaving Australia to travel the world.

Language of deception

A culture is reflected in its language. The difference between American and Australian cultures is reflected in the pronunciation of English, and the purpose English is used for. In regards to pronunciation, Americans are more throaty. Their deep voice has an air of authority like a sheriff, pastor or cowboy. On the other hand, Australians are a little higher pitched, almost as if they are having a joint or their testicals are being held in a vice.

Americans are prone to use English for persuasive purposes. This is reflected in their use of analogies and relatively simple words that the majority of the population can understand. Australians are more likely to use language to be funny, to deceive or to cut down a tall poppy. These purposes are reflected in the high number of colourful expressions like:

Kangaroos loose in the top paddock, mad as a gum tree full of galahs, about as useful as a ashtray on a motor bike, is a duck's arse water tight?

It is also reflected in the high number of idioms and rhyming slang which ensures no one can understand what an Australians are talking about. In Australia, being clichéd is frowned upon. Even G'day mate is rejected by many parts of the population. Even though it is a very positive greeting, because it is stereotyped it may stifle the unpredictability that many Australians crave.

Stereotypes

For different reasons, many people in both Australia and America are reluctant to recognise their cultural uniqueness. Some Americans argue that Americans can't be stereotyped as not everyone drives pick-up trucks and talks about when they were abducted by aliens. Likewise, a minority of Australians are obsessed with telling the world that the average Australian doesn't wrestle crocodiles.

Poor relations

Surveys generally show that Australians respect Americans less than any other nation. Surveys aside, in general conservation it is obvious that many Australians (mainly left-wing) have open hostility to Americans. This dislike is reflected in the use of the word Seppos, which is the abbreviation of Septic Tank which is rhyming slang for Yank. A dislike of Americans is especially strong in the Australian military where Australians and Americans have had to fight side by side. This dislike goes back to World War II where Australians hated Doug McCathur, and an all-in-brawl erupted between American MPs and Diggers in the 'Battle of Brisbane.'

The history of human conflict seems to indicate that prejudice is strongest between likeminded nations. For example, China is more hostile to Japan than it is to India. Although there is the issue of World War II, this is perhaps the excuse rather than the reason. The Chinese have chosen to hold a grudge against the Japanese that they haven't held against other nations that tried to exploit them such as the French, Americans, English and Russians. Likewise, the Japanese have maintained some negative views of the Chinese while they have fallen head over heels for America, even though the Americans imposed a naval blockade that forced the Japanese into World War II, and later bombed them with nuclear weapons that ended World War II.

Perhaps likeminded nations are more prone to conflict because they don't extend each other the same tolerance that they extend to diverse countries. What is dismissed as 'culture' for a dissimilar nation may be criticised as 'defective thinking' in more closely related nation.

Perhaps another reason for conflict is a desire for clearly defined boundaries. Insults are a way of forming these boundaries. Australians are very hostile to idea of 'becoming the 51st state of America' and hostility to America is one way of achieving mental independence.

World views

Australians have a tendency to be loud and obnoxious when they are beered up, which in my experience, is much of the time. They're descendants from pockets and cut purses, and as we all know, the acorn doesn't fall far from the tree. Michael Carey - American

As a result of all this hardship, dirt, thirst, and wombats, you would expect Australians to be a dour lot. Instead, they are genial, jolly, cheerful, and always willing to share a kind word with a stranger, unless they are an American. Douglas Adams - English

Australian culture feels as grotesque as The Day of the Locust. There’s no sense of a high culture anywhere, and extreme characters abound. TV ads are often leeringly sexual "These are the only balls you’ll see at our health club," says an ad for a women’s workout center, focusing on some tennis balls Phillip Weis- American

There is something of the cowboy in every American, but a little bit of the sheep station in most Australians Matthew Parris - English observer

They are not a nation of snobs like the English or of extravagant boasters like the Americans or of reckless profligates like the French, they are simply a nation of drunkards Marcus Clark - English

The first thing you notice about Australian culture is that it’s pathetically thin..... The thinness means that modern Australia has fallen for American culture in a way that no one else could....Mimicry is a point of pride." Philip Weiss - American

I can personally affirm that to stand before an audience of beaming Australians and make even the mildest quip about a convict past is to feel the feel the air conditioning immediately elevated. Bill Bryson - American

Australians love an underdog. We love people who are humble, down to earth, almost embarrassed by their own successes.  We love Ian Thorpe, who is not only a decent young man, but who can just get on with the job without all the pomp and ceremony that Americans love to employ. We love Susie O'Neil, sweet, quiet, hard-working. Michael Diamond - could you possibly see a more humble person than this?

We don't boo Yanks because we think they are better than us. We boo yanks because they think they are better than us. Nicole Beatty - Australian

[Top]

Cultural comparisons

Argentina
Emotion & innovation

America
Group vs individual

China
Tradition & change

Canada
Cults of multiculturalism

England
Warden & Convicts

France
Failed revolutionaries

Germany
Thinkers and Drinkers

Ireland
Immigration and emmigration

Japan
Samurai & Convicts

South Africa
Kaffirs and Convicts

South Korea
The middle-powers

New Zealand
Convicts vs Do gooders

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Inaccurate stereotypes about Australia