Is There Anything Bad to Say About Australia?

[lamp]

It belongs to the top 10 least corrupt countries, which I find extremely good. I agree with their politics, for example they have very rigid regulations for immigrants like being able to finance yourself and speak English fluently. It is overall a nice looking country with beaches and a comforting lifestyle. It also has more or less the same temperature throughout the year - which is a negative for many people I speak with but for me it is a big plus, I hate the winter and always dreamed about living in a country with the same temperature throughout the year. I think I really may move to Australia.

 

The only thing which takes getting used to is that they drive on the left side.

 

Back to my question, is there anything bad to say about this country?

 

And how are the universities there?

Edited June 30, 2011 by chaseman

[Mr Rayon]

It belongs to the top 10 least corrupt countries, which I find extremely good. I agree with their politics, for example they have very rigid regulations for immigrants like being able to finance yourself and speak English fluently. It is overall a nice looking country with beaches and a comforting lifestyle. It also has more or less the same temperature throughout the year - which is a negative for many people I speak with but for me it is a big plus, I hate the winter and always dreamed about living in a country with the same temperature throughout the year. I think I really may move to Australia.

 

The only thing which takes getting used to is that they drive on the left side.

 

Back to my question, is there anything bad to say about this country?

 

And how are the universities there?

 

I have lived in Australia for most of my life and I can say with certainty that there are very little bad things about Australia. It's an isolated Island of paradise and currently seems to be one of the best countries in the world to be living in. I am a very lucky person to be born into this country! We also seem to have some close ties to China.

 

Our highschool education system is probably not as good as some Asian/European countries but from what I've been hearing generally it's better than those of the US.

 

The universities are also pretty good, of course not as good as the Ivy League American universities but still good. Have you checked out the university rankings yet?

[lamp]

Very cool Mr Rayon,

 

I have not checked the university rankings specifically for Australia out yet, but I did check the overall rankings out, and I pretty much liked Cambridge, I thought the universities in the US are a bit over the top.

 

There are a few countries which stick out to me but I have to say Australia is at the top, I would like to go for a vacation to other countries but when it comes to living then Australia would be my choice for now.

 

I'd like to know, how is it to live throughout the whole year with the same temperature?

[Mr Rayon]

From my first post, I fear I may have been too optimistic.

Okay, I tried thinking of some bad things about living in OZ:

- Skin cancer

- Currently suffering from a binge drinking culture

- Low level racism

- Bushfires in Summer

- Obesity epidemic

(last time I checked we were the second most obese country in the world after the US)

- I think we also get the occasional drought/floods up North Queensland too.

- Also no-body really likes to talk about this but our highschools have a big drug problem (i.e. lots of teens like experimenting)

 

But yeah, I can't think of anything else. We're also generally pretty friendly towards foreigners as pretty much everyone here is from somewhere else or has someone related that's non-Australian in their family, whether from Europe, Asia or somewhere else.

 

Very cool Mr Rayon,

 

I have not checked the university rankings specifically for Australia out yet, but I did check the overall rankings out, and I pretty much liked Cambridge, I thought the universities in the US are a bit over the top.

 

There are a few countries which stick out to me but I have to say Australia is at the top, I would like to go for a vacation to other countries but when it comes to living then Australia would be my choice for now.

 

Interesting. If you're into studying, have you considered possibly doing some sort of student exchange/study abroad program to Australia? ...might look good on a resume.

 

I'd like to know, how is it to live throughout the whole year with the same temperature?

 

I actually lived most of my life in Victoria where the winters can get pretty cold. In Victoria the temperature doesn't stay constant throughout the year. We experience Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter however the winter isn't really that cold in Victoria, certainly not enough for snow and it's quite rare for this (apart from a few attraction sites). For this reason, I actually prefer the winter and not the Summer as the heat makes it hard to fall asleep and we don't have air conditioners where I currently live.

 

A lot of Asians like to come here to study university.

Edited July 1, 2011 by Mr Rayon

[imatfaal]

Chaseman - in my subject, law and legal theory, some of the Aussie Universities are very highly regarded. I think you will also find Aussie Unis in the top 50 or 100 worldwide in most sets of rankings - even if these rankings are a little odd and not wholly to be relied upon.

 

The main downside might be that you have to learn about a whole new set of sports - cricket, rugby u & l, and the mad aussie rules football

Edited July 1, 2011 by imatfaal

[Klaynos]

Certainly a perceived poor human rights record... and a quick google threw up some stuff...

 

http://www.amnesty.org.au/news/comments/24618/

 

Their universities do seem to have a good reputation though.

 

One of my friends is just about to finish a year in Melbourne, she's had a great time.

[lamp]

Though that article is concentrated specifically on laws, I myself have heard that Australia is big on ethic and honesty, which should be no surprise since it belongs to the top 10 least corrupt countries.

 

There are countries who have all the laws and regulations in the books (as in theory) but in practice those countries are quite corrupt and the laws get regularly broken. What I'm trying to say is that having the laws does not necessarily mean the country will rank in the top 10.

 

 

[John Cuthber]

Well, there's this

http://www.lab-initio.com/screen_res/nz338.jpg

 

and if you don't like the F word don't watch this.

[Marat]

I will second that comment about skin cancer, since Australia has the uniquely bad combination of intense sun exposure plus a very fair, white population.

 

There is also the problem of the vast internal distances within Australia, so it is not as easy to attend a conference in Sidney if you are working in Melbourne as it is to travel for the same purpose from Cambridge to London. It makes my heart sink to think of how far I would be, if I lived in Australia, from anything culturally interesting to see in the way of famous museums, cultural institutions, or historical landmarks. The Louvre, the Hofburg Palace, the battlefield of Waterloo, the British Library, or the Berlin Symphony would not be in easy reach, although you would have desert, dingos, horseflies, and melanomas in abundance.

 

Also, I'm not sure if this is true or not, but there is a general rumor that the level of culture in Australia is low, being awash in beer, beachbathing, dwarf-tossing contests, and outdoor sports in this land populated by descendants of the deported criminals of 18th century England (cf. the Jukes study?). Like the celebrated 38 terms for the different kinds of snow in Inuit languages, doesn't Australian English have more words for post-alcoholic vomiting than any other language?

[Moontanman]

Being eaten by salt water crocs would seem to be a bit of a minus I could walk less than a mile and see some wild alligators but they almost never bother humans but don't salt water crocs infest large areas of salt water swamps? I would miss fishing and not having to worry about being eaten... Oh yeah, they don't allow the importation of many aquarium fish either and I would miss that

 

I remember seeing a movie a long time ago about a group of people in Australia who lived in a rather large crater or something like that and they made their living shooting kangaroos and turning them into dog food, i can't remember the name, good movie. I like beer...

Edited July 1, 2011 by Moontanman

[ewmon]

1. Alcohol abuse and alcoholism
   
2. Aboriginal civil rights
   
3. The Lebanese "thing"
   
4. And all the women seem to be named "Sheila"
   

[Cap'n Refsmmat]

This:

 

[JohnB]

Well, I live in Brisbane in Queensland.

 

I have rain forest about 15 mins drive to the west. I have the Sunshine Coast and the Gold Coast about an hours drive north and south. (Both of these have amazing hinterlands.) The Great Barrier Reef is about 5 hours drive north.

 

Yes, we do have some problems but these aren't great and don't effect most people. Simple rule, be polite and we'll generally be polite back. Act like a twit and we don't want to know you. Our politicians are basically honest, mainly because none of them have IQs over about 35 and are too dumb to cheat properly. (I'm not certain, but I think those from our "Green" party actually have negative IQs.)

 

The cops are honest and polite, often with a sense of humour. They can be tough as needed but try to avoid things getting that out of hand. Personally I love the way this Queensland copper defused what could have been a "situation".

 

Basically we're a pretty laid back mob. We have a beautiful and wonderful country and life is too short not to enjoy all the amazing things it has to offer. There are few things to beat lazing on a beach watching the girls bikinis world go by. (Did I mention Brisbane has a beach in the centre of the city?)

 

chaseman, there are really only three things that visitors have to get used to;

 

1. We aren't joking about deadly snakes and spiders, crocodiles, sharks, blue rings, box jellies and the rest. They are out there and they will kill you. (Common sense is your friend here.)

2. Our sense of humour.

3. Drop bears.

 

Distances are large, Melbourne is about 1,000 miles away. But you fly down Friday night, go to a party Saturday and fly home Sunday, it's no big deal. You'd get used to it.

Edited July 3, 2011 by JohnB

[John Cuthber]

"But you fly down Friday night, go to a party Saturday and fly home Sunday, it's no big deal. You'd get used to it. "

Oh yes, I forgot about the carbon footprint of a lot of Oz, all that travel and the "need" for air conditioning doesn't do a lot for per capita energy use.

[Hal.]

From who's point of view is the answer to be given ?

 

 

 

Maybe these two men would have a lot to say about bad things in Australia .

[JohnB]

John, we can fit the entire UK in between Brisbane and Sydney, it's a 13 hour drive. Two days to drive to Melbourne and three to Adelaide, that's highway driving and 100 kph speed limits. It's a bloody big country. Flying simply makes sense.

 

Hal, since those tribal markings haven't been used since the 19th century I would think that those two gentlemen would have about as much to say on any topic as say, George Washington would. There are problems yes, but the next Aboriginal I meet that wants to give up medicine, mobile phones, cars, booze, supermarkets and the rest and go back to spearing 'roos and living in a gunya will be the first. We're working on it.

Edited July 4, 2011 by JohnB

[Hal.]

JohnB , I thought this image was a few centuries old but didn't know from exactly when . What I said is like what people say about other countries . If a historical figure could be transported to the future they would be amazed at what their country has become .

 

How does Australia treat these people ?

Are they busy tending to their lovely gardens and mansions from the profits of all the natural resources that their land has to offer the world ?

Do they not have to worry about the tuition fees for UNI for the children ?

 

Tell us JohnB , We are ignorant , life is not all Neighbours and Home and Away !

 

 

[ewmon]

The cops are honest and polite, often with a sense of humour. They can be tough as needed but try to avoid things getting that out of hand. Personally I love the way this Queensland copper defused what could have been a "situation".

Hmm.... Cops who are laid-back, don't mind being videotaped, and wear baseball caps!

[John Cuthber]

"Flying simply makes sense."

Not going makes even more sense.

If the place is really too big to get round without trashing the fossil fuel reserves you have to ask. why go?

[A Tripolation]

If the place is really too big to get round without trashing the fossil fuel reserves you have to ask. why go?

 

I suppose your computer and all your other electrical devices are powered by electricity produced by magical pixies?

[John Cuthber]

I suppose your computer and all your other electrical devices are powered by electricity produced by magical pixies?

Obviously, but I keep them a thousand miles away for good measure.

 

Really, I'm just reiterating the point made earlier i.e. "There is also the problem of the vast internal distances within Australia, so it is not as easy to attend a conference in Sidney if you are working in Melbourne as it is to travel for the same purpose from Cambridge to London."

Edited July 4, 2011 by John Cuthber

[JohnB]

Hal, if you don't know or understand the situation, then it strikes me as particularly dumb to offer a comment.

 

There are no facilities or sevices that are available to non aborigines that are not available to aborigines. There are also many services and facilities available only to aborigines and Torres Strait islanders. However having medical facilities and getting people to actually use them are two different things.

 

The tyranny of distance is also a problem. Getting services to isolated communities 600 miles from nowhere is hard, regardless of the populations skin colour. In a way it's a bit of a "Catch 22", we can't build a hospital for a community of 30 people, we simply don't have the money. So the only way to deliver especially medical services is by someone like the RFDS. The only other option is for the people to leave their native lands and move to the cities, which is not viewed as a great option at all. (Mainly because we tried that and the cultural disconnect has become problematical)

 

Unlike people who are certain that they know all the answers, we don't. So we're trying different things in collaboration with the indiginous people to arrive at a better future for all Australians.

 

I don't know where you get your information from but I'll point this out. The people who go to Indiginous conferences, etc around the world are generally pulling down 6 figure salaries paid for by my taxes so that they can fly First Class around the world and stay in 5 star hotels to tell you how much I oppress them.

 

If you have some specific allegations to make, then make them. Or are you just trying to smear a nation for the sake of it?

Edited July 5, 2011 by JohnB

[Hal.]

JohnB , do you know what ! The world is a great place . If you've been alive as long as I have you may have a natural sense of looking at a photo and not seeing that a person has a skin colour , only that there is a person or people as is the case above . I JohnB didn't even notice they had a skin colour until you mentioned it .

Edited July 5, 2011 by Hal.

[A Tripolation]

Really, I'm just reiterating the point made earlier i.e. "There is also the problem of the vast internal distances within Australia, so it is not as easy to attend a conference in Sidney if you are working in Melbourne as it is to travel for the same purpose from Cambridge to London."

 

Are you saying that they do not have a cross-country highway system like the US or any sort of high-speed rail system like China?

[Hal.]

1+1=2

Edited July 5, 2011 by Hal.