From:	Aaron Binns sparrow@***.net.au
Subject:	the value of education (was: Thoughts: Sourcebook Ideas)
Date:	Mon, 12 Jul 1999 16:21:22 +1000

Arcady wrote:

> > Ok, maybe this comment was slightly uncalled for.. but when I
> > last was in the
> > states, I had heaps of americans come up to me and ask such
> > utterly stupid things,
> > like, do you have grass / trees / air (this guy was SERIOUS!) /
> > kangaroos in your
> > backyard / grubs for dinner / tv / rock music / etc etc etc.
>
> Are you sure the air question wasn't meant to ask if you had 'open air'
> where you lived? Or clean air?

No..Air.. like Air in general.. as thought we lived in a vacume.

> Open air as in are you out in a rural plain or packed into an urban jungle
> (like LA for instance).
>
> If I were in LA or Seoul (two places I've lived before) and was asked that
> question I would likely say no, followed by an explanation of the extreme
> pollution and densely packed nature of the two cities. And If I had lived my
> entire life in one of these two cities the concept of a place with wide open
> spaces and clean air would be utterly alien to me and I would likely doubt
> the honestly of the person claiming to come from such a place.

> The remaining questions while worded too general could all make sense under
> the right context.

Well.. I'll go back through some of the other replies and pass on the info they
ask about:

>I don't know about kangaroos in your backyard, but my mother-in-law
>regularly has kangaroos in the front yard, and my father once looked out his
>bathroom window to see a water buffalo staring back at him. :)

Well.. you get it occasionally in certain areas of the country - yes.. so under
the context of "country" or "outback" living.. it would make sense..
but these
people already had been told I lived in Sydney... and Id hope people from other
countries at least knew that Sydney was a major city/suburban area in
Australia... like Brisbane and Melbourne.

>Well, in school nowadays, you usually get a semester class at
>high-school level or a year-long class at lower levels, called 'Social
>Studies'. Basic run-down of other countries and cultures, as well as
>Sociology. As I said, it's basic, and usually forgotten once horomones
>kick in. As to the air question, people in general aren't overly bright.

Hormones are the same here. We tend to have subjects all through school and uni
which relate to other countries (either as subject studies or case studies under
other subjects). So perhaps we just get taught more about the rest of the world?

>IMHO, the major reason that the States seem so ignorant about other
>countries is that other countries don't really influence people. They have
>Canada to the north, but on the surface, it is basically the same culture
>(though there are lots and lots of differences underneath... I didn't mean
>to offend Canadians). To the south, they have Mexico, and the Latin American
>countries, but none of these seem to be on an equal footing with the States.
>The result is that the everyday American just plan doesn't have to deal with
>foreigners, or think about them.

Hmm.. well thats something Id considered as a possible reason, but i wasnt sure.
Makes sense however. You'd think they might be a little interested. After all..
there aint no place like Down Under IMHO, and Ive seen a fair bit of the rest of
the planet.

Ok.. guess what it all comes down to is a slight feeling that it would be nice
for Australia to get recognised as a sourcebook worthy location in the SR
gameworld. There have been numerous references and books written which included
Australia after all...

Anyway.. back to the normal threads off the list.

GreyWolf