Zimbardo and Robertson…

…these two men are part of the reason that I want to study both Psychology and Law.

I find Zimbaro’s findings during the Stanford University Prisoners/Guards Test incredibly intriguing.

See him talk about it here, along with Abu Graib:  http://bit.ly/2a56IY

I find the things he talks about incredibly amazing.

I’ve been wrestling with the thought of good and evil of late, on so very many levels.
On a local level, looking at the trial of Leigh Robinson, one side of me says, thank god he is off the street and away from harming anyone else.  On another level, I wonder if he could truly reform, I don’t think so.  I don’t think from the sounds of what he said during the trial , that he could even understand the emotional abuse he was not only putting either of those girls through, their families as well.
But could a monster reform?  Is it possible?

On a national level, I feel so Un-Australian, and horrible in relation to those people who are stuck in detention centers before they are let out into society.  It’s all such a disgusting abuse of human rights, makes me feel horrible.
Also makes me wonder what my Nanna and grandad went through when migrating to Australia after the Second World War.

On an International Level.  Where do I start?  Milosevic, Karadzic, Mugabe….the list could go on and on and on.  I could not even imagine what muist go on in these peoples minds to think that they could do what they have to so many innocent people.

Geoffrey Robertson (on Enough rope with Andrew Denton) on terrorism, basic huuman rights and civil liberties;

GEOFFREY ROBERTSON: Look, we’ve had 400 years of dealing with terrorists beginning with Guy Fawkes, who wanted to blow himself up and the houses of parliament. I think if there’s one lesson that we’ve learnt – and I’ve prosecuted terrorists, I’ve defended them, I’ve judged them – it is that in the fight against terror you do not weaken or abolish fundamental liberties because when you do so, that gives the terrorist the support and the sympathy that they need in which to breed. I mean, what is the greatest recruiting poster for al-Qaeda today throughout the Middle East? It’s the pictures from Abu Ghraib. Why did Abu Ghraib happen? “Sadists on the nightshift”, said the report. The sadists on the nightshift, Lynndie England, and the Alsatians got the cue from those men in the White House who said the Geneva Conventions are quaint, are obsolete. That sent the message. So, I think the first lesson is that we must cling to fundamental civil liberties at a time of terror in order to defeat the terrorists by preventing them getting that pool of support.

This is one of the many reasons I think doing Psych before I do law with give me better grounding when it comes to the fundamental understanding of such things.

That all being said, I’m dreading having to study Tax, Corporate and corporations Law.  Give me Crim, International Private and Public Law over thsoe any day.

Yet another TBC…

I read the news today oh boy….

Polanski, the man did the wrong thing, the cities have a duty to uphold the law, let them go to trial!  If he has any remorse, and is able to prove that he has reformed and is sorry for what he did, then its up to the courts to decide how to punish him.  But why is this the biggest story today?  Honestly!?

Russia are only just getting worried about Iran?  When they’ve been blatantly parading and waving their missiles in the worlds face for the last 8 years ( 30 really)?  What the hell have Russia been looking through?  Rose coloured glasses?
At least Obama’s opening up some kind of dialogue.  Finger’s crossed for some kind of positive outcome.

Karadzic (well his defence team is) is now pushing for more time to review the charges that he is up against.  I’m currently wondering if it is too late for them to reduce them?  Might have more of a chance of pining the guy down.  Don’t need to make the same mistakes that they made with Milosevic.

The Derrion Albert video made me sick to the stomach.  An innocent 16 year old got caught in the middle of a gang fight, and is now gone.  Hard to know what to say sometimes.  I feel for his family and friends, such a senseless murder.

Just a tenth of whats going on in our world today.

I was a childhood Royal Melbourne Show afficiendo…

It’s true, I was, to the point that my friend Kate still asks me every year about August-ish, so are you going to the show this year?  I stopped going when I was about 21/22, which means its been about 5 years since I graced my presence at the Royal Show Grounds.

So much was my obsession that my brother and I used to keep what we called “The Show Folder”, which still exists to this day, with news paper clippings and show guides ranging back to the heedy days of 1991.
So much was our obsession, that as soon as we knew which date the Royal Show guide was out, the countdown was on.  We would get up at 5:30 in the morning to get on our bikes, ride to the shop, and buy the paper so that we could pour over it before we got to school.

The day of the show, we would be leaving the house by 7am at the latest to get there for the opening of the gates, and we would usually stay the whole day until after the fireworks, which would be watched while eating the most delicious steak sandwich ever!

I grew disillusioned by The Royal Show and her credentials as the focus moved away from produce, animals and country life, and more towards commercialism, rides and showbags.
It’s much more fun to marvel at the cuteness of the baby animal nursery, the awesomeness of the HOLDEN precision driving team (when they were the HOLDEN precision driving team), and the 10 different types of honey that need to be tasted before you can get a stamp on your Yellow Brick Road Showbag card (and a sample of said honey!), the dog shows, and government departments (they are here to protect us y’know!), the sampling of the CWA food, and the atmosphere.
As opposed to, he look there’s a zipper, oh hey and another one, “Oh wow there’s a kid throwing up after eating a chockito, drinking an iced coffee and going on….the zipper.”

To be continued….

Depression… Maybe I should counteract it with….Botox?

I’m always amazed at how ignorant people are…

…and I know “ignorance is bliss”, but honestly a little bit of empathy goes a long long way.

Danii Minouge’s “revelation” that she slipped into depression while her sister was undergoing treatment for breast cancer, and when one of her friends passed away, is not something uncommon in the community.  But to counteract it with Botox?

Now I know I am not really one to talk, because to counteract anxiety and depression I have been known on many an occasion to drink, sometimes excessively, sometimes not.  I have been known to use the noxious poison to handle the shakes and the jitters that come with anxiety attacks.  But we know exactly what and how the chemical reactions of alcohol effect our bodies (and the stupid stupid things we do while drinking the stuff).

But, botox?  A potentially, hell not potentially, an indefinite poison.  This is the kind of stuff that if an amount that was the size of a 5c piece was released into the atmosphere has the potential to kill 4.5 million people, and you inject it INTO your face?  WHAT?  It also has the potential that, if injected incorrectly, to cause major brain damage.

Apart from that, I’m not sure how doing something aesthetically pleasing would help with a medical condition that is brain based?  Especially emotionally/ cognitively based.

On top of that I think back to when my friend John was sick, and the tireless efforts of his family.  His mother who gave up work to look after him, as well as his father, and his extremely brave brother who never complained, all the way until the end.  They worked tirelessly to make sure that he was comfortable, I couldn’t imagine what it would have been like to watch someone you love so dearly pass under such circumstances.  It was hard enough to watch him as a friend, and not be able to do anything.
Wouldn’t you think it would be mentally pleasing to instead of spending however much money on Botox, sitting with your family and talking might be a better solution Danni?  Going to a counselor (which you can afford, unlike the many millions of people who are in need of desperate mental health treatment, but governments fob off with bullshit excuses) might be a better solution than paralysing your face with a dangerous bacteria?

It all just confuses and angers me.  Not because we know she has problems, not because she is a z-grade celebrity riding on her sisters coat-tails, but the whole ignorance to depression.  Which in this story seems to be a resolutely bad cover up for something that is none of anyone’s business anyway.

Dear editors, do a REAL article on depression.  An article of people in the midst, and those that have over-come it.  Not just a faff piece about “oh I went to see a brilliant counsellor, and we worked through it in 6 weeks.”  So not true.  The changing of ones behaviors and re-aligning one with their beliefs and values, DOES NOT TAKE 6 WEEKS!
That first 6 weeks, of counseling is get-to-know-you time, to really get to know who a person is, and how they deal with situations, and the people around them.   Then the real work starts, and it isn’t a matter of a few weeks, it takes months (even years in severe cases).  People will fall back, they will make mistakes, they can make those mistakes at any part of thier treatment, they need support during this period, because the need to be reminded that you can pick up where you left off, and that you are not taking 5 steps backwards is EVIDENT!  Then on top of that, there is the fun medication ween off, which needs to be done as therapy is being done.  So that the physical side effects can be dealt with as well.  So that the body can learn to regulate again.

I will take my angry pants off one day, when people decided to do the right thing by their patients, then again, the patients have to do the right thing by their psychologists and psychiatrists.  Tell the truth, be honest, and you will see the maximum results, and never ever be afraid to try someone new if your current psych is making you uncomfortable.  Also know though, that there will be moments where what your psych will say will scare the bejesus out of you!  Listen and consider what they say, really think about it, if it still doesn’t sit right with you, then move on.  It’s not a matter of them not understanding you, they are trying to help you, but you both need to come to a compromise to make what you are working towards, something that you can achieve.

Him, it, all elusive.

All I’ve ever wanted was to meet a nice smart boy.
It’s all quite relative really.

I am attracted to smarts in the sense that he doesn’t have to be an astrophysisist.
It’s that passion about what they love and do.

I’d love to meet a man who would rather stay in and play board games with me.
Who would stoush with me on anything, global politics, music, psychology, or whatever we so choose.
We would be able to challenge each other, as well as learn.

Tell her she’s dreaming, he doesn’t exist does he?

Is it really too much to ask?

Ever since I was a little girl, I was always taught by my parents to have nice manners.
You know those old adages, “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all”, “Do unto others, as you would like to be done to you”, etc etc etc…

Subsequently, I will admit that I can and have been an arse at times, but most of the time I am a nice person.

Evene if I have a rather large dislike of someone I will say hi to them, it’s common courtesy.

I don’t understand the whole ignoring someone you see around business.

I’ll say hi to you, but it doesn’t mean I want to be your friend, but at least I’m making the effort to be polite.

I don’t understand why it is so hard to say hi…?

After the deluge…

My head still brims with idea’s, for solo shows, for impro fun, and just to challenge the norm.  Not to be subversive, not to challenge by pushing the wrong boundaries, but to push things differently.  I don’t want to upset, anger, or ridicule, I want to challenge perspectives.

So many people are out to make this big bang by being controversial.  What’s more controversial  than changing perspective though?  By giving people a look into a head space that they wouldn’t usually see (maybe even help to get some perspective in their own head space).

But I’m feeling kind of blank, and relived that I’ve given myself a break, and admitted that I couldn’t do it.
I’ve postponed my baby, so I can make it bigger and better than before.  More players, bigger story lines, and more room to move physically and mentally.  I want to keep the audience involved while keeping them at arms length, so they won’t know what is going to happen next.  For them to be salivating at every twist and turn.  It’s all about them.  I’ve spent too many gigs thinking about dozing off in boredom, to watch someone on stage mindlessly wank on about themselves, and not realise that the reason we are there, is because we WANT you to take us on a journey.  PLEASE take us with you, don’t leave us wondering why we gave up a night in our nice warm home, watching TV or movies we know we will get enjoyment out of.

I want you to feel electricity as soon as you walk into the room, to know you’re being taken somewhere else, for your stomach to do flips in excitement.  I want even the hardest of critics to soften ever so slightly at the sight (the feel, even the smell), to realise that we’re not there to bang on about nothing in particular, we’re here to serve you.  To connect and disconnect at will, so you’re longing to connect again, to help with the next turn in events, then for you to sit precariously onthe edge of you’re seat while we weave the story a little more, and to leave you with more questions than you came with….

Something that matters…

WHO CARES?

Why are we paying so much attention to a man who has such little respect for others?

There’s so much more interesting stuff out there to focus on. people who are making a difference, people who are more evil, people who are just a hell of a lot more interesting.

I mean honestly, there has to be something more interesting to focus on than that waste of space!!!

A fine piece of machinery…

…there’s nothing like it.

I always forget how much I love cars until I get in one that either a) looks pretty, b) goes, or c) looks pretty and goes.

My brother bought home a Chevy Camaro tonight (bless him for working for GM, when’s he going to bring a Hummer home for me to try though??), oh my lord, its gorgeous, and it goes, and goes, ooooh yeah!  So if you’re still trying to picture it, picture the Bumble Bee frome Transformers! Yes, that gorgeous muscle car!

It looks damned pretty, it goes, and oh my it sounds sooooooooo good!!

I’m in LOVE!

…and waking up from a 3 week daze…

…what a mental 3 weeks.

I’ve had a fantastic 3 weeks, Tripod 8 times in 3 weeks (why? You ask. You tell me and we’ll both know, because I’m not really sure), seeing Justin Hamilton doing the coda to his 3 Colours Hammo Trilogy, meeting Tony Martin(making an arse of myself), and seeing Children Collide, I’d say its been the most amazing 3 weeks.
I’ve spent more time in Fitzroy than I have in a long time, I miss it as soon as I cross Alexandra Parade into Clifton Hill. I can’t explain my love for this little web of existence in the North of Melbourne.
I walked down Bell street the other week, after one of my many nights at Trades Hall, and ached at the thought that I wasn’t walking into one of those houses to go home. I hate leaving the place, I feel at peace while I’m there.
It’s one of the only places on this planet that I feel so calm in. Even when there’s people there I hate, and I don’t think deserve to live within its warm loving arms. Do they know why this place is so special? Do they understand that it’s not the “cool” factor of Fitzroy, it’s not being seen in the right places(I’m going to be crucified, I’ve tried to love Mario’s, but I can’t, I’d rather be in the Marqis of Lorne. Maybe someone can recommend something nice from Mario’s for me to try? I might change my mind.), it’s just home, the smells, the sights, the sounds… I’ve never felt more at home than I do there. There’s nothing I’d change about the place, even though it’s changed so very much over the years.

I can’t wait to move into my own place there. Hoping that by some kind of miraculous miracle that I find somewhere I can affrord without living below the poverty line! There’s nothing like walking the streets of Fitzroy as the sun is setting or rising. There’s nothing like a beautiful Fitzroy afternoon, wandering down Brunswick Street the warmth of the sun warming my tired winter bones. Great food, great friends, the sounds of good music coming from houses, the sounds of people having parties/BBQ’s/Dinner Parties, and just happiness in general.