| Username |
Post |
| Prasnabachak |
Posted
on 19-Apr-02 03:23 PM
why this country is so much indulged into popular media? Look at those trendy clothes, trendy styles. Check out the lil' kids imitating Britny's " I am not innocent'. What is up?...In college, if you haven't gotton laid once in a month and don't drink and socialize, you are not cool. And look at the High school, all these little kids are suffered with this not being "popular" crap. Teenage pregnancy is skyrocketing and most girls are getting bolimic so that they can be stickthin like kate moss. TV is getting full by all these anorexic chics... Are these things really important? why popular media such a big influence here? Did you guys ever get into this thing while you moved here? Just a thought... peace
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| rebelious sevendust |
Posted
on 19-Apr-02 05:07 PM
I also wondered about it and that's why I don't like this trend. And I'm very glad that you don't like it either. I guess that's why they call this place a capatilistic society where money and fame is everything no matter how low one has to go to get it.
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| aviyentaa |
Posted
on 20-Apr-02 12:35 PM
hello...... Did the United States invite you to come to this country or you came at your own? Pals you are only a minority here without anything in this ocean of capitalism.So ....don't worry about the society here, or the culture it wears......Peace...
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| rebelious sevendust |
Posted
on 20-Apr-02 07:43 PM
oh brother with a word peace
we are not worrying. we are just expressing our feelings. And maybe you don't have anything in " this ocean of capatilism" but I do have a lot. More than you can ever imagine. And when I came here I was a kid. It wasn't my choice to come here. So live in your la la land and just keep repeating your mantra of peace and let us express what we want since you and I live in a country where the first ammendment is freedom of speech.
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| amilo |
Posted
on 21-Apr-02 10:17 AM
It's a human nature not be satisfied. We always seek for something better which generally leads to progress. For the same reason, most of us came to US for a better life. Like a coin which has two sides, even life in US also has a good section and a bad one. Maybe, focusing on what we came for will make us less frustrated. There are people who enjoy Britny spears in a little tank top, who think getting laid with random people is their hightlight of their college life, who assume getting drunk and puking all over is partying, and who regard smoking pot makes them cool. But, worrying about them and thinking US is all about that makes us even more narrow-minded, and constricts our thinking.
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| mugget |
Posted
on 21-Apr-02 12:25 PM
I am an American and I agree.There is good and bad everywhere you live. If you live in America, you are choosing to live in a highlly consumer, capitalistic society. That is your choice. This country is obsessed with consumerism and the media. Some of it is good and some bad. But you can choose which music you listen to (you don't have to listen to Brittany Spears or watch MTV).You can choose if you have a tv or not (we don't! I have two teenagers, and we have brought them up WITHOUT TV-and my husband is from Nepal, by the way. But I also lived in Nepal for 17 years. Many things I loved about Nepal. But right now, I hate the fact that Kathmandu, my former home, is polluted so that I can't live there anymore and breathe healthy air like I did back in 1983 when I first moved there. I hate that it is a concrete jungle there now and that there is almost no good picnic spot anymore. I hate the fumbling government employees who try to extract gush from me to get my marriage visa (my husband is Nepali, and I spent a fortune to PAY for my marriage visa to live there with my own husband.I hate the ineptitude of ALL government employees there, for that matter (read earlier comments on Nepalese Embassy here-seems most of you would agree with me on that one). My husband is a permanent resident here now and no one asked him to pay gush for that or a monthly visa fee. It is PERMANENT. And, most of all, I hate that Nepalese people are killing each other and that people like my husband,(including his brother, who is a police man) who come from a poor, ethnic minority, are the ones most likely to be killed in the battlefields. Why are there no rich people in the battle fields in Nepal?
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| Prsnabachak |
Posted
on 21-Apr-02 03:25 PM
It was good to see all of your responses. Well some of you have missed what I said. And thanks sevendust for clarifying that.
That message was not a precipitaiton of my worrysome and nor it is what I want to see here. It was just an regular observation I have seen hroughout my stay in America. I will tell you one thing, without doubt, America is one of the best country to live. And It is not a bash for certain culture. It is just an expression for the situation.
Please don't tell me any typical high school kid is not into Abercrombie and fitch or other trendy clothes. There are some exceptions, as in other society. But popular media is heavily influenced into kids, teens and even adults. I was watching news other day. It said" 68% high school kids have sex before they graduate". I am not against premarital sex. I just don't see a point on having sex just for, coolness and for sake of trend. As somone pointed out previously, you have choice here. Of course we do, but that doesn't mean , NBC show "friends" gonna drop its ratings and britney spear's CD is not gonna go to platinum. And My friend it will.
I don't wanna bore you all for lengthy message. But the bottom line is: this culture is indulged into so much trend,money, aritificiality and "coolness"... May be we should "worry" about.
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| rebelious sevendust |
Posted
on 21-Apr-02 04:01 PM
I agree with all you good people except aviyantaa. like prasanna said that if we do want a better world for future genaration then maybe we should worry about where this WORLD is headed. you can live in this world by saying this is the way things are let's deal with it or you can think little and get out of these nonsense ( ofcourse this is only if you think that things are not right the way they are these days ). And to all of you who think that I don't have to do it if I don't want to, I don't do what I don't like but you can't help seeing things that you don't like.
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| FREEEK |
Posted
on 21-Apr-02 09:10 PM
yo prashanna!!
I didn't get what you are trying to say. Do you have your kids going to American schools or what? You are talking about capitalism, MTV, thats affecting American Teens mind, but you are forgetting one thing, you are not in Nepal, you are in America. you are forgetting that TV has become a part of American cuture. Our kids cannot do the same thing American kids do coz we don't have money. SIMPLE... otherwise, i am sure Nepali parents would have let their kids dream of becoming "britney spears" since the day they were born.
Getting laid in high school and college is not necessarily influenced by TV. History is the proof that getting laid in highschool and colleges, before marriage, occured in American history way before world war II...(find the date yourself). And ofcourse, WWII happened way before TV...(i mean to say not every house had TV like they had Radio at that time)... you are UNCOOL if you dont' socialize. Agreed... i think thats what proves your COOLNESS. if gals wanna be like "KATE MOSS" ... whats wrong with that??? they will be health concerned, they will have great physiques.. and they look cool when they shake their bootie, unlike some gals who shake the whole building when they shake their toe.(i mean fat gals dummie). I don't know where does your capitalizm and TVism fall in when some body is interested in makin' up her bum, shake her bootie, and getpopular. ITS HUMAN nature for the pashupati naaths sake.
What do you think, your parents didnt say that you have to grow up to be a "Big Man"?? Didn't you ever dream of being popular? Didn't you start "PUSH UP" after seeing some jackass hindi movie actors "WANNA BE" six pack?? Tell me you didn't try any kind of drugs, INCLUDING alcohol ever in your life. what did you say?? you didn't?? Didn't you hold that six string in your hand and try to play "hotel california" zilionth times? Didn't you get excited when you see the gal toilet??(imagine what you would do if some naked girl was in front of you at that time??? Didin't you wear jeans and cool jacket.. leather one, and made your cool hairstyle when you were teen, just to look cool?? Didn't you masturbate when you watched Baywatch?? May be you did not fall in the catagory of coolest ones like us. but I hope MOST of Nepali who did highschool in Nepal did the same thing. so what has capitalism got to do with it?? and what does tv got to do with it???
If TV could change the HUMAN nature, it would change the thinking of those hindu_muslim in india, where indian V channel and MTV keeps on bragging about "caste no bar, creed no bar, sex no bar, religion no bar" thing. If it could change, it would change the brain of our nepali girl who comes to chatroom thinking about finding a " guy of her dream", and if you say "HI'" nicely, theydn't bother to reply. If TV could change, it would change the thinking of Nepali guys, who thought they were the bravest, coz their anchestor were bravest of the braves, and would break beer bottle on some strangers head coz they thougt that stranger was ACTING COOL. if it could change, it would change YOU, coz you are forgetting American culture, and you are forgetting you are not in NEPAL but in AMERICA. You have no right whatsoever to talk about others culture, even if you hold citizenship of that country. there are always negative side to the culture, but thats the culture. It will change someday. but right now it is the way it is. what do you think about our culture when we sacrifice thousands and thousands of animals just in few days of dashain??? is that justified and teenage pregnancy and "being cool" not justified?? i think being a nepali,and being an ALIEN to USA,(guess you were alien once) you should be worried about IMMIGRATION rather than influence of TV. Do you know how many illegal people are there in USA? i don't, do you?
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| Weird |
Posted
on 21-Apr-02 10:26 PM
hey freek, I was going to say the same thing. Why people always see the bad thing about US and just a good thing about Nepal. People should not just generalize everything like that. Everything in this world has a good and bad faces. So, try to get more good and less bad from it. Don't complain about US while u are here thinkin this is the best place to live. Anyways i just wanna say ..."In Rome do what the Romans do". Peace out.
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| rebelious sevendust |
Posted
on 23-Apr-02 03:49 AM
seems to me that the only thing this "freek" knows is to freekout. Calm down kid. stop taking too much "speed" and read what others are trying to say before you write some meaningless lenghty crap. Since you know so much about "HUMAN NATURE" you probably ( I personnaly doubt that) know that its also a human nature to like something and dislike others.Prasannabachak is not trying to degrade US (neither am I) but he is concerned about the place he ( and I ) call home. you are probably here because you want to get rich but I have to live here for rest of my life. that's why I want to see this place to be a better place to live for me and for my kids.
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| dariwal |
Posted
on 23-Apr-02 10:54 AM
Ahh! Do you now? Do you really HAVE to live here? and you think noncitizens in America are here to get rich huh? What about you when you came here in the first place?
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| jagatdogg |
Posted
on 23-Apr-02 02:36 PM
"Why this country is so much indulged into popular media? Look at those trendy clothes, trendy styles."
I believe this is how the discussion began, right? Well, in my opinion I see that as a global issue. I was just in Nepal 2 months ago and saw the same thing. So, I don't really think it's just the US that is indulged into pop culture, trendy clothes, trendy styles, etc. Britteny Spears posters were popping everywhere from Jawlakhel to Patan (pop culture), many young men were wearing tight blue jeans and a lot of the women were wearing the "in" print kurtha sets (trendy styles). Is it just the American culture that is responsible for popular media infiltrating culture? Just like rebelious sevendust, I came here as a young one too. I see pop culture proliferating all over the world...not just here.
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| Prasnabachak |
Posted
on 23-Apr-02 06:18 PM
Good to see all your opinions. It's been a while I haven't checked this site.
Anyway. My point being, latest trends are fine as long as it is not for the sake of trendness. As most ppl want to say" I work to live, not live to work". Same applies here. We should live our lifestyles from inner perspectives rather than the latest faded gap blue jeans. And it's just not clothing I am talking here. It's the artificiality, lack of humanness and huge influence of money. And these things things mostly come from media.
Anyway, I hate writing long message to defend every bit of everyone said. And freek, please reread my responses, the second one. I will always say this is one of the best place to live. On top of that it has one of the best democracy. So don't get me wrong. But still media influence have been bigger here than any other country. For your info freek. I am only 23, living here and lovin' this place except the one part and you know what it is..Later
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| rebelious sevendust |
Posted
on 23-Apr-02 07:44 PM
dariwaal
what does this discussion has to do with me coming here. if you cut your dari
and read what I have said then you would understand. I like this place as much as I like Nepal. that is why I think of better for this country unlike you. I think people who are defending POP CULTURE are nothing but perverts who are worried about not seeing half naked women for free.
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| Atimanu |
Posted
on 24-Apr-02 12:47 PM
hey freek who ever you are i like the way you disclosed the hidden fact of nepali teenagers. Some people who are here iin united states may think that the american culture is bad but they donot stop going to the Mc Donalds and eat Big mac because it is cheaper.But have they ever thought that eating cow is against the nepali culture. It is cool for them.Because it full fills their hunger. The way you give the example is so good. I just cannot help appreciating u wrote. People have got freedom to write and make remarks as they do it critically. Every one has got there own culture and own belifies and values so the things we as nepali may think cool might not be cool over here. What about the fact that we guys used to sleep in same bed but there we used to be said close freind and untill we touch there butt or stick ur things on there butt. But here sleeping with a guy is far touching there face is not cool and is called gay. What ever you donot need to be dissaponted coz ur in united states and donot show the wrath upon this country and the people here because u have come here with some purpose and u can go back to Nepal if u love that country so much. but have you thought of the stage of Nepal. Is that better place to live. People in Nepal are lost looking there Mt Eeverst but forget wat is the truth. Every body has got there own way of living and so wat is going on that is cool. Lets people live in wat way they are living. If u can do something than stop bothering in writing but try doing something to some one. At first know ur self and try knowing others.
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| FREEEK |
Posted
on 24-Apr-02 07:02 PM
I don't understand why people think Nepali Culture is better than American culture.
It is culture. Like YINGYANG, there is always a little bit of good in bad, and vice versa. If you take good as white and black as bad. If you guys are in US university, and undergraduate, you guys better wanna take english 240.. growing up in america, which will tell about american culture. They pride their culture the way we do ours. They pride being a country of different cultures(italian, iris, spanish), which we don't despite the fact that our culture is simply a blend of different parts of indian and chinese cultures. And ofcourse Tibetian cultures.
Talk about culture, even our culture is not washed by pure cow milk.
I already talked about the way we sacrifice animals in Dashain, thats obviously not a good culture.
what about dowry? Even if one is earning peanuts, he(or she) has to give dowry for the daughters marriage, regardless of anything.
there are more points, but i am runnin late for work.. ill be back.. Arnold's way.
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