Grammar Gazette- Issue 1, 1995

Editorial comment

As we move once again into the Rugbyseason,thementalplctureofhot, smelly, grubby, violent little boys is ron jured up in many a mind. We all place our bloodied team on thrones as heroes, and thecuts andbruisesbonour badges. Does this make w; a nation of freaks or just sodally conditioned to be violent? Although welcoming the beginning of a new footy season seems to merely be yet another annual rilual, like cleariug the guttus or spring cleaolug, behind the jerseys and scarves lie the detrimental psychological ramifications of endors ing theaa:epfance of a "game''basedon savagery. 1hls is but one example of Australia's general tolerance of violent acts. Somemay say that the customary aggression and roughness of Austrnlian citizens is a natural consequence of our convict heritage and the wayward actions ofour ancestors. It could be proposed that historic fury has been passed from one geoeration to the next via bloodlines, or some inexplicable trnnsmission of inher ited mental dysfunction worthy ofan epi sode on~- But having applied probability, it seems obvious that society must have subconsciously maintained this devious attitude. Wilhoutpointingthefinger,itcan not be denied that the media thrives on revenge and anguish.We arecontinuously served our daily portion of terrorism on toast and coffee with crime by our radio announcers, print journalists and 1V pro ducers. Every now and lhen,there is public outcry over lhe exploitation of stories. But recently. people have become more con· cerned aboutcheque-bookjournalism than gory sensationalism. It appears that ensur ing people do nol gel paid excessively fora story is more important than the matter of Humanity or technology? All the majority of people want from life is to be monetarily well off, employed, relatively happy andsafe. However, in today's speed ily progressing society, technology is driving a very fast car down an infinitive highway, with no speed limit. Take, for example, Bris bane's new, stylish, 250milliondol lar international airport, opening in the next two to three months. This complex is at the cutting edge in both architecturnl design and inno vation, as well as technological ad vancement. The airport building is huge, occupying an area greater than the playing fields of QEII and Suncorp Stadium combined. The complex ls almost fully automated and co.ntrolled by man's best friend, the microchip. There are very extensive computer facilities in the aiiport, from hundreds of per sonal computers, to approXimately ten majorcontrollingnetworks. Bag gage handling is fully automatic and laser reading devices operate beside computer services. Consequently. this does mean that efficiency in a time/cost sense is improved, but is this "effi ciency" really beneficial? In comparison with the num bers of people employed in a less technologically controlled airport, Brisbane's new terminal employs only a quart« of the number of personnel. In simple tenns, this means that, ofevery four jobs, three are taken over by the machines. And are they done beller1 'True, it may make an irate, pushy, traveller-type pleased when

rning from this, is the inevitable cycle where violence is seen as an acceptable answer to resolving conflicl This funda mental issue of determining what behav iour is acceptable needs lobe more clearly defined in the early stages of life, as it is mainly responsible for advocating the dis missal of violence as being standard or expected Thereisnodenyingthatthereare other major components that instil this demeanour. Street violence, gang bashes and domestic violence cannot be entirely propagated from the media. Living in a harsheconomicclimate frequently results in low mornle and the need to release personal frustmtion in the form of physi cal abuse upon one's self or others. Fur thermore, in extreme cases, bankruptcyor destitution can force people to resort to crime as a means of survival. Although there is little to be done about our eco nomic position by individuals, these s<>- ciological side effects of experiencing a recession need to be seriously acknowl edged by our government. The major barrier that must be overcome if any progress is to be made in altering this destructive perspective is the difficulty of making people aware that a problem actually exists. More often than no~ clinical physical violence is distorted withfeelingsofloyalty,prideanddevotion. In many cases specifically linked with competitive sport, injuries are displayed with great dignity. Bntises are esteemed badges of respect for foUowers to admire. Why are we all the more impressed when ourplaymhavesufferedforvictory?Surely we should sense the irony and futility of such endeavours. Until then, we seem doomed to repeal the same petty antics for eternity. With this year'scelebration ofVJ

day, there is no better reminder, nor more apt time to recognise this flaw in our na tioilal c:harader. If Austmlia is to integrate with otber nations in the contemporary ideologyofinlemalionalismand universal quest for peace, the first place to Sial~ is to attempt to eradicate the wid"''"""d en dorsementofvioleocepredorninant incur rent Australian society. This means restrictiog offensive footage in news broadcasts, and waving a teary fareweU to the unfalbomable fledg ling Gladiators. Foc foUowing in the foot stepsofStephenKing'sTheRunningMan

thestory itself. Butforthesakeofavoiding lhaluniversalchicken-and-eggquestionof whelhersocietydeierrnineswhalisprinted, or the media shapes communal altitudes, maywesimplysaythatthemediaisalikely factor contributing to the population's de sensitisation to violence. Even less justifiable than "stat ingthenecessarygraphicdelails"innews stories,istheextmvagantdisplayofphysi cal abuse in box-office moviesmashes. It seemsasthoughwejustcannotgetenough, as sequels are consistently beingmade by re-hashingthesamebasicplotandsubsti tuting new for old with different knives, guns or fatal martial art manoeuvres. Die Hard l-3,RockY I-6,Rambo l-3... need we say more. Certainly, lhe.se movies are officially rated, but their very popularity and prevalence casts grave doubt on just how effective these measures are. lf we are to combat this escalating problem of condoning violence, another COUISe of action must be tested. Social attirudes must be re~valuated and consequently altered. 1he reason movies are such a major issue is becausr. the maturity of sections of the viewing audience has not developed to a level capable of compre hending the complexities and uruealistic portmyal of the abusive situations inte grated in particular programs. Tests have shown that children are easily manipu 1aled. and when given extenslve exposure to a wide range of programs - from car toons to Conan the Barbarian - it soon becomes difficult for them to distinguish between the facade of fantasy and reality. This somewhat warped childhood devel opmenlcanbedirectly linked to the adoles cent's typical confusion between those actions thatare intended to harm, and those that are intended to be laughed at. Stem he is processed, (minus immigration), in the estimated twelve minutes. How ever, in the long tenn, is this affecting our lives and goals in a negative or a positive way? In a growing world, and Aus tralian, population, more people need meaningful employment that contrib utes to society. However, more and morejobs are being taken by machines. Society needs to ask herself, do the perceived "benefits" of tech nology's race forsupremacy outweigh its detrimental effects . Thinking about others The way our society values mate rial goods over everything else is sick ening and disheartening. Homeown ers are absolved ofguilt over shooting teenage boys, and the message sent out is that the value of our prec ious possessions is greater than that of hu man life. Developed countries profit from exploiting thelr impoveri shed neighbours ."Dole-bludgelli"are deni grated, but it is forgotten that unem ployment and poverty are society's ills. Most people don 'I deliberately set out with "eating stale Arrowroots and downing beer at the TAB" as their main goals in Hfe. Charity is gone. ll seems that everyone is so busy pursuing 11 SUC cess" (howmany clothes canyouwear, Ldten to th~ editor ar~ mcouragedfrom aU m~mbin of tire sclrooi community. Submit these to any member Q}the.editorial wltlf!lilts~. . > Cara Dumas, Year 12

is assuredly not the way to promote healthy international relations . We should be promoting harmonious am bassadors, not bloodthirsty barbarians with painfully self explanatory names such as Blade, Fury and Rebel, (cer tainly without a cause!) Only then, with a conscious effort to alter our aggressive nature will Australia finally begin to condemn our violent tenden cies, and be recognised as a nation of reasonable and rational citizens- may we, the future generation initiate this peaceful revolution.

Common scents

So many diff'rent smells pervade the school: A gasp of chlorine wafts above the pool; Damp leafy smells of gardens after rain And pungent fertiliser now 'n' again. What tempting smells the tuckshop wares proclaim - Hot goodies much too numerous to name. And if the changing rooms we penetrate Wet towels, socks and sneakers penneate. When morning roll call opens classroom doors,

What blended chalky fustiness outpours. With P.M. roll call suddenly prevails A bold new fragrance that our sense assails, A heady cocktail mixing perfumes strong: Deodorants that spray on instant pong. An impulse fostered by the ad-man's magic Has brought about a misconception tragk: A sniff alone of this most potent .brew wm m•• ,...,___,,, .... ,oo. Jl!:. But girls, the boys Next Door would deem it crazy To chase you with a rose, ore' en a daisy. - The aura hovers round you all in valn - ~ There are more subtle ways to lure a swain.

The Lone Haranguer

Advice to the discouraged

Letters to the Editor

houses can you live in, cars can you drive at the same time'?) that they are missing out on the essential parts of existence. These people have time to look inside themselves to work out their own values and ethics. It's a race to achieve at all costs in our materialistic world and those who fall by the wayside are forgouen . But is that the way it has to be? If we'd just lend a hand, we'd do a service to ourselves as well as others.

to achieve their goals. In other words, if you are unhappy with your state ofaffairs, don't heap the blame on the situation but be prepared to make changes for yourself. Don't wait on fate or you might end up waiting a lifetime. If you really want something, go get it. Aim for the best within your capabilities. Don't let minor set backs deter you. Everybody has dreams and dreams are the threads within our souls that keep us going when life seems too difficult . Naturally, we wish to see our dreams come true . However, there is only one way to convert those dreams to reality : constant effort.

How oflen do we use the phrases "if only" or " [ wish", only to an swer ourselves with "That's life!" Too often people experience feel ings of dissatisfaction when things don't tum out quite the way they expect. However, although fate may appear to be a major player, it is ultimately you who will be respon sible for the way things turn out. Human beings are the mas ters of their own destiny . Those who succeed have worked to get to the level they are, regardless ofhow much talent or luck the "eternal forces" may have presented to them. Often, winners were once losers and dissatisfaction at coming second place has urged them to strive harder

Zewlan Moor, Year 12

Perfect prefects?

We have often been told that prefects at our School have many duties and discuss mailers relevant to theS\:hoo!Community~ however, this precess is shrouded in mystery for the majority of the School popula tion. What do prefec ts discuss at prefect meetings and what is achieved from these discussions? This is not intended to be an attack on the prefect body, but, as students of this School, we would be genuinely interested to know about these things. Would it be possible to have an improved communication chan nel instead of leaving us in the dark'? Perhaps minutes ot issues from pre feel meetings could be published in the Gazette. Considering that prefects are supposed to be a link between the School body and the administration, we hope that this is not an unreason able request.

Letters to the Editor and other contributions These should be submilted lo Krisline Cooke Library

Ph 833 2201 Fax: 832 1483 Editorial Committee

Editors:

Cara Dumas and Alison Meeking

Sub-Editors/ Sport: Stephanie Dee and Michelle Hatvey Sub-Editors/ Arts:

Francesca Mason and Alexandra McTavish Marina-Portia Anthony and Justine Cameron

Sub-Editors/Features:

Sub-Editors/School News :

Cara Newlon and Claire Valkhoff

lllustrator:

Miranda Youngs

Staff Consultants:

Paul Bennett and Kristine Cooke

Brisbane Girls' Grammar School (BGGS) extends its thanks to advertisers for their support. The advertisements are published in good faith and on the understanding that the contents are legitimate and lawful. BGGS does not warrant the quality of the goods and services offered by advertisers and encourages readers to make their own enquiries as to the suitability of the goods and services.

C. Fotheringham, Y•ar 12