Outsider


I grew up in Northern Ireland and have been a teacher and lived in England, Ghana, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Malawi, Mexico, Colombia, The United Arab Emirates, Australia, Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia.

These are my memoirs which are arranged chronologically by year. Much is social commentary.

Aside from narrative recount, the style is often anecdotal, aphoristic and ironical. I try to soften the heavy social commentary with humour. Some friends have said I tend to 'rant' at times. I don't deny it! Perhaps it is the Irish in me. I apologise in advance then, if that is your impression too.

I do not intend to stereotype various nationalities but inevitably I will generalise for dramatic effect.

In a globalised multicultural world there is an urgent need to identify and face up to our national idiosyncracies and shortcomings. Nationalism has always seemed to me to be a bogus substitute for a genuine sense of connectedness and community. It is a highly dangerous concept when manipulated by politicians to get citizens to do things that are unpalatable to them-like going to war for instance.

If we don't begin to see ourselves as others perceive us - and not as we would like to see ourselves, then catastrophe looms.

I contend we can be comfortable with our heritage and still be able to criticize and even laugh at ourselves at the same time.


The two are not mutually exclusive.

Outsiders are in a unique position to show us our shortcomings because we simply cannot see them ourselves.

I believe that no culture has found the ideal 'solutions' to the challenges of life. Every culture I have lived in has both positive and disturbing characteristics.

In which cultures do people appear happiest? (notwithstanding natural and man-made disasters such as war and famine)

What question can be more profound than that?

The results may be surprising. In my experience, the happiest cultures were Ghana, Malawi, Mexico and Colombia. At the bottom of the list would be England, Ireland and Australia.

I think we need to learn from each other-not try to 'teach' each other...there is a big difference.

Please send me an E-mail if you would like to comment on anything.


Outsider


Outsider1952@gmail.com









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Retirement, Kota Kinabalu
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Saturday, October 24, 2009

Doctoral degrees and Australia

It is harder for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for an Australian to give anyone credit for doing a PHD.

This must say something either about Australians or PHDs.

Possibly both.

Why do they hate them so much?

We must not speak about them.

Most people have no idea what is involved in doing one of these things

Even when you like doing it as I did when I did mine.

Is the latest renovation to our bloody house more important?

or the footy results?


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2 comments:

  1. UnknownFebruary 8, 2010 at 4:20 PM

    Ha ha, you knew all along, lol! I've learnt not to tell anyone unless certain hurdles have been jumped, which usually takes some time, particularly at work. If they think you're out of place just fractionally, you'll get more disrespect than someone who just passed their bachelor degree and is seen as being at their appropriate station. The main thing is that just about everyone wants to show you that it doesn't matter or worse that there's something wrong with you, which is why you're where you are (and you'd better be a professor at Cambridge with best selling textbooks and have been on TV and in documentaries as an expert) rather than it being because of broarder social changes that are out of your control and systemic impudence, which their supporting. Essentially you become a target and an outsider immediately. Finding a safe place in a culture like that is particularly difficult. Silence is a stopgap.

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  2. OutsiderFebruary 12, 2010 at 2:30 AM

    Very interesting Olsen!

    I didn't know you had a Doctoral Degree yourself until the day we both left employment!

    About eight months to jump the hurdles!

    How sad.

    Is it false modesty or what?

    People never shut up about their bloody houses and cars.

    I deliberately won't talk about these subjects to australians just to piss them off.

    Revenge is sweet.

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