When the sharkies are spreading the love…?

It seems that there is something even MORE extreme than sitting in a shark cage awaiting the arrivals of mammoth Great Whites:

Bring them dinner!

A few hundred pounds of rotting whale flesh should do the trick…

Then – just when they’re in the throes of lusty shark-love, hop on, baby!

But aren’t they simply awesome? Seriously!

Snarky

Dammit… I’m snarky today.

I spent the morning being undermined and being condescended (if there’s such a word)…

“Dude. I may be relatively new – but I’ve been around the fucking block… have the decency to at least process some of the things that I say and register them as valid ideas before you dismiss them as random warblings. They are not. “

There are few things that I can’t tolerate.

Being ignored is one of them.

It get’s so deep under my skin, I see red. And I can feel myself getting petulant and reverting to the age of 5 when I didn’t get what I wanted. And as much as I tell myself to speak up, be assertive and be clear in my communication (which is not something which ordinarily I have a problem with), I just have a problem with this personality type.

Even when asked to contribute, my answers or suggestions are picked apart and my rebuttals completely ignored.

My initial reaction is to turn around and continue what I was doing, at which I get scoffed at or “person A” becomes upset and starts a 20 minute monolgue about how he will always will play the devils advocate *yawn…yadda yadda yadda.

Cuz, You know what, That’s OK.

But if you’re going to ask for an opinoin, at least have the decency to respect it as such.

I tought I’d go and wok out some of my pent up aggression by playing some ping pong – which almost worked. Until a couple of the office ego’s showed up and started the trash talk.

Ordinarily I have no problem with it. It’s a male dominance thing and those guys can have it. But today I had to put down my bat and offer up my doubles spot to someone else and walk away sayin gI wasn’t in the right ‘headspace’ to play with them…

Which, of course makes me look and feel fucking weak.

Gah.

Some days I just don’t like myself!

News of Vital Importance.

Huh.

I just discovered that there’s a town in California called Ontario.

…as in Ontario, CA.

That could make for some confusion… or some expensive mistakes.

Sharkwater – some spoilers

Friday night was movie night and we decided that we should finally go and see Sharkwater.

(Click on the photo for the high resolution pic. It’s worth it)

I was SO excited when I began to read about this a while back and more-so when it came to the AMC. $13? Pah. It’d take an angry…um… Great White to stop me.

I knew this was a conservation documentary with some spectacular photo shots and some powerful imagery but I had no idea how powerful a movie this would be.

Let me preface this by telling you that since I saw “Jaws” in 1978 or whatever, I have been a shark lunatic. I was reminiscing with my dad today on the fact that when I was 10, I could name most species of shark, along with their regional names, average lengths and main features.

Heh. Still Can.

SO much so that the ginger menace know them now too. We’ve been secretly planning-ish for my (xx) birthday a trip to jump in a cage to go see the big ones off the Isla Guadalupe.

As scared as I have always been of them, I always knew it was a result of my own misconceptions and that they have their incredibly valuable place on this big bad planet, I although I knew they were in danger, but I didn’t realise to what extent.

This film blew my brains out, not only for the imagery of savaged and mangled sea-life, but for the implications for the oceans and for us. At times, I wanted to be on board the Sea Shepherd and fight with them as they took on the corruption and denial… and I genuinely mean that.

It made me ashamed to be a part of the human race.

So go see it. Make the pledge to actively do something. Investigate further and spread the word.

And go see this movie.

On “Prejudice.”

Call me’sen’ a blogger.

The shame!!

Anyhoo…

I was having a conversation on Saturday evening with a friend who has just been hired to go into schools and discuss “negative prejudice” and to challenge youths opinions of what is acceptable and what is not (in terms of their prejudices etc etc)

The inevitable question came up:

“What is your prejudice?“

I find this a very difficult question to answer. Being the ever politically correct, well-educated, well informed, young(at heart), white, middle class (yes, I said it!) male, I’d love to say that I have none. But I think we all really know that that’s not true. I can’t believe for a second that anyone is prejudice-less given the incessant programming thrust at our various demographics.

So, P, define “Prejudice”.

The dictionary says:

1. an unfavorable opinion or feeling formed beforehand or without knowledge, thought, or reason.
2. any preconceived opinion or feeling, either favorable or unfavorable.
3. unreasonable feelings, opinions, or attitudes, esp. of a hostile nature, regarding a racial, religious, or national group.

Good. We all agree that based on the above, that prejudice is a bad, BAAAAAAAAD thing. And we as edu-mah-cated, self-conscious and aware individuals have a responsibility to fight the evil from any and all standpoints.

So I began to think about the things that I may or may judge negatively before being informed.  And into my head popped about 15 hugely silly stereotypes such as gold wearing, ferrari badge toting Italians, Loud Québecoises on vacation, A family of asians seemingly deep in intense debate, but actually having a regular conversation.

So I asked the question, “What’s the difference between a prejudice and a stereotype?“

To which I was replied: “A prejudice is a stereotype that you actually subscribe to and believe in?“

Uh. Huh.

But isn’t it true that stereotypes have an element of truth and that they are ‘cartoonized’ for us all to, um, enjoy?

My point being, that most stereotypes are based on a reality:

1. I need only to walk to the corner of Peel and St Catherine to see the black kids in the baggy pants and bandanas selling weed.

2. I need only to hang out on the Corner of Crescent and St Catherine on a Friday evening to know that that baseball capped, Abercrombie and Fitch wearing Bostonian will doubtless drink way too much, be loud and obnoxious and vomit on our city’s streets tonight.

3. And as much as I hate to admit it, I get nervous from time to time when I ride the metro and see a nervous middle eastern gentleman. Not every time. But sometimes. ANd I genuinely hate to admit that.

So KNOWING that I do, in fact, subscribe to stereotypes to a level, does this make me an ignorant and base bigot?

I don’t think so. I’m pretty sure that I have a level grounding on what is acceptable and what is not. But is that because I would never ‘call’ someone on it? But I’ll think it, and time and time again (with the exception of any personal experience with the last in my trilogy of examples), I’m proved right.

So I laugh about it (again, with the exception of 3) and move on. But I’ll think it again the next time. That’s the level of my prejudice and as much as I try to subscribe to the “innocent until proved guilty” mantra, there are some experiences that I know, hand on heart that I can’t look past.

What worries me as an ever politically correct, well-educated, well informed, young(at heart), white, middle class (yes, I said it!) male, is that my views or reasonings are not a thousand miles away from those who we deem to be unbearable and unreasonable bigots, racists and terrorists. They may just choose to vocalize it with the same level of internal belief.

Hmmm. Maybe ‘prejudice’ should be looked at in the same way as Dante’s 7 levels of hell.

…and I have a son on the way and don’t know what the hell to tell him when the time comes…

So what are your prejudices?…     

An additional thought: Are prejudices somehow linked to some kind of belief of superiority? It struck me after I realised that I am prejudiced against those who cannot spell. Or against those who’s grammar is outrageously bad.

Just food for thought.