Nothing to Declare? You'd Better Check Again...

My wife introduced me to this television show aired in Perth and the United Kingdom entitled "Border Security: Australia's Front Line."  You can find complete episodes of it on YouTube.  The stars of the show are the many customs screeners and immigration officials who work tirelessly to protect Australia's borders from exposure to invasive diseases, plant life, animals, the influx of drugs via couriers and mail, and to determine the legal status of everyone entering the country and if they have the means to survive the duration of their stay without violating the status of their visas and breaking the law.

She told me at once she was addicted to it, and after one episode, so was I.  Australia is very serious about customs declaration, so whatever you do, CHECK YES.  If you aren't sure, as they say on their form CHECK YES ANYWAY.  After watching the show you can see how even simple negligence or forgetfulness can doom you to hours of interviews and even fines and jail time.

There is one character on the show named Peter and both of us admit that if Peter ever sat us across his desk and interrogated us we'd end up telling him our most private sins (the man has a "just don't f$*k with me manner" and incredibly piercing eyes and intimidating mustache).  I joked with her that I was going to put the theme song on a voice recorder and play it behind her head upon our arrival in Sydney, immediately provoking a worried search for Peter from her.

Seriously, the show is very informative, and even if you aren't interested in visiting Australia, it is wonderful to see the extent these people go to protect their borders.  I think everyone stands to learn something, be you looking for ways to increase our security or find someone else to criticize other than the United States for treatment - justified or not - of illegal immigrants.

What I find most interesting is how many of their questions of arrivals would never be asked in our country as they would be declared invasive, personal, irrelevant, and rude, yet these are the questions that are the most helpful to them when identifying drug smugglers.  Also of note is how patient they are, as if many of the visitors becoming hostile and angry with them are simply talked down calmly or quietly escorted away, in the United States argumentative, hostile travelers would be told they could be arrested as a terrorist and threatened with detainment.

Check out the show.  I think you'll enjoy it.  Might learn something too.  Here is the first episode.

RPGs in Perth

As we are avid gamers we have been wondering what game stores / groups we might be able to find in Perth and how to get into contact with them.  I've been searching around; as a university town Perth would surely have some sort of gamers' union or game shops where you can find bulletin boards.

I came across http://www.meetup.com/PerthRPG/ off http://tabletopmanifesto.blogspot.com/ and signed up.  Hopefully it will work out for us.  I'd like it if we could find some relaxed gamers who've been around a while.  I'm always willing to take in new players or play with players with little experience but need to do so on a controlled, hopefully one-at-a-time so we can mentor pace.

If anyone heading to Perth wants info about Perth RPG groups, sign up on the forum.  When you get there, look us up.

I hear there is a good Quality Comics store at 872 Hay Street.  You can see their site here.  It will redirect you to their Facebook here.

I also read of a store Tactics where you can get good RPG materials.  I can't find any real info about it yet but will look it up when I get there and give an update.

Links To Helpful Sites

Here are a few links to some helpful sites.  On many of the news sites you can read comment sections and get an idea of the diversity of opinions of the area.  It is probably a lot like it is in the US though.  For example, as anyone who frequents CNN.com knows, most of the comment posters are trolls, lunatics, and lifetime subscribers to the aluminum hat club.  I'm sure it's probably similar there.

http://www.perthnow.com
http://abc.net.au
http://news.com.au
http://www.watoday.com.au
http://www.theaustralian.com.au  (subscription)
http://www.perthtalk.com.au   (chat room, almost impossible without a local IP)

streaming radio
http://www.mix.com.au

some video, like msn video or youtube
http://video.au.msn.com


As I find more I like I'll be adding them as time goes on.

Exchange Rate Update

The exchange rate has changed.  The dollar has either rallied a little, the Australian dollar has weakened, or both.  The current rate is:

1 AUD = 1.03 USD
1 USD = .97 AUD

That makes it a little easier on us and a little worse on the Aussies, for now.  We still will only transfer what we need, as there is a large fee for transferring.

Importation of Firearms and Weapons

My arsenal:

I emailed the West Australia police and asked what special steps I needed to take to legally import a few items of mine that are "controlled," as defined by the Weapons Regulation Act of 1999.  They instructed me to fill out a B709 Permit application so that the items will be released to me by customs.  Seems that swords and knives over a certain length are lumped in with the firearms permit.  The response letter I got to my inquiry was as follows:

Swords are controlled weapons under the Weapons Regulations 1999 in WA and as long as you possess them for a lawful use (ie collection etc) you can retain possession.  To import you will require a B709 Permit if the blade exceeds 300mm (Approx 12 inches) To import an axe you will be required to submit the B709 Permit application.  Axes are also controlled weapons and the same applies with their possession.


In relation to all items it would not be acceptable to be walking around in the streets or driving around in your car with controlled weapon with the likelihood of causing fear to the public.

Regards


You can find the Weapons Regulations Act of 1999 here, and the B709 Permit here.

Whatever You Do, Don't Be a Hoon!

APRIL 16 2012 EDIT:     A Video of a HOON:   
http://video.perthnow.com.au/2223272714/A-blight-on-Perth-streets


Hoon.

What's a hoon?  We first saw the word in reference to driving, usually done by the "L-platers" which, to the American readers, means learner drivers or new drivers.  But a hoon?  What's a hoon?  This is important if you're moving to Australia, because it seems that hoon is a very common descriptor used to label distinct behaviors.

Hoon:     Anyone who engages in antisocial behavior, "in particular, used to refer to one who drives a car or boat in a manner which is anti-social by the standards of contemporary society, that is, fast, noisily and/or dangerously" ( Wikipedia. "Hoon."  http://http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoon ).

Hoon driving is driving recklessly.  Doing donuts in the street.  Peeling out.  Gunning engines at stoplights.  Driving like, well, a hoon.  Believe it or not, Australia actually has anti-hoon legislation which they call, you guessed it, "anti-hoon" laws.

You can even get a hoon tan:  one white arm and one tanned arm, because you have one arm hanging out the car window all the time.

You can go out and hoon around, meaning messing or screwing around.

I supposed that hoon was somehow related to hoodlum, but have uncovered no evidence as of yet to support the claim.

After this we were interested in other jargon that might come in handy pertaining to deviant behavior.   My wife had heard Bogan a lot which seemed to mean redneck in context, but we really needed to find out for sure.

Bogan:    a pejorative, "or self-deprecating, for an individual who is recognised to be from a lower class background or someone whose limited education, speech, clothing, attitude and behaviour exemplifies such background... used by fans of heavy metal and hard rock music to describe themselves, and was used almost interchangeably with 'head banger.' Bogans typically wore 'acid wash' jeans, ugg boots, and band t-shirts; had mullet style haircuts; and lived in suburbs" ( Wikipedia. "Bogan." http://http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bogan ).

That's a metalhead, not a redneck.....   but still.....

I also remember from dungeons and dragons a bogan being a minor elfling or gnome-like entity that reveled in mischief, and by the definitions both interpretations seem linked to the mythological scottish/gaelic bocans.

My wife had a sure bet that bogan meant redneck, and I'd have to say, after reading examples of it on the internet that yes, Virginia, a bogan is a redneck, but not in the way Americans know rednecks.  Wearing band shirts and acid washed jeans is clearly not what comes to mind when Americans think of rednecks. However, taking into context that the Australian punk/metalhead seems to be the cultural patsy everyone likes to joke about, it is a parallel to our stereotypical "southern-born redneck" and would classify as a redneck (deviant patsy) for their area.  They just don't have the rebel flags and rusted out iron duke camaros so they have to point fingers at metalheads.  And jeez.  Living in suburbs.  Such horror.  Better than trailers, I guess, as is the stereotype in the U.S.

If you don't want to feel judgmental, however, you can equate it with hillbilly which, in essence, really isn't a bad thing.  It all depends on context. Personally, I don't feel left out.  I apply to both.  I may not have rebel flags to throw around, but if they're wanting either to point fingers at a mountain music loving white boy hillbilly - sans mullet and camaro which by definition makes me a hillbilly and not a redneck - or a metalhead, just look my way.

I'll be sure to keep my camera out when I go hoon-hunting.

The lesson I take away from this is:  Don't be a hoon, but you can be a bogan, but only if you're a hillbilly.  Rednecks need not apply.

Personal Note 1

Over the past few weeks I've dealt with passing the information on to my side of the family.  My brother, who already knew, came to help me when I told my parents.  I told my dad first in private, and then told my mom later that night.  There were lots of tears, fear, misunderstanding, sadness, and anger.  I went back to their house for a week the following week and, having bought them a tablet and setting them up on the wireless internet my sister had arranged, schooled them on skype.  We did many, many drills.  It will take a while, but they'll get the operations down.  Since that weekend I've called them on skype and they've called me quite often.  I'm pretty sure that seeing the skype in action is helping them along.