What The Toot!

StatCounter is one of those free web statistical system that records user visits. I use it, along with Google Analytics (too complicated) and Wordpress.com Stat (non-functional). Currently StatCounter is the only one that provide free, easy, real-time analysis. While it is great at that, it’s totally useless in IP-Geolocation - determining the location using IP. Let’s look at some example:

Perth is an island off the coast of Australia according to StatCounter.

Kuala Terengganu is closer to Penang than to Terengganu.

Kota Kinabalu is now some obscure island in the South China Sea.

Pay special attention to this one. The “ISP” indicated that it is Melaka Manipal Medical College in Melaka. Oh hey, Melaka is actually in Kuala Lumpur according to StatCounter, and it is located in Indonesia!

Another instance Kuala Lumpur is actually somewhere in Indonesia.

What the TOOT?! This has got to be the worse website in terms of portraying their IP-Geolocation data. Seriously Toot!

Back in Malaysia, people jaywalk all the time partly because there aren’t any laws and regulations safeguarding the interests of pedestrians, but mostly because there are just too much (uncountable!) reckless, stupid and idiotic drivers in Malaysia, particularly Penang.

In Australia, particularly Melbourne (since I live here), people are known for their good manners in driving. They will always (most of the time) let the pedestrians cross the road before driving through, even at a junction without traffic lights, and even if that means waiting for one full minute for all the pedestrians to cross. They will rarely sound the honk. Malaysian wouldn’t think twice before doing so.

That kinda gives pedestrians in Melbourne king-like power. Indeed, they are, in my opinion, the true king of the road. Their powers are so great that eventually people got scared of them, and began warning other people of pedestrians:

Yes. All in capital letters, and CAUTION in bold. Pedestrians are too powerful and scary, other people have to be cautioned and warned of.

By the way the photo was taken in 9 October 2007 in front of the building site for the new Royal Melbourne Women’s Hospital, hence the huge ass portrait shots of women.

Indeed, they are stupid. In fact there has been a lot of interest on the internet on whether they are stupid. This is evident by the keywords that people use to find this site:

Do note that there are 3 similar search terms to stupid Australians, totalling 74 visits. The original “Australians are stupid” post is also one of the most commented post in this website (not that we get a lot of visitors.) If you look at the comments, there are local and foreigners alike who seem to think and come to the same conclusion - that Australians are indeed stupid.

We recently get a comment from Jack on that post:

Jack Says:
March 16th, 2008 at 12:15 pm Australians are indeed stupid, I’ve lived in 5 countries for work and have visited many more, ayayayay the stupidity of Australians is shocking, for instance their claim that they are a great sporting nation, Ha is that a joke, most famous sporting figures abuse alcohol or use drugs as if it is the most normal thing to do and the australian public worship those idiots, and lets talk about the alcohol abuse in this country, Aussies are obsessed with alcohol, they live their lives to get wasted in the shortest possible time so that they can pick a fight. teens and high performance cars is another thing, somehow they think that because they own a V8 they have to drive like an idiot and cause accidents, you hear it on the news every day that another car load of teens got killed in a high performance car and often they were drunk, wha is it in this country, don’t they learn from this??, the answer is NO, the response of the government to this is , ” lets put these kids trough a course that teaches them how to drive these cars”, this is throwing fuel on fire, these kids only get more confident and think they can drive these big cars faster, after all ” I’ve done a special course on how to handle these cars”.
The amount of assaults in this coutry are rediculous, aussies are aclohol obsessed and agressive people with NO common sense what so ever.
I am Australian and NOT proud of it and I am happy to say that I am leaving this country this year, I will tell no one in my new home country that I am australian because I am ambarresed.
Teachers here can’t spell for shit, and that is teaching our kids, my god, an idiot teaching an a idiot, that is the same with driving lessons, aussies can’t drive for shit.
I can go on and on like this but it’s only making me sad.
wake up australia

Bad grammar and spelling mistakes aside, one thing that caught my attention is how he spelled ridiculous. Jack said, and I quote:” The amount of assaults in this coutry are rediculous, aussies are aclohol obsessed and agressive people with NO common sense what so ever.”

I don’t know, Jack. Maybe you have read my previous post about spelling “rediculous”, and by using that particular spelling, you want to impress me by indicating to me that you have read it. What a good reader you have been!

Either that, or you are as stupid as some Australians. Please do check out How-To-Spell-Ridiculous.com. Seriously, it’s essential that you get it right, so that we have one less stupid Australian. Sorry Jack. Sorry I have to pick on you like that.

One day, as I was walking in QV mall, a dwarf walk pass me. No, not your World of Warcraft or [insert MMORPG name] type of Dwarf. A real life dwarf, a genetic disease.

Parallel to me, there were two kids looking at the dwarf as he walk pass them. They kept looking AND laughing at the same time, and then ran up to their father and had the following conversation:

Kids: Dad! Dad! Look at that guy! [Laughs and giggles]
Dad: What?
Kids: Dad, that guy over there!
Dad: What? He’s a dwarf.
Kids: [Laughs and giggles continues]

In Australia, where people are generally well informed about diseases around the world, I felt disgusted at the action of the father. He did not stop them from laughing. In fact, he said “What? He’s a dwarf” like it’s does not concern him, like it’s a matter of fact, like their kids can laugh at the dwarf. It is fortunate that no one is in the proximity of those children and the stupid father, and it’s even more fortunate that the dwarf didn’t hear any part of this conversation.

They laughed at a disease, at a sufferer. The father did not even take the initiative to educate his children about dwarfism, and it’s not right to laugh at people and that is why I think some Australians are stupid.

One a side note, this is a picture I found in the newspaper long ago about a storm in Melbourne. We are always taught not to stand under a tree in a storm, as the chance of being hit by lighting is significantly increased. However, Australian being Australian, here’s what you see:

More intriguingly, there’s a perfectly fine building at the back. I wonder why they do not stay inside the building instead.

Since it’s the exam period, this is going to be a short one. I have been having all sorts of ideas why Australians, or some Australians in particular, are stupid. This is one of the things that led me to believe so. I hope this will be an ongoing post where I shall post ideas and perspective that led me to believe the same thing.

The Melbourne Italian Festival, or the closing ceremony is held on 9th and 10th June at Piazza Italia, or Argyle Square. This is the examination periods for students of Melbourne, particularly The University of Melbourne and RMIT, which is in the proximity of Piazza Italia.

I have nothing against the festival itself. Rather, I have something against the date it is being held. Organizing and holding this kind of extremely loud events in the proximity of what I would consider to be an area full of university students in their examinations period is stupid and idiotic.

Coincidentally, the Melbourne City Council seem to have some urge to re-landscape Cardigan Street. However, they couldn’t pick a better day to start doing it. According to one of the letters, the work will begin on 8th June and will end around four weeks time, weather permitting. Two days before 8th June, they cut down all the trees on the tree island on Cardigan Street.

It’s as if Australian, particularly Melbournians are out to doom us all in our examination period. I am not sure who approved the event and the work at the dates without asking the opinion of at least some of the residents, but I am pretty sure John So is involved.

Some Australians are stupid, no doubt about it.

P.S.: If you are Australian and you are offended by this post, GREAT!

[UPDATE 18/5/2005 2.51 AM]
Due to the popularity of this post, do read:
Australians are Stupid 3
Australians are Stupid 2