-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
Asian-GAF: We're all the same, like Stormtroopers |OT| |AT|
- Thread starter Cybit
- Start date
Hahaha, this is legitimately blowing my mind.
You right
Septimus Prime
Member
It was not in the picture, but I had a fridge full of beers in the garage. Had. Happy birthday, America!Only one beer?
Ain't got time for that. Those corns came straight out of the packaging, right onto the grill. I had a pot of clarified butter on the side burner to slather all over them, though.
Josh with a J
Member
Low hanging fruit. I expect better (worse).
FallingEdge
Member
Had a fantastic 4th. Lots of food. Brisket, pulled pork, salmon. Burgers and hot dogs as well. All of it. To my face.
I don't see it as cultural appropriation - remember that a) music is sold world-wide, and not just to the US, and b) Bollywood is really freaking big. It's the second biggest entertainment market outside of Hollywood itself, and is very popular world-wide. So a music video that uses Bollywood themes being distributed worldwide is pretty much the same as a music video using traditionally US themes (cowboys for instance) being made outside the US and distributed world-wide. Also - most Americans don't tend to realize that when it comes to music (even US artists), the US is usually the LAST place on the planet to be marketed to. Music tends to be Europe / Asia first, then US second.
Then again, I suspect a lot of the modern claims of cultural appropriation in music is rooted in this antiquated idea that the US is the ultimate arbiter of entertainment / cultural norms and the ultimate market - which isn't true in the slightest any more, but we have refused to admit it. I mean....let's be honest, there are 4 to 5x as many Indians in the world as there are Americans. Can the minority appropriate the majority's culture?
The secure in your own culture argument is actually pretty compelling the more I think about it. I think intent is pretty important, and I'm 99% sure it is an homage (because, once again, it's being marketed to India / Asia as well, and you're not going to mock the culture when it is part of your intended audience). I've always been fairly secure in the fact I'm Indian-American, and having grown up around a primarily white environment most of my life - I'm used to people being sort of fascinated by the foreign culture of India, and wanting to wear a bindi or a sari or what not. If they're fascinated by it, or just think it's cool, more power to 'em. Hell, the more Americans get into it, the more likely I'll be able to find it for sale in the US at all.
I think the problem arises because acculturation is such a painful process for Asian Americans (not to mention any other multi-cultural group in the US).
For those that struggle with the acculturation and the reconciling two cultures in the US, I think appropriation from Western sources is a touchy issue. For those that aren't fully comfortable in their own skin, seeing instances where white culture has taken from Indian or any other Asian culture is jarring.
"I'm already having trouble trying to carve my own American experience and decide what parts of my "native" culture I'm trying to incorporate into my life. How dare you do so without knowing my struggle?"
The problem is that, as the acculturation spectrum is very wide, so are the responses to such usage.
I agree, viewed in the world lens, this might not be as big of a deal... but I can totally see why it is for some in the US.
For those that struggle with the acculturation and the reconciling two cultures in the US, I think appropriation from Western sources is a touchy issue. For those that aren't fully comfortable in their own skin, seeing instances where white culture has taken from Indian or any other Asian culture is jarring.
"I'm already having trouble trying to carve my own American experience and decide what parts of my "native" culture I'm trying to incorporate into my life. How dare you do so without knowing my struggle?"
The problem is that, as the acculturation spectrum is very wide, so are the responses to such usage.
I agree, viewed in the world lens, this might not be as big of a deal... but I can totally see why it is for some in the US.
Any market where dance music and/or hip hop is big is going to know his stuff. A quick glance at his and Major Lazer's tour dates has him all over NA and Europe, which are the biggest markets.
It's expanding in that region for sure. A lot of DJs tour East Asia and SEA, and Ultra has a few festivals there now.
Major Lazer was on tour in India late last year, it looks like.
My problems with trying to merge cultures is my problem. My struggles and inability to handle the dual cultures (especially if my parents had been resistant to American culture) is not a reason to resent other folks who don't have that struggle. American culture is a mish mash of all of the cultures that have immigrated here - we are making our own mark this way as well. I mean - it's intellectually lazy and dishonest to generalize all of Europe and North America culture as the "west" - but then claim each country in Asia is its own separate culture and getting appropriated. Someone immigrating as a first gen immigrant from Europe (especially Eastern Europe) will also have many of those same struggles; but no one would buy that argument from them.
BBC / UK media is the primary international music and programming. Former British colony and all.
Didn't realize that India held onto so many British aspects, actually. That's interesting
Over here in the UK, British Asian is pretty much South Asian - after India got split into India, Pakistan and a lot of folks moved over here; Bangladesh got their independence a bit later, but they're counted as well pretty much due to East London and Brick Lane in particular.
I use to know someone who didn't get it, because she's of Chinese decent. Which is fair enough.*
If you're talking about cultural appropriation, I think it's happened here, Britain, moreso than most places. Curry is arguably one of the national dishes now.. Don't know whether it's the most popular takeaway here too or not, but for a while it definitely was.
*London does have a China Town, and I think I'm going to look at Chinese roots here Britain some time this year.
I don't know if it is cultural appropriation to be completely honest though - how many of those cultures once belonged to the British Empire, and by extension, had a lot of immigrants from that area move into the UK? I mean, I think people confuse the natural blending of cultures with cultural appropriation. Especially in a modern era where the world has been shrinking dramatically with the communication (phones & internet) and transportation revolution (jets) - its easy to get defensive about preserving one's identity.
I dunno about that. The British Empire still leaves some people very riled up. We messed up a whole lot of countries in our wake. We took their curry as our own looks real bad when we talk about the famines we probably caused whilst there.
Still, you're right in that most Indian restaurants are in fact Indian, Bengali, Pakistani, so it might as well be cultural blending of sorts. It's pretty much normal these days for any household to have curries I'd say, regardless of background.
Having said that, curry smells, have a racial undertone that maybe doesn't come across, to people overseas, in that it is used as an identifier, of Indians, because their diet mostly consists of curry spices, and the aroma is quite strong.*
Edit: *when you have to check yourself, because people give you dirty looks cause of how you're perceived to smell is pretty bad... even if you actually smell like Gucci or Christian Dior, cause you know, you shower and stuff.
It truly depends on who you ask. The educated middle class definitely prefers the British, perhaps due to a bit of nostalgia. The upper class and uneducated lower classes prefer the Chinese because of connections and propaganda, respectively.
Let's keep in mind that it wasn't all sunshine and roses with the British; there were lots of 'reeducation' and propaganda campaigns after the communist riots, which ironically helped to cement what is considered to be Hong Kong culture to this date. There was a lot of corruption too, which makes all to similar to today's situation.
Oh, don't get me wrong, I don't think the British Empire was good - just that from the era of Alexander the Great and onward; there has been a tradition of integrating cultures that met through either conquest, trade, or immigration (for modern equivalents). Just like Indian culture (in India) has definitely taken things from American culture, the opposite also happens. My parents were growing up during independence, so I don't have a particularly good view of the British Empire, to say the least.
I think curry is definitely one of those smells that no matter how much you try to clean a place out; sticks around. My old roommate and I used to both make curry like once a week, and our friends would always get hungry when they came cuz they'd smell it from like 3 days ago, no matter what we did. Hilariously, where I grew up, that never happened because we were so small of a minority that no one really knew about the curry thing (and we didn't eat it at home).
The British Empire was like all empires - insanely enriching to those in the conquering country, and extremely destructive to those ruled by said empire.
Septimus Prime
Member
The sun never sets on the British Empire.
Bad food tip: don't eat at Gatten Sushi in Gardena. I was instantly nauseous.
Bad food tip: don't eat at Gatten Sushi in Gardena. I was instantly nauseous.
The context of what is happening now is pretty important. I would never say how Hong Kong came under British rule with the Opium War is a good thing, nor was it coming back under British rule after WWII necessarily the right thing. Still, it just so happens that what happened in China in the decades after is a lot lot worst. Those in the older generation that remember the Cultural Revolution or took refuge in HK in that period, there would still be great mistrust of the CCP.
As for the young in the city now, when you see the colonial flags being waved in the protests. It's being waved by students born in the 90s that wouldn't remember much of pre-97 Hong Kong. I don't think it's particularly nostalgia for British rule, but protecting/mourning the institutions and values built up in that era by the people of HK such as the rule of law, the ICAC, freedom of speech and press... that is falling apart piece by piece.
Hong Kong wasn't a democracy under that British, but back then it was a haven from the China that went through decades of turmoil and brought out tanks against its students. Back then the 97 deadline was like a black hole and no one knew what was on the other side. The mode is like in those Wong Kar Wai films, it's a place where you happen to be in close proximity with others for a while, but everyone were going in their own direction and there was no future to speak of.
But then after 97, you have a China that is changing quicker than HK. Even if HK was still a british colony, it wouldnt escape China's economic influence. The generation growing up now has to think of the future, but they find that any means of shaping it on their part have been taken away.
Precisely. Hong Kong itself is now unable to control its own political and economic fate.
One of the greatest ironies is that Shenzhen, one of the first (if not the first?) SAR regions within China, was set up to take advantage of Hong Kong's free port. Now that Shenzhen and the rest of China is an economic powerhouse, there is increasingly little reason for China to take Hong Kong seriously.
Well, except for smuggling things across the border. Or residency issues.
I've been eating clean this past few weeks and I have been actively avoiding this thread to keep it that way. Now I would kill any one of you for a soup dumpling. No hesitation.
Has anyone been reading the Grace of Kings by Ken Liu? I was in the mood to read a fantasy book and I ended up finding this. It's best describe as Game of Thrones with a lot of Asian influence (but not really). I'm only 10 chapters in and I'm really loving it. I heard Liu draws a lot of inspiration from the Han Dynasty though so I don't know if that spoils anything for myself.
Has anyone been reading the Grace of Kings by Ken Liu? I was in the mood to read a fantasy book and I ended up finding this. It's best describe as Game of Thrones with a lot of Asian influence (but not really). I'm only 10 chapters in and I'm really loving it. I heard Liu draws a lot of inspiration from the Han Dynasty though so I don't know if that spoils anything for myself.
Septimus Prime
Member
Yo, you guys need to call me if you go to the Arcadia one (either one). It's like 10 minutes away from me.
LinkToTheFuture
Member
Hi I just found this thread (ﾉﾟοﾟﾉ
Whats going on? I was wondering if everyone is having a good summer.
ﾉWhats going on? I was wondering if everyone is having a good summer.
I didn't realize I looked so depressed.
I'd be sad too if bsb stole all my food.
I remember being frustrated that the soy sauce made my dumpling too slippery to pick up.
I hate spoons.
But you were eating soup dumplings. You were suppose to rest the dumpling on the spoon, nipple it so the soup comes out and you enjoy.
Fair warning, it's the first of a trilogy called the Dandelion Dynasty.
Septimus Prime
Member
Come visit and we'll all go get XLB
Like a true Canadian, I'll melt in Californian weather
Although, I do have a twin down in the Bay area.
Soup dumpling seems to be an east coast name for it.
That name doesn't make any sense to me.
Zaraki_Kenpachi
Member
No, you're supposed to eat it in one bite so nothing is wasted.
Yeah, it's definitely used on the east coast. Why doesn't it make sense?
Easiest way to burn your mouth if the soup is too hot, not to mention the potential in spilling the goods on your shirt. Correct way is to nibble the top or side of the dumpling while it's resting on your spoon. Slurp the soup so none of it goes to waste and eat the rest.
YOU don't make any sense to me.
I may still be hungry.
Zaraki_Kenpachi
Member
I'm really hungry and it's too late to order from the bun place that's like 3 minutes from my apartment. WORST NIGHT EVER
Because, literally translated, soup dumpling would be "湯餃", except that actually refers to another dish. It's dumplings served in soup.
There's also "灌湯餃", which are large steamed dumplings that contain a lot of soup, or are served in soup/stock.
"Soup dumpling" makes no sense when referring to 小籠包 because they're not dumplings, and the liquid -- not real soup as the liquid comes from the filling -- is minimal when compared to 灌湯餃.
It's basically misclassifying a 包/bao for a 餃/dumpling.
Edit:
This is speculation on my part, but I imagine that "soup dumpling" was named that way on the east coast to give it an easy-to-use name for non-Asians, like bubble tea (also an east coast thing) for 波霸/boba.
I must be one of the few people who don't love soup dumplings. I mean, it's all right.
That book has been on my to-read list. Was planning on reading it next after The Liar's Key (which I'm currently reading).
That book has been on my to-read list. Was planning on reading it next after The Liar's Key (which I'm currently reading).