Skip to main content

All about white stuff

I am in the mood, dear Reader, to test your knowledge about white (read "North American left-leaning, city-dwelling white folk") popular culture.

Question 1: Why do some white people stay in for breakfast on a Sunday morning?

Question 2: Why do some white people like not having a TV?

Question 3: Why do white people love Japan?

Three questions will suffice to illustrate my point. If you don't know the answers, I will offer you a preview.

Answer 1: White people love their brunch places but some have breakfast at home on a Sunday morning for the simple reason that they want to read the Sunday edition of The New York Times.

Apparently reading the newspaper will make them look good on Monday morning when they need to impress their co-workers by telling them about the latest books in the Book Review section or a discussion of a thought-provoking issue in the Magazine section.

Answer 2: Some white people like making other white people feel bad and not having a TV is one way of making themselves feel good about their life and life choices.

When other white people talk about Casey James, Crystal Bowersox and Andrew Garcia, among other American Idol (Season 9) hopefuls, those who do not own a TV will smugly say: "I didn't see it, I don't have a TV. That stuff rots your brain."

Answer 3: White people love Japan for many reasons. Sushi is one but it goes beyond food. All white people either have taught/will teach/wished they had taught English in Japan. It is a dream for them to go overseas and actually live in Japan.

Besides filling their need to travel, it also helps them to gain important leverage over other white people at sushi restaurants when they can say: "This place is pretty good, but living in Japan really spoiled me. I've had such a hard time finding a really authentic place."

My three questions were based on the observations of Christian Lander, author of the book Stuff White People Like: The Definitive Guide to the Unique Taste of Millions (2008) (see photo of book cover above).

The answers (which have been slightly adapted) were excerpts of passages from the book. I recently got my copy from Amazon.com after unsuccessfully searching for it in book stores in Kuala Lumpur.

Reading it was a hilarious way of spending my Sunday morning and afternoon.

Lander's comments on the "supposed habits and preferences of the pale-skinned"  first appeared in his blog, also called Stuff White People Like. It was and still is immensely popular. A white person had forwarded me the link and it got my attention.

Some love it: "Oh, lord, it only hurts because it's true! Love the blog". Others find it "offensive and racist" while The New Republic describes it as "weak satire".

Yet Lander, a PhD  dropout, is "gently making fun of the many progressive, educated, upper-middle-class whites who think they are beyond ethnicity or collectively shared tastes, styles or outlook," writes Gregory Rodriguez of the Los Angeles Times. "He's essentially reminding them that they too are part of a group."

Lander admits that "the things I post are all the things I like too!" and that he is calling whites out and "poking fun" at himself.

As a non-white person, I find Lander's take on white popular culture refreshing.

I also see non-white people doing some of the things that he illustrates.

There is no escaping globalisation.

Comments

Popular Posts

A spot of rural tranquillity in Ipoh

Your nerves are frayed and you need a dose of pleasingly rustic ambience without having to leave the city. There is such a spot for you, if you are in Ipoh. All you need to do is head for a block of flats called Kinta Heights in Pekan Lama, Ipoh, Perak, which is next to the Kinta River, one of the main branches of the Perak River. Unbelievable, as it may seem, there are several nasi kandar outlets and sundry shops in the vicinity, set in the greenery, with a view and a walking path. I suggest that you have lunch at Ramli Nasi Kandar and after that, take a very short walk to the river bank for your rural retreat. You might be motivated to spend 10 minutes or more in total silence and tranquillity. This is the place I go to again and again. Ramli Nasi Kandar is next to the sundry shop A short bridge to the river bank  You will feel irritated by people putting litter on the ground but I refuse to allow that to distract me. There is a 'Do not litter' notice her

Rediscovering the traditional Malaysian Indian kitchen

I love this artwork (acrylic on canvas) by Jayashree Ramasamy @Jay, who has captured the mood of the traditional Malaysian Indian kitchen. Jay recalls her grandmother preparing meals for the family in a room which was equipped with ancestral cooking utensils and that was the inspiration for this painting. For more of Jay's creations head for the National Art Gallery where 'The Story Telling' exhibition is now being held (April 14 to May 15, 2011).  'The Story Telling' is a group exhibition showcasing the creations of four emerging artists including Jay from the Symbols Art Club . The other three artists are Kathiravan Subramaniam, Rohini Indran and Mohana Kumara Velu @ Mona Kv. Each work of art is a story that the artist tells about his or her personal experiences and observations of daily life. The launch this afternoon was in conjunction with the Tamil New Year today. 'Food is Served' by Kathiravan Subramaniam. The rationale: 'We may have diff

In the waiting room

People are always waiting for something. They could be waiting for the train, an opportunity, promises to be fulfilled or the return of a loved one. But "what does waiting mean in our lives and what is life without waiting?" That question was posed by Danny Castillones Sillada in his article "What is Life without Waiting?" (The Metaphysics of Waiting). The passing of the old year demands another round of gloomy introspection and Sillada's article came at the right time, given the value of waiting in our lives. "Waiting," he explains, is "an emotional and mental state, which is preconditioned to anticipate someone or something to arrive at a particular time and place". Sillada tells us that there are two types of waiting: empirical and metaphysical. The empirical form of waiting is "where the certainty of the waited and the occurrence of event are tangibly expected to happen within a particular time and place of the waite