End Metallophobia (previously named 'Fear of a metal planet')

Social scientists build case for 'survival of the kindest' This article states that animals who treat each other kindly and more compassionately usually far better as both individuals and as a species. But what if we also decided to apply this to human beings, where the levels of kindness and equality are postively correlated with how well a nation does both socially and economically. We all know that the nations that fare better economically are also the ones who treat their people in the best possible way. Using heavy metal fans (and other 'alternatives' like punks, goths, and emos) as an example, as well as women, the elderly or disabled, I have a theory that those nations that treat these groups (or any other disadvantaged group) well often do better economically. For instance, the rates of violence against women are much lower in developed nations like Sweden or Norway, than they are in third world nations. Also, heavy metal is more popular in these nations and t...

Article Review: Teacher testifies in case hearing in http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2009/feb/03/teacher-alex-barton-case-testifies-hearing/ I have blogged extensively about the issue of 'Ms Wendy Portillo vs Alex Barton' in my other blog (Night Owl 1967). And even though the issue was a grey area, where both parties were in the wrong at the time, what the teacher (Ms Portillo) did was handle the situation incorrectly, by getting other children to vote either for or against Alex Barton from her class (Alex was a boy diagnosed with Autism or Asperger's syndrome). The reason being is that the boy was 'singled out' and was publically humiliated in front of the other children. All I knew about what he allededly did wrong was lift the desk with his feet and throw crayons about the place, and that he said to his mother that he felt 'bad' and 'hurt' by what the others said about him. There was never anything about what the other kids said specifically, nor w...

Wikipedia describes what Emo is about exactly: Emo (music) - Taken from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Stylistic origins: hardcore punk, indie rock Cultural origins: mid 1980s Washington, DC Typical instruments: Guitar - Bass - Drums Mainstream popularity: Sporadically through the 1980s and '90s, growing in the early 2000s Subgenres: Emocore - Hardcore emo - Emo violence - Screamo Fusion genres: Post-hardcore Regional scenes: Midwestern emo Other topics: List of emo groups - Timeline of alternative rock Here is what Wikipedia's definition of the genre: Emo is a subgenre of hardcore punk music. Since its inception, emo has come to describe several independent variations, linked loosely but with common ancestry. As such, use of the term (and which musicians should be so classified) has been the subject of much debate. It's origins and original meanings: In its original incarnation, the term emo was used to describe the music of the mid-1980s Washington, DC scene and its ass...

Most runaway teens return home with help of family ties, study finds Teenagers who resolve their differences with their parents are more likely to return to the family home.

Article Review: Took, K, J and Weiss, D, S (1994), ‘The Relationship between Heavy Metal and Rap and Adolescent Turmoil: Real or Artefact? In Adolescence, Volume 29, Number 115, Fall 1994 ; pages 613-621 This journal article illustrates the relationship between preferences for Heavy Metal and/or Rap music, and difficulties during adolescence. Both the teenaged subjects and their parents were interviewed, and the teenagers were asked about their current 'psychosocial functioning' and their music preferences. The group of subjects who liked Heavy Metal and Rap were compared to a group of adolescents who liked other types of music. The focus of concern was the increasingly explicit references to drugs, sex and violence, and Heavy Metal and Rap have come under the most scrutiny from religious, political, parents' and medical groups, which were likely to affect the minds of children and young people. Heavy Metal music (a particular type of hard rock) often attracted concern ...

I have decided to include some of these in this blog so one can read my opinion on what I believe. Some of these reviews will be on the Reading list, while others will be from other articles I have read online, as well as previous contributions I have made to various social networking and blogging sites (and even an old DIY website I used to have with the now defunct Geocities, which was powered by Yahoo! [TM]). They are there for your own enjoyment as well as to use as a reference to further research (though I do ask that if you are going to quote from me, you do give me due credit)!!!

I have just recently made a list of the books and articles (from magazines, journals and online) that I would like to recommend. This will be pictured on your right. The purpose of this reference list is to not only display the sources of information I used during my 'Honours year' (2 years part time) for Sociology but also to provide readers with a balanced view of the different types of music genres that are around. Most of the articles mentioned include PDF (Portable document files) and Ms Word (Microsoft) files, and sometimes J-pegs (.JPG or .JPEG) or text (.txt) files which I have uploaded to Google Docs (documents). I hope most of you will find them to be very interesting reading.

Binder, Amy: Constructing racial rhetoric: Media depictions of harm in heavy metal and rap; American Sociological Review; Dec 1993; 58, 6; ABI/INFORM Global; pg. 753 This article refers to the depictions of Heavy Metal and Rap in the Media, framed in terms of cultural beliefs. In other words, the portrayal of both music genres by the media is negative, and much of the moral panic surrounding the music has been generated by groups such as the PMRC (Parents' Music Resource Centre) and Moral Majority in the USA.  For those of you old enough to remember, the whole fiasco began in the mid-1980's when a group of politician's wives, who called themselves the PMRC, attended the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation.  Their objective was to reveal the 'sexually explicit' content in many rock lyrics, and most of these were Heavy Metal lyrics.  Their position was that such music filled young peoples' ears with violence and pornography, and glori...

These are 2 really cool groups for people who have faced prejudice because of their interests in different subcultures. Eternal Souls - Fighting prejudice against alternative people! http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=75446590234 Fighting Against Workplace Prejudice for Alternative People http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=33161623171&ref=mf This is the sort of thing I want to achieve for my fellow metalheads and goths here in Australia. So far, so good. With Eternal Souls, some of my Australian friends have joined, inlcuding Megan, Cathy (a girl I went to school with who I knew liked both Iron Maiden and the Sex Pistols back in those days), Gorgoroth (of Battlegod productions), Mike Young and Bence Kocsi. Some of these same people also joined the other group (Fighting against workplace prejudice for Alternative people). It is good to see some Australians jump on board - because the problem exists worldwide.

I am appalled at some of the comments on this discussion forum. Not everyone has to like everyone or every type of music, but some of the comments on this site are inexcusible and unacceptable. There are two threads so far: What kind of music do you like? carol Wot kinda muzic do u ppl lyk .......?? lemme c ya tastes... 5/16/08 ♫♪Gunjan♪♫ punk..rock..blues..jazz..bit of pop... 5/22/08 Christopher Heavy Metal 5/23/08 carol christopher sux !!! 2 5/31/08 carol julian plz get lost from this community b4 i remove u !!! 10/3/08 SATYA well i lisn to pop, country, blues, jazz, ballads, rock n roll, hard rock, punk, classical western, soprano, yeah mostly everything except hip hop and metal i like everything. my favs are western classical and classic rock....beatles, stones, the who etc 11/2/08 ShReYa!! RIP jay heavy metal sucks!! AS STATED......... its no music it's just noise....... n those who love metal r retard person My response: These people are calling *us* retar...

Even though I am neither emo, nor a MCR fan, I still support other peoples' rights to listen to whatever they want. I was a Heavy Metal fan (and a Judas Priest fan in particular), and this same controversy was happening well over two decades ago. The only big difference is that we didn't have Internet access back then, and therefore could not reach a variety or magnitude of people like we can now. My signature no is 8692 http://www.petitiononline.com/sign4mcr/

Shows a BBC report on a protest march by some goths in England, who are being persecuted, picked on and bullied by Chavs. http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=194393410206&subj=624250206 Here is another news report on the subject(on the BBC) - someone recorded it on their mobile, so the quality isn't so great.

http://news.psydir.com/Psychology-Articles/genes-dont-make-you-racist/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+PsydirNews+%28Psydir+News+%7C+Published+News%29 If that is the case, they don't make you metallophobic either.

Gold Coast becoming Schoolies hot spot National - Regional Telstra BigPond News and Weather Schoolies and 'toolies' may or may not be heavy metal fans, but this the relevance to metal is that it is relevant to youth issues and peer group themes.

I see, I forget. I hear, I remember. I do, I understand. Moral: You can only understand something by trying it yourself The relevance to Heavy Metal: you only understand heavy metal by listening to the songs and the bands, knowing the lyrics, knowing the fans, knowing 'what's not (and what's not)' in the heavy metal scene (in other words, what's popular and what's not), going to gigs etcetera etcetra. Let's break it down: I see, I forget: If you only see something once, say on Tv, or hear it on the radio, then you will have little chance of remembering. I hear, I remember: The more you hear it, the more of it you will remember. I do, I understand: But the more you immerse yourself in the scene (ie the more you do), the more you understand.

THE BILL OF RIGHTS Have you hugged your Congressman today? 15 Sep .THE BILL OF RIGHTS Posted by admin Published in Have you hugged your Congressman today? THE BILL OF RIGHTS The Amendments to the Constitution Ratified 1791 ARTICLES IN ADDITION TO, AND AMENDMENT OF, THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, PROPOSED BY CONGRESS, AND RATIFIED BY THE LEGISLATURES OF THE SEVERAL STATES, PURSUANT TO THE 5th ARTICLE OF THE ORIGINAL CONSTITUTION. (The first 10 Amendments were ratified 15 December 1791, and form what is known as the ‘Bill of Rights’.) AMENDMENT I Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a re-dress of grievances. AMENDMENT II A well regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed...

Dolla-Another Rapper Shot Dead in Los Angeles Have you hugged your Congressman today? Not strictly related to heavy metal, but still an item of interest related to a person of a particular music scene and genre.

Okay, for those reading this blog entry, you will probably be wondering what I'm talking about. Well, here goes. For the purposes of comparison with heavy metal, I have decided to coin the abbreviation GOTM (Genres Other Than Metal). This is not to say that GOTMs have nothing in common with Metal. For instance, some genres like punk, blues, hard rock or prog rock, can be very heavy. But a band like Pink Floyd, for instance, aren't quite the same as say, Motley Crue. Neither are the Sex Pistols, the Cure, or the Gang of Four are like Iron Maiden. Or neither could you say Muddy Waters or George Thoroughgood like Napalm Death? Or even Bon Jovi or Aerosmith have anything in common with Dark Throne or Burzum (even though they exist under the same category of 'heavy metal')? Technically, all these genres share some commonalities with Heavy Metal, because they are loud and distorted, yet there are some differences in the lyrics, the image of it's followers, or even t...

Followers, I would like to know what your story is in regard to heavy metal. How did people treat you because of your interest in heavy metal and similar music? In my case, I first copped a ribbing because of the music I liked back in the '80's when I was in high school. This was back when all this propoganda came out about Led Zepplin, Black Sabbath, AC/DC and Kiss. More recently, I have been yelled at by people from their cars, been pushed and shoved on trains and in crowds, and even had things thrown at me. I've also had bus and cab drivers not stopping for me when I have been waiting at the bus stop for ages. I found that other young people were worse about it than older people and those in authority (like teachers and the police) (my t-shirts weren't offensive, so there was no reason for people like the cops to have a go). I started a cause (on Facebook) so that I will be free to dress as I wish, and not have to put up with this crap. So, let's hear what you ha...

The media has negatively stereotyped heavy music; resulting in the stigmatisation and marginalisation of bands and fans; and exclusion from mainstream institutions. This marginalisation is reinforced through the authorities (religious or otherwise) and the social scientific community, has driven the music ‘underground’, and made fans revolt against mainstream institutions. Questions to ask Who believes it is true? Who doesn't? Other things to think about: When I refer to heavy music, we have to think about what is (or could be) defined as Heavy Music. Does it just refer Heavy Metal? Or can it include other genres and sub genres like punk, new wave, industrial, hard rock, AOR (adult orientated rock), prog rock, emo, hard core and metal core? What are the mainstream institutions? What is meant by stigmatisation and marginalization? And exclusion? Discrimination? Harassment? Bullying? How is it reinforced? Who rewards this type of behaviour? Who are the authorities? Who is do...

Started this blog in response to Alternophobia (I think that's what they're called), but is more specifically about heavy metal, the bands and the fans. In other words, metalheads. Another reason was that I found out my Geocities site (powered my Yahoo) is no longer available, except through the Internet Archive Wayback Machine ( http://www.archive.org/web/web.php ) and Geocities Ws ( http://www.geocities.ws/ ). Part of this site was, of course, Logsnapper's Soabox, which I wrote about how I was treated and what it was like to be growing up 'Australian and Antichrist'. This is not to say I am against Christianity, or any other religion in any way, shape or form. The slogan, Australian and Antichrist is simply a song title by the Melbourne-based Black Metal outfit, Destroyer 666. When I examined the lyrics of this song, what I saw was not against Christianity per se, but a statement about what it is like to be a headbanger (Heavy Metal fan) in Australia. I was brough...