[Credit: Rebloggy]

The Simpsons has a pull on everyone. I’ve watched the show since I was old enough to understand what half the jokes mean. Every episode has a habit of sucking you in and not letting go until the episode has ended. Well, one episode in particular rattles my bones in an angry sort of way. In 1995, an episode called Bart versus Australia aired. At the time, this writer didn’t know how intimidating the episode was. Years later, we were studying something Australia based in high school English when we had to watch the episode. Since then, the episode has offended this writer.

Let’s allow ourselves now to look at the reasons why this episode is offensive and why the people of Australia could take offense.

It Began With The Toilet

The whole reason Bart and the family end in Australia is because of the toilet. Yep, the godforsaken toilet. Yeah, that thing that goes flush, flush. Bart and Lisa race shampoo and toothpaste in the bathroom sink. Naturally, Lisa wins with her brother complaining about it. Bart says that she wouldn’t have won if her shampoo had gone in the opposite direction. Lisa corrects him, mentioning the Coriolis effect. Bart decides to prank call people in the southern hemisphere to see which direction their toilet water spins.

Bart finally fools someone in the form of a young Australian boy and poses as an American official. He leaves the phone off the hook for a number of hours and it ranks up a $900 phone bill. He ignores it before Lisa finds all the bills in his trash can. She tells him that he needs to tell Homer and Marge.

Common Misconceptions About Australian Culture

For years people have had misconceptions about Australia from what they see in fiction about our culture. Bart vs. Australia only makes the misconceptions more apparent. The strange thing is, people, don’t seem to check their facts.

Throughout the episode, we see little quirks that at the time, didn’t sit well with Australian audiences. Some these quirks include:

• Insulting the Australian community’s intelligence. One example being when Marge asks for a cup of coffee and the bartender thinks she wants a beer and she tries to correct him.

• Bart uses the quip ‘I think I hear a dingo eating your baby’ as an insult. To anyone who knows the Azaria Chamberlain disappearance would find this highly insulting.

• People in Australia do not ride in the pouches of kangaroos! How stupid do you think we are? Homer and Bart have clearly watched one too many cartoons.

Corporal Punishment

Okay, so the episode debuted in 1995. And yes, the episode is only a work of fiction, but when your country is being degraded before the world, you tend to want to protect it.

In America today, 19 states still use corporal punishment, it’s not as common as it used to be. We’re talking spanking with a hard object if we want to get specific. In the episode, the Prime Minister decides the best punishment for Bart would be to kick him up the ass with a rather large boot.

Didn’t the writers for their bloody research? We outlawed the practice in 1987 only for the practice to be discontinued entirely in 1989. Also, there was no such thing as a ‘booting’.

One part that’s wrong is Homer complains Australia’s corporal punishments are too harsh. Ah… FYI, Homer, you’re mistaking Australian laws with America’s. YOUR country is the one with the issues with corporal punishment. Not ours. Anyway, let’s take a look the insults to our intelligence.

We’re NOT Dumb!

As mentioned before, the episode makes a mockery of our intelligence. Yes, the bartender didn’t know what coffee was, but that’s beside the point. Let’s not forget Bart moons the public after he and the rest of the family escape into the US Embassy.

Earlier in the episode, Bart makes a joke to a US marine at the Embassy when he sees a sign that they’re entering Australia. The marine points out that the embassy counts as US soil.

When the family enters the country, Bart sees a sign about flora and fauna. Being the idiot he clearly is, says he thought Australians spoke English. Lisa tells him the sign is trying to tell him that they can’t introduce foreign species to the country because of quarantine laws.

If anything, I think Bart was the stupid one. He didn’t bother to research the country. Though, if you think about it, Bart doesn’t research anything so it’s to be expected. Trust Lisa to lay him down with the truth.

Why Is The Episode Insulting To The Australian People?

The episode degrades Australia for what the people of the world actually think about us. For anyone who watches send-ups like this one, should realise this isn’t what the culture of Australia is actually about. We’re a people that care about the land and we respect our ancestors. Sure, some were convicts, but some were also Aboriginals.

The episode shows stereotypical thoughts that many people have about our fair and just country. People come to Australia thinking one thing but end up experiencing something else.

The episode suggests Americans are superior to Australians because their country is bigger than ours. This of, course, is nothing new. The Americans seem to love rubbing their superiority in the eyes of the rest of the world because they’re one of the biggest countries on the planet.

Stand Up And Fight Australia!

When the episode aired, there was a mixed response from the Australian audience. Rightly so, as well. The episode was condemned by the Australian parliament after the episode aired. Also, the producers received over 100 letters from Australian viewers saying how insulted they were by the episode. Viewers complained the episode had used the South African accent instead of the Australian one.

Ha! Take that Simpsons producers! Get your facts straight! Use the correct accents so few people complain!

Conclusion

No one country is the best. Every country is equal, no matter what they might have done to someone else. However, the writers of The Simpsons at the time apparently didn’t see it that way. The sitcom is known for insulting every country in the world, using stereotypes that a minority of people believe is just wrong on so many levels. What might have been funny then, isn’t funny now.