Australia exposes some of it's...ahem...weirdness?

Well...let me tell you..we did NOT expect to see/experience such weirdness in Australia!! We first noticed things were a bit off when we boarded the plane to Cairns. Here is how the conversation went..literally. Alex, if you want to say any of this is untrue, feel free to...this is how bizarre it was for us Canadians who have had to endure some of the most strict security restrictions ever! Oh the glories of being next door neighbors to the US of A!
Just to set this up for you...we were flying Virgin Blue with just carry on luggage. Andddd cut to scene.

Airline Clerk: Hi guys! How ya going? Checking in?
Alex: yup!
Airline Clerk: Surname?
Alex: Ritchie
Airline Clerk: Ok, perfect Mr. Ritchie..it's Alex?
Alex: yea
Airline Clerk: And Amy MacPherson?
Amy: Yup
Airline Clerk: Alright guys, do you have any checked baggage today?
Alex and Amy: no it's just the carry ons
Airline Clerk: Any sharp objects inside?
Alex and Amy: No
Airline Clerk: Alright, perfect, here are your tickets! Enjoy your flight!

A puzzled Amy and Alex walk away..thinking...oh my god, that was the fastest ANYTHING has every happened in my entire life!!
Cut to me...OH NO! I had tweezers in my carry on! Luckily, the girl we're staying with, Heather, was still there...so I asked her to take them home with her. No worries at all! Pheww! Next thing we know we're heading through security, and Heather and her partner Ralph are coming too. Um...guys?? Don't you know that you aren't allowed beyond the security point without a boarding pass!!???? um...that's not a rule here!!! Anyone can go beyond security, anyone at all! Andddd you are allowed to take liquor on the plane!! LIQUOR!!! up to like...5 litres!? Now..that is wayyy more than our "allowance of a clear bag filled with no more than 3oz bottles of liquids or gels" in the states and Canada...sheesh!
So...we head through security..metal on us...Alex's watch, his belt, my earrings...etc! Not a sound. Alex was fortunate enough to have the random bomb search performed on him...but that was it!
Now...remember when I said I gave my tweezers to Heather, and then Heather went through security!? yup, you guessed it! Not a question, sound, no nothing. We were through, and let me tell you..it was the easiest thing ever! Just amazing...
Now..correct me if I'm wrong..but haven't the Australian airports been relatively safe/no issues/no nothing for quite some time!? Maybe they're onto something! I have to admit though...growing up in a society where security is extra extra tight...I have seen that I would prefer the extra tight security...and yes, that's just because I've grown up knowing it! It's crazy the realizations you figure out when you go somewhere that does things so different than where you're from....Alex and I both consider ourselves very open minded...but the security thing just came out of nowhere...we totally thought it was nutso!
Now...Alex and I brought our passports, cause we figured at some point, people might want to know who we are and where we are from and check to see our Visa's etc. Nope. Not ONCE did we have to give ID at all! We got our boarding passes from the airline clerk who, the only thing he wanted to know, was if we had any sharp objects in the bags. He didn't ask for ID. We get the boarding passes, head to the gate, and they just take the boarding pass...that's it. No ID no nothing. We could have been anyone, no ID required! Now..for some, this might not seem like a big deal...but for people living in North America where you literally have to take off everything but the necessities walking through security, this was insane!! It blew our minds! Here Alex and I were trying to take out our wallets and purses to make sure they were separate etc...and the lady says, no no, just put the entire bag through...alcohol and all. hahaha, crazy!
This wasn't the only thing that blew our minds...that's right...BLEW OUR MINDS!!! In Sydney...crazzzzzzzzzziiiinessssss started to happen. It began with a commercial on the tv Alex and I were watching..yup, they have commercials here too!!!!
It started off with two older people, a man and woman, walking down the side walk. They start off by saying, "When we go, we don't want our families and friends to have to be left with the cost of our funeral." um...ahem...EXCUSE ME!???? When you go!?? Do older people actually speak like this when they're leisurely walking down the street!!???? Two people just walking around downtown Charlottetown..."Oh George, we should talk about our deaths!!! And what's going to happen afterwards!" You know...maybe they do...but still, geeeez!!! They don't have to say "when we go" they could just tell us...costs of funerals are expensive...and ...end of story!!! no beating around the bush down here!!! Geez louise!
Second commercial we see..and no joke, it's in the same show we're watching! It's this disgustingly graphic smoking commercial....now, apparently we are too sheltered in Canada because we found the couple talking about dying a bit morbid, but this smoking commercial was just horrific!! I'm going to post the link down below and you can judge for yourselves....but we were sick to our stomachs, it was horrible!
Thirdly, we saw a commercial selling Red Bull...now, I don't think anything would be allowed to be shown in Canada or North America with this commercial...it was pretty graphic, and very sexual...and maybe they are showing it up there, who knows!! But we didn't think that the graphic nature of the commercial would be allowed in North America...again, if I can find the link I will try....
now, just think of Alex and I..two...pretty level headed individuals who are a bit astonished at what we have seen so far. Three very random and crazy commercials in one tv show we saw. Wowza!!!
Next, we decide to view a restaurant make over show with Chef Ramsay..you know the one! Well..apparently down here they do not bleep out the 'f' word...but bleep out other words...that start with 'c' ....now, correct me if I'm wrong....but a swear word is a swear word...is it not!? And who decides which word gets bleeped out, and which one doesn't.
"Well Jerry, I just don't think that word is appropriate, but by all means the 'f' word needs to be in there!! IT wouldn't be a show without it!"
I'd love to hear that conversation at the networks.
Now, we know that everyone everywhere has its ups/downs/weirdness etc....and I know that tons of people are probably thinking..pffft, that's nothing. But for us, living in this relatively familiar place for a few weeks, thought that the stuff we saw was just bizarre....just bizarre, that's all! Not completely crazy...just a little puzzling!
At the end of the day/week...we decided that Australia had exposed some of it's crazinesssss to us! That's right folks...every country has its craziness, and we've seen some of Australia's....I wonder what Canada's are!? "Oh my gosh, that person said 'sorry' to me fifteen times!!!! This country is weeeeirddd!"
peace and love everyone!!!

Smoking commercial (BE WARNED, VERY GRAPHIC!!!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rSrrSTW0UU&feature=PlayList&p=18E100D3300638C5&playnext_from=PL&playnext=1&index=57