Homer Becomes Omar 840
geekster writes "With Omar as Homer, and Badr substituted for Bart, The Simpsons is now playing on Arab television.
But in order not to risk offending an Arab audience, the characters in Al Shamshoon, as the show is now called, have modified some of their most distinguishable traits." And you thought internationalization was hard for software!
Re:wait who... (Score:3, Informative)
Re:mistake in the article (Score:5, Informative)
40% under 15
+ 20% ages 16 - 20
==================
= 60% under 20
Re:My karma can stand it (Score:5, Informative)
You're kidding me? You must not have seen many episodes at all then.
Homer's patented Moon Waffles.
The "good morning burger"
The one where Homer starts his grease recycling business (and feeds $25 worth of bacon to the dog.)
The one where Lisa becomes a vegetarian, and Homer lists all the types of meat she won't eat "ham? bacon? pork?" "Dad! those are all from the same animal!"
The one where Homer and Marge are in the garden of eden, and Homer eats the bacon directly from the pig.
and those are just off the top of my head... bacon is mentioned on a pretty regular basis.
Re:mistake in the article (Score:3, Informative)
Re:My karma can stand it (Score:5, Informative)
I believe the alterations were made by Alex Cox, the director, himself, in response to the BBC's request for cuts so that it could be shown. So he decided to go completely and humorously over-the-top in censoring his own film, partly to make a point, one suspects.
See http://www.melonfarmers.co.uk/faqmf.htm [melonfarmers.co.uk]
Re:Some shows/films don't stand i18n (Score:4, Informative)
First of all, in Sweden The Simpsons is not dubbed, it's subtitled like just about every other foreign (non-swedish, it's sad that I feel the need to add this) show.
Also, while there probably are a few US-centric jokes that most viewers don't get you'd probably be surprised at how many of these "famous personalities known only to the US public" are actually if not famous in Sweden then at least well-known enough that quite a lot of the viewers get the jokes. Hell, there are enough people in Sweden who know enough about bad US movies and tv shows from the 80's to make Family guy popular... So once again, you'd be surprised at just how much we know of american culture.
/Mikael
Re:Some shows/films don't stand i18n (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Will Lisa and Marge... (Score:3, Informative)
The Middle East isn't as uniformly tyrannical as you think it is. In many of the gulf coast countries, for instance, you can go to the mall and see women dressed the same as they are in the States or in Europe.
Re:The show will need local humor appeal (Score:2, Informative)
Read this for some insight on how they could streach it out into a season or 2.
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,
Re:What's with all the Apu comments? (Score:1, Informative)
Yeah, Americans are the ones with the wrong attitudes.
I know it's PC and all to think all cultures are equally valid and shit, but damn you're an idiot.
found a link to an episode (Score:2, Informative)
Re:My karma can stand it (Score:4, Informative)
Re:My karma can stand it (Score:2, Informative)
No, it does not. The networks that air these programs choose to do this voluntarily. Take southpark for example. They have a lot of swear words in there that are beeped out, but the implication is there, along with the implication of sexual themes (sometimes even gay or bestiality, both of which are very frowned upon by the majority in the states.)
The main reason they are beeped out is because they want to maximize their sponsors' audience. There was one southpark episode where they used the word "shit" some hundred of times, and it wasn't bleeped out. That was part of the theme of the episode and they did it just for fun, and no government organization censored it, nor would they care to. The content of all cable/satellite channels is not at all subject to FCC regulations, even though most people do have access to and watch these channels. The premium channels (such as HBO) are different. They only respond directly to their subscribers and not their sponsors, so they base their content on what their viewers want to see, which generally will include swear words, nudity, etc.
Only off the air terrestrial content is actually covered by government/FCC regulations because it uses airwaves that are in the public spectrum, and these airwaves are leased from the FCC.
The swear words being removed out of anime is solely at the discression of the publisher, and that of the network choosing to air the show. If the publisher and somebody like cartoon network wanted to, they could add those words back in and there would be no legal retribution whatsoever.
Also consider that there are many popular movies in the US that contain the words "fucking christ," and nobody really cares.
Also FWIW, I am an American, and I am politically right wing, and so are all of my friends. But I can't even think of one person I know who is offended by these words or nudity when they are used in movies or shows. The only time they don't like it is when kids are around when this stuff is being used. That is why most people who publish cartoons in the US will remove these words. In the American demographic, it is generally kids and not adults that watch cartoons.
Re:Reverse I18N (Score:3, Informative)
Your first point is interesting, though. I would love to see Arabic literature (including certain select TV shows) translated to English... I'm not quite sure why no one has done so.
Hrm... perhaps I should start a company....
Re:D'oh (Score:1, Informative)
I think it's like underage drinking in the US. You know people do it, you do it, but nobody admits to it except maybe around friends.
It's a huge failure (Score:2, Informative)
http://online.wsj.com/article_email/SB11292510794
Japan has lowest teen pregnancy rate , USA highest (Score:5, Informative)
http://www.unicef.org/pon96/inbirth.htm [unicef.org]
Saying "Did you ever consider that maybe Japan's culture is wrong?" shows not only that you are a idiot, but that you have no idea that not only do people in Japan have less sex, and lower crime rates. So to say that they are somehow immoral because of what they show their children is idiotic, they know how to raise their children, they dont let their televisions do it for they as you obviously let your television do. Stop berating people of other nations and start looking at the problems in your own home you intolerant ignoramus!
Re:No Santa's Little Helper (Score:4, Informative)
Re:wait who... (Score:3, Informative)
How old are you, ten? Look, son, 50 years are nothing in the development of humanity. They "died out" just 25 freakin years before I was born, doesn't sound that much to me. My dad was 21 already. And I'm not even middle-aged.
Hell, 25 years before I was born my anchestors in this country had to be stopped by an onslaught of most major nations from exterminating millions of jews, gays, sinti, roma, communists, anarchists, libertarians, (I'm sure I forgot some groups) systematically in fucking factories built for the purpose.
In the decades afterwards, many of these criminals continued to lead the major organizations of state and private sector. A guy like Heinrich Gross [bbc.co.uk] who performed the cruelest experiments on handicapped childen in a Nazi hospital, continued to serve as an psychological expert in trials. Which in fact meant that it could happen to you (and did to a lot of people) that the police would bust you with a little marijuana or something, and if it went to trial, this Nazi killer asshole "examined" you and gave his assessment of your psychological state to the judge.
Others, who had sentenced people to death routinely every day for printing of pamphlets, etc., took high positions in the "democratic" post-war judiciary system. Walter Roemer had been the First Prosecutor at the Sondergerichtshof (Special Court) in Munich, where, among many others, he sentenced Sophie Scholl [answers.com] to death. He became head of the department for public law in the post-war ministry of justice.
Major industry leaders like Alfried Krupp [schoolnet.co.uk] who had built a factory right beside Auschwitz, were left with a slap on the wrist, if anything at all.
These are just examples for the sake of brevity, and it stopped only because slowly these criminals die out.
Just 50 years. Get a perspective.
Re:My karma can stand it (Score:3, Informative)
Re:My karma can stand it (Score:3, Informative)
Apu was kidnapped at age 4 from his family in bangladesh and forced in to slave labor as a "professional" camel jockey in Qatar. After out grow the profession he was kicked to the curb where he was hired by a wealthy Arab merchant and works an 18 hour shift at the Kwik-E-Mart, soon he'll be able to afford a ticket home if his till doesn't keep coming up short and he sells his extra cornea and kidney; as his room and board only take 16 hours of work a day.
Re:My karma can stand it (Score:1, Informative)
"American" is the adjectival form of "America," which refers to both a country, two continents, and a supercontinent. Anyone from any of those categories can legitimately be called an American. That includes US citizens, Canadians, Mexicans, and Argentines. And you'd better believe that people all over Latin America call themselves Americans.
Fansubber's Japanese? (Score:3, Informative)
Re:My karma can stand it (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Japan has lowest teen pregnancy rate , USA high (Score:2, Informative)
So perhaps Japan has a better handle on teen pregnancy and birth control than we do, but on the other hand, perhaps we're not doing so bad over here in the States.
My figures came from the World Health Organization, also not exactly an obscure or untrustworthy source,
http://www.who.int/mental_health/prevention/suici
Oh, one more comment, someone can probably verify this for me, don't Japanese children usually spend about 12 hours of their day in school 6 days a week? Sure, they're well educated, but at what cost in lost childhood?
Annnnnnd....I'm done.
Re:No Santa's Little Helper (Score:3, Informative)
http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?page
[QUOTE] The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) has spared us from being contaminated by such filth when he ordered us to stay clear of the saliva of dogs. If we ever come into contact with a dog's saliva we must wash the spot seven times, the first of which should be with sand or dirt. It is also possible to use a bacterial soap instead of sand or dirt.
In conclusion: Don't contemplate taking a dog home as a pet. If, however, you do need to keep a dog for any of the reasons given above [basically working dogs], then you may do so. But take every precaution not to have contact with its saliva, and also arrange for a separate living space." [/QUOTE]
And no, I don't care if you french-kiss the dog as long as I don't have to see it.
Umm, how about no. (Score:2, Informative)
Less sex than Americans? You've got to be kidding me [japantimes.co.jp] This is a country that has rampant problems with Enjo Kosai [time.com] (prostitution among young girls, mostly junior high and high schoolers). You can honestly believe a culture where showing sexual content and harsh language to children have no effect; as a result many teenagers in Japan don't think things like Enjo Kosai are wrong.
Re:Japan has lowest teen pregnancy rate , USA high (Score:1, Informative)
This made me laugh... As a teacher at your average high school in Japan, I can tell you the students certainly arn't shying away from sex... The reason for the low birth rate? Abortion... If a teenager gets knocked up in America there is a good chance that their parents abhor abortion and will want them to have the baby at any cost... In Japan, if a high schooler gets knocked up I'd say 9 out of 10 times the parents would encourage them to get an abortion to save the family trouble and embarassment...
-Alex
Re:Japan has lowest teen pregnancy ... (Score:5, Informative)
OK, well, here goes. My as well post AC on this one. I'm Japanese, and live in Tokyo. Sexual depravity does not explain the situation. Japan is very open to sex in general, and has a thriving large sex industry. No, not the underground, illegal, dangerous industry as seen in other parts of the world (although there is a small bit of this too), but a regulated, legal industry. Want sex? Can't get any for free? Pay for it!
Whether you like the idea or not, it seems to work over here. The women get paid generously, of which the majority aren't forced into the trade as slaves or anything. As for sex related crime rates, well, there are still unfortunately a lot of "chikan" in the trains, but rape is way down on the list. Got drunk, wanna fuck? Well, I think the fact that you can walk into a brothel and get some sorta decreases the drive to actually rape anyone. Afterall, I find it amazing that rape rates are so low considering how much we drink, and how drunk we get.
And finally
Not the grandparent, but ask and though shalt receive.
if Japan were such a repressive society, perhaps due to an obsession with ancestor worship then this might explain the results. I am absolutely not saying this is the case with Japan, I am not a Japan scholar by any stretch of the imagination. I guess I'm just an intolerant, ignoramus.
Japan is repressive in a lot of ways, but very open in others compared to western nations. Sex is one of them, public drunkness another, and so on so forth. I don't think you can really compare them head on and expect to see a clear correlation of facts without considering a whole boat load of intricate details.
That said, here's my take on the issue. In Japan, there are no real dirty words to start out with. There are bad words, some are censored, but none have the same connotation as "fuck" in the English language. You could probably interpret this as being that there ARE words like this (kuso = shit, direct translation) but there's no stigma attached to them, and thus they aren't really that "dirty". So the Japanese have a difficult time in general understanding how a word like "shit" and "fuck" could be such dirty words, merely because there's no comparative word or even the concept.
As for nudity and sexual images in children's anime, it's all in moderation I suppose. For example, you can't show genitals in any publications in Japan. None. It's illegal. TV, magazines, photos, what not. (And I'm not talking about children's stuff here, I'm talking about porn.) On the other hand, the general concept is that boys will be boys, girls will be girls, and no ammount of censorship will change the fact that they'll eventually be intrigued by their sexuality. So what's the point in trying to pretend it doesn't exist. That's why mild nudity is no big deal in anime. Some parents don't want their kids to watch it, or watch it until a certain age, and they control that. But it's not a big deal.
As for teen pregnancy, I suspect there's a bit of a twist here. I think it's more prevalent than unicef makes it out to be, but that there are a lot of abortions that probably go un-reported. If you're an anti-abortionist then this may shock you, but it's not a big deal in Japan. Historically Japan has not exactly been a thriving nation where everyone had plenty to eat. Kids were occasionally "pruned" to make sure the entire village wouldn't starve at times. Same goes for the elderly. In times of famine, this makes sense, but I suppose there was a high probability of famine back in the day. (I'm talking 150+ years ago.) I suspect that such trends help in creating an atmosphere that the unborn are, well, unborn and not quite hum
Re:Can they handle it? (Score:2, Informative)
The word is ACTUALLY "ka3k" (slashdot isn't terribly Arabic friendly here, or I'd write it out in the actual characters), where 3 = a voiced pharyngeal fricative. It's darn tricky for english speakers to pronounce, but amusingly makes the word sound even more like the rather dirty english (semi)homophone than the parent's mistaken transcription. It has the added advantage of sounded much like a sound from the movie Deepthroat.
The word is refers to a type of cookie(or any of a variety of types of cookies) typically eaten during holidays. This(http://www.khayma.com/sweets/kak.htm [khayma.com]) is a picture of holiday cookies, though if they're filled with dates they'd be more likely to be called "ma3muul"(at least in Jordan)
And right now is a great time to eat ka3k, seeing as it's Ramadan.
Re:Japan has lowest teen pregnancy rate , USA high (Score:2, Informative)
http://www.unicef.org/pon96/inbirth.htm [unicef.org]
And do you know how many abortions are there in Japan?
Here [japantoday.com] it says that abortion in japanese teenagers has more than quadrupled. This article [stanford.edu], even though it's old, states that abortion is under-reported.
Guess that if you're talking about knowing japanese culture, you've heard of "enjo kosai" and its reality, or not?
Quebec's localised "Les Simpson" is hilarious (Score:2, Informative)
There's nothing quite like hearing Homer shouting : "Bart! Vient-en icitte mon maudit toé que j'te passe une volé!"
"Les Simpson" is even better in Quebec's french, lucky us.