Belonging

Cairns HBW has continued to evoke passionate opinion this week through its use of provocative and controversial language.  Its articles, which I believe sometimes romantasise the truth, are successful in promoting heated discussion between its users.  Through this discussion each user imposes their own meaning on how they believe Cairns should be governed. In this way, this virtual space has become “place, through humans imposing meaning on it” (Van Luyn, 2013).

Although I have decided to remain anonymous, users often take on pseudonyms that relate to where their core values lie within the community.  They sometimes also indicate a particular issue within Cairns that they are passionate about.  “Cairns Cynic” and “CBD warrior” are two examples that highlight this.  “Cairns Cynic” appears to be highly skeptical of Cairns leaders, (portrayed by HBW as being narrow minded and underserving of their position), and their decisions within the community.  “CBD Warrior” is campaigning for an upgrade of the city’s facilities and mall.

The approval of the Aquis Great Barrier Reef Resort in Yorkey’s Knob remains a highly debated topic.  On one side Aquis and its supporters are trumpeting the revolutionising of the Cairns economy and its tourism industry.  However locals are justifiably concerned about the social and aesthetic effects the development will have upon Yorkey’s Knob.  No doubt the community’s identity will vastly change as developers impose a new meaning upon Yorkey’s. 

The type of language and graphics used by HBW evoke passion and loyalty to the region. As Tuan (1991), p. 690 states “dramatic narration is able to create and sustain place”. The people of Cairns feel represented and supported by the blogger, so this virtual space binds together the community. The website is cynical against most politicians, particularly council members.  This creates an “us vs. them” mentality, connecting the community members. An example is the image shown below, displaying a council member in the mouth of the crocodile. This illustrates the general sentiment towards community leaders.

References

Crocodile crisis in Darwin [image]. (2013). Retrieved on 31st August 2013 from www.hillbillywatch.com

Tuan,  Yi-Fu. (1991). Language and the Making of Place: A Narrative-Descriptive Approach. Annals of the Association of American Geographers 81(4), 684-696.

Van Luyn, A. (2013). BA1002: Our Space: Networks, Narratives and the Making of Place, Week 5 Notes. [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from http://www.learnjcu.edu.au