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Australia creates the world’s first binary language

Posted on 23 September 2009

Advance Australia Fair.  It was always a surrealist’s take on a national anthem.  But I suspect that it is just the beginning…

Many years ago now, I was tripping through the aural canal that is the Guggenheim in New York having a look at a survey of abstract art in the 20th century.  As I climbed past the collections of exhaling rabbit furs, poo in boxes and spatial concepts, I marvelled at the ingenuity of these artists.  The meaning of these artworks was beyond simple comprehension (at least mine).  At the pinnacle of the climb, we were left with three white canvases side-by-side, all by different artists.  It was the point where meaning had become a white noise, the canvases were so heavy with intent that there was nothing left to say.

Now I know that this white canvas thing has a relatively long history (though for the life of me can’t remember the impressionist’s name who got there first), yet it has a relevance today that resonates.  We are bombarded with information.  The white noise is part of our everyday.

So to how Australian’s are seeking to solve this conundrum.  We are evolving a binary language.

It started a couple of year’s ago.  We introduced the concept surreptiously.  Talk to an Aussie about any non-trivial topic and they would respond, “Yeah, no, it’s… (relevant response)”.

The next step has begun.  There is a current moving through our society that has us saying not simply, “yes, no’, but “no no”.  Or “yes yes”.  Starting to see the pattern?  Pretty soon we will be able to have whole conversations (as if we don’t already in polite circles) where the conversation runs “yeah, no…no, no, no…yeah?”

We are ready for the automotons when they take over.  We already speak their language.

“Australians all let us rejoice…yeah, no, no, no, no, yeah”.