POSITIVE RESPONSE

Very well stated! Hear hear! I met you a few months ago at the dive bar, Holiday Lounge in the east village. You busted out your saw for my man and I and played us a beautiful song. Thanks for that, it was a really cool, intimate moment in this big and often aloof city.

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That's really a shame about Bryn Mawr, I would have expected more from them. Anyway, I will be sure to come check out one of your upcoming shows.

Take care,
Abbi

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That was amazing and beautiful and powerful and your voice shouldn't be silenced. Thank you.

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"...Dirty Three's previously reported tour of Asia is over now, but it was an eventful one for the instrumental chamber rock trio. ... Before they even got to China, the country's government "decided to cancel our performance permit because they thought we were a pornographic act due to our name. They asked that we change it to Dirt Three," wrote violinist Warren Ellis to Pitchfork in a detailed e-mail account of the event."

the rest of the tour story on pitchfork is interesting, too, but i thought this part about their name + the asian connection might put an irritated smile on your face.
btw i think "china" is quite an offensive name for a country. what were they thinking? trying to allude to chinks is my guess! f'ing racists...

you guys are amazing. I saw you two play with the Trachtenberg Family and fell in love. I completely agree with you about "dismissing layers of truth." I believe irony is lost with much of today's society, which is why you and others like Ms. Silverman, Sasha Baron Cohen, and David Cross will be the saviors of our culture.

THank you ching chong song! Me love you long time.
Lissa

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Why are the words Ching and Chong offensive? Why is it offensive to dress like a Native American (which I am a part) but not as, say, a dutch boy or a leprechaun?

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A breast doesn't automatically make it about sex, just like a Ching doesn't automatically make it about Asians.
that's my take.

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well spoken, julia... that's such bullshit. hope everything is well, otherwise. keep up the good work.

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WOW! And all along, I just thought that the name was nothing more than that. Never thought for a second that it was somehow offensive. I guess for some people out there, any excuse will do.
Go out there and tear em' a new one.

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yea. YEA!

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you are so right, angel fluff. i'm pleased to have added such a realized being to my troop of virtual friends. see you in brooklyn soon!
santa fe liz

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when i'm in chi-town this friday, i'll take a whiz all over the entire bryn mawr station for you. we all do our part.

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RE: BRYN MAWR?SUCKS???
Body:I love you guys so much.

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Hi Julie and Dan,

I just wanted to let you know that I still want you to play and that I think you should. I'm so fucking sick of dealing with these girls I really feel like you shouldn't back down. All they want is some sort of discussion session with you before you play. My "supervisor" also thinks that you should play despite. I am so sorry you had to encounter the insanity which is Bryn Mawr. There are definitely a lot of really cool women but then there are also those that just need to get over themselves. I thought you guys were awesome when I saw you at the fire and I hope that you can still come play a show at Bryn Mawr.
Let me know what you decide.

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Hey "Church of Lurch",

just wanted to tell you that I heard about all those douchebags protesting your name last night and they suck so hard. IT'S SO LAME that college students have nothing to do 'cept be really non-introspective and retarded. I guess it makes sense, since they're being supported by their parents and fucking around all day, trying to pretend that they have their own ideas about things.
they suck!

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you're awesome, and I think that in the end, this will be cool for you guys... the more press the better! Woo-hoo!
wee love you!

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Great stuff, I like it a lot.

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Have you guys ever heard of The Ying Tong Song? It's by Spike Milligan, an English comic from the early 60's. He was a really fascinating character, you should google him. Way out situationist stuff that makes Andy Kauffman and Sacha Baron Cohen seem relatively tame.

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Peace Out And Keep up the Excellent weirdness

 

NEGATIVE REACTION

heard about the shit you pulled at NYU. you're such trash. try that shit in California and watch how asian people will FUCK yo ass up biotch. that bullshit as apology you pulled on stage...don't fucken patronize my people. who are you calling retards? you may think that naming your band chingchongsong isn't meant to be derogatory towards asian people, but the connotations behind that term regardless of your [ignorant] intent, IS demeaning. here's a suggestion for a new band name...
uglystankasswhitetrashhoebag.

and your music sucks! someone lied to yo ass. guess that's why you're unsigned. cuz you're untalented.

BIOTCH.

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You really should update your website to reflect your apology and the reasons for your band's name change. Thank you, Fred

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Julia, you're an ignorant clown. Jack

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you guys suck ass enough said, the incident at Bryn Mawr is not because of your sexual orientation or ethnic background, but that your band name is offensive. if you would like to take a small moment to understand why, Beau Sia does a very good job with his video:

youtube.com/watch?v=8SWXZgytyQI

frankly, you are one of the "rosie o'donnell's" he is addressing

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lol that statement sums u up quite nicely ty for proving my point that u are a pretentious little hypocritical bitch who only likes to pretend she is open minded and progressive but on the inside is just a small selfish close minded self righteous racist bitch. why dont u spend your time reading some books on the subject of ethnicity and race before u go running your mouth of incoherently ya dumb bitch instead of wasting your education on making shitty watered down soft ass "rock" u stupid cunt OR make it easy and just come out publicly and admit that u are an ignorant racist cunt who likes to smoke greasy pole

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Hi I'm an alum of NYU and have heard about the recent scandal surrounding the name of your band. I checked out your website to see what you guys are all about before I came to any conclusions. While I think that your music is pretty good and avant-garde, I do think that your band name will continuously strike a sensitive chord with Asian American communities. To call your band the ching chong song is the equivalent to calling yourselves the nigger hanging tree band. I know it's a sharp comparison, but I want to illustrate to you how severe racist leaning phrases can incite protest.

Furthermore, I read an excerpt of a response that you wrote re: your ban from Bryn Mar, and while you brought up some valid points, I found the response unprofessional and it did nothing to help defend your band's name nor your artistic vision. In addition if you guys do plan on playing the college circuit, you will inevitably come face to face with the discord surrounding your band's name. I'm not for censorship, but consider it from a business/marketing angle especially if it's difficult for you to understand the persistent and purveying prejudice against minorities that stretches even to this millennium.

Respectfully,
Jackie de Dios

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like u really don't mean to offend with the name of your band.right. rock paper scissors huh? that really the best u could come up with? why don't u get off your fuckin high horse u hypocrite. u talk about appreciating all the shades of sexuality and ethnicity and thats really fucking laughable. at the very least I can admit I hate ignorant crakas so why don't u do the same and just say it. u hate asian people or at the very least don't think of them as human and therefore not worthy of respect. and thats fine we're used to it and personally I don't give a fuck anymore, shit welcome to America, just don't get your tampon in a twirl cause u get called on it u greasy ass wop cunt.

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As a student at Bryn Mawr College, I have recently become quite familiar with your band, for all of the wrong reasons. Originally, when the Asian Students Association (or ASA) brought forth the idea of cancelling your performance here at the College, I was against it. It seemed to me that a) they should have contacted you and alterted you to the fact that your band name is offensive to an albeit small yet sizeable minority on this campus and b) perhaps contact with the 'offensive' should not be avoided, instead encouraged. Unfortunately, given the letter you wrote to the ASA (which has subsequently been printed in our campus newspaper and pasted all over campus), I regret to say that perhaps the ASA was correct in their original assumptions. Your band name, whether or not some version of it in Germany means something completely benign, is offensive. Not only offensive, but hurtful and demeaning. Your response was at best rude. The ASA's thought process had nothing to do with the sexual orientation of your band. It had everything to do with affording the minority some respect--an ability which you clearly lack. As a lesbian, I would also appreciate you not using your sexual orientation to excuse any bigoted claims you wish to make.

In closing, perhaps you should reflect on your bandname. Perhaps not. Either way, you really should learn how to talk about things productively, without phrasing such as "you stupid twats".

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I am an Asian student at Bryn Mawr college in Philadelphia where you were apparently going to have a concert. Please understand the ASA's request to not have you play was not formed out of a dislike for your music, but in protest to the term ching chong. While it may indeed actually refer to the german version of rock paper scissors, people associate this term with people of asian descent in a negative way. I don't think it is wrong of us to want to disconnect ourselves from that negative 'chinaman' image. Bryn mawr is one of the most progressive liberal schools in America and is not discriminating against you as members of a music band or because students at this college are not accepting, but the school is supporting ASA in its decision because we want to show solidarity in one group's reasonable dislike of an archaic and essentially racist term that reminds us of the trials our ancestors endured in this country. The letter you wrote to our bi-co newspaper was very negative and unnecesarily harsh, I understand you may feel slighted given your prior engagment at the college, but our feelings are validated as well.

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Hi,
my name is Sara and I am a student at Bryn Mawr College. Personally, when the issue was brought up, I didn't care whether or not you performed at Bryn Mawr and I thought it was stupid that everyone was getting riled up over it. But now, after your very offensive letter to our community, I am glad you did not play on campus. Any one who calls the collective women on this campus "twats", "shit", or "petty retards", is not welcome here. For if you actually bothered to know the entire community, you would realize that we are none of the above. You are failing to apply your "open eyed acceptance" to the rest of Bryn Mawr.

I can understand your anger about being asked to back out and by some of the actions of people on this campus (because, to be blunt, some people here are oversensitive and overly PC). I am sorry your opions on life, music, and the happiness of other do not agree with ours, but it was no reason to send hateful mail to the entire community. Next time you want to pose an argument, to us, or anyone else, it will be much more effective, useful and understood if you respond civily to what has happened.

Thank you
-Sara '09

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