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The Last Place
angela morgenstern writes "Buddhist Bhutan was the last place on earth to legalize television. Trading traditional practices for daytime soaps and WWF, many fear that western influence will trample the culture." A whole set of articles about the effect of American television on one of the most remote places on earth - it's official, there is no escape from American "culture".
I'll put The Simpson's and other high points of American culture against any other "culture" past or present.
You jackass.
You can be a slack-assed, don't wanna work, socialist but hey, don't be so down on yourself. You can blame the Americans!
This is exactly the problem. You and your fellow countrymen have no understanding of other cultures, you don't want to have any understanding of other cultures, and you will never have an understanding of other cultures. Hey, they don't like America?! They must be socialists! Like you have any idea what Socialism is (Hint: Not your McCarthyist, Red Baiting, Commie-Under-The-Table American view of Socialism). Like you have any idea of why American Imperalism is bad. All you care about is money, and making the rest of the world as much like America as you can so that you don't have to concern yourself with that whole pesky "other cultures" thing.
The reason America bashing is "chic" is because of your and your fellow countrymans ignorance, self centeredness and introspectiveness. Wake up! The world exists outside of the US of A, and its different! Stop trying to make us like you!
As I was reading through these posts, wondering why American culture has spread so virally throughout the rest of the modern world, it struck me as to WHY foreign governments don't seem to be saying a while lot about it: Control.
Think about it....has the American populace ever been so apathetic and easily manipulated as we have in the last 25 years? Our political and corporate leasership gets progressively worse and worse and yet the same people keep getting re-elected into office and appointed to positions of trust. This is a fucking wet dream not only for corrupt despots of all kinds in the rest of the world, but other so-called democracies and republics that don't want all the hassle that comes with actually appeasing people through honesty and care for citizens' well being.
"Fuck it", they say, "let em watch TV so we can manipulate their views with mass media and satiate their desires by making them think they have to have all the useless crap that's advertised...they'll feel their needs are met when they make a few purchases."
It's made most of us lazy, greedy, and apathetic...hardly anyone votes anymore and most of the ones that do cannot be bothered to think about who they're voting for, they just vote for whatever party they decided they liked in high school civics class. No one takes an interest in their community anymore. How many of you can say you know the names of all your neighbors? How many of you care? By this loss of sense of community and the artificial contentment that arises from being a "consumer", we don't take nearly as much of an active part in what's going on around us, community or government. Local or National.
Don't let it fool you...American culture is about being controlled while at the same time feeling like you're the one in charge. You ARE in charge...of what channels you watch and what merchandise you buy. I have genuine respect for those who are willful enough to avoid watching television, or better yet, do not own one. When the revolution comes, you'll be the ones who aren't watching it on CNN.
Happiness can't be found in catch phrases, soft drinks, feel-good tv shows, or pop music. I feel sorry for the people of Bhutan. It sounds like it used to be a nice place.
This message brought to you by the Council of People Who Are Sick of Seeing More People.
Also in the news yesterday: US foreign-office spamming Arab nations with USian "culture" in the form of pop music, "news" in the worst sense of the word, and plain old propoganda.
Interesting to see how long it took the US propoganda, err. office of foriegn communications to get setup. I seem to recall a bill being passed to make it legal for them to lie in the reporting of foreign news, and to just plain make-up wire-stories in the hope that foreigners will believe them.
So that represents exactly what americans are to the rest of the world: Frauds and Liars. Enshrined under US law.
Hmm lets just see what the mob has brought us shall we?
- Cops
- Jerry Springer
- George W Bush
- Execution of Mentally Handicapped Prisoners
- George W Bush
And many others.
Troll, anyone?
"Nowadays, someone mentions European culture, and what comes to mind is the topless aerobics in that Chevy Chase movie. "
Well, we'll just ignore the connections we make in our minds:
USA - loudmouthed, ignorant, racist, nationalistic fat rednecks eating McDonald's.