C[omp]ute

From: "andrew cooke" <andrew@...>

Date: Sun, 11 Jun 2006 10:30:01 -0400 (CLT)

I was brought up - and I'm not sure how, or why, because as far as I know
my parents rarely thought much of, or, at least, discussed, America, or 
politics - believing firmly that America was a living paragon of
tolerance.  That anything was possible there; that the individual was
accepted on their own terms, no matter what the race, or religion.

What was important was not McCarthyism, or the ability to nuke everyone,
several times over, but individualism, free speech, multi-culturalism,
blues, jazz, rock, black power, gay pride.


I am employed by an American company; most of the people I work with are
American.  I spend my free time reading web sites; most of the people I
know on-line are American.  I live in a world and a culture dominated by
American policy; most of the people who decide how I live my life are
American.

But none of those Americans seem to meet the ideals I was brought up to
believe in.

As far as I can tell, for these people, cultural diversity means that a
grandparent was Irish, and that they drink green beer once a year.  Or
that pizza is italian food.


We regularly receive company-wide emails telling us that food is available
"on the patio" - a patio on a different continent from where I work - and
when I raise this, I get a passive agressive reply that pretty clearly
thinks the issue trivial.  The patio is in America, of course, because,
well, isn't that where everything is?

And talking of emails.  It's world cup time.  I'm kind-of-annoyed myself
by the amount of commercialisation.  Apparently you need a new TV to watch
football.  And perhaps that's what annoying my american acquaintances?
Perhaps they're objecting to being sold another product?  Or are the "this
stupid foreign sport sucks" emails just another symptom of their
insularity? A week ago I would have gone with the excuse; but then a week
ago I would  have written "friends", and not "aquaintances".


My thesis - and I think I have one, even if this seems more like a bitching
session - is that American intolerance is pervasive; it's not directed
only at "foreigners".  Last time I was in the States someone (quite
seriously, although I suppose they will claim it was irony - for that see
my comment on Wallace later) offered me a ride in their car on condition
that I, as  someone who drinks alcohol, did not vomit.  A culture defined
by not drinking alcohol, reinforced by amazingly crass ideas about what
that terrible drug does to it's "victims".

Another example of internal intolerance: prison occupancy.  America has
almost 1% of its population in prisons.  Look it up.  That's an order of
magnitude more than most civilised countries.  But maybe that's not such a
good example, since a hugely disproportionate fraction are black.

So instead, take politics.  I'll take the intolerance of the right for
granted - who expects otherwise?  That the left is also intolerant is more
telling.  Talk to a politically aware left-leaning American and be amazed
at the bigotry: the republican voting, rural heartlands are populated by
sub-humans.  A more graphic example was on display at U. Arizona: a
trailer home with rocket launchers.  This is a tactic that gives some
short-term salve to the conscience - it wasn't "my people" that massacred
people at Haditha - but hardly helps find a lasting solution.


I was going to talk about David Foster Wallace here, because he embodies
so much of both what I used to admire, and what I currently dislike in
America.  His analysis of irony; his lack of cross-cultural awareness; his
parochial judgements on sport (tennis is good because he played it;
football - soccer - is bad because he doesn't understand it).

But I can't be fucked.  Let's cut to the chase.


The news headlines this morning: suicides in Guatanamo are "an act of war".


What happened, America?

Andrew