| Posted: 02 August 2010 at 11:15am | IP Logged | 4
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Or is this viewpoint based on shit like "The Jersey Shore" and all the other reality shows? Two points, in a preamble as such. (1) "Jersey Shore" is filmed about 6 miles from my family's shore house. It's nothing like reality -- like most reality shows it takes a group of extraordinary people (not always in a good sense but in an entertaing sense) and creates drama. (2) Based on my viewing of Canadian reality tv on HGTV, except for Mike Holmes there must not be a decent contractor in all of Canada. Now the meat of my comment and its directed at Al's point. I preface by saying Al is a friend. But on this one, I think he's unfairly characterizing my countrymen and sounding (though I don't suspect intending to sound) elitist. If it seems we Americans have a penchent for "more irrationality" it is quite simply because we have the biggest house on the block and everyone can look in our windows. This may not always be true. Perhaps, in 20 years we will be talking baout the Chinese in such a manner but right now in 2010 and since the midpoint of the last century the United States has been the largest exporter of popular entertainment whilst also being one of the two Super Powers. For better or worse (and if I may be partisan I would submit better) the United States' news has been world news, its reflection of itself has been to the world. This does not mean that our people are inherently better -- or for that matter inherently worse -- it means we have been subject to the glare of the world. Imagine how Victorian England may have looked, and its citizenry, with the all encompassing glare of television and the digital age? Every generation believes it was the first to discover fucking -- it always looks worse that what was before --but clearly thats not true. The United States, as a nation, progresses and evolves on camera, 24/7 but it is evolving! Independent of what one may think of Obama as president the fact that this nation elected someone who is a member a minority that makes up less than 15% of the general populace, and who a little over 50 years before were truly disparately treated, is evidence of evoluton. Was this an act of irrationality? (And I would ask my conservative friends to pass on the all to easy joke!) America is an evolving nation -- and unlike most of the ones you cited Al a significantly heterogenous nation. By the time my children marry whites will likely no longer be the majority racial group and this is a major cultural shift. Only a fool would believe it will not be without its birthing pains but, as any student of history would tell you, we have been through this before! Look no further than the integration of Irish, Italian and Jewish immigrants into this country. We do this and sometimes it gets ugly. I ask would other nations' handle it as well? Have the French handled the Moors well? We live in a sensationalistic age; where news and opinion (on the left and right) are often intentionally indistinguishable. We live in trying times and fear often gets the better of us. But I do not believe Americans are more irrational or stupid than any other group of people -- I believe we simply show it more. TV shows the most outrageous to get the most ratings; the normal folks are quitely trying to have a better life for themselves and having a hard time doing so. Some of those crazies are articulating the normal peoples feelings but they don't speak for them or represent them. So Al, I find your characterization that americans "as a group . . . lack the ability to be rational" to be unfair and poorly informed. Of course you are entitled to feel that way, and you may feel that I am wrong, but I needed to defend my country and my countrymen. Feel free to defend Candian contractors to your heart's content!
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