Thank you to the US of A
The United States of America has been the leading light of civilisation in the twentieth century. However the sheen is starting to come off the American Dream through factors not limited to:
- attacks from enemy groups who cannot be silenced by dropping a couple of hydrogen bombs
- a string of military failures (surely by now they are running out of money and places to invade)
- insular, hypocritical and short-sighted foreign policy ("we have guns" doesn't really cut it anymore)
- folks back at home eating themselves to death
- Middle America losing their jobs to overseas slaves (ironic considering they used to import them to build their wealth).
1. Shortening our life spans
From Coca Cola to Oreo, Big Macs to Krispy Kreme - these have produced a generation of children who are not well acquainted with fruit and vegetables. The answer is not Weight Watchers, food combining or some funky exercise machine advertised at 2 am. There is no trick - just stop putting so much in your mouth and move more.
Could people be over-eating because they are malnourished? They over-consume kilojoule-dense, nutrition-free foods but keep on eating because their bodies are crying out for nutrients.
2. Re-igniting religious crusades
Who would have thought in the age when we can communicate with anyone from just about anywhere in the world that religious wars would still be continuing? We have the means to communicate but are too fearful of differences to do this. Why is it anyone else's business who you worship?
It would be refreshingly honest if Condoleeza Rice would just admit the USA is simply protecting its business interests in the oil-rich areas. Forget the installing democracy bullshit - that isn't fooling anyone. Who inducted them as the World Police?
There is plenty to be fixed in their own backyard before meddling in other people's -see the thin veneer of civility crumble during Hurricane Katrina.
3. Corporate wank
In this age of self-promotion ruling over substance, no wonder the traditional blue-chip companies are starting to falter. Endless rounds of management consultants with theories more fantastic than the last cannot hide the fact that over-paid and under-delivering fat cat CEOs will one day soon have to account for their massive salaries.
The serfs are starting to revolt ... they aren't seeing the fruits of loyalty to organisations who view them as "human resources". Alarm bells should have started ringing when the name Personnel was replaced by Human Resources.
Someone needs to point out that the world will not end if people consumed less this year than they did last year. It may just prolong our existence on this planet.
4. Reality TV shows
American Idol highlights how its populace can be riveted by deluded contestants' histrionics and over-wrought warbling. Why would anyone EVER agree to appear on Jerry Springer - you must know straightaway the news can't be good? Is Paris Hilton that vapid? (I am disturbed that I am even asking these questions.)
Contrived "reality" situations have intensified our navel gazing, whilst ignoring bigger issues such as the environment rebelling and spewing back our centuries of abuse, half the world living on less than two American dollars a day and why women do two-thirds of the world's work, receive 10 percent of the world's income and own 1 percent of the means of production.
5. Sweating the small stuff
It's a shrewd move to keep the electorate ignorant so they can keep feeding them propaganda about how it's the fault of other states they are under terrorist threat, instead of asking the hard questions of why the USA is vilified on the world stage. There was more outrage about Janet Jackson flashing a breast than about Iraqi civilians killed in the quest to smoke out Saddam Hussein and find non-existent weapons of mass destruction.
The American Religious Right is more concerned about stamping out homosexuality than practising the values of "Love thy neighbour". The rise of religious fundamentalism is not confined to the Middle East.
So thank YOU, the United States of America...it's been an interesting ride.
posted by Yarravillean @ 9:58 pm
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