h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Just thought of some other examples, because you only gave 2 US companies that sponsor the Olympics. Could have sworn M&Ms also put that stupid label on their bags every four years. (But now that I think of it, maybe they only sponsor the US team? Not sure.)

Costas and Louis Mandylor are both Aussie actors who have taken voice lessons to sound American. So far, they've only been on minor American tv shows, maybe some made-for-cable movies.

And while I'm here, I wanted to ask a really stupid question: can you explain "Oi?" Is it just an exclamation like "Hey" or is there something more to it than that?

I remember hearing about this during the Sydney Olympics.

I forget the first explanation offered, but the one I found more plausible (and that seems to have a more definite history) regards "Oi" as a working class and punk call in Britain (where else).

You still hear it in many punk songs, as a chant in the background. I think there's even a specific type of punk music called "Oi".

I guess it was just appropriated by sports - maybe by working class fans cheering at competitions?

No - a quick search reveals that "Oi" was associated with sport before Australia took it. The Sydney Morning Herald of 1 Oct 2000:

"The flag is our most outward symbol of a renewed patriotism, along with the maddening "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie: oi, oi, oi" chant, which we pilfered from British soccer fans."

So there you go.

Can't remember which AC/DC song repeats "OI!" in the background. Probably not a recent one. *shrug*

If I didn't mention it above, by the way, good article. I feel kind of weird about the lack of local culture where I'm from (Michigan), in contrast to all the weird Texan traditions my wife seems to have. They have lots of strange local foods (apart from obvious Mexican dishes), and I can't think of any unique Michigan foods.

This same problem of commodified US culture smothering other cultures across the world is also a problem here, in the way the national culture replaces local culture. You go from one end of the country to the other, and walk into a Wal-mart with the same layout, buy the same clothes, food, toilet cleaners, music. (Not trying to say this problem is worse than Australian culture being replaced by US culture, just saying the smothering of local US cultures is similar.)

The AC/DC song is TNT.

I guess it's not so much American culture that's the problem as it is corporate culture, or commodified culture. People are being forcefed sound-bites, image-bites, emotion-bites etc until they forget what they believed in originally.