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

Hmm... reasons for disliking Americans. Perhaps the way they gained from two world wars that crippled every other nation on the planet (who says there are no winners in war?).

The second reason is not really about disliking Americans as such. More admiring America but looking strangely at the people inhabiting it: The USA has the best freedom of information laws in the world - you're even allowed manuscripts from CIA meetings - and yet Americans know less about what their government does than any other nation. An example being the American people's mass assertion that they are still an isolationist country, and that is why they were attacked. America is the driving force behind globalisation, how much less isolationist can you get?

Of course, even excluding basic economic influence, the US has involved itself in many other countries since WWII, but with the notable exception of Vietnam/Cambodia/Laos, much of that involvement has been relatively covert, especially the least honourable bits, and hasn't involved many body bags returning home, and as such is much easier for people to ignore.

Military isolationism is understandable when you look at the geography of the USA. I'm not sure of the date of the last war with Mexico over defence of freedom (and/or aquisition of more territory), but I'm sure it was quite a while ago.

I'm sure that possible concentration on American, rather than world history in education might contribute to a different picture of the world than even the average European has, never mind anyone else.

To illustrate, I was doing some conservation volunteer work in Colorado earlier this year. Towards the end of the trip, we shared a meal and a few beers with the seasonal US national park workers who'd been hosting us. We were chatting away about nature and politics (there were *very* few Bush fans among the young park workers and our US conservation co-workers), and one obviously intelligent guy asked if the British were still sore about losing the War of Independence.
The question seemed so strange that it took me a moment to gather my thoughts and explain that since then, Britain had probably been at war with most serious military powers on the planet.
It was really odd to realise that someone actually thought that anyone outside the US might still be bothered about what is, to them, near-ancient history.

"guy asked if the British were still sore about losing the War of Independence."
Huh? The Americans are still sore about it - that's (to quote the Mighty Mighty Bosstones) "..the impression that I get"
If any American can explain why movies and TV showes feature villains who are: Middle eastern/Russian/Sth African/other, but who *all* have British accents (but for the occasional Australian or even NZer masquerading as British, cos Americans can't tell the difference)that is: if any American can explain what *else* we could have done to upset you, other than oppressing you in the 18th century, I'd be very glad to hear it! The stupidest example was in Cattlecar Galaxative, where Starbuck and Apollo met some kids with big hair and teeth, who wanted to rescue thr father from a villain. The oldest of the kids opposed Starbuck and Apollo, and he and his hench-brother, the younger one, were 'British' accented. At the end of the epsiode, when the kids had *obeyed* S and A., and rescued Daddy, everyone sat around the campfire and praised the flag, dad and apple pie in California accents.
The question as to why American films and TV, despite the "Mom" slogan of the culture, feature an positive epidemic of motherless kids, solo fathers and "mad-bad-and-evil-when-they-exist-at-all Mums, will have to be left for another time...

Della:

The media usually doesn't have a clue. They do very little research for locations or characters. I'm reminded of an old John Ford movie that features the town of Liberty, Texas. In the movie, it's full of desert plains, towering mountains (and a glimpse of Ship Rock, which is actually in Arizona.) The real town of Liberty is a swamp, flat, full of skeeters (mosquitoes for you out-of-towners) and distinctly lacking in mountains. The X-Files movie is supposedly set in Dallas, but the scene (in the desert, with mountains at the horizon) at the beginning of the film is definitely nowhere near Dallas, which is surrounded for twenty miles by suburbs, smaller cities, and highways.

I can't explain why the villains in our television shows have British accents - I can tell you that if you were watching Battlestar Galactica, you weren't exactly watching quality television! I was a big fan when I was a kid - that and Buck Rogers (beedeebeedeebeepokay, Buck!) I would say it's a lack of imagination, not vindictiveness.

Thanks Lentilla - I was watching Battlestar G., because it was there, and because it has always been our policy to watch *anything* that so much as calls itself sf, and give it as many chances as we can tolerate! That can lead to watching complete crud.
I am reminded of something which might have been Star Trek Voyager, two men walking across an alien landscape, one saying to the other "Well, this reminds me of Griffith park, I used to go there with my sister" and I thought it would turn out that they had gone through another dimension into Griffith Park! (Which is where, BTW?) On the other hand it might have been EFC, which is made in Canada. Something else made in Canada (cld have been X Files) made a big mistake) characters were talking about being in Dulles Airport (Or something) yet the director had failed to notice all the bilingual and other signs telling viewers that they were actually in Montreal! Incredibly stupid, LOL!

I'm not sure where Griffith Park is - it's probably something I should know... but then again, shows like ST Voyager will throw in details from the Star Trek 'universe' to give it some verisimilitude. Griffith Park could easily be on Mars or the Moon - at least in the show!

And I will watch just about anything that has robots, monsters, aliens, etc. I don't really care how bad it is! I'm tempted to get cable just so I'll get the Sci-Fi channel, which shows old sci-fi television shows like Land of the Lost and Lost in Space, and old bad movies, too. We just rented a tape of their production of Dune - and they almost got it right! Even with 6 hours of time, they still couldn't get all the details from the book, but they caught the feel of it better. There's a lot of intrigue that the first movie just couldn't cover.

Hmmm... what is EFC? Doesn't ring a bell.

Lentilla, you've certainly seen Griffith Park, even if you don't know where it is (in LA, of course), as it's probably the most used filming location on the planet. The most commonly used parts of it are Bronson Canyon and Bronson Caves, which were frequented by Batman, Flash Gordon, the Lone Ranger, and Superman, to name but a few, as well as the folks from Lost In Space and various Star Treks. If you do end up getting the Sci-Fi channel, expect to spend a lot of time looking at Griffith Park.

Awwww... so! That's interesting - I'll keep an eyeball out for that!

Ah, EFC. That's Earth Final Conflict, a show created by Gene Roddenberry just before he died - the details of which were found by Majel amongst his effects. She got together with a bunch of guys to have it produced, and at the beginning of this year, when it was finally shown here in NZ, I *loved* it. Sadly, it deteriorated so that 2/3 of the way through the first series (season) it was guilty of what a writer re Star Trek called 'characterisation rape'. Not just characters, but the whole Taelon race (they're the aliens who have come to three years before the story opens), well, the Taelons are acting out of character, and the producers seem more concerned with making the Taelons stock villains and sly, cunning invaders than having them be well-rounded complex *aliens*. They began as androgynous beings, with a 'commonality', a kind of group consciousness which would preclude factions. Now, they've degenerated into factionalised clumps, working against humans and each other - established facts are overthrown without comment -e.g., the Taelons had no word for warrior (a fact established in about episode six). All of a sudden, they're fomenting war, and remarking to each other that they have used the technique of genetically engineering warriors whilst conquering other worlds! I wonder what the Great Bird would make of it, if he could come back and see it now? As Majel didn't even approve of Star Trek DS9's Dominion War story arc, and said GR wouldn't have, I think he'd be horrified! I think he would never have intended the Taelons to turn out to be evil bad guys! (Or if he did, he'd have been a LOT more subtle about it!

I'm an American, and all I can say is ouch, this conversation is making me wince. When I see a fellow Yank behaving badly, or hear of it, there's always a twinge of shame. I see the insensitive nature of our chest pounding, "USA, We're Number One!" chants, among other things.

As for me, I adore the differences between our various cultures, and I'm saddened to see the narrowing of the gap all over the world. Eventually, we'll all end up as one homogenized lump, and probably look it too.

This is characteristically stating the bleedin' obvious, but individuals vary, some are rude, some are polite, some are downright nasty. That will never change. But, as for cultural difference, let's embrace it, and celebrate it.

Also, thanks for the support of American spellings, I've been feeling self-concious about it. Sorry, all my dictionaries are in American English, so is my computer.

Please completely ignore the above reply. I don't know how it happened, but it linked to the wrong conversation. I've got to learn how to run this thing.

You probably replied to an earlier posting in the thread, but your reply automatically landed right at the end of the thread. As no thread on H2G2 can keep on topic for long, that means that your post looks a bit out of place.

Your words sum up absolutely everything - I wish everyone could just think like that and then get on amicably comparing notes and explaining their little national idiosyncrasies without bigotism or any other form of radicalism or prejudice.

Greetings, Trillian's Child!

Well, I'm happy for the little accident that brought us together. It's always refreshing to find someone who cares about mere kindness.

Do you think we humans will ever be able to stop having pettiness that grows to annoyance, annoyance that grows to distaste, distaste that grows to hatred, and hatred that grows to war? It always seems to start with the small things. I'm too much of an idealist. I view the world far too simply.

Still, one can wish.

Goodness, Washcloth - you are very much an idealist! The idea of the change in human nature which you describe actually made me cry a bit - which is really embarassing when I am in public (which I am. How soft is that? When will it happen?

Yes, we can get rid of those things - but they all start with fear. I don't know if we'll ever get rid of that, but I'm willing to give it a try!

*offers edge of washcloth to dry tears*

It will happen when one person offers forgiveness to another, and that forgiveness passes in a chain, hand to hand, until we're all hand in hand.

A decision, simply not to hate.

Shall we dream together, my Kiwi friend?

I'm afraid things aren't as simple as that, but i believe they aren't hopeless either.

Hate is not the factor which provokes war - greed is. Hatred is a useful tool for getting people on your side, but war is usually motivated by greed.

And the bulk of terrorism or the guerrilla / revolutionary type is motivated by fear or pride. The CNT had a motto "There is no such thing as revolutionary power, for all power is reactionary by nature".

But not all esistance movements are reactionary, some are progressive, as Che said "The true revolutionary is motivated by feelings of great love". And it is this great love that will be our salvation, a love for oneself and for your fellow man - not your nation, or your church, but your brothers and sisters unknown.

But to match the power of the forces of opposition it will take us all, noit in revolution, but in rebellion, a war of refusal of taking control. Of standing up and taking it back. That is the point at which a little force can overturn the great mass, when it is ballanced against the level of our collective will. And only love, unconditional love, can give us that will.

Fear and hate both often stem from a lack of understanding, though there is some positive feedback that makes to hard for people to understand those they fear or hate.
When there is a lack of understanding, it's easy for people to cling to negative generalisations, even in the face of specific evidence to the contrary, like the racist saying 'I hate those XXXXs, but *that* one is different'.

"Love is the answer, and you know that for sure" - John Lennon.

Yes, it is.