Ils sont fous ces Americains but
Vor Paris steht Mickey Mouse
A free trade agreement is being negotiated between the
US and the European Union. France has demanded that European countries should
have the right to impose quotas for the amount of American culture, films etc.
in TV and other media. This French attitude is being ridiculed in some circles.
But seen in the light of extrapolations of the present trends in the World and
in the light of historical precedents, the French demand is reasonable.
The French comic book series Asterix about the fight of a village in Gallia
against the Romans at the time of Caesar is interesting for more reasons:
- It points to many of the clear parallels between our
present modernity and the Greco-Roman modernity. Like if we repeat many things
from that certain part of the past with a time lag of 2 millennia.
- The books also show the European skepticism towards
the Romans and thus transferred to our time the Americans. As Asterix' friend Obelix often says:
Ils sont fous ces Romains! These
Romans are crazy!
- but the books also show the admiration and uncritical imitation of the Romans by
other people in Gallia. And thus the same imitation in Europe today of the
Americans. As the German group Rammstein sings "Vor Paris steht Mickey Mouse" ( before
Paris stands Mickey Mouse). It points to Disney World standing outside Paris.
But the wording also sounds like Mickey Mouse as representative of the whole
American culture being an army ready to invade Paris.
What is Crazy about the Americans?
For a European more American phenomena seem very
strange.:
The idea that America should be Gods own country.
Extreme superficiality.
The enormous focus on material richness and admiration
of the very rich. Of course Europe also has a focus on attaining richness and indeed
Europe has invented modern capitalism. But even a European capitalist is
outraged when Paris Hilton takes showers in champaign.
And again I say to you, It is easier
for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter
into the kingdom of God.
Americans seeing their own country as having special
rights in the World. I have already pointed to things like the American use of
the Swift computer system to follow money movements between Europe and the
outside World, the illegal hunt for terrorists abroad including of suspects in
Europe and flights with these suspects over Europe. Few have any doubt that the
US governments electronic surveillance of its own citizens internet use also
extends to the citizens in Europe.
A conceited belief in own values, being they
puritan or the superficial World presented in films and other media.
The carrying of weapons seen as the right of everybody
no matter the consequences and even no matter how lethal they are.
The cowboy mentality against other countries.
Social welfare seen as evil and unchristian.
Obama described as Anti-Christ. How can it be against
Christ to aid the poor through things like health care? Have these people never
heard of the Good Samaritan?
The unforgiving and uncompassionate condemning nature
of American puritan Christianity.
The use of the brutal and indeed uncompassionate death
penalty.
….. first cast out the beam out of
your own eye; and then shall you see clearly to cast out the mote out of your
brother's eye.
This all points to a a reading of the Holy Bible that
stops early in the Old Testament and certainly never has reached Isaiah 53.
Taken over without any reflection
Europeans eagerly follow the Oscar awards staying
awake at night to watch it live even though the often far better European films
only fall into the category "foreign language films".
Super bowl is catching more and more interest in
Europe.
Halloween has already become a European tradition for
our children.
Valentine is also a new tradition in countries where
it wad never heard of earlier.
Even the somewhat ridiculous phenomenon Cheer leaders
is spreading here.
A very large part of films shown in European cinemas and
TV channels are American.
This even seems to have been a part of official US
policy. Part of the American aid to France after WW 2 was given with the
obligation that it was to be spent on buying Hollywood films!
Also our children are exposed to this influence.
Extremely superficial American talk shows and series with never ending canned laughter
is dominating TV for children here as well.
Facebook… Used by everybody in this strange small Scandinavian
country, where nobody seems to reflect on or question anything. Even left wing
politicians and state owned radio and TV stations use Facebook instead of an
ordinary homepage. Nobody give it a thought that Facebook is a commercial
establishment and that users are at the mercy of the owners and indeed American
surveillance. Only 2 percent of teenagers in this country do not have a Facebook
account! Sooner or later I suppose the local government will make it mandatory
to have an account! This invasion force is about to take the rest of Europe as well.
The demands of the Market mechanisms dominate the
countries in Europe even more that the United States. I have already mentioned
the American Rating Agencies. These market demands are carried out without
reflection. Keynes is forgotten. Germany is acting as an agent of the market mechanisms
and enforcing their demands over the rest of Europe.
Scandinavia used to be proud of its models in social welfare
and the well functioning organization of the relation between the work force
and employers. Now everything is with joy being broken down and the societies
changed into places where everything is regulated only by market laws. All in
the name of global competition and the Holy Markets.
Conclusion
For a true European the United States does not look
like Gods own country. It more looks like the country of Pluto. No not the dog
of Mickey Mouse, but Pluto, the god of money and the Underworld!
But
One can fear that even if many Europeans in our
generation still may say as Obelix, the next generation is being brought up
with American culture in the form of films, the Net and TV.
We in Europe would
rather have
Vor New York steht Obelix.
But our children’s minds may already have been invaded
by Mickey Mouse.
In the Mediterranean World 2000 years ago Greek
survived in the East. Here Latin did not win like it did in Gallia outside the
village of Asterix and Obelix. A deliberate effort like the one advocated by
France might be necessary if like Greek the European cultural languages of
today shall survive. If nothing is done, then
in 100 - 200 years most of Europe will speak American English. Zee, not
zed!
.... the French language for centuries on
Earth represented civilization.
Jean-Luc Picard.
Let us hope it will stay that way, also for the other
European languages!
Ils sont fous ces Americains!!!
