Oblivious? America? Couldn't be..

In "The Oblivious Empire", Mark Hertsgaard explains that for being such an "educated" country, we know very little about the outside world as a country. The American feeling that this country is superior than the rest of the world, "may be fanning the flames of anti-Americanism around the world" Hertsgaard says. I liked what was said about American ignorance. Hertsgaard says,"Ignorance is an excuse, but not a shield. Even though Americans are largely ignorant of what is being carried out in their names, they are all likely to suffer a very steep price". I agree completely. If America continues to blindly reach out and touch other countries, we will suffer our downfall. We may be the most powerful nation in the world, but when it comes to terms of intelligence on other countries, we are severely lacking.

American Imperialism

In "Under the Sign..", Todd Gitlin explains how the American culture has influenced nearly every part of the world. This was evident in "Babel" in a number of ways. At the beginning when the couple was eating, what did they have to drink? Coca-Cola. Also, Mc Donalds was present in Japan, along with Coke products. According to Gitlin, "Entertainment is one of America's top exports". In the dance club in Japan, American music could be heard (eventhough the girl could not hear it). Also, American values are transferred to differnt places. The actions of the deaf girl protrayed the american thought that sex is everything. American Imperialism is the reason that images and sounds of America become omnipresent according to Gitlin. With technology today, it is no suprise to me that all of these images are being transferred.