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the world dont yet have Internet access, even if one can learn about
them/their culture online).
All of this is to say that of course the dysfunctions of any
society/culture are no longer exclusively the problems of that
society/culture (if ever that has been the case). Everything on this
planet is far too interconnected and interdependent. But to
understand exactly how/why the dysfunctions of American
culture are profoundly related to the dysfunctions of the rest of the
world, we need to dig deeper. We need to understand how the
Western world (Europe and eventually the USA) forcibly and
fervently propagated its cultural systems and ideologies
worldwide over the past several hundred years, and how this fact has
caused irrevocable and inestimable changes in global society.
In a word, we need to understand colonialism. Although a few fine
and wonderful things arguably resulted from the history of
colonialism on this planet, its clear to many people examining the
global situation today that the rampant spread of Western models of
the nation-state, the modern city, the capitalist economy, modern
warfare, the justice system, education, and organized religion has
brought about not only global catastrophes (potential for nuclear
war, destruction of the natural environment, etc.) but also a web of
deeply oppressive structures that lead to discrimination, alienation,
violence,
economic
inequality,
dehumanization,
and
disempowerment in the general populace.
2008 to better understand just how much of the world was seized
and forcibly re-imagined during this several-hundred-year period.
And, sure, it should be noted that many of these
colonialist/imperialist powers built a lot of shit in the countries they
occupied to try to establish the same sort of infrastructure with the
same sort of architecture that they were used to, and some of the
stuff they built was probably useful (much of it is still in use today).
But we simply cannot underestimate how dehumanizing,
frightening, belittling, and traumatizing this process was for the
people worldwide who were enslaved and/or told, implicitly or
explicitly, that their way of doing things was wrong, outmoded,
inferior, backwards, or barbaric.
I mean, fuck, just imagine that for a minute. This tumultuous period
was the beginning of momentous changes in virtually every corner
of the globe, and how could it not have been? As I alluded to,
innumerable
peoples
were
forced
or
coerced
into
partially/fully integrating Western models of the nation-state, the
modern city, the capitalist economy, modern warfare, the justice
system, education, and organized religion. Each of these items
are fundamental ideological institutions that have an unspeakable
impact on the organization of a society and the day-to-day lives of
its people.
We ought to be careful to note that its not as if the colonialist period
created mirror-images of European countries in far-off places all
over the world. European models/colonists intermingled with
thousands of years of cultural history to create new, hybrid-like
nation-states with totally distinct cultures. But, basically, if you want
to talk about how/why the sociocultural dysfunctions of the United
States tend to be found in many other places worldwide, look no
further than the colonialist/imperialist history in which
European models of societal organization were instituted on the
American continents and in many/most societies worldwide.
Southeast Asian and East Asian) cultures. Ill try to articulate a few
examples of the obvious remnants of the process of globalization
and how those remnants result in many of the same problems that I
highlighted in my essay on America. We would do well to
remember that 4.3 billion people, or about 60% of the global
population, lives in Asia, and that, therefore, Asia is arguably the
best continent to study if one wishes to understand the situation of
the humans of the world today.
The most obvious (and arguably most deeply influential) remnants
of the process of globalization in Asia are the contemporary nationstate, the modern city, the capitalist economy, the practices of
modern warfare, and the ubiquity of modern technology. These
items constitute so much of the fundamental fabric of any society
that the landscape they produce is unmistakable. You know it all too
well, Im surethe skyscrapers, the traffic, the advertisements, the
crowded subways, etc.
This is why, upon arriving last year in South Korea, a land 10,000
miles from home, I had the uncanny sensation of being reminded of
the United States by much of what I saw and felt. That sense of
simulation, artificiality, speed, futility, and coldness that
characterizes any modern city was palpable in the Korean
metropolises (and eventually the cities in 10 other Asian
countries) in which I found myself. The signaling competitions
(Ill buy this to show you that Im cool, successful, wealthy,
etc.) that seem somehow inherent in individual-centric capitalism
were apparent in the expensive fashion and luxury automobiles
owned by most all Korean people.
The education system I taught within in South Korea (like the
education systems in many other Asian countries) bears remarkable
similarities to the US education system. It is characterized by hypercompetitiveness, teachers that are construed as almighty pitchers of
knowledge, a one-size-fits-all approach, an almost exclusive focus
on memorization, an absence of activities that promote creativity, an
that once called the territory home and among most all people of
color who have been historically enslaved, marginalized, oppressed,
and discriminated against (and still are today in many ways).
And I should say more about the innumerable ex-patriots, tourists,
and immigrants in the modern worldan obvious result of
globalization. Recognize that the job I had in South Korea (English
teacher) would certainly not exist without the worlds colonialist
history. Its astonishing, throughout Asia, how many people speak
English and how heavily governments emphasize English-learning
in school curriculums. This is of course a result of the fact that
English is, more or less, the language of international business, the
language in which most of the worlds written information can be
reliably found, and the lingua franca (common-ground language) of
world citizens whose native language is not English.
This is not a coincidence, quite clearly. There are hundreds of
millions more native speakers of Mandarin (14.4%) than English
(5.43%) worldwide, yet English is the dominant tongue because it
was spread by the vast British empire of yesteryear and reinforced as
an international precedent by both world wars. Post-WWII, English
was seen as a prestigious language because of the great material
wealth of the United States and Britain. So, if you are a native
speaker of English, you likely dont realize that a history of
linguistic imperialism and a couple of favorable war outcomes
resulted in a world in which you possess an enormous advantage in
the global marketplace. I could not have taught in my program in
South Korea if I was not a native speaker of English.
For this reason and others, consider that the mere presence of people
like myself (Western workers, tourists, etc.) in Asia is both a
remnant and an extension of the colonialist history. The US State
Department estimated in 2011 that 864,000 Americans were living
in the Asia-Pacific region. Thats a pretty heavy saturation of
ongoing direct Western influence (and doesnt even account for
the massive number of Europeans and Australians that are also
In Sum
So there you have ita totally-incomplete-but-hopefullyilluminating story of how the sociocultural machinery of America
(or, originally, Europe) was reproduced across the world in the past
few hundred years (in accordance with a larger trend toward cultural
interchange) and wrought/wreaks physical and psychological havoc
on Americans and the people of most other countries. Let me stress
yet again that this essay is scattered and insufficient, as I promised it
would be. The topic is simply too huge, but hopefully this piece has
accomplished its aim of broadly sketching the origins of our global
situation and can be a launching-off point for further study.
Furthermore, this essay has sort of consisted of me defecating all
over Western (and, subsequently, global) culture, but I want to make
it clear that every culture has committed demonic, hideous acts, and
that every culture has ostensibly positive and negative attributes.
The West didnt invent the dark side of human natureit was just
one in a long line of cultures that have dominated or destroyed other
human beings, and its certainly not the case that the rest of the
world has been saintly or angelic for the past 500 years. Its also
worth considering that globalization (though a violent process) and
global capitalism (though environmentally destructive and
dependent on inequality) have arguably produced a number of
desirable outcomesmodern medicine, access to the worlds
which they were indoctrinated. We can and must (unless selfdestruction sounds cool) try to change our sociocultural structures to
make them more human-friendly, compassionate, sustainable, and
liberating for the people and animals of the world. But they will
never be perfect.
So in the final analysis, each person alive today is faced with an
ultimatum: give up on life (commit suicide or fall into selfdestruction), or find a way, via whatever possible means, to cope
with ones cultural baggage and be content in spite of the ways in
which one was abandoned, marginalized, and/or screwed. It seems
that most all of us have, in some way, been done a disservice by the
structures of this outrageous world into which weve been born. We
can curse those structures and see them as reasons to hate ourselves
and everything else, or we can do our best to see through the set of
preconceived values and assumptions into which we were
indoctrinated to perceive something (arguably) magnificent lurking
beneath it allthe opportunity to experience and love and form
communities and express ourselves and discover our own way of
thinking and being in this sprawling, marvelous cosmos.