Do Americans know "Underwear Goes Inside the Pants"

I am really curious to know how many Americans think this guy singing (well... speaking) is wrong or psychotic. I mean... the things he is saying are obvious... common sense, right?

Perhaps I am mistaking.

AK-47's coming out

My excitement reaches highest level in months as news about Iraq hits the media. Do not disregard the insignificance of this piece of news. The trial can be the first of many to reveal a practice that has been rooted in the routine of the American troops in Iraq. (It is unclear if soldiers of other states practice this, too.)

While the practical thing to do for the ones in charge of the soldiers on the ground is not to discourage the practice of drop weapons (in order to mentain control of the troops) it is immoral and dangerous for the Pentagon to continue ignoring it. One can only hope that the US judicial system will prove itself and do the right thing. It remains to be seen if it will go as far as it has to in order to stop the practice and hold the ones that have partaken accountable.

You can find the article in

NY Times

BBC News

2-D, 3-D and 4-D or Why is it that the US and Europe don’t click-clack?

The best explanation I have to why the U.S. and Europe and their proxies (people from and representatives of) often don’t agree is via a rather abstract, yet enlightening, analogy. Everyone knows we live our lives in a 3-dimensional space (system). We have length width and height for everything around us. We understand these dimensions and use this knowledge to correctly appreciate distances and put the environment around us to the best use. Now imagine a 2 dimensional world… a world your daughter has drawn on a piece of paper. This world has only 2 dimensions, and the people inside it will only be able to think and act in those 2 dimensions. Now think about what would happen when you, a 3dimensional person, would try interacting with the 2d world. If you put your hand on the piece of paper, the little people in the paper world would see the part of your hand coming in contact with their world, ie the parts of your hand coming in contact with the paper. Any movement of your hand will alter the shape and size they associate with you and their perception of you will change inexplicably. They cannot perceive a third dimension, so they cannot perceive you outside the surface of the hand that touches the paper. The same way we, humans, have great difficulty trying to imagine what would a 4^th dimension mean for our world. It is just something so enormously complex that we can’t even realize the extent to which our lack of knowledge goes.

This is how I see Americans and myself, here. Two entities that have 2 dimensions in common, but they can’t perceive each other’s third dimension. It is not the case that Americans just have other values than Europeans and South Americans. Their entire system of references and thinking is different, to such an extent that it makes it very difficult to explore, and understand.

Raping Bosnians Like an American

I am wondering if it is only me going nuts and becoming excessively sensitive, or these things I am seeing, actually happen and not so many acknowledge them. Unfortunately for me I have been studying (or learning about) international relations in more or less formal settings pretty much since I was 8-9. I say unfortunately because it messes up your mind and soul in a way chemistry or anthropology, or economics do not. I am not going to blame Americans for being ignorant, because anyone that did a fair amount of globetrotting knows that other countries are equally or even less knowledgeable about topics of international relations (I am talking about the educated top here, not the majority of the population.) But Americans have something very particular about the way they carry around their ignorance. It is something more than the stereotypical pride and lack of understanding of their limitations. It is an inability to put themselves in someone else’s shoes. I am sure there are good socio-economic-historical-anthro-geo-political reasons for that… but Americans are lacking the ability to not compare everything they see or hear with something they are disgustingly familiar with.

It can be a baked dish of Gruyere-shrimp orecchiette that is discharged as “just a casserole.” And it can be ranting about the rape as a war-crime in Rwanda and Bosnia by citing individual cases of rape in the US. How exactly can someone that has no understanding of culture different then theirs expect to be taken seriously when they think they figured out what the problem in Bosnia was? I am surprised that they manage to understand a difference DOES exist, but I am not far from hitting my head against a wall when I hear the tone, and the implications pointing in one direction:

“oh we understand how this is different: it is archaic! The problem in Bosnia is not that there was a war, wars happen, it’s normal! No-no! We know what the problem is: the problem is that people don’t speak up. They get raped and then they do not start running around yelling <<>> Because this is what WE DO HERE, and it is the fair, responsible and logical thing to do. We change the world with our activism.”

The problem is that when you are on the top of the mountain you can’t see the largest part of the mountain. Willingly or not the vast majority of the Americans have become inapt to understand cultural relativism from within this country. There is just too much information missing. Blame it on the news, the patriot act, Hollywood, the Midwest or whatever, but it exists. There is a certain US-centric train of thought that everyone employs despite their values and opinions. This is not to say that you can’t see this in other countries, but in US distinguishes itself by being the most blinding light that few manage to take out of their eyes. It impossible for them to perceive the complexities of another system… (see my 2-3-4 D explanations)

Back

Ahhh... I am back for the 4 or 5 people that check me out every now and then.

Well... not really for them but more for myself. There is just too much good stuff happening for me not to blog it. I am waiting for the improbable butterfly effect that will make the world perfect from my little flaps.