What is an American?

Another bit of superb analysis out of the Blogoether:

If one wishes to define America in a minimal sense, then who in the world isn't American? Much of what we think of as being "American" culture is really just the product of transnational corporations. A huge number of young people in Europe today can speak decent English. Whatever differences we have with Europe, and whatever ignorance they have about traditional America, there is still a tremendous amount of similarities between us, in terms of history, culture, values, etc. When you contrast them with people who have lived here for years, even decades, and perhaps still have not learned English, who have very different outlooks, who are perhaps non-Western or Third-World and yet still cling to their enclave and either don't or can't assimilate, it becomes very difficult to know what, if anything, being "American" in this new sense really means.

This is not to say that Europeans or those who bother to learn English are necessarily "Americans waiting to happen" either. How to define the term or where to set the limit is difficult to say. But where do we set the absolute minimum limit? When do we admit that just tapping onto the global grid, just living within the boundaries of America, just enjoying prosperity and materialism, is not a sufficient basis if we are to have a stable nation?

"We're all Living in Amerika." Our Way of Life, 10/9/05.