Happy Fourth! And now....a question...

[tabaqui]

Hello. Yes, another ficless update! Aren't i cool.

Anyway - Cat and i were talking and Cat was wondering something and now i'm wondering it so...

If you are from the UK, is there some lingering...national sentiment that sure, they've got James Marsters and Supernatural and 31 Flavors but...that should all be *ours! ours!!* those rat bastards?

I personally cannot conceive of such a thing but...does such a sentiment exist anywhere? When Bollywood tosses out hottie singing guys in eyeliner and chicks who are just so curvey and perfect is there a smoldering *grrrrr* anywhere?

Idle curiousity, folks. I think the answers are gonna be fun. If i get any.

And hey - now's your chance to tell me *every tiny thing* about America that bugs the crap out of you!

*just for the record, i despise The Shrub*
*so you'll be preachin' to the choir on *that* subject*

In other news? Deadwood!!!
OMFGILUFFIT!!!
*smoooches killerweasel*

Comments

[tabaqui]

More like - do you think the Empire should rise again and you should march over here and *take it all back*!!!

But, yeah.

I wonder all the time about the 'culture' thing...if it's really such a big deal, why watch it? Like some of the Arab countries complain about how American movies are so terrible or whatever...then why watch? Seems like they - or the UK - has plenty enough of thier/your own culture, you know? It's sorta puzzling.

*waves back*

[vampirefever.livejournal.com]

Empire is a really outdated way of thinking. Does any country want the responsibility for governing another country anymore? I doubt it.

I have no interest in the Commonwealth, let alone going back to the Victorian era of Empire.

When the culture (and I don't mean just TV/films) is all prevailing, its hard to avoid it. We have GAPs and McDonalds on every High Street, our foreign politics are influenced by Bush, our economics are closely tied to the dollar.

And if we do talk TV/films, then the US has a big influence on our home grown stuff as well. Our film industry is tiny to non-existent due to the cost of making a film and having nothing equivalent to the big Hollywood infrastructure here. Therefore, we only seem to make small independent type films that don't appeal to a mass market and they are few and far between certainly not with the volume Hollywood churns out. To make money UK film producers make stuff like all those Hugh Grant films that export a palatable idea of Britain to the US and somehow show us and our country in a way none of us recognise - see US influence again.

The same with TV. Our budgets are smaller and so a normal UK drama series is maximum 12/13 episodes. If the producing company wants to make money on it, it has to gear it towards the American market for foreign sales. It's much cheaper for many TV channels to buy in US shows to fill their schedules than to make their own, so we have whole networks that only show US imports. Even the BBC has a fair number of US shows airing. Think about it, the popular shows we've produced that have done well in the US e.g. The Office - only consisted of 2 very short series and a Christmas special. To fill its schedules with this product, you've had to make your own version with much longer runs and many more seasons than the original (same with Queer as Folk) - and then you sell it back to us *g* (we got your Office, but not the US version of QAF).

Don't take it personally, but that's the way it is. If we didn't cave in and buy your products, eat your burgers and watch your tv, we'd have very little else to do. Choice is not always an option.

Hope this didn't come over as a rant. You asked the question so I responded, but this type of thing (except the politics) doesn't really bother me on a daily basis - its just fact.

[tabaqui]

I know tv/movie stuff sucks - what *we* get offered to watch bites hard core, and i watch things made in the uk out of preference because man - so much better.

But who built a McD's on high street? Nobody *had* to - it wsan't like - build this or no one eats, you know? And nobody has to *eat* there - it sucks majorly, and i don't eat it *here*.

I guess i just feel like - if your own cultural 'stuff' is lagging or lacking or whatever, everybody has to work to make it *better*, not just cave in and bottom feed along with america. Cause dude - totally the damn lowest common denominator, you know?

Seems like people would revolt.
Gods know i do.
:)

[vampirefever.livejournal.com]

I'm a vegetarian and haven't eaten in a McDonald's for decades, but I can't stop it being popular. And who built McDonalds on the high streets - McDonalds did. Often to very angry local opposition. But we don't have laws preventing private companies from overseas from buying property and opening their businesses here.

I don't think our culture is lagging or lacking, but big bucks and deep pockets always shout the loudest. But we have revolted. Did you hear about the law case where McDonalds took 2 individual to court for producing anti-McD leaflets? It was nick-named the McLibel case. The 2 people represented themselves against all of McD's big lawyers. The trial went on for years.

If you're interested you can read about it here (http://www.mcspotlight.org/case/trial/story.html) - its a fascinating David and Goliath tale.

[tabaqui]

Oh, very interesting!
I worked for Greenpeace in Kansas City years ago...

Thanks for the link!