The Universality of America and its States

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I have been working non stop all day on my artworks that are due in next week for a subject at uni. I have been working on these all over my house and my father's shop and finally I have landed in the warmth of my kitchen.

Eavesdropping on the television, naturally and inevitably seeing as it is always loud, I came across a television show that was on prior to the FIFA soccer match, Portugal versus Germany. It consisted of some Australian comedian interviewing rather patriotic and drunk Americans who apparently fit the stereotypes that he heard about them before being exposed to them. And the point that was brought up was quite interesting, and very accurate - upon asking these Americans where they were from, each one of them named a state within America - Boston, Chicago, New York, and so on. 

The comedian made a point - "do you expect everyone to know all of the states in America?" And the fact is that we do. Whenever somebody foreign, usually spotted with an accent when they walk into my father's shop when I am serving and usually brought around to ask me of my personal origins, asks me where I am from originally, I say Australia. Then I go on to explain how my parents are from Lebanon. And only if the person is Lebanese will they ask me, "from which area in Lebanon?" But I have never said anything other than Australia for my place of origin. Quite frankly I do not think that foreigners would know where Melbourne was. They might know Sydney, Tasmania and New Zealand but certainly not Melbourne.

It is very interesting. I know most of America's states without having traveled to either one of them. I know about their famous landmarks and of the tweaking of accents in each one and the stereotypical portrayals, whereas Australia has one stereotypical portrayal: bogans. I know more about them than about the states in my own country. It may have something to do partly with the fact that I am obsessed with everything American, and partly because America in its entirety is a universal place.

America is so universal that I have lost interest in anything Australian. Australian movies have become absolutely intolerant. Australian accents have become ridiculous. Australian culture has become shameful. America has such a profound effect on me that I am willing to leave behind half of my cultural roots in order to be consumed by this nation of greatness. It seems like the social norm to drink alcohol from red plastic cups at parties and to chant "U S A" at big stadium games.

And that strange American man in the show surely was right about America achieving "world domination". Well, it has at least dominated my world.