Ubuntu & the underdeveloped world

[sparkes]

poptones wrote:
> 
> Walk the streets of Kiev, Tokyo or London and see how many american
> flags you see plastered across chests, backs and butts. For such an
> evil nation a whole lotta people sure seem to aspire to us.
> 

Cross posted to sounder, the correct place for this discussion, please 
reply there.

I don't think you have spent a lot of time in the UK if you think we 
wear the stars and strips without irony ;-)  I thought the US was 
aspring to be a large European nation in the 19th century, you know, 
poor to none-existant social services, education for the rich, no health 
service, and an empire ruled by the fear ;-)  oh, and that's irony.

Although the average Japanese person believes the Rolling Stones are 
American every Japanese I have met has been totally devoted to 60's 
London and Liverpool, including those I met in the US.  So although you 
might see the flag plastered around Tokyo it's probably more likely to 
be a meaningless pop art symbol than a political one of aspiration.

Not to sure about Kiev I haven't met that many Ukranians and those I 
have met came to England during the 30's and 40's as refugees and fought 
in the Second World war against facism.  Well to be fair I have only met 
these people as grandparents of school friends but I am pretty sure they 
don't dote on the US flag at least I haven't noticed so it's not as 
public as wearing the flag on their arses ;-)

sparkes