For your information, Mr. Bennett and Miss Seawright:
   Not all Americans are provincial, inbred peasants. They know there's a 
whole world out there. (They rule it, after all! BWAHAHAHAHA!) If 
American were as insular as you say, this list would not exist. Ignorant 
ultra-nationalist "patriots" such as you saw in _Independance Day_ are 
objects of ridicule and contempt here. They are not, repeat _not_ the 
majority in America. On the contrary, openness to other cultures has been 
the rule rather than the exception, occasionally to the point of 
absurdity. (Ever hear of "multiculturalism?" No, of course you haven't. 
American cultural movements don't interest you. Why should they? America 
has nothing of interest, right?) Americans just borrow the cultural 
innovations of other nations and make them their own. Often the American 
version's better than the original. (I _love_ Chicago-style pizza. What, 
you don't know what that is? Poor dears.) 

Great. Now we have an American and an Australian arguing. DAMNIT! You people 
should know better! The biggest rule on the internet is NEVER FUCK WITH 
SOMEONE'S NATIONALITY. Look at what you've done, Seawright. I wouldn't be 
surprised if this guy goes to congress asking for war to be declared.

As for Independence Day. That was a movie MADE for Americans to watch. I've 
seen it twice and enjoyed it immensely. People in Australia wouldn't see 
anything in the movie other than some director trying to glorify his country 
or whatever. The fourth of july a world holiday? That could be considered an 
insult. Americans being responsible for the destruction of the alien armadas? 
Well, like I said, made for American's because they don't care about those 
little details (We would just LOVE to save the world from aliens and have 
everyone worshipping one of our national holidays)
  



   Education? American universities are the best in the world. That's 
why Japanese students come to study here, and not Americans in Japan. 
(Japanese colleges are abysmal.) The private schools are also first-rate. 
The public schools suck, but that's because they're beholden to the 
teacher's unions who block any attempt to reform them. The Americans are 
trying their best to make them better, trust me. (At least here the schools 
don't shut down every year for a week because the teachers have gone on 
strike _again_.)

Yuarg. High school is sort of sucking. 
   




   Their popular culture, too, is popular the world over. Why? Because 
it's far more universal in appeal than that of other nations. (My Irish 
relations tell me that Australian soaps get more American by the day. 
That's called competition.) You bet your life American movies are 
consistently hits in Japan. (I can't speak about _Independance Day_--I 
haven't seen it--but if you didn't like it there's no need to condemn the 
whole American movie industry.)

Okay man, your starting to show your 'American Egotistical' side. (I'm 
American so don't EVEN try to say something that indicates I don't know what 
I'm talking about)

Anyway, whenever some American's see their country being bashed, they 
immediately go into the 'America saved the world twice in the last century, 
did this, did that, beat Japan, killed communism.' phase. Now, it isn't always 
expressed like this. Saying that American culture is all cool and stuff is 
another way of doing that. This will always SEVERELY PISS EVERYONE OFF. Also, 
everyone is entitled to their own opinions. If someone in Australia thinks 
that American's are dumbasses, I DON'T CARE. And going into a long speech 
'DEFENDING YOUR COUNTRY AGAINST THOSE WHO WOULD SPEAK BADLY OF IT' only shows 
that you care a bit too much about foreign opinions.



   (Side note: what foreign films and programming I have seen here 
has invariably been dubbed. Only dubbed anime is ever shown on American 
or British television.

I don't like that. I think that Anime looses a lot of its flavor when it is 
dubbed into English. Ranma seems to have the best dubbing, but they don't seem 
to have that on TV over here...
 




   There's more good than bad about America. And the bad they're working 
on. I know this: I wouldn't go back to Ireland to live, muchless go to 
Australia. And you couldn't pay me enough to live in Japan.

I've seen snippets of the complaints about America, most of them were stupid 
remarks. If things were as bad as some people make it out to be, America would 
be joining the ranks of the third world countries. You TRIED to simply say 
that those statements were incorrect, but ended up trying to get back at 
Australia. Get off the diplomat's stand. 


Paul Corrigan
pcorrig@uoft02.utoledo.edu
Who expected better from someone on an English language Japanese 
animation list, and fears for Australia's future...

Oh I am -SO- sure. I'm willing to bet that you went to congress, told them 
about the American bashing, and IMMEDIATLY they began to vote for war. Sorry, 
an American/Australian war is not in scope anytime soon.

DISCLAIMER: I am not going anti-american here, I just think that by now people 
would start ignoring stupid comments among people who don't know jack about 
what they are saying. YES. most of what Seawright said was exaggerated and out 
of proportion, but I've come to expect stuff like this to pop up sometimes, 
and I take it in stride.

DO NOT REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE.

Draxon-X