Here are some comments that have been emailed to us directly, or posted by users on Americanism. You can also view additional comments on our video at YouTube by clicking the link on the right. Please feel free to post your thoughts too!
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Name: OG loc
Location: Israel
Comments: o.g.: ok, so what is americansim.
arik: well, i think it's like qualities you add to something to make it more American. for example in israel they try to copy certain things so they will be like in America, because we think its better.
o.g.: so can you really define that in a few words?
arik: combination of qualities and stereotypes that are identified as American.
o.g.: ok. what kind of qualities are you talking about?
arik: lets say.... the concept that American things are better then others. the fact that people prefer American stuff even if its not the best.
o.g.: interesting. but do you think that some of the stereotypes are true? like obesity, certain stupidiy, over power, exploitation?
arik: well America is known for the fatest nation in the world. people make parodies how everything in America is "bigger". and America is identified as a very capitalist country.
o.g.: so you think all of it is true?
arik: about the obesity i can surly say because its based on research and statistics. about everything else i can only assume.
o.g.: so according to you definition: do you Americanism is good or bad?
arik: lets say that to Americans see it in a good way. i don't really know if it's good or bad, i mean i cant think of anything bad resulting from it. maybe the loss of identity and culture.
o.g.: how did it affect Israel?
arik: Israel is trying to copy American stuff. like American shows and even the pop music. i think it changed our culture. for example, now there is a wave of singers like britney spears and ashly simpson and such. it changed our singing culture from good old public singing and old military song to pop.
o.g.: how Americanism was created?
arik: it was created because American things are considered as better. like education, although i am not sure its true all the time or true at all.
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Name: OG loc
Location: Israel
Comments: Hi Pinky, I translated the conversation I had with my friend. I hope you will find what ever you are looking for.
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o.g.: well, one man said: "I am not an American but a victim of Americanism". look at that sentence and think seriously for a sec, what is Americanism?
warchief: listen, i don't think the question is related to the quote but i can tell you what is Americanism means to me. but i still don't know in what context you are talking about.
o.g.: it was sort of a quot that brought the question up. say your opinions, almost all is accepted.
w.c.: so what is really the subject?
o.g.: "what is Americanism?"
w.c.: well, you can look at i in a lot of ways. because America got a lot of characteristics. you could refer to the fact that they eat a lot of junk food and also throw away a lot of food. or you could refer to the youth who got some certain Independence, lets say like teenagers.
o.g.: mmmm ok.... but what about the overall cultural aspect? does that relate to the subject of Americanism?
w.c.: ok, Americanism is like when everything is becoming commercialized and cheap. all is produced so you would be able to throw it away and that it will cost to produce as less as possible. people are hypnotized from all the commercials, signs and also the commercialed propaganda and they are becoming extravagant and wasteful people, all for comfort.
o.g.: great were getting somewhere......... so can you actually define it for me in a sentence or two?
w.c.: Americanism is wastefulness, choosing the easy way over the hard way, indifference and apathy to the things that happens in this world and dependence in others. i mean like people that don't believe and already know and plan that their life is going to be average in an office with a boss above them.
o.g.: you can probebly call it the rat race if you heard of the term.
w.c.: never heard of it, and i don't think its reminding me anything.
o.g.: -.- anyway, now for a different question. how do you think it influenced the American people in terms of culture or life or the army?
w.c.: social gaps, corruption, no separation or distinction between good and evil......
o.g.: can you say that all of those created Americanism or that Americanism created all of those?
w.c.: what came first the egg or the chicken? its like one withing the other. Americanisation and Americanism are just definitions.
o.g.: mmm i think i got you. those are like definitions to all of those characteristics and qualities.
w.c.: yes
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Name: Octavian
Location: YouTube
Comments: Well you've probably already heard this but I will type anyway. I believe that Americanism is the converting of one culture, belief, etc. to benefit the American heads of power. A prime example is the story of the First Thanksgiving. When I first learned of it it seemed like a happy tale, but that is just the Americanism spin of the story. The purpose for this is to get the youth to support the nation. Another prime example in person form would be Andrew Carnegie. He, to me, is the prime symbol of Americanism. He was two-faced, supporting the poor on one end but creating them as well. That is Americanism in my opinion.
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Name: Jojo from YouTube
Location: YouTube
Comments: i have studied humans and the universe as mutch as a 19 year old that lives in a unintellegent comunity can. humans are social and teritorial animals, we want power like all other mammals, unlike every other mammal, we dont know what to do with power, we are easly currupted, you know the saying, with pure power comes pure curruption or w/e. this is probly a major reson why we have religon, to have someone uncurruptable in charge of everything, because we canot trust one another to run the entire universe and maby more than that. someone beter than humans. if you are religius or w/e i apologies if i insult you. i only try to show my thaughts into a statment. anyways. humans want power over others, its a instinct of dominance, usualy males want this more than femails. humanity has made invisable and imaginary laws/rules ever sense the begening of our existance, including the words i am tiping right now, it is just a stile of art (in wich im horrible at it seams) to communicate. this is to try to summ up a topic of info i beleive you should know, if you want more go ahead and ask, i would love to give information out.
first here we have americans, we feel more important and just beter than people that live in other countries, because we are told we are or we are told what we have is beter. to put it blunt at least. the americans hate eachother as well tho, seeing they all want to be the dominant one, human nature sadly. but first we have whites and blacks, we hate eachother because we both think each race/species is weaker to one another, im not racist at all, just dont like people that refuse to be smart. this war on eachothers speacies and others has ben going on ever since the dawn of man. but its difrent in america, why? because we are alredy the "dominant" humans, were suposed to be beter than others and be less animal like, no, we are not, we act the same once again. we fight one another like red ants vs black ants basicly. im begening to ramble and lose my thaughts. wonderful...
anyways.. M.X said that quote or w/e meaning he was here because he was born here (not sure if he was, not a history buff on this guy)not by choice but by being created here. and he was created in the "most powerful" country in the world, so why leave?
he was a victem of americanism, this part i would say he is a victem of america being the best, but still horrible, americas people being against him, his oun people that are for him are also american, they are for america but for him, he is against america but is for america, america asimilated him with force, he didnt conform, he was born a human, turned into a american.
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Name: briana
Location: st.louis st
Comments: it was a good show.
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Name: Eric
Location: MD, USA
Comments: First; I am am delighted that Pinky and Bunny have decided to seek input about how people define Americanism prior to their making a film about it.
Let us focus on what Americanism is and/or is not. And let us not get overly focused on what Malcom X meant when uttered the comment you referenced. I think that the wider definition of Americanism which you may adopt for your film might not be the definition that Malcolm X was using at that moment in time (more about this below). I seem to recall that as time passed; Malcolm stated that his opinions had evolved from the opinions he possessed when he was younger.
I basically think that Americanism is the experience of being an American and the perceptions that people (American and not) have about Americans. As such I think that the defintion of Americanism is always subjective and potentially contextual.
In mathematics and in argument in genral one must state ones premises in addition to arguing the conclusion which you may have arrived at. Thanks for talking the time to ask how other percieve and define Americanism; this step alone is a wise first step.
Regards
-E
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Name: Aaron Anthony Ross
Location: New Waterford, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Canada
Comments: “I am not an American, I am a victim of Americanism”
I feel this statement means he was not born American but brought up American.
Wishing maybe that he was brought up in another nation another part of town or maybe raised in a different family Americans are hard to explain you have a unique quality where you seem to only care about the here and now, sort of “out of sight out of mind” ignorant of the world it seems the only outside knowledge the American public receives is the heavily distorted material your government gives you and your television. Watch the BBC not CNN or FOX.
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Name: Maliça
Location: U.S.A.
Comments: "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
when i was little i thought that is what americanism stood for. i didnt know anything about history, i was five. i merely remembered reading this on a figurine of the statue my great-grandmother sent me after she visited Ellis Island. i thought we cared about people, we were a good people and as i got older my mom started asking the same question more and more. "you used to be so religious and so patriotic, what happened to you?" i always think i just grew up and i started to learn and question, as children do. now when i think of the word "americanism" i picture planes bombing countries and the people running around knowing they've a mere moment to live, crying, screaming, feeling pain as all creatures would. or sometimes i picture Bush giving a "speech" and he's saying "win" and "bomb" and "iraqis" but he never answers the question he's being asked - he just repeats the same thing over and over again, he doesnt even change his wording. {he also has this habit that drives me to change the channel if im trying to watch him on tv. he says "and uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh" and "and uhhhhhhhhhhh"
"we uhhhhhhhhh" "i uhhhhhhhhhh"} and soon enough he keeps saying "and uhhhhhh" so much i want to know what comes after the uhhhh. i sometimes think, had he choked on that pretzel before the twin towers went down, would he have bomb iraq saying it was an attempt assassination? i was in 7th grade at the time of the towers' fall and the war. my geography teacher asked everyone who did not support the war to raise their hand. i was the only one, she asked me to leave the classroom that i had no place in her classroom if i didnt support my country. i quit caring about politics and anything to do with them because it just got me into trouble. now i think im ready for that trouble, i'll be 18 and i heard the draft may be re-instated. would you mind aiding me in my research about this? perhaps a video ? :D id like that so maybe other people will see whats going on and its wrong to force the people of a country into a war to die for something they don't support.
this was rather scrambled im sorry about that, i hope you could make some sense out of it. i paint, i don't speak. words hurt people a lot more than communicating with a smile could ever. ~maliça
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Name: Mike
Location: Arizona
Comments: What is "Americanism"? It seems to me that a better question in this context would be "what is 'victimization'"? The former term, as used by Mr X, could really mean anything. The latter...well, when someone says that they are a victim of anything, that needs justification before anything else is talked about. In my humble opinion.
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Name: James w. Age 14
Location: Colleyville, Tx
Comments: First of all,
i enjoy listening to your Discussions, and topics. I think The animation of Cats, discussing Adult topics, is a good way to entertain kids. I strongly suggest to Submit informational videos to schools. it is a good way to inform kids about the problems of the world, and yet entertain them.
Secondly,
Well, being a young adult, my opion may not care to you. But, Being a victim of americanism, isnt a bad thing. Its just the way we live, our cultures. How can you be a vicim of americanism anyway? I mean, america is a melting pot of cultures. Pretty much, you cant be a victim of americanism if its your influences causing it.
Correct me if im wrongs, but Isnt being a victim of americanism A reverse phycologic question? Becuase You change Cultures, and give impressions into them.
I Really like your videos.
Podcasts??
-james.
:D
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