Under Western Eyes, et al.
Last night the ABC presented a program done in conjunction with the BBC called, What the World Thinks of America. The presentation consisted of the survey results from 11 countries, including the U.S. itself, and panellists in Australia and the U.K., including a variety of fairly distinguished politicos, statesmen, cultural commentators, and so forth, among them Bob Carr, the NSW Premier, and Benazir Bhutto, former PM of Pakistan. Reports from Brazil, South Korea, Russia, and France were presented to offer brief analysis of specific questions from the survey. It was a well-balanced presentation, although the answers were not too surprising, or at least not always. South Koreans, for example, responded in large numbers that they felt the world was made more dangerous because of U.S. policies and actions. Of course, that only seems surprising because the expectation is that our military is keeping them safe from the starving marauders of the North, whereas the reality also has to take into account that the reluctance of the U.S. to relinquish its aggressively anti-communist stance there is a significant factor in antagonising North Korea. But I digress.

It was no surprise to learn that the populations polled hold a negative view of G. W. Bush. It was no surprise that the U.S. polled as positive. But GW ought to look to his future, because he only turned up 51% of the American people in his favor, and the overwhelming negativity of the rest of the world is bound to have an effect. The biggest negative factors at work were, of course, the Iraq War and the influence of American culture. The military is scary; I can see that. There is no military force on the planet so well-financed and equipped. American culture, however, comes in for it based on how people perceive movies, television, and fast food. It is dismaying to hear that that is all we offer the world in the minds of many. And, as M. says, there is no recognition in these kinds of responses of any ownership by the receiving countries. Don’t like McDonalds? Don’t eat the stuff. In some measure, these aspects of American culture only exist – even in America – because consumers accept them. This is why I support efforts within Australia to reject the free trade agreement currently being negotiated unless subsidies are allowed to remain in force of Australian television and film. Canada has workable protections in place in this regard, as does France, and there’s simply no reason to just roll over on the issue. Again, I ramble.

These are not new issues; neither are the responses new. There were two aspects of this presentation that were revelatory. The first was the responses given to whether or not respondents would care to live in the U.S. I think it was something like 67% said no. Given a little thought, this isn’t so surprising. Most people would like to stay home rather than pick up and relocate someplace strange and potentially difficult, even if they perceive it as offering opportunities for prosperity beyond what they might have otherwise. But Americans have long perceived their country as the destination of choice for immigrants. We have been taught that everyone would like to live in the U.S. or someplace like it if they could. We’ve also learned that we prefer our own country over all others. Well, folks, it ain’t necessarily so. We may turn a blind eye to what’s on offer elsewhere, but when these people say they don’t want to live here, it isn’t simply a question of they don’t know any better. In fact, many of them are fully aware of what’s on offer in the U.S. and would rather stay where they are just the same, thank you very much. America needs to think about what that means.

Of course, one thing I do love about America (and there are many things) – something not very many of the people polled responded to as something they’d like more of themselves – is our freedom of expression, particularly because it not only allows me to say what I think, but also to hear what others think. So the other intriguing aspect of the program was the fact of it. This was a global poll, a global program. It happened, and I’ll bet the Nielsens (U.K./Australian equivalents) were terrific. GWB doesn’t read the papers and he doesn’t watch the news by all accounts, so I hope someone on the staff was paying attention to this, because he really ought to know about it. That America is an arrogant nation was the ultimate appraisal. That, and we should sign the Kyoto Accords. A nation with the kind of power the U.S. wields is indeed arrogant, when it is regarded as a stumbling block to world peace and prosperity, instead of a leader.