Why do people who constantly criticize America still watch American movies?

Question

They go on holiday to Florida. They read about George Clooney in Heat magazine. The drink Coke. They rent Hollywood blockbusters. Then these same people march indignantly in central London to demonstrate against Bush/America/Americans/ Capitalism.
Strikes me as hypocrisy. Or don't they understand that all these things are linked?

Just to clarify: I like America. I'm simply saying that big business and politics ARE linked. Business bankrolls political parties. Rich and powerful lobbyists from the food and drink and entertainment industry influence policy. This isn't my opinion, it's a fact. Money controls everything. Saying that you can still enjoy a nation's products whilst disagreeing with its political regime flies in the face of the way the world reacted to apartheid in South Africa. I seem to remember all sorts of cultural trade embargos against that country.

Answer 1

Do they have a choice? America has all the money. Its commercial empire stretches around the globe. How can the industries of other countries fairly compete with those of the USA? Besides the government and foreign policy of the United States are not directly related to American cultural or industrial exports - so a person can hate one without hating the other.

Answer 2

I work in tourism and have met many americans in my Job.

I am sorry to say that the arrogance, smugness and all out super ego that the majority of them have can only have been bred from the society they have been brought up in.

A handful of the americans I have met will actually try to embrace the culture of other countries as they are not ignorant to the fact that the USA is not centre of the universe, and it is these people I take my hat off to.

As for your question, I watch american TV/movies, listen to american music and eat food imported from america. I hate bush and my previous comments give you an idea what I think of the majority of the american tourists.
THIS DOES NOT MAKE ME A HIPOCRATE.
You might think you are making a valid point but it is rubbish.
Think about it this way, according to you, say you didn't like scottish politics or thought our TV programs were crap.
Then you would be a hipocrate if you have ever taken penicillin.

You can't bunch this stuff together.

Answer 3

Because no matter how you put it, American movies and American politics are not interlinked, they are not one in the same. American movies and music are mainly entertaiment, music is getting more political, but thats just the artists opinions. I dont like the fact that the world is americanising and more to the point that it is letting itself become america. How is watching american movies contributing to that? It does if i come out of the cinema and start calling the path a sidewalk and teh motorway a freeway, and start talking with an annoying nasally drawl, but other wise, theres no harm. People criticise american politics because, lets be honest, the policies are shite. British policies are rubbish aswell, its not like im being one sided. 'These people' were probably marching against bush and his foreign policy of 'bring em on' I dont know, i never even heard about marches in london.

Answer 4

How exactly is drinking Coke linked to disliking the current American government?? Don't be ridiculous. Apart from anything else, George Clooney one of the biggest critics of American policies in the world today.

Answer 5

I didn't know there was a demonstration but if there was then all I can say is that it's a select few. I love America and all things American. I'm English and I would much prefer it if these people had demonstrated about the rise in council tax, illegal immigrants and all the other things going wrong with this country. Maybe I'll put that on my "to do" list ! Don't worry - most of us love your country. (That is if you are from America).

Answer 6

Sadly, American big business (including Hollywood) is pretty hard to get away from. Go to any cinema in the UK and see what films are showing, and try to pick the non-American ones. You'll be lucky if there ARE any. I prefer British films but we hardly make any due to our film industry being dead. Even things like Harry Potter, written by a British Author and starring a British/European cast are still American financed. Its difficult to avoid unles you just stop watching films altogether and people have to have some leisure entertainment.

Same goes for Coke. Most of the big soft drinks companies are American owned. Can you name any British ones. Irn Bru? Yuk.

As for George Clooney and Heat - I couldn't give a **** about him and never read Heat. Its Brain-rot. Only idiots and chavs read crap like that or give a toss for the D-list losers featured in it. And most British chavs are more interested in Big Brother rejects than Hollywood film stars anyway.

Im not a masive fan of America but wouldn't say I was totally anti-American. I would prefer not to have to watch American films and buy American products all the time - I would like tohave some choice and "buy British" occasionally but when you are talking about things like films its bloody hard to do so. There's nothing going on film-wise over here and all our best actors get snapped up by Hollywood to make Hollywood shite (They have even got our own Welsh Boy Ioan Gruffudd now - in that shitty "Fantastic Four" effort - it was so funny to hear the Yanks trying to pronounce his name and asking him if he was "Irish" or "Scottish" and could he say something in "Gaelic" for them - presumably they have never heard of Wales! LOL!)

Answer 7

Probably because American culture permeates almost every other culture. All the biggest movies are made by American movie studios. American lead companies like McDonalds and Coca Cola infiltrate almost every country.

There is a lot of hypocrisy but it is very difficult to irradicate all American influences from your life when they surround you everyday.

Answer 8

As a kid one watches Indian and American movies but as you grow up one begins to see, French, Japanese, Korean and Italian cinema.... you can never enjoy a Hollywood movie again.

Most Holywood movies are so hero centric, so gizmo driven, so shamefully patriotic that you start puking as you being to understand them.

The same goes for coke!

Sorry you chose wrong things to appreciate... Better things would have been the Grand Cannyon, Warm common people, diversity and now seriously threatened democracy and freedom of expression.

Please acquire some modesty and learn to respect other nations.

Answer 9

Maybe, but I thank them for spending the money here in the U.S. since it helps our economy. People have the right (read the Bill of Rights) in this country to say what they want with only a very few exceptions (for now, because both parties want to limit free speech to only things they agree with.) like yelling fire in a crowded theater, liable, and slander (liable and slander are gray areas because people have the right to hold opinions even if they are not true they just can't pass them as fact)

Answer 10

Speaking as British, I personally am fascinated by America, some good and some bad. And there's nothing like an ice cold Coke