# Cultural export and identity politics

- Link: https://www.andreidraganescu.info/2016/09/20/cultural-export-and-identity-politics/
- Published: 2016-09-20T10:43:51+03:00
- Author: Andrei Draganescu

![](https://draganescu.files.wordpress.com/2016/09/a186b-1c_c2m5fww07cfpl_b8mxaq.
jpeg)

European culture pounded on to be reduced to the Roman nostalgia and Medieval Fantasy

#### What if the world stops appropriating the american way?

The american way, the american dream, the american identity is a culture of freedom,
cowboys, feet raised on the desk, cigar and whiskey, brash dreaming and freedom 
to build fences, the cult of the property, pioneers, innovation and competition 
as social medicine, the English language as a lingua franca, the music and movies,
the global corporate propaganda about high profile values, like choice, rebellion,
democracy, individualism, the damn flag itself as a branding item of this planet.

The american identity is lubricated into no friction appropriation, in every corner
of the world. In renewed democracies, in poor countries, in developing nations, 
in rich countries with systemic tidal forces of population import, in the east as
the white man, in the west as the prototypical Yankee or the lone ranger.

A culture built on top of the melting pot, a culture which is constructed, and serves
as the sealed cover that helps the pressure build in the pot, a culture pushed relentlessly
to be appropriated as a means of cultural conquest, the true empire based on promoting
the U.S.A. brand’s unique selling proposition:

### Earth’s most advanced nation, army and economy

Which we know is a story, like any USP, but we still want it to be true. Except 
for the army part, which compensates the inflated nation concept.

How to respond to this invitation to appropriation and what role does identity politics
have in geopolitical strategies?

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**Addendum:**

I am a pro american, pro-european citizen of an E.U. member state. I voted for a
close relationship with the U.S. whenever I was presented with the chance to do 
so. For my country the unrestrained mingling of the US influencers with how we run
the place is a good thing, a thing keeping us infused in checks against the other
brand: the Russian world domination vanity. So this is in no way an anti american
idea. It is a valid dilemma on this joke:

> — OMG, the Russians went to the Moon and they painted it red!
>  — No worries, the
> Americans went there too and wrote Coca-Cola on it.

The world politics continues to present itself as a duopoly, while we all know it
really is an oligopoly filled with souls sold to the devil and hard choices and 
many odd friends. But to the market made of people’s motivation the duopoly of Russian
Federation and U.S.A. is a good enough communication plan.

If this sounds a bit simplistic, it is. To quote Nassim Taleb, which is just as 
right logically even though he supports Trump raising doubts on his personality:

> It is as irrational to reject all conspiracy theories as it is to accept them.

Therefore my dilemma on identity politics is valid as for centuries countries used
cultural infection as a means to control the market share of people’s motivation.

How will the containment of culture inside identity groups face the larger game 
played far beyond the daily life of people?

Will the policing of fiction, such as [the current problem with Lionel Shriver’s speech,](https://medium.com/@yassmin_a/i-walked-out-of-the-brisbane-writers-festival-keynote-address-this-is-why-78a4d8c4b7ac#.nvr1xr7fa)
be of any good while specialized communicators construct propaganda and shove crafted
desirable identities into societies by means of a zillion channels, from advertising
to PR, from lobby to patronage of arts, from trade to market consolidation effects?

Food for thought,

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Love me, I dare you,

A