Steve,

Funny you posted that, I wrote and published a paper back in college a year ago saying the exact same thing:

“For all of Moore’s cheering of a grand social movement of social justice from those from the liberal end of the spectrum, it is the Islamist global guerillas that have gained the spotlight in the creation of a global social movement.”

Moore is the guy who wrote The Second Superpower Rears its Beautiful Head”, saying that the Seattle WTO Protesters crowd was the 2nd Superpower.

Please check it out at my personal web site, www.djpr.us. Its the "In the Midst of the Swarm" article.

Please read it and let me know what you think.

Meanwhile, France (and its retarded stepchild, Canada) has spearheaded new UN rules allowing fragile cultures (like their own) to block the exports of dynamic cultures (such as ours).

UN rules? Surely the relevant body is the WTO? Last I heard, UN General Assembly resolutions were non-binding and lacked any force in law, international or not.

The great irony of this idea is not that the UN can do such a thing, but that France and Canada fail to grasp that what they are doing is preventing their citizens from buying something they want.

This is not the action of a healthy society.

So who wants to start running black-market hollywood DVDs up to Canada? ;-)

Just more evidence that Mark Steyn is the greatest columnist in the world today. I've yet to be disappointed in anything he's written. His ability to get his point across while maintaining that irreverent sense of humor is fantastic. Sorry, but words fail me.

The problem (for them) is that these types of rules don't really help them preserve their culture. Rules like this just make their cultures all the more anemic.

Cultural Darwinism?

Make that "Intellectually Disadvantaged" stepchild please.

Bill Quick posted an article earlier this week from a Canuck paper.

Seems Americans are staying home.

He wondered if it was the anti-Americanism displayed by their PM and administration.

Ahem, that "retarded stepchild" would more rightly be characterized as Quebec. Ottawa, like a middle-aged man trying to keep an indiferent wife, is willing to capitulate to numerous demands (like 'honoring' Quebec's distinct society and allowing English-language restrictions in the province, as well as shovel money into the place like its nobody's business) just to keep her in the home.
When you get into the Anglo areas, (ie, most everywhere else), 'American' influences abound, from TV to music, movies, computer games, magazines, newspapers, books, etc.

But, if this is really a pressing issue, should we petition to block more Chinese movies from hitting our shores (love 'Infernal Afairs', not so much for 'Hero' or 'House of Flying Dagger')? Can we block Japan from sending crappy cartoons (ie, Pokemon, Digemon and all its ilk)?
Should this have been done to block the 'British Invasion' (ie, Beatles, Rolling Stones, Cream, Led Zepplin, etc.)?

The fact is, cultures should not be static. They grow, and they feed off of other cultures. Rock may have been an American invention, but the Brits didn't do too badly with it (and you find the occasional Canuck who has also done well).
But, according to this UN proposal, this was a bad thing. This is no more than a group of Elders getting together and telling people what music they can't listen to.
And we all know how well that works out.

The UN. Sigh. If only they held the power they think they do.