cultural imperialism

[Yoshie Furuhashi]

>Two items from today's NYT:
>
>>But the ideology, it seems, never sank in. When Taliban soldiers 
>>arrived they smashed every television set they could find. As they 
>>approached his home, Muhammad Asif, a young shopkeeper, rushed his 
>>Sharp 17-inch television and VCR to the backyard, where he buried 
>>them.
>>
>>Since then, Mr. Asif has dreamed of the day when he would be able 
>>to watch again. That moment arrived today when he unearthed his 
>>television and slipped a weathered copy of "Titanic" into the VCR.
>
>and
>
>>It was through Mr. Mir's connections with the Taliban that he was 
>>able to interview Mr. bin Laden for the first time, in March 1997. 
>>An escorted journey through the mountains of northeastern 
>>Afghanistan led him to a small artificial cave. Before he met Mr. 
>>bin Laden, he was thoroughly searched.
>>
>>During the first meeting, Mr. bin Laden played the generous host, 
>>serving a roasted sheep and Pepsi.
>
>Cultural purists must be alarmed!
>
>Doug

On one hand, it's a funny anecdote; on the other hand, the popularity 
of Coke, Pepsi, etc. in poor nations is often a sad index of the 
absence of potable tap water.
-- 
Yoshie

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* Anti-War Organizing in Columbus Covered by the Media: 
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