Fat Americans vs France-BB

[flyer]

My wife went to school in France, and we’ve spent a lot of time in that country, in England and, others.

I have to agree, the “feeling” you get, especially in the cities, is that of the development of a very “Americanized” society. It’s been sad to see the “old world” charm all but disappear from many countries around the world.

That’s why we prefer staying out in the country with friends whenever we can to escape that, and to immerse ourselves in the “real deal.”

As far as the basketball team goes–it should be interesting.

[Jazzman]

Many would argue European subsidies and quotas are killing off the small farm holders, and thankfully “other” restaurants far out number fast food joints. I think the old world charm is still alive and well since preservation is very robust in Europe, even though it depends largely on tourism. The US has been more successful in exporting youth culture than an American way of life per se. I don’t think texting, tweeting, or being frantic is any more one country than picking one’s nose, and actually when it comes to fast food, it all originally came from Europe anyway. Healthy food is a class issue, for as long as a Big Mac is cheaper than a stick of celery.

[briansd1]

Allan, as you have and others have said, globalized consumer culture is inexorable.

I have some friends and relatives in France and I keep up with the news there. I’ve not been there in 3 years because there are other places to go. But people come visit me. They love the convenience of our car culture, the sunny weather of San Diego, and how cheap all the products are over here. But they all say that American culture is soul-less and dry. Maybe that’s the trade-off for having all the consumer products we have here.

Jazzman, I hear you about being able to get good quality houses in France… But you’d be living in the French equivalent of Alabama (which is still much more desirable than the real Alabama, and without the distances you’d be closer to the big cities).

The-Shoveler, yes we have been winning. Because of our GDP, our military, our political and economic stability, we have outsize influence on the world. The changes have been beneficial to us. Our corporations are thriving and we are exporting our consumer culture. At the same time, we are absorbing other cultures and bettering our own. Now, we have have all kinds of choices in America, from food to fashion, to design, etc.., all at bargain prices. Those choices were not available to the average American several decades ago.

The big problem is that our gluttonous culture is making us sick and broke. Don’t know what the overall solution would be. But, as individuals, we can make the right choices in our own lives. Flyer has written some posts about that.

[flyer]

Very good points, Jazzman. Your point about food choice being a class issue is especially interesting. How astute of the fast food chains to capitalize upon that.

My wife is currently working on another screenplay (her 2nd career), and whenever she is doing research via travel, we prefer to immerse ourselves in the roots of the particular culture she is researching, so we try to avoid the “Americanized” element of any particular country. Besides, it’s just very boring to see more of what we can see at home.

[flyer]

Excellent post, Brian.

As a country, we really do “appear” to have it all–and on many levels we do–but there are some very deep cracks in our armour, and only time will tell if those can be repaired before we completely disintegrate.

[briansd1]

[quote=Allan from Fallbrook]

And Americans have truly lost their minds when it comes to sports. I coach and it seems like it gets worse every single year. No, sir, your 9 old is NOT going to be playing in the NFL, so please don’t spend $4,000 on a QB camp this summer.
[/quote]

Talking about culture, I think there a certain madness about parenting these days. People think their kids will join major league sports, become movie stars, or famous singers.

The sports and the talent shows on TV have driven people crazy.

I remember reading about how parents are naming their kids “Star” or other unusual names reflective of parents’ ambitions for their kids to stand out.

As we know, most kids will turn out to be ordinary people. I worry that the letdown will be painful.

Soon, half the population will be on SSRIs. More money making opportunities for the drug companies and corporate America.

[Aecetia]

ADM specializes in non GM food:http://www.mindfully.org/GE/GE3/ADM-Non-GMO-Premium.htm

Most of it is exported to Europe.

[flyer]

Interesting you should mention this about our culture, Brian.

My wife and I were having this exact discussion the other day. Because of her writing career, she does a tremendous amount of reading and research, and she found some staggering statistics on the fantasy world in which today’s parents are encouraging their kids to live–whether it be sports, music, modeling, or any other “star-making” premise.

I agree that the TV shows that inhabit the tube are probably most responsible for creating this cultural phenomenon.

The less than 1% who achieve any of these goals will leave the other 99% more than a little let down, and it’s really sad to see so many people buying into this.

[Allan from Fallbrook]

[quote=briansd1][quote=Allan from Fallbrook]

And Americans have truly lost their minds when it comes to sports. I coach and it seems like it gets worse every single year. No, sir, your 9 old is NOT going to be playing in the NFL, so please don’t spend $4,000 on a QB camp this summer.
[/quote]

Talking about culture, I think there a certain madness about parenting these days. People think their kids will join major league sports, become movie stars, or famous singers.

The sports and the talent shows on TV have driven people crazy.

I remember reading about how parents are naming their kids “Star” or other unusual names reflective of parents’ ambitions for their kids to stand out.

As we know, most kids will turn out to be ordinary people. I worry that the letdown will be painful.

Soon, half the population will be on SSRIs. More money making opportunities for the drug companies and corporate America.[/quote]

Brian: On the sports side, it’s due to what I call the “ESPN Effect”, wherein parents (and coaches, too) have been gulled into believing that, yes, their child will “beat the math” and become the next Peyton Manning, or A-Rod or Lebron James.

When I was a kid, I’d get up on Saturdays and watch whatever morning college game was on (generally a Big-10 or Pac-10 game.) and then go about my day following.

Nowadays, I can get up on Saturday morning and literally watch college football analysis/reportage/games from around 6:00a till as late as midnight, if I choose. I can watch ACC, SEC, Mountain West, Pac-12, Big-10, as well as Div-1AA, Div-2 and any of the other conferences that might catch my fancy. I can then turn around on Sunday and do exactly the same thing with the NFL. That’s just football. MLB, NBA and other sports are covered with just as much rabidity on any one of the 100+ channels I can order through DirecTV.

The money that now runs through the various systems (college and pros) is stupefying. Look at the pageantry of the Superbowl now. Even 20 years ago, it was nothing like it is now. Same thing with college bowl games. Millions upon millions of dollars are at stake, so that college football is now a hugely profitable industry (as well as farm system for the NFL.) You wonder why parents are going batshit? Hell, you USED to send your kid to college to get an actual education. Now it’s about the potential payday for Little Johnny, especially if he has a modicum of talent. The parents blissfully ignore the math, fervently convinced that, if they only spend the necessary money and push him into the “right” programs, well, miracles will happen.

Yeah, there are a LOT of people in for some major disappointment.

[sdrealtor]

I could be completely wrong but I think SoCal is an outlier in this regard. Out here you have affluence combined with an amazing gene pool. When I look up and down the streets of my neighborhood they are filled with former Division 1 scholarship athletes. There are several professional athletes as well as relatives of sports legends around here.

When I first moved here I realized my kids would never be able to compete with that and opted out of most of the organized sports here. They are far more competitive than where I came from and I came from a big time high school in NJ (kinda like Torrey Pines or La Costa Canyon) that regularly won championships in many sports and many alumni that have had professional sports careers. I figured my kids would be smart and that would serve them better in life.

When I talk with friends back east they still view sports as fun and part of a well rounded upbringing but not a way to make money. Many of these kids are seriously talented atheletes but their parents arent sucked into beleiving they are more than they are. I truly beleive its different here.

[Allan from Fallbrook]

[quote=sdrealtor]I could be completely wrong but I think SoCal is an outlier in this regard. Out here you have affluence combined with an amazing gene pool. When I look up and down the streets of my neighborhood they are filled with former Division 1 scholarship athletes. There are several professional athletes as well as relatives of sports legends around here.

When I first moved here I realized my kids would never be able to compete with that and opted out of most of the organized sports here. They are far more competitive than where I came from and I came from a big time high school in NJ (kinda like Torrey Pines or La Costa Canyon) that regularly won championships in many sports and many alumni that have had professional sports careers. I figured my kids would be smart and that would serve them better in life.

When I talk with friends back east they still view sports as fun and part of a well rounded upbringing but not a way to make money. Many of these kids are seriously talented atheletes but their parents arent sucked into beleiving they are more than they are. I truly beleive its different here.[/quote]

sdr: I think there are several areas of the country (when it comes to football, that is) that have a similar focus to SoCal. Look at Texas, for instance. What’s that old saying about the three most important things in Texas? “God, country and football, and not necessarily in that order.”

Same goes for Florida, Ohio, parts of Pennsylvania. I do agree that the vast majority of the country isn’t as batshit crazy, though. You’re also right about the serious amount of coaching talent in SoCal. Not uncommon to see quite a few former Div-1 collegians on the sidelines of Pop Warner teams these days. I coached with a former 4 year starting middle linebacker from Oklahoma for a couple of seasons. Must be the great weather or something.

[sdrealtor]

I understand that other niches of the country are football crazy but I dont know of anywhere else that is crazy about so many sports. And that serious coaching talents is on the sidelines because they have offspring from the same gene pool. Its all over the place around here. One of my friends used to play tennis every once in a while with Rod Laver….Rod F’in Laver!!!! His son used to live in our community. One of the top golf instructors in the country lives half a block away. Mickelson owns a house in my hood for his in laws. Dave Roberts lived here when he was on the Padres. Former next door neighbor was a D1 scholarship volleyball player and another guy in my hood has a couple Olympic volleyball medals (Gold and Silver-I’ve worn them which was one of the coolest moments in my life). Two doors down my neighbors are former D1 swimmers. There’s a world class tri-athelete around the corner. One of the top funny car racers lives a block away. This is just my neighborhood and thats not the half of it. The weather and lifestyle here is a magnet for atheletes. I bump into Tony Hawk, Rob Machado, Marshall Faulk and Shaun White from time to time.

Guys like this are everywhere in NCC.

[Allan from Fallbrook]

sdr: And Orange County and LA is very much the same. Yeah, definitely agree about the all sports aspect of it (versus focus on single sports in other parts of the country.)

I don’t remember where I saw the statistic, but California produces a huge amount of athletes (as does Texas), which you’d expect, given our population and talent pool, but even so it’s pretty amazing.

I was talking to a work colleague in Tulsa and he mentioned that the youth football organization in Tulsa has a draft combine and tryout system in place… and his kid is a 3rd grader! Parents are also expected to sign a contract committing the kid for the season, with no exceptions. Friggin’ crazy.

[flyer]

Interesting stuff on the San Diego sports and entertainment front. Same story with our friends and neighbors in RSF.

All of the locations mentioned are exceptional environments in which to raise kids, that’s why it’s so unbelievable that the stats reveal only 1-2% of these kids actually achieve their dreams in sports, entertainment, etc., and that’s what’s shocking. It’s definitely not for lack of effort on the part of the parents.

Two of our kids have great careers on the corporate side of the entertainment business. They interact with “stars” everyday, but on the other end of the spectrum, they also see a side to the business that is heartbreaking.

Families move to LA or NYC from all over the world for a kid to get their chance in film, theater, music, modeling, etc., etc., but when they get to the “big leagues” sometimes, in less than a year or even a day, it’s over for them.

To add a true story. We were all recently at a very famous persons home in Malibu for a party, and an entire family tried to crash it to get their kid an audition for an upcoming movie role. Apparently, an agent had already given them a thumbs down, but they were determined. Unfortunately it did not work out well.

[briansd1]

Flyer, my SIL’s brother has been trying to make it in Hollywwod. Can you help with a referral? Haha…

The flip side of that is there are lots of beautiful talented people with good education working in the service industry in LA while waiting for their big break. Hotels and restaurants have their pick of over qualified employees.

[Author]

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