Americanity

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If you doubt that "Americanism" is a religion, watch the beginning of a football game. A huge religious icon (the American flag) is spread across the field. Everyone puts their hands over their hearts (similar to making the sign of the cross) and then sings a religious hymn ("The Star Spangled Banner"). The singer is surrounded by a coterie of "monks": Marines, Navy SEALs, paratroopers, etc. Then, like a great spectacle in the coliseum from pagan times, two groups of warriors do battle, interspersed with ads touting consumption (the chief sacrament of Americanism) and the mystical ecstasies that can be achieved by total devotion to one's subcult (favorite team).

Comments

  1. Greg Pandatshang11:25 PM

    Is Americanity incompatible with other religions? I am a Buddhist. Nothing you describe above seems to require reviling the Three Treasures. I don't see why I couldn't participate in both. (This does seem like normal Buddhist behaviour: Chinese Buddhists are normally Taoist-Buddhist-Confucians. I don't even know what to say about the Japanese.)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. gcallah12:45 AM

      Greg, to me, "Americanity" exalts the ego and consumption, not Buddhist values, I think!

      Delete
  2. Prateek2:07 PM

    You have written a very profound post under 150 words.

    ReplyDelete

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