kurt's nightmare

Generally, I post once a week. Topics are randomly selected and depend mostly upon whether it's baseball season or not. Other topics will include sex, politics, old girlfriends, music, and whatever else pops into my little brain. If you'd like to read, or ignore, my blog about China: http://meidabizi.blogspot.com/

Name:
Location: Dayton, OH, Heard & McDonald Islands

I'm an Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Dayton. I represent no one but myself, and barely do that. I'm here mostly by accident.

Monday, July 20, 2009

Thanks, BBC!

This morning I was listening to the BBC World News. It's nice to hear what the rest of the world thinks about: a lot less about Michael Jackson and "Jon and Kate Plus Eight," a lot more about India, China, and, for that matter, Afghanistan.

Imagine how pleased I was that they picked Mark Muller to represent not just Missouri (where I lived a good part of my life) but the United States (where I've lived virtually all of my life, so far.) Mark is offering an AK-47 with every pickup he sells. I understand his desire to sell trucks, and this market can't be the best.

I was even more overjoyed that a broadcast that is heard from LA to Beijing, seems to be the best news available in virtually the entire continent of Africa, and a couple of other places, also took time to offer some of Mark's more trenchant analyses, not just in political theory, but in the very nature of human beings, at least the good ones. (It seemed clear from Mark's insights that "good ones" refers to a proper subset of Americans.)

In just a couple of minutes, the entire planet got these views, which no doubt are regarded as representative of all ("good") Americans. Or maybe just all Americans.

These are more or less direct quotes, but they are from memory so I eschewed quotation marks.

a) All Americans like guns. Period. "Except the commies."

b) Americans did not get their rights from men, but from God.

c) Americans can and will do anything they want.

I think, actually, Mark may well represent a not unpopular view. But there may be some interesting implications. For instance

a') God does not give rights to Commies.

b') God thinks it is a right to have an AK-47

c') Americans, when doing whatever they want, know their behavior is endorsed by God.

Mark only had a couple of minutes of airtime, but I don't wonder why people around the world are happy to wonder about Americans, given this is what we think. I can't decide whether the BBC owes equal time to those who might quibble with some of Mark's views, or whether some bright American TV producer should snap up the rights to the reality show starring Mark.

9 Comments:

Blogger Bazarov said...

Why, oh why, is he offering a commie gun with every truck he's selling? And how many American soldiers has the Автомат Калашникова 47 killed? Oh, the irony. Some true blooded Americuhn should go kick his pink-o ass all over his car lot. What's he selling? Rice-burners? Or worse yet, is he hawking off a bunch of GAZs to unsuspecting, red blooded Americuhns? Why doesn't he offer an M4 or M16 instead?
America: the land with the smartest intelligentsia and the dumbest population of the modern world. I can't move soon enough.

10:22 AM  
Blogger Jefferey said...

It was almost like he was baiting the BBC reporter, but the BBC guy didn't bite.

But, yeah, the interview was a hoot.

8:24 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I'm sure at some point Mark Muller will google himself, and come across this blog. In the interest of conveying to him what much of the rest of the country thinks, here's a sample: (are you listening, Mark?)

Mark Muller is anti-american, despite his delusions to the contrary. His actions are speeding up the demise of this country.

Mark Muller is about as far away from a Christian as we can get in this country. His actions are insuring the advent of humanism and atheism.

The fact that he is doing all this for profit, is of course indicative of his hypocrisy.

10:07 AM  
Blogger kmosser said...

It is an interesting marketing strategy. Simply from the perspective of a business plan, do you really want to "enrage liberals"? I know plenty of "liberals" who buy pick-up trucks.

So, from a cost-benefit perspective: do you sell more trucks by cheering up the wing-nuts (and, of course, hipping them to a cool gun) or by alienating part of your market? Even in Butler, MO, there are a few folks who might buy their truck from someone who appears, well, more stable.

On the other hand, the "advent" of atheism (interesting juxtaposition there!) might have its advantages.

When was the last time you heard of an atheist suicide bomber?

11:23 AM  
Blogger Bazarov said...

"No, they didn't have guns back then, but I do believe he'd carry a sword."

Wow. This whole time I thought Jesus was someone completely different. Next thing I know I'll find out Ghandi was a gang leader.

9:53 AM  
Blogger bmackintosh said...

It is funny how people like Mr. Muller espouse views like that but never are around when it comes to wanting to employ the majority of the American middle & working classes. There there for gun sales but not to ensure that we have gun factories. They're against "commies" but never step up to keep the "commies" from taking our jobs through outsourcing.
When it comes to having the Pentagon outsource engineering to India, they defend the loop hole and it takes another "commie" like Edward Kennedy to fight against it, stating national security as a reason. National security concerns are thrown out the window when it comes to maximizing ROI for military contractors.

Of course liberals are just as guilty. I recently read about an anti-discrimination suit against Westchester county to force low income housing in wealthy white neighborhoods. The non-profit that brought up this suit would do so much better for minorities by fighting for more living wage jobs so they can buy into those neighborhoods organically and not be forced down people's throats. Perhaps there are no legal fees to be had in pressuring Walmart to source domestically produced products.

9:04 AM  
Blogger Rev. David N. Mosser, Ph.D. said...

I have never been prouder of my little brother.--dnm

3:52 PM  
Blogger kmosser said...

Thanks, bro!

4:41 PM  
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4:20 AM  

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