America Pop
One of my friends in college was a Japanese guy, here in the U.S. getting his master’s degree in “American Pop Culture”. He had a degree in marketing, andworked for a Japanese marketing agency, and he was taking a break from his work to develop some expertise that would help him more effectively target the American market. Although we haven’t kept in touch, the idea of someone pursuing a graduate degree in pop culture always fascinated me, andI think itmade me pay a bit more attention to pop cultureever since.
Last weekend, I was able to play amateur cultural anthropologist and observe one particular class of pop-culture meme in action. I was having lunch at the airport, and overheard a rather boisterous self-identified geek relating a story to his friends, all of whom were definitely not geeks. The story line was a familiar one; “Once upon a time in the land of Unix, there was a pure-hearted young man named Richard Stallman. The people of the land toiled beneath the crushing weight of the Empire’s brutal reign. The community cried out for a savior to deliver them from oppression andrestore to themcontrol of their own destiny…” The person telling the story missed a few points, exaggerated some others, and fumbled a bit by trying way too hard to get his audience to laugh about the recursive nature of “GNU” (they never got it); but at the end it was satisfying enough. We all know the story.
In some ways, the basic plot is universal, and certainly you can find the same storyas far back asthe Scottish legends of the warriors who fought the Roman occupiers, or even the story of Moses in the Bible. But I think the story plays better in America than most other places. The names vary, but the story is remarkably consistent in its ability to capture our hearts. The key ingredients of the story are this:
- The empire is too big and powerful; you can never hope to control it or reason with it head-on.
- The empire mindlessly serves its own desires, and you and yourcommunityare collateral damage. You will go extinct and the empire will not cry.
- Only through action can you hope to earn survival for yourself and your people. You may never eliminate the empire entirely, but you can heave off the yoke of opression from the neck of your own people.
A very current example of this meme can be found in the story of Sherman Austin, who began serving a one-year term in federal prison last week. At the face, he’s not much different than any other college kid who styles himself as a revolutionary/hacker and gets into trouble with the system. But when you follow the story he spins, he could easily have some serious marketing appeal.He’s sort ofa crossover between Mitnick and Mumia, and although I highly doubt that he has the marketing clout of either the “Free Mumia” or now-defunct”Free Mitnick” campaigns, you have to consider that he is just starting out. One hopes, to be sure, that he reflects while in prison and decides to become a quietly productive and settled member of society. But I am very skeptical of this outcome.
The main proof comes from the comments he makes in every interview, and his speech to the crowd at the Che Cafe benefit last month (in audio). He sounds the way that Bobby Seale must have sounded, and he seems to be drawn to the mic. All bets are that he is back at the mic the minute he gets out of prison, and with his talent for attracting controversy he is sure to continue his rise in notoriety.The anarchistcommunity are undoubtedly salivating over this guy the same way that the democrats are currently salivating over Wesley Clark.
At the Che Cafe benefit, Zack De La Rocha recited “From a German War Primer“, by Bertolt Brecht. It’sa very well-crafted poem. If you’re familiar with the Japanese Anime “Cyborg 009“, read the tail part of the poem and tell me if you think there is a resemblance:
GENERAL, YOUR TANK IS A POWERFUL VEHICLE
It smashes down forests and crushes a hundred men.
But it has one defect:
It needs a driver.
General, your bomber is powerful.
It flies faster than a storm and carries more than an elephant.
But it has one defect:
It needs a mechanic.
General, man is very useful.
He can fly and he can kill.
But he has one defect:
He can think.
~
Finally, since the topic is pop culture, I should point at this story of a Bosnian town who are erecting a statue of Bruce Lee. The story is funny, profound, and even a bit sad. “To be honest, I get sick every time I tell someone I am from Mostar and they ask me whether I am from the east or west side of the city (the city is divided into the Bosniak east side and the Croat west side),” said Nino Raspudic. “That is one of the reasons for building a statue of Bruce Lee. We are hoping that someone in the future will say: “I knew Mostar. That is the city with the Bruce Lee statue. If we succeed in that, then I can retire.”