Gaps

Well... it's definitely been a long while since I've written, and I think it's because I've now gone beyond just being a study abroad student down here. I'm officially living here, and that makes my life a lot less interesting to all those involved. I thought maybe I'd just do a little segment about how beneficial it is to live somewhere else for a while, and some of the habits I find myself falling into.

For starters:

Living abroad is a great experience. I'm not just talking about studying abroad for a semester... that's a great experience, but for most people it's more about the fun of being in a foreign country than about self-analysis or reflection on the workings of the world.

Of course, I can't really talk about that because I've never spent just one semester abroad. However, since I've now been here through 1) the earthquake in Christchurch; 2) the NFL lockout; and 3) the debt ceiling crisis, I think I've gotten a good view of what it's like to be an outsider. At least in perspective of the US.

And honestly, it doesn't look so good. With everything that happened with the debt (including recently the rating downgrade), it really seems like there are parties and groups within the US that don't give a shit about anyone but themselves. I think you know whom I'm referring to. They want to live up to their promises to their constituents (and their constituents don't realize how much  money and how many people standards of living are based on the US economy) and they may or may not understand the complexity of the world that we live in today. They might say, "So what if we are forced to default on our loans? We are the ones that brought ourselves to this situation", but the truth is that the consequences of a major superpower (arguably THE major superpower) unable or unwilling to fulfill their financial obligations goes FAR far beyond the country in question and the present circumstances. The thing about the world now-a-days is that the ripple effect doesn't occur in a body of water the size of an ocean. The global economy is so interconnected that huge vibrations from one place bounce around and end up hurting everyone many times, and to many different degrees.

It makes me unbearably sad to see the politicians and voters in certain places in the country brush off concern from international actors. They either don't understand how much international opinion matters in our economy, or they are callous enough to believe the US can withdraw itself from the international sphere without causing major interruptions in the daily lives of every American. And those politicians, academics, or just knowledgable people that do understand aren't being listened to. First and foremost our President.

Another subject to wonder about... what the hell are the republicans doing with their lives? Where is their front-runner? Mitt Romney? That guy was toast after Iowa last time... and he doesn't seem to be doing any better this time around. I'm very confused at their strategy at this point.

I guess another observation I've had since I've been here is how much we take for granted in our "exported" culture. Yes, the American culture is exported to a certain degree, but there are also a lot of things that even countries that are very alligned to ours (like Australia) do things very differently and have their own norms based on historical and culture values that differ from ours. The biggest example I can think of is the way gambling is handled over here. It's widespread, and considered a major social policy issue. Americans don't really address gambling that much because it's so limited in area, but it can be a huge problem if left to it's own devices. Another thing is music. There is a huge culture for Australian music down here, so big that they don't really listen to things that I would consider "quintessential" music for people our age. Bands like Dave Matthews Band, Sublime, or Dispatch are completely unheard of down here... because they have a lot of really good bands and don't need to import music on a wide scale. I don't know if anyone else has really thought about that a lot, but I was definitely under the impression before I got here that me and my australian mates would have a lot of common music.

Well, that's a lot to think about for now, so maybe I'll comment some more when I get time next week. Currently I'm waiting for my laundry to dry. Exciting.