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Politics : Support the French! Viva Democracy! -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: zonder who wrote (672)	4/25/2003 8:27:14 AM
From: average joe	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 7830

"It is not surprising that in its several hundred years of tradition, America has not established a significant culture of its own." I think what you mean is they have failed to develop a distinct culture. You are wrong of course they have developed several distinct sub-cultures and the entire world is jealous of this. I suppose you think someone sitting in a side-walk cafe smoking Gitennes after watching a Jerry Lewis movie drinking anti-freeze cut wine with his beret on backwards is the epitome of culture. The French really only had one hero... newadvent.org and of course she is very cute... frenchfilms.topcities.com

To: zonder who wrote (672)	4/25/2003 12:19:46 PM
From: gamesmistress	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 7830

OK, I'll bite - why is this "sad"? Speaking as an American of French-Canadian descent who has visited France several times, loves reading history, has a nodding acquaintance with art, literature and philosophy thereby, and isn't really conscious of feeling "sad" because the US doesn't meet some cultural standard...

To: zonder who wrote (672)	4/26/2003 8:26:03 AM
From: Lane3	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 7830

Or maybe, I don't like jazz at all and don't listen to or follow its artists. If you don't think that Wynton Marsalis and jazz count as "culture," then I don't know what you mean by that word. Marsalis is a virtuoso classical artist, as well, BTW. You might want to browse Amazon music and check out his repertoire. I don't enjoy cool jazz at all, but I very much enjoy Dixieland, a unique musical genre, and ragtime. You might want to give them a listen, just for the exposure. There's another genre unique to the French-Canadians who settled near New Orleans called Zydeco, which is also interesting. Among my favorite music genres is Andean folk music, a part of the "culture" of Peru, Bolivia, etc. If you've never been exposed to it, you might want to give it a listen, too.

To: zonder who wrote (672)	4/27/2003 5:09:27 PM
From: Tom Clarke	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 7830

You need not be sad, but we appreciate your concern. I didn't say Pepe Le Pew is the only French icon, I said he is the only French icon the translates globally. Your culture, however vibrant, will always be indigenous, never international. There are many varieties of jazz. Give a listen to Diana Krall's latest, Live in Paris - it may change your opinion of the music. The album was recorded at the Paris Olympia. Are you familiar with the venue? I've a feeling it's more like Carnegie Hall than a smoky nightclub. The French have always been receptive to jazz, I'm surprised at your disdain. They gave a stage to artists back when they had difficulty getting a stage in our own country, due to racism. They were also receptive to some of the more eccentric talents, like Django Reinhardt and Stephan Grappelli, and gave them their first stage. The French like jazz so much they even tried to create their own brand of it with bandleaders like Claude Bolling. But it didn't quite pan out, as it was too much like novelty music and didn't have the staying power of American jazz.