Any patriotic and ordinary Americans who may be wondering how come I have this kind of title, I suppose.
It's the anniversary today. 9/11. Four years on, and now the world looks at the US on how it will handle the current event happening on its homesoil - Hurricane Katrina. The second time such an event on a major scale in the US soil, since 9/11.
It dawned on me this morning as I was having my breakfast that whateve that I was writing about yesterday seemed to be all the 'heavy' stuff and nothing light at all. I had forgotten to talk about The Weakest Link's specials on Celebrity Lookalikes. I was actually bracing for like those in the acting world and such but never did I realised...it's a celebrity lookalike, of sorts! There was someone who really looks and sound like the British Prime Minister Mr Tony Blair himself! Even the mannerisms are there too! Kind of freaky but I kept giggling throughout when the cameras are on the guy. Even Dad noticed of how the looks and voice really sound alike like the real person. And when there was also someone by the name of Jeanette who impersonate the Queen (you know, Queen Elizabeth II) and Dad said that the woman had the guts. Haha!
You know, the emergence of older fans at the Project Superstar had the press here took notice of the fan bases for the contestants. Especially for the winner, Kelvin Tan, or he is known as Weilian to all of us, has many fans who are housewives themselves. Ha...my mother is one of them. He may be a blind busker before the win, but then he had won the hearts of many of his voice. Yes, many reports had been about the controversy if whether if sympathy votes was part of it and I thought, what one reader who wrote to The Straits Times's Life! before that some had forgot that this is a singing competition already.
Speaking of that, you know, I was reading The Sunday Times's Lifestyle and it's the comment from one of The Straits Times's columunists Sumiko Tan about reflections of how she saw the US. From the experience of her brother-in-law who came from Alabama and not what the perception of an American is - loud (in terms of the way the US do things to the world like the pop culture and the invasion of Iraq), agressive and stuff. Her sister had settled in the US after the marriage.
There is strong religious belief and a genuine, generous, communitarian spirit (my sister told me Americans are rushing to open their homes to hurricane victims), yet violence and racism are commonplace.
People love their country and are deeply patriotic, yet there is so much political bitterness and also inter-state snobbery (it always amuses me how, when I mention "Alabama" to a city-living American, I invariably see a derisive flicker.)
It is a complex country, but one that is set to dominate the world for some time to come.
But, I wonder, have the damning images of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina shortened its reign?
Well, why did I quoted those paragraphs? Remember what I said yesterday's entry? Americans are proud to call themselves American but yet, so many issues like racial lines, still linger. In terms of dominating the world, I kind of beg to differ. I remembered a news report on CNA some days back about Asia's future growth in the wake of Hurricane Katrina will be slowed down but prosper soon. So...there.
If the US can still prove to the world for what it is worth, then I will reconsider the term - superpower, again. You know, I don't seemed to see it applying to that country, anymore. In the past, I will have told anyone my favourite place in the world is New York, but not after 9/11. It was all those questions running in my head on how come such thing can happen to the country which is just so powerful and influential in the world at that time? And also trying to push the idea of democracy to almost, everywhere.
So, London came into the scene soon after. But the bombings there had not deterred me. Now you know.
