This page tries to present a perspective on the US to those who do not live here. Right off the bat, let us point out the potentially ethnocentric way in which the short, seemingly innocuous title of this page, 'Americana' can connote something about the US which causes amusement and some scorn in some foreign neighbors. It is this: There are two continents with the 'family name' of 'America', yet US citizens routinely use 'America' to refer to just a single country. Most people in the world seem to forgive us for arrogating the label to ourselves, as it is not a conscious choice by us to slight anyone, but more a semantic habit; frankly, most people don't think about it. No biggie, finally. It's interesting to think of how the Florentine Amerigo Vespucci has been so strongly, if indirectly, immortalized through the assignment of his name to the two continents. For another, more lyrical name, you could also consider one with centuries-long resonance: Turtle Island.
In an effort to build bridges across the globe, we offer a collection of small items that give you a fuller sense of the continent-spanning US culture and its varied population; hope you enjoy it.
People seeking work more likely to suffer from bad credit
More and more employers are taking advantage of easy to find credit history on would-be job seekers, in addition to criminal background checks. This is very bad news for Americans who are on the job market, as many have poor credit. This is a relatively new phenomenon.
Black and White Photography - New York
There's something about the 'old' black and white style of photography that can be so compelling; maybe it's the way that it clarifies and sharply limns faces and structures; in any event, hope you enjoy these at times near-iconic views of a remarkable city.
Some old sheet music covers from the 1920's-1950's
I found these at an estate sale some years back. The estate sale (also known as tag sale) is a social phenomenon whose heyday is long since passed, as eBay and the PBS series 'Antiques Roadshow' have caused this once rich source of cool stuff to dry up drastically. It is not an auction. At times, the effect of going through the personal and household effects of a deceased person can be a bit creepy, and sometimes you feel as if you were intruding, as telltale signs of the family past may be lying out in plain sight. One time, in search of slide trays for our slide projector, we bought a dozen slide trays that still had slides in them from the world travels of the decedent and his wife. It was fascinating to see the Mediterranean, Egypt, and Panama in the 1930's, before pollution and garish modern architecture impacted those locales.
Fascinating Statistics
One out of every eight Americans who wed in 2007 met online. A survey that same year by Monster.com disclosed that 70% of men would stay at home if their household budget permitted, while almost half of them took paternity leave when it was available, pursuant to a law enacted under President Bill Clinton.
The Gun Culture in the US
According to historical accounts, the actual number of gun owners on the American frontier was smaller than one would think, given the rough-hewn nature of life at that time, at that place. Regardless of the percentage of ownership in the early days, the number of guns and gun owners in the US in the past 50 or so years is remarkably high, compared to the rest of the world. The University of Chicago's National Opinion Research Center (NORC), has been tracking gun ownership and attitudes on firearms since 1972, the longest-running survey on the subject in the United States. The NORC reports that the number of households with guns dropped from a high of 54 percent in 1977 to 34.5 percent in 2006. The percentage of Americans who reported personally owning a gun has shrunk to just under 22 percent (that's reported ownership, which to this author's mind means that the number is probably higher).
Those who unconditionally comdemn gun ownership should remember that there are thousands of incidents nationwide where a gun has deterred a crime, just as there are of course a lot of tragic accidents and hot-headed misuse of firearms. Also, not a small number of people do use firearms to supplement their meat supply. Surprising, perhaps, but true. As a final note, where else but America would there be a nexus between guns and the entrepreneurial impulse inspired by tragedy? Note the popularity of bullet-proof backpacks for school use, a jarring reminder of modern life in the US.
Story Corps
Almost 30,000 individuals have shared vignettes and reflections from their life through interviews with loved ones in a novel and bottom-up approach to telling the story of this country. Check it out.
The so-called 'Death Tax'
Throughout the history of this country, there has been advocacy of an inheritance (or wealth transfer) tax, as a way to hinder the growth of our own domestic aristocracy. Tom Paine first recommended it, and Andrew Carnegie, Theodore Roosevelt and Warren Buffet, over the years, have also. In classic public-relations fashion, the inheritance/estate tax was recast using the term 'Death Tax'. This approach made it easier to gain popular support for gradual and complete phasing out of that tax, and 40 states will have also eliminated it in lockstep. Buffett, in a recent interview with MacLean's magazine opined: "If you believe in a meritocracy you have to [favor inheritance taxes[, otherwise you've got a dynasty of wealth, and generally speaking we thought dynasties based on royal blood or something are a crazy idea in the U.S., and I think a dynasty based on wombs is kind of silly too." If you've ever read "The Rich and the Super-Rich then you would have a better understanding of the pervasive influence of inherited wealth. What seems to prevent an understandable 'economic populist' backlash is the persistence of the belief in the US that 'anyone can make it', so normal folks are reluctant to step on that dream, however unlikely it may be for them in particular.
The Smithsonian is a National Treasure
A wonderful set of museums clustered around the National Mall in Washington D.C. is open to all for free (if you consider that taxes pay for the museums, it's not really free, but entrance is free). Among them is a museum devoted to Natural History, and associated with it is a website for the Lemelson Center for the study of Invention and Innovation. Science and technology are not as 'hot' as they once were in the US, for a number of reasons, but the history of this area is rich and proud.
Worthwhile visit to one man's vision of small-town USA. (And we don't mean Walt Disney).
Along one of the main East-West arteries in Pennsylvania, near Pennsylvania Dutch Country, Roadside America (not the link to the left, which is a different site) has been a mainstay for vacationing families for over 7 decades. Entire miniature villages with animated figures, complement an extensive, endearing system of model trains. At the end of every show, the lights dim and the artificial sky becomes a projection of mainstream America. Plenty of parking, a picnic grove, some diners, a large gift shop---Truly a 'heartland' experience!
Ellis Island has a passenger search feature
See information about American ancestors who 'came over on the boat' during the heyday of that immigration center.
Ken Burns' serieson World War II
In his characteristic way, TV auteur Ken Burns has once again created a gripping television series (or film as he prefers to call it.) Given the subject matter, World War II, I suppose it would be hard for the series NOT to be gripping. As with his previous effort about the American Civil War, he traces the stories of several individuals and towns through the conflict as well as its prelude and some of its aftermath. We are once again reminded of the horrors the Germans and Japanese inflicted, as well as the corresponding heavy bombing we did against both of the populations of those combatants. There are no winners in war, only survivors. One wishes that the lessons of that time about the unpredictability of war, its brutalizing effect on warrior as well as civilian, and its wastefulness had been more present in the minds of those who allowed this country to engage in a war of choice and disastrous occupation in Iraq, thereby adding another generation to the rolls of the damaged. He is one of America's foremost story-tellers (or should we say 'story-capturers'?) .
A Nation of small businesses
I was fortunate for a while to work in Hoboken, and we had international clients, and I would always offer to take them into New York for an evening (they paid their own way; I was more a 'native guide'; had a regular circuit worked out). Anyway, I would always ask my visitors what struck them about New York, and many said all the small businesses; this was especially true for clients from oil-rich countries, which had strong centralized economies. It does seem to still be available for newcomers, because you put your whole life into getting that tienda up and running, or that dry cleaning place, gas station, small restaurant, or whatever the case may be. It's not an easy price to pay for entry into the American Dream, but there are fewer hindrances to starting a business here than in many parts of the world, and perhaps just as importantly, most employers do not look askance at someone who tried to start a business which later failed, for those people did not fail as individuals, only their undertaking. These risk-takers, and the entrepreneurial verve they add to the culture, continue to move this country forward.
Frederick Jackson Turner, and the Frontier
In the late 1800's, as the US added more territory, and settled it, the Pacific Ocean was seen as the natural culmination of the quest Westward, which began at an early time in the settlement of this continent by Europeans and Africans. Remember that originally, the colonies were clinging to the seaboard and the Mother Country, which tied them to goods from England. At one point in the formative years of the new Republic, the Appalachians were considered the western frontier. As an example of how things change, note the college 'Case WESTERN RESERVE' in Ohio, whose capitalized part refers to a tract of land in current Ohio reserved by an expansionist Connecticut back in the day Public projects like the canals in New York state began to open up the 'West', and the Louisiana Purchase added a thousand-mile wide extension to the frontier. Turner's thesis was that the American national character was influenced by the fact that the country was not entirely settled, unlike the Mother countries across the Atlantic. A bigger sense of possibilities seemed ever present. The ending of the early period of expansion, where the frontier was essentially pushed off the edge of the continent at the Pacific littoral, can be said to have induced a change in the national character, and to have added a romantic yearning for that frontier spirit. Some argue that our territorial lust was simply pushed into other lands, as the annexation of the Phillipines, Guam, and the Caribbean territories would loudly argue.
Notes on American English
Charity
Those statistics which seem to show that Americans give a paltry amount to international aid and charity are not the complete picture. Figures usually cited are for government-level donations; on the individual and family level, however, Americans are quite generous. The Charities Aid Foundation surveyed the field, and in philanthropic giving as a percentage of gross domestic product, the U.S. ranked first at 1.7 percent. No. 2 Britain gave 0.73 percent. On the individual and family level, a wider profusion of deserving organizations worldwide is available, to make their case, share their story, and maybe entice you to contribute, such as Kiva, Pardada Pardadi and Heifer International. In addition to the family-level generosity, American foundations, such as the Rockefeller and Gates Foundation, and large donors, such as Warren Buffet and George Soros, provide additional billions for global good. The Gates Foundation has focused on reducing hunger and fighting disease in developing countries as well as improving education in the U.S. With a recent Buffett pledge, it has an endowment of approximately $60 billion. 300 billion dollars were disbursed from US foundations in 2006 (granted, much of it going to domestic needs), but still, this is remarkable.
Road Trip to Atlantic City, NJ
Muslim Assimilation
The great majority of American Muslims consider themselves successfully integrated into the society, and their contribution to gathering intelligence about possible terrorists has been a significant contributor to our current period of safety from subsequent attacks. America is a religious country, in large part, so the devout, of any faith, should be able to expect a respectful hands-off approach to the particular exercise of that faith. This calm may also be related to the ability to start and own one's own business in the US. The common national desire to make money and live a comfortable life does tend to damp down passions from the old country, in my opinion, as well as the fact that the old country is just one of hundreds, and becomes subsumed into a larger melting pot, a pot admittedly uneven in its 'melting' results.
Coming soon
Road Trip to Colorado
American Exceptionalism
Military Tradition
Alexis de Tocqueville