The good news is that he will continue to contribute to Oxblog.
He has a post up today in fact. Jet-lagged and glad to be home, David has some interesting things to say about his time in England, as well as anti-Americanism, globalisation, life in Israel, cultural differences, American idealism… I told you he was jet-lagged, right?
It’s a piece of free writing that covers a lot of subjects but it’s also a revealing account of David’s experiences as an American in England over the past three years.
It’s not easy being an American overseas these days, even in England, and David describes a common method many of us sometimes use to avoid unnecessary confrontation.
The political differences that divided Britian and America after September 11th helped me to place all sorts of other Anglo-American differences in context. For example, my occasional Australian accent was a product of my first, pre-Sept. 11 year at Oxford. But the anonymity it provided became something entirely different after the Towers fell.Pretending to be Canadian is the usual choice for Americans travelling incognito but an Australian accent, if you can master it, provides much the same protection.
I know some people back home who used to balk when they heard about this kind of thing. But the reasons for keeping a low profile when travelling abroad have never been more compelling.
Because every encounter is an international relation. Because the curiosity, awe and resentment that American provokes transforms every encounter into a social experiment. Like it or not, every American has to stand in for America.That’s certainly been my experience in England and I hear things are worse for Americans in France and Germany.
Oh and David, get back to the analysis, you’re making me homesick.
