Page 91 - GOTIL (ENG) Sample

Appendix 2

A Letter to Time Magazine

This letter to the European edition of Time, published on 1
September 1997, was in response to a lead article on American
economic, military, and cultural hegemony, in which
accompanying photos showed the McDonald’s arch in Beijing
and Coca-cola on sale in rural Pakistan.
McDonald’s and Coca-cola symbolize a grossly
materialistic civilization centered on profit making and
mindless enjoyment. That America is foisting this type
of anti-culture on other countries is nothing to be proud
of. Traditional religious, family, and social values are
being crushed by the relentless steamroller of Western
culture. Aestheticism and finer sentiments are subjugated
to lust, violence, and endless passion for material things.
America, take another look at yourself, lest you go down
in history as the most exploitive and intellectually decrepit
civilization ever.

Bhakti Vikāsa Swami

Baroda, India

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