bicoastal February 28th, 2007
I tried to say something simple but counterintuitive a few days ago, but stumbled over my thoughts. Luckily I found a deliciously succinct formulation later that same day:
“I am a lawyer, and lawyers have their priors. One is that no question is innocent. Every question springs from an agenda that determines what might count as a satisfactory answer.” -Robert Post
bicoastal February 28th, 2007
Does the U.S. have a more west or east coast presence abroad? I just traveled to Geneva to answer this question, and it seems that in Switzerland, at least, it has neither. The most obvious signs of American presence were: McDonald’s, Burger King, Coca-Cola, Starbucks, and Best Western. All American companies that either aim squarely at the bland middle of a-coastal American culture or split identities between coasts (e.g., Starbucks born in the west but identified with the east).
It’s not intuitively obvious why the U.S. presence abroad shakes out this way. If the market for American brands is driven by non-Americans we might expect the richest and most colorful aspects of American culture to make it to Geneva: rock and roll, surf culture, hip hop, etc.
I think three things are going on. First, it’s risky to insert strong flavors of American culture into a foreign city in the same way that it’s risky to make Indian food too spicy when it’s served in NYC. Second, many of these companies in Geneva serve Americans living abroad who come from all over the U.S. Even Americans who strongly identify with east or west coast take comfort in brands that are clearly American rather than coastal. Third, most American brands big enough to have a foreign presence cannot be identified with one coast or another — they’re often big precisely because they aim for the acoastalness.
bicoastal February 20th, 2007
Some of you might have thought that I’m truly bicoastal because I can swing so easily between the east and west coast mindset. But actually I’ve lived most of my life on the east coast, and only a few months on the west coast. So I’ve pretty much been posing this whole time.
But now it’s legit: bicoastalcurious has a new correspondent who grew up on the east coast and now resides on the other side. And, he knows bicoastal curiousity: he more or less invented the term.
Things are about to get hoopty.
