Are We All Just Gibbering Chimpanzees with the Attention Span of Goldfish?

Like many of you, I have communicated with a number of friends abroad about the result of the U.S. election. Every one of them have been genuinely shocked, and, like many here in the U.S., simply cannot believe it. The potential ramifications - for America and the world -- are only just beginning to set in. I recently exchanged views with a friend in New Zealand, whose response was so refreshingly (and brutally) honest and insightful that I wanted to share them. What follows are his thoughts, which I felt might resonate with others in the U.S. and around the world. Indeed, he seems much better informed about the state of affairs in America than many of my compatriots.

"It has been a fascinating spectacle from outside of your country as well, but not in a good way. We reflect on what the election brought out in terms of our understanding of the nature of the American people. I can see why you refer to non-U.S. citizens as "aliens" when we enter the U.S. because I can certainly not connect with a lot of the thinking of U.S. citizens either. Bible obsession, gun culture, celebrity culture, tribalism, the high regard for extrinsic trappings of wealth and success that forgives all moral failings and lack of humanity, the cynicism of the elite, the gullibility of the exploited. Alien thinking by my standard. Not everyone of course, but too many. I'd hasten to add that the short sightedness and collective stupidity is not a unique feature of American politics or the American people. We suffer from it here as well, but of course our ability to amplify it across the globe are nowhere near as great.

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