Arnie a Hitler Admirer

[a_unique_person]

http://www.drudgereport.com/mattaa.htm

LOL. His handlers told him not to run.



ABC News, which broadcast the remarks on Thursday, said they were contained in an unpublished book proposal with quotes from what it calls a "verbatim transcript" of the interview.

Asked about his heroes, the young Schwarzenegger, in 1975, was quoted as saying; "I admired Hitler, for instance, because he came from being a little man with almost no formal education, up to power.

"I admire him for being such a good public speaker and for what he did with it."

The actor was quoted as saying he wished he could experience being .."like Hitler in the Nuremberg stadium and have all those people scream at you and just being total agreement whatever you say."

Asked by ABC News to comment on the old remarks, Schwarzenegger said: "I cannot remember any of these. All I can tell you is that I despise everything Hitler stood for. I despise everything the Nazis stood for ... everything the Third Reich stood for."

The author of the book proposal told ABCNEWS that the quotes needed to be seen in context of Schwarzenegger's admiration of powerful men.

The book proposal contains other stunning passages, which ABCNEWS is preparing to reveal.

[Skeptic]

That's funny, AUP. When the ex-PM of the palestinian authority was elected, I noted that he has published an entire book denying the holocaust (and, naturally, whitewashing Hitler).

What did you do? Of course, you defended him and, in particular, said that since he apologized it doesn't matter anymore, that all that matters is what he says now, etc. (here is the thread (http://www.randi.org/vbulletin/showthread.php?s=&threadid=17571&perpage=40&highlight=holocaust%20denier&pagenumber=1)).

Apparently, for you, anybody who ever made any dumb racist comment somewhere, like Scwarzenneger apparently did as a 20-year-old kid, is marked for life as a "racist"... EXCEPT when they are arabs attacking jews, in which case, of course, they can write entire books of antisemitic slander, and all is forgiven if they apologize--years later.

Can you say, "double standard"? I knew you could, hypocrite.

[Malachi151]

I also saw an interview with some former associates of Arnold that said he had made several anti-Semitic statements, that he did impressions of Hitler and had said that his biggest mistake was not killing all the Jews before the war was over.

This was a black man who worked with him on Pumping Iron. He also said that he got into an altercation with him at his house and he said something about "get that ****** the hell out of my house" or something when he was discussing the fact that many of the people had been promised pay to be part of the movie and that money was not comming through.

[Tony]

Originally posted by Malachi151
I also saw an interview with some former associates of Arnold that said he had made several anti-Semitic statements, that he did impressions of Hitler and had said that his biggest mistake was not killing all the Jews before the war was over.

This was a black man who worked with him on Pumping Iron. He also said that he got into an altercation with him at his house and he said something about "get that ****** the hell out of my house" or something when he was discussing the fact that many of the people had been promised pay to be part of the movie and that money was not comming through.

It was probably a roid rage.

[UnrepentantSinner]

Originally posted by Tony

It was probably a roid rage.

Damn.. beat me to it.

[EdipisReks]

saying that one admires hitler for going from nothing to being a state leader and for being a good public speaker is very different for admiring him for killing millions of people.

[JAR]

Just think about it.

How could a German white guy win famous bodybuilding competitions and not be drawn to Nazi values?

[a_unique_person]

Originally posted by Skeptic

Can you say, "double standard"? I knew you could, hypocrite.

I think the LOL indicates I do not take the issue too seriously, if he has, like the ex-Palestinian PM, changed his mind. The flack from this, however, could be huge. Like I said earlier, when he anounced on TV that he was going to run, his minders tought they had convinced him to say he wasn't going to run.

I would be more concerned with his overall suitability for governor. I'd never vote for him.

[003998]

Originally posted by JAR
Just think about it.

How could a German white guy win famous bodybuilding competitions and not be drawn to Nazi values?

Schwarzenegger, like Hitler, comes from Austria.

[JamesM]

Originally posted by EdipisReks
saying that one admires hitler for going from nothing to being a state leader and for being a good public speaker is very different for admiring him for killing millions of people.
It's pretty stupid, though, what with his name being synonymous with the phrase "mass-murdering tyrant" with most of the public.

I've always admired Ghengis Khan, he had nice hats.

Stalin was a great man. By which, of course, I mean that he had a good moustache.

The Kray twins? I'm a big fan - they loved their mum.

[Dilettante]

ABC News, which broadcast the remarks on Thursday, said they were contained in an unpublished book proposal with quotes from what it calls a "verbatim transcript" of the interview.

Does anyone have a recording of the alleged 1975 interview?

[a_unique_person]

Of course not. Another reason why I did not treat this too seriously. It may well be true, but no one will ever be able to prove it. Either way, I can't see Arnie being the type of guy I'd vote for.

[The Fool]

I have to view Arnie in the context of an Australian politician....In order to succeed as a politician in Australia you must have NO baggage. Our politicians are seemingly born at age 50 with no previous history.... If Arnie can pull this off with his history then I suspect he will go on to be a future President...GWB only had to overcome Cocaine use....I'm sure Arnie would trade his history for a couple of snorts....Lets face the facts... Arnold is a clever guy, he has made a lot of money and probably now truly believes he can run california.... Good luck to him. He's probably going to get the job........ Lol....

[Ed]

Originally posted by JAR
Just think about it.

How could a German white guy win famous bodybuilding competitions and not be drawn to Nazi values?


Same way a black guy from the 'hood might (notice I said "might") not steal watermelons.

[Ian Osborne]

Originally posted by The Fool
If Arnie can pull this off with his history then I suspect he will go on to be a future President...

I thought American presidents had to be US-born?

[HarryKeogh]

i just love the fact how the media has this power to alter elections by revealing items a week before an election.

if they were unbiased and had no agenda they would reveal the information when they got it, not wait until now.

just as pathetic as schwarzenegger's alleged comments.

[Tricky]

Originally posted by Ian Osborne
I thought American presidents had to be US-born?
They have to be born American citizens, so Arnie is out of the running for POTUS. However, you can be born anywhere, so long as one parent is a citizen, thus making you a citizen at birth.

Oddly, this is not a rule for vice-presidents. I am not sure what would happen if a non-US-born vice president was required to assume office when the president died.

[Skeptic]

Originally posted by EdipisReks
saying that one admires hitler for going from nothing to being a state leader and for being a good public speaker is very different for admiring him for killing millions of people.

Well, yeah.... and saying that you admire Stalin for his style in mustache wearing is also quite different than admiring him for the Gulags. But why should you admire someone like that for anything?

Seriously, one should consider the context and history in this case. Arnold's father was a nazi party member. After the war, ex-nazis who still admired Hitler (most of them still did) could not longer be open nazis, but they COULD still claim that they admire Hitler for the roads he built, etc.; that became the socially-acceptable euphemism for "I am (still) a nazi".

If (as seems likely, given his father's history) Arnold grew up in such an enviorment, it is not at all surprising that, in an interview at age 20 or so, he would parrot the same views he heard all his life from his father.

All this, of course, presuming the article is genuine and not out of context or sensationalized. I, for one, am highly suspicious of such "amazing revelations" that just HAPPEN to be discovered when Arnold is leading in the polls before the election.

[Malachi151]

Talk about idiots, I mean you people really TRY to keep yourself from reading between the lines don't you?

When someone asks you who you admire, and you say "Adolf Hitler becuase he was a good speaker" chances are that there is a *little* more to it then that eh?


When you look for good points that you can publically acknowledge about someone so that you can claim that you like them then changes are you also admire other qualities about them as well.

Does Pat Robertson say he admires Madonna because of her voice?

Did Ronald Reagan say he admired Vladamir Lenin for his good speaking ability (which was argumably better than Hitler's)?

When you are an Austrian, who's father was a Nazi and you say that you admire Adolf Hitler for his "speaking ability", yes you can bet that there is more to it then that.

Now, have his views and personality changed since that time? I have no idea.

[kerfer]

Originally posted by Tricky

They have to be born American citizens, so Arnie is out of the running for POTUS. However, you can be born anywhere, so long as one parent is a citizen, thus making you a citizen at birth.

Oddly, this is not a rule for vice-presidents. I am not sure what would happen if a non-US-born vice president was required to assume office when the president died.

Hmm..I think that's an interesting question.

I apologize in advance for not having researched this in the Constitution, because I don't have time right now...I'll check it later, when I do.

But I would think that the VP in question would assume the Presidency for the rest of the term, but not be able to run at the termination of that term.

Right? Do I get a kewpie doll?

[hgc]

Originally posted by Tony


It was probably a roid rage. Hemmerhoids make you do that? Get the Preperation H, Dude. You gotta me Governor now, and behave yourself.

[Drooper]

Originally posted by JAR
Just think about it.

How could a German white guy win famous bodybuilding competitions and not be drawn to Nazi values?

Strange. I thought that both Arnie and Adolf were Austrian.

[hgc]

Originally posted by kerfer


Hmm..I think that's an interesting question.

I apologize in advance for not having researched this in the Constitution, because I don't have time right now...I'll check it later, when I do.

But I would think that the VP in question would assume the Presidency for the rest of the term, but not be able to run at the termination of that term.

Right? Do I get a kewpie doll? That is a good about whether a person not qualified to be President could even be VP. In any case, if one did manage to become VP, the consitution is explicit about qualifications for President, and he would not be able to assume the office.

[EdipisReks]

Originally posted by hgc
That is a good about whether a person not qualified to be President could even be VP. In any case, if one did manage to become VP, the consitution is explicit about qualifications for President, and he would not be able to assume the office.

unless the 61st amendment gets passed.

[Tony]

Originally posted by hgc
Hemmerhoids make you do that? Get the Preperation H, Dude. You gotta me Governor now, and behave yourself.

No, steroids.

[Nyarlathotep]

My first thought this morning when I heard what Arnold is supposed to have said was "Godwin's law just got invoked in the California Recall. They may as well just stop the campaign and have the election now"

[Grammatron]

Originally posted by Malachi151
Talk about idiots, I mean you people really TRY to keep yourself from reading between the lines don't you?

When someone asks you who you admire, and you say "Adolf Hitler becuase he was a good speaker" chances are that there is a *little* more to it then that eh?


When you look for good points that you can publically acknowledge about someone so that you can claim that you like them then changes are you also admire other qualities about them as well.

Does Pat Robertson say he admires Madonna because of her voice?

Did Ronald Reagan say he admired Vladamir Lenin for his good speaking ability (which was argumably better than Hitler's)?

When you are an Austrian, who's father was a Nazi and you say that you admire Adolf Hitler for his "speaking ability", yes you can bet that there is more to it then that.

Now, have his views and personality changed since that time? I have no idea.

Arnold contacted a Jewish organization (I can't recall it at the moment) about investigating whether or not his father, a Nazi, contributed to the Holocaust. The investigation showed that his father did not, still, Arnold made numerous contributions to different organization that dealt with Holocaust survives and such matters. I don't know what he said when he was 20, but his actions since then do not show him to be a Nazi, quite the opposite.

[jj]

Originally posted by Malachi151
Talk about idiots, I mean you people really TRY to keep yourself from reading between the lines don't you?

Malachi, I know when people are trying to manipulate me, too.

When someone asks you who you admire, and you say "Adolf Hitler becuase he was a good speaker" chances are that there is a *little* more to it then that eh?

Really? He was a devastatingly good public speaker, that's how he got away with all of his evil acts. It's a fact he was a good speaker. That most certainly doesn't make him a good man, an ethical man, an honest man, ...

But he WAS a good speaker. Like it or not, he was a good speaker.

When you look for good points that you can publically acknowledge about someone so that you can claim that you like them then changes are you also admire other qualities about them as well.

Gosh, look at your reasoning. You'd make Joe McCarthy proud. This is the "where there's smoke" argument, stated as baldly as I've seen it coming from your side of the fence.

Does Pat Robertson say he admires Madonna because of her voice?

Are you suggesting that Madonna had the same effectiveness in modern politics as Hitler?

Did Ronald Reagan say he admired Vladamir Lenin for his good speaking ability (which was argumably better than Hitler's)?

Did you say that Leon Trotsky was a nice fellow except for that hammer he wore in his hair?

When you are an Austrian, who's father was a Nazi and you say that you admire Adolf Hitler for his "speaking ability", yes you can bet that there is more to it then that.

Guilt by association, plain and simple. Same thinking that's put native-born arabic people in jail lately. McCarthy, eat your heart out.

Now, have his views and personality changed since that time? I have no idea.
Really?

Then why did you imply otherwise?

[SRW]

__________________________________________________ _
The author of the book proposal, "Pumping Iron" director George Butler, told ABC the quotes needed to be seen in context to be understood. The Los Angeles Times said Friday that its reporters had interviewed Butler two months ago and he had denied Schwarzenegger made such remarks.
________________________________________________
Author flip flops (http://www.11alive.com/news/usnews_article.aspx?storyid=37468)

I don't know for sure but this whole thing has the smell of Gray Davis all over it.

[Tony]

Are you suggesting that Madonna had the same effectiveness in modern politics as Hitler?


:dl:

[Ipecac]

Originally posted by EdipisReks


unless the 61st amendment gets passed.

Good point! I guess this also means that you better go to McDonalds now because only Taco Bell (Pizza Hut if you live in Europe) will be left after the franchise wars.

[CFLarsen]

Hmmm....let's look at what AS is claimed to have said:

"I admire him for being such a good public speaker and for what he did with it."

"Admire" might not be the most describing word to use. But can anyone not acknowledge that Hitler was a powerful speaker? Read Toland, Shirer, Fest, Kershaw, and other's accounts of how Hitler managed to captivate an audience. Sure, Hitler pandered to the lowest common denominator in a crowd, but we cannot close our eyes to the fact that it worked. Wonders, too. We wouldn't have over 50 million people dead, if it hadn't worked. For the first time in history, mass media was combined with a hypnotic speaker - with devastating results. A lesson, paid for with the blood of millions.

Hitler may have been the first, but surely not the last, to use mass media to entice a crowd. Had Hitler only been able to talk to people who were physically present, I seriously doubt that he would have gained power. We cannot eliminate the mass-media factor in this. Hitler, speaking in a crowd, had limited effect, even if it did enthrall the audience. Combined with mass media, death and destruction for millions.

We might not like it (I personally hate the way humans can be swayed in this manner), but to say it didn't happen? Not possible.

Can we "admire" that Hitler was a "good public speaker"? No. But we can "be stunned" at the efficiency of it. Is that "admiration"? I can understand what AS might have wanted to express. Can we use "awe"? That implies some kind of grudging accept (I assume! Correct me if I am wrong), and that is the opposite of what I want to express. But we should acknowledge the efficiency - and cleverness, sorry to say so - of it. Because nobody had ever talked to people this way, and with such profound impact.

"Admire" what Hitler did with it? No. Only repulsion and horror can describe that. But he was the first - in collaboration with Goebbels - to realize what could be achieved, using modern media.

"The actor was quoted as saying he wished he could experience being .."like Hitler in the Nuremberg stadium and have all those people scream at you and just being total agreement whatever you say." "

Let's face it: Hitler was also an actor. He took lessons in how to sway an audience. He learned to to control people by convincing them, either by argument or by sheer force. What actor does not want that same "power" over people? To sway an audience into believing you are Richard III, demanding an equestrian solution to your present quagmire? That is the drive of actors, not a $15 million fee per movie.

Julia Roberts, who can only play one part, does not apply here.

Asked by ABC News to comment on the old remarks, Schwarzenegger said: "I cannot remember any of these. All I can tell you is that I despise everything Hitler stood for. I despise everything the Nazis stood for ... everything the Third Reich stood for."

That's as clear as it can be. Now, this is a quote we can verify. The others, no. Which should we, as skeptics, rely on? The answer, my friend, is not blowing in the wind.

I am not defending AS in any way - I think it would be a distaster to elect him. California has a bigger budget than France, and is in serious financial trouble, but, hey, that's democracy. But I do think we might have to look at this Drudge Report with great skepticism. After all, Drudge only got one big news story. That doesn't mean he is right for eternity. As for now, we have no confirmation of the old quotes, and how AS really meant it. We do, however, have confirmation what he has said recently.

To go on casting doubt about his views would not only be mudslinging, it would be decidedly unskeptical. To deny that a person can change his mind would be decidedly narrowminded. Even vicious, and comparable to what Republicans did to Clinton.

[Aoidoi]

http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/10/03/recall.main/index.html

The issue surfaced when the New York Times and ABC News cited an unpublished 1970s book proposal by "Pumping Iron" film producer George Butler as having contained quotes from Schwarzenegger expressing admiration for the Nazi dictator.

Both news organizations quoted Schwarzenegger as saying, "I admired Hitler, for instance, because he came from being a little man with almost no formal education up to power. And I admire him for being such a good public speaker and for what he did with it."

But the New York Times said Butler later told the newspaper that he had found another transcript of the interview that contained different wording: "I admire him for being such a good public speaker and for his way of getting to the people and so on. But I didn't admire him for what he did with it. It's very hard to say who I admire, who are my heroes." The first version is ambigious and thus open to interpretation, the second seems pretty clear, he expressed admiration for his abilities but not his goals.

Somewhat amusingly, I still think the article makes Davis look like the bigger prick. Instead of being professional and saying "I don't think this has any bearing on the race" while keeping the story in the press (which makes him look above the fray) he has to attack Arnold, which is just redundant. Arnold made stupid comments, press will follow up on it regardless, time to play the "I'm above this sort of thing" not "hey look, I can bite his ankle while he's wrestling the gorilla of his own making."

Sheesh, it's like amateur hour in California.

To paraphrase the Daily Show "There you have the paradox of Governor Davis. Even when he's right, he's a prick." :)

[peptoabysmal]

Originally posted by a_unique_person


I think the LOL indicates I do not take the issue too seriously, if he has, like the ex-Palestinian PM, changed his mind. The flack from this, however, could be huge. Like I said earlier, when he anounced on TV that he was going to run, his minders tought they had convinced him to say he wasn't going to run.

I would be more concerned with his overall suitability for governor. I'd never vote for him.

Are the Democrats getting so desperate they are going to make it legal for Australians to vote? Have you got your absentee ballot in hand as we speak?

Democrats want it so that felons and illegal immigrants can vote, hey why not Aussies?

[kerfer]

Originally posted by hgc
That is a good about whether a person not qualified to be President could even be VP. In any case, if one did manage to become VP, the consitution is explicit about qualifications for President, and he would not be able to assume the office.

You are right...I was thinking at the time that the requirements were for being *elected*, but having read that part of the Constitution, the requirements are for serving. So I agree, and this person in question could not assume the duties of president.

[JAR]

Originally posted by Ed
Same way a black guy from the 'hood might (notice I said "might") not steal watermelons.
Sorry if I implied that being a German bodybuilding champion gives one an excuse to be a Nazi. I was just joking around.

[Blue Monk]

According to John Edward Hitler thought 'Kindergarden Cop' and 'Twins' stunk.

[a_unique_person]

Originally posted by peptoabysmal


Are the Democrats getting so desperate they are going to make it legal for Australians to vote? Have you got your absentee ballot in hand as we speak?

Democrats want it so that felons and illegal immigrants can vote, hey why not Aussies?

We are affected by your politics, why can't we vote for your poltiicians?

[Skeptic]

I think the LOL indicates I do not take the issue too seriously, if he has, like the ex-Palestinian PM, changed his mind.

Of course, YOU titled the post "Arnie a Hitler admirer" after quoting his (alleged) interview from 1975. This seems to mean, for some reason, that you consider him a Hitler admirer because of what he said in 1975.

Of course, I must be "misinterpreting" you, as usual, right?

[Supercharts]

Found at:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2003/10/04/state0904EDT0035.DTL

"Inspired by a weight trainer who witnessed Nazi slayings of Jews during World War II, Arnold Schwarzenegger used his menacing muscular physique to help break up neo-Nazi rallies as a teenager, his ex-trainer said Saturday.

In an interview with The Associated Press, gym owner Kurt Marnul said the young Schwarzenegger participated at least twice in organized disruptions of Nazi gatherings near his hometown of Graz during the 1960s."

Further in the story:

"Marnuls's account came as the film star and California gubernatorial hopeful struggles to counter allegations that he once expressed admiration for Hitler's rise to power from humble beginnings.

Schwarzenegger has said he did not recall making such a remark and called the Nazi leader a "disgusting villain."

"It's absurd. It's 100 percent wrong that he could have ever liked Hitler," Marnul said in an interview at his gym, whose walls are plastered with photographs of Schwarzenegger, who began training there at age 15.

On Friday, the Austrian magazine NU, which caters to the alpine nation's Jewish community, quoted former politician Alfred Gerstl as describing how Schwarzenegger and some companions once "hunted down" neo-Nazis who had gathered outside the office of a teaching institute run by an avowed anti-fascist. "

AUP goes down in flames again.



:dl:

[Clancie]

Personally, I think the "Hitler" thing was politically floated--by his Republican supporters, if not directly by his campaign.

After all, the Nazi thing has already been much addressed and much refuted. Even if it were true (which I doubt), it would be a second hand remark made over 30 years ago which (other than befriending Waldheiim) he's done nothing to fuel since.

(Of course, Schwarzenegger has the original film where the offending quotes reportedly occur--and he hasn't released it....yet....But he may).

If its a set up, it's quite clever, since most people will dismiss it as an ugly and unfair attack by Democrats.

Bottom line....it takes away attention from the sexual harrassment charges (which are recent, and which he has been unable to deny) and makes both accusations seem like just nasty and unfair politically motivated issues.

He may be a lot smarter than I think!

[davefoc]

Coming from the other side I was going to say almost exactly what Clancie did. I doubt that it's a Republican conspiracy though. It is a completely lame charge that pro AS commentators are treating like a giant softball that is easily batted out of the park.

Meanwhile, charges with some credibility, get less attention than they might otherwise. Am I sad about this? Nope. I think it would be nice if CA avoids a major financial catastorphe and I think our best hope is to get rid of Davis and distracting legitimate criticism of AS with total crap is at least a step in that direction.

[schplurg]

I agree Davefoc, politics as usual. I personally don't listen to any accusations such as these 2 weeks before an election. It's so predictable. If the guy is really that big of a jerk then we should have been told so months ago. I'll venture a guess that many many politicians have all of these same characteristics (duh). Status quo baby, status quo.

Honestly, I want Davis out so bad that I don't care if Arnold is a groping, boorish, racist pig. Can he and his cronies save our economy? Will his tit-grabbing and stupid remarks affect CA policies in a major way? I actually think McClintock would be the better choice, but I'm stuck in the same position as many others...deciding whether to vote my conscience, or to vote popular and make sure the Dems are out. To me, the "greater good" is to get Davis out at any cost. Hey, I gotta live here too.

By the way, has Arnie been charged with sexual harassment or anything else from any of these women? I didn't think so. He did, however, admit that he did behave badly in earlier years and that some of these stories were true. He wasn't 100% forthright maybe, but compared to most politicians he was pretty honest. He did not question the definition of the word "Is" etc....he addressed the accusations and moved on. Now that is a refreshing change, as well as politically smart.

[Skeptic]

Coming from the other side I was going to say almost exactly what Clancie did. I doubt that it's a Republican conspiracy though.

Indeed so. I don't think anybody is claiming that there is som evil conspiracy. It's just that such stories are bound to get bigger headlines before the elections, so that's when they run them. I think that the main reasons Schwarzennegger is "targeted" is that he a). is leading the race, and b). is far more famous and colorfoul than the other nonentities in the race, both (a) and (b) guaranteeing bigger headlines.

For the record, I also don't think that the reason Bustamante's involvement in a silly "latino power" organization in college doesn't get as much attention is a democratic conspiracy to "hide the truth". It's simply that the story is far less interesting to the average reader (gee, a group of "radical" college students in the 70s! I'm SHOCKED!) than the sex'n'violence (or sex'n'nazis) stuff around Arnold. Now, if they caught Bostamante having sex with a neo-nazi woman...

[peptoabysmal]

Originally posted by a_unique_person


We are affected by your politics, why can't we vote for your poltiicians?

Only if you agree to become the 51st. state. Even then you couldn't vote in a California election.

Think about it, you could have McDonalds and Taco Bell at every corner, live in a suburb and drive a 4 wheel drive SUV, have a new meaning for football.

[a_unique_person]

I live in a suburb, half the cars in my street are 4WD, MacDonalds has reached saturation, and Taco Bell type places are numerous. My children always want to watch the latest Hollywood blockbuster and never tire of Simpsons reruns.

[Grammatron]

Originally posted by a_unique_person
I live in a suburb, half the cars in my street are 4WD, MacDonalds has reached saturation, and Taco Bell type places are numerous. My children always want to watch the latest Hollywood blockbuster and never tire of Simpsons reruns.

And just what is wrong with Simpsons?

[Skeptic]

I live in a suburb, half the cars in my street are 4WD, MacDonalds has reached saturation, and Taco Bell type places are numerous. My children always want to watch the latest Hollywood blockbuster and never tire of Simpsons reruns.

Awful, isn't it, how you are so opressed by the USA! By the way, when is the SUV commissar from the USA coming over to make sure the natives are buying enough Hummers to support USA commercial interests?

What's that? He doesn't? The people on your street actually buy SUVs because they LIKE them?? Damn, that brainwashing is worse than I thought...

If things are so bad, I suggest that you emigrate to one of those brave, wonderful places in the world that resist the AWFUL American "cultural imperialism" you hate. Iran has nice weather this time of year, and I've heard apartment prices in North Korea are really cheap for some reason.