Alistair Cooke is an Americaphile. He has a deep and abiding love of this country more than some native born Americans we know. You probably remember him as the host of the celebrated series America and for his stints in the 80s on PBS' Masterpiece Theater . Not too bad for someone born in 1908.
In a history class, many moons ago, the very liberal professor used Cook's book (I can picture it, but I can't recall if the title was more than,
America.). Included in the course were some of the TV shows.
I did not gain a sense of love from Cook. I did gain a belief that he considered us a "project" of his. Perhaps from this, he developed an attitude of, "It's my dog: Only I can kick it."
?
I simply recall that his perspective was that of a superior looking at an odd but imperfect specimen.
I wonder if he's changed? I wonder if we're just so used to being insulted that we no longer recognize it?