On Cultural Stereotypes

It is a common precept in today's society that stereotypes are barriers to cultivating a deeper understanding of our fellow man, that they blind us to a fuller appreciation of the true state of the world. This would be a more compelling argument if the average individual was ever possessed of even the slightest degree of comprehension as to reality writ large. I'll let you in on a little secret; getting a handle on what's going on around you is extremely difficult, practically an impossibility, even for such super-bright individuals as myself. Most of the rest of you have a better chance of being eaten by sharks while winning the lottery as you do of comprehending, in any sort of a meaningful way, the workings and nature of the universe. Enter the stereotype, a convenient if not entirely accurate method of categorizing your perceptions, a sort of mental filing-cabinet for those of us who simply lack the time to discover what, for instance, Mexicans are actually like.

As an individual who appreciates the value of a good stereotype I was horrified to learn of the recent ban which the nation of France has enacted on smoking in school's, churches, hospitals, and other public places. This is a terrible, terrible decision, and not only for those of us who firmly believe that the entire French population consists of black-bereted art-students smoking clove-cigarettes and not defending their borders from the Germans. Without smoking, what do the French have to bind themselves together as a society? Fear of the unassimilated North-African population in their midst? A sad display from a nation that has been our sort-of nominal ally for nearly a century. What would Sartre say if he heard of his beloved nation's decision to steal from its populace the right to a quick nicotine fix while teaching kindergarten? Probably something pretentious that smacked of nihilism.