Brin's analysis is right on, and it is very familiar to me. I've often thought along those lines myself, although I was never able to articulate it as well as he does. Still, I've bounced around the edges of the model he's outlined for as long as I can remember.

I was born and raised in the South, but my cultural roots were more European. Cuba was a Spanish colony for 400 years (in fact, it was the last one to gain its independence). Shortly after,all my grandparents emigrated to a Cuban community in the US. Consequently, I have often viewed American society, particularly Southern society, as an outsider, even though I was completely at home there and thoroughly acculturated to it. I suppose I'm culturally schizophrenic, but it has given me the opportunity to view America with the perspective and awareness of an anthropologist studying a remote (but certainly not primitive!) tribe, while simultaneously being completely at home with its language and customs.

I was a fish who was actually aware of the water he was swimming in. Brin is right. Even without his historical observations and insights, his narrative rings true. Trust me on this. As an adult, I have lived and worked most of my life in Florida, but I did spend a year in Tennessee, five in Pennsylvania, and eight in California, so my experience is not limited to my home state, or any one section of America. I think I understand this country, and I do love it, but I do fear for its future.