As a result of constantly hearing how things are shinier, smarter, more advanced, and more efficient in the West, some of you may have developed a kind of cultural inferiority complex, accompanied by certain free-floating feelings of jealousy.

We Americans used to sometimes feel this way toward the Japanese.  Their economic recession has eased these feelings substantially.  A similar event here—perhaps triggered by something like a stock market crash—could help you feel better, too.

You may at this point be overwhelmed by the enormity of the conceptual hurdles that participation in a more Western-style society will require you to overcome.  But surely the rich and varied genius of the peoples who have produced Tolstoy, Chopin, and Nadia Comenici is up to the task.  And if you run into trouble, we have wonderful books to guide you:  Dress for Success, In Pursuit of Excellence, and many, many others.