Being "American"

When a search site (such as Google, MSN or Yahoo!) subjects itself to government-imposed censorship so they can do business in China, they are told they are putting capitalism over democracy, and in so doing are being un-American. They should stick by our principles and give up the potential revenue, all in the name of encouraging our values of freedom of speech in the rest of the world.

When an adult entertainment site decides not to be subjected to US-imposed censorship by setting up shop in another country, they are told they are putting capitalism over decency, and in so doing are being un-American. They should comply with local laws and give up the potential revenue, all the in the name of imposing our "family values" on the rest of the world.

When an oil company reports record profits and pays one of the biggest shareholder dividends in history — all while holding prices at the pump at all-time highs, pushing people from lower-middle class into poverty, and making it hard to earn enough in a workday shift to pay for the fuel to commute there — they are congratulated. Consumer complaints are met with reminders that this is how the American economy works — government regulation threatens the notion of capitalism, which is the root of the American ideal. They are complying with local laws and giving up nothing, all the name of corporate profit.

Seems to me that "being American" means "doing whatever the controlling party says to do" — and at times, maybe even, "doing what's expedient."