Multicultural Society?

I've been thinking; everyone always drone on, from "both sides" of this absurd argument, about living in a multicultural society, and the effects of it. "We live in a multicultural society, so you shouldn't say that!", one may say, or another may predictably say, "BRITISH VALUES HAVE BEEN ERODED BY MULTICULTURALISM!" (Whilst they're putting down their copy of the Daily Mail)

But do we really live in a multicultural society?

When you look at it, we don't, really, and the people who say we do, are only confusing annexation of elements of other cultures, in order to expand British culture, for "multiculturalism".

Chicken Tikka Masala, for example: people would think that's Indian, and a fine example of multiculturalism, but the reality of it is, is that this dish hardly exists, if at all, within India. This is a British customed dish, but its roots, of course, are undoubtedly traced back to the Indian subcontinent. One may further argue that because those roots made its way into Britain, it's a fine example of multiculturalism, but again, I must repeat that the actual dish is highly unlikely to be found in India itself.

To take the so-called "other side", yet argue and result in the same conclusion, let's take a look at Fish and Chips: emblem of British produce? Actually, no, not really. Depending on where you are (And this does apply to where I am in the UK), Fish and Chip shops were spread via Irish immigrants. So, again, this so-called emblem of British culture is not exactly rooted within insular British blood-lines, but, of course, it is part of British culture, because we, as a culture, annexed Fish and Chip shops into our culture.

What I'm saying, is that of course, I don't believe in the frothing bigots of the Littlejohn/Gaunt/Hitchens ilk, that British culture is based on some pathetic insularity, where we can conceivably (Ho ho) expand as a culture, holding the very popularised, "Britain Is Full!" sign. At the same time, to take the view that we are a multicultural society, isn't exactly intellectually honest.

Let's gawp at the perceived realities of the Mail and the Sun etc, and pretend that there's mass Muslim ghettos across the country, and huge community divide. Even if this were all true, there'd be British, and, perhaps even regional colloquialisms that everyone from these Muslim ghettos, and outside of them, would be familiar with, and use on a regular basis, which would most likely be completely unknown to Muslims in any other country in the world, or even just anyone else who has never lived in Britain. Jokes about "Asian corner shops", for instance; would you find such jokes in America? Of course not, unless it was from someone who has been in Britain. Even driving on the left side of the road, which happens to not be the case in most countries around the world. How we vote. How our laws are set out. Lots of aspects which point to a unique cultural binding, regardless of every Tom, Dick and Abdul (Har har) coming in.

To repeat the point, of course, Britain can drastically change its own culture, through a various number of ways, and can annex (And should) far more elements of other nation's cultures, but multicultural? Sorry, it's not quite true.

As you may have gathered, I like Jamaican roots reggae; does that mean Jamaican culture as a whole is present amongst Britain? Of course not. I also like African-American music, like soul, jazz and funk; again, testimony to African-American culture as a whole being present within Britain? Nope

So, uhm, yeah, we don't live in a multicultural society, regardless of what happens.