The knight in the big world of American TV series

Chapter 2270

Chapter 2270

Rainbow bridge.

This is one of the most important places in Asgard; apart from the royal palace, it is the most valued place in all of Asgard.

But counterintuitively, it was very deserted. There were even very few guards.

On one hand, everyone felt that the Rainbow Bridge was safe because it would be difficult for external enemies to attack it. After all, the access to the bridge was in Heimdall's hands, and Heimdall was a dedicated man who hadn't slept or rested for a very long time. He was always on alert for any enemies that might threaten Asgard.

Therefore, it is impossible for any enemy to enter Asgard through the Rainbow Bridge, and the Rainbow Bridge does not need any heavy troops to guard it.

Because it is not necessary.

On the other hand, the Asgardians do not usually have a high demand for the Rainbow Bridge.

Aside from large-scale expeditions, the Asgardians are now more willing to stay in Asgard than before. After all, Asgard is no longer their original home on Earth.

In their ancestral homeland, the Asgardians lived near the Arctic Circle, in what is now the Scandinavian Peninsula. That region is now considered a desirable place. Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden, located in Northern Europe, are collectively known as the "Nordic Five," or the Scandinavian countries. These five countries share similar historical backgrounds, religious beliefs, social systems, and languages, and their flags are strikingly similar. The most significant commonality among the Nordic Five is their immense wealth; they have consistently ranked among the world's most developed nations, boasting top-ranking indicators across various sectors, making them one of the happiest groups of countries globally.

So, where does the Nordic people's sense of happiness come from?

One word: Stable.

Let's start with the environment.

Finland boasts a 75% forest cover, and the water in any lake is drinkable. Sweden has a 99% recycling rate, with only 1% going to landfills—its environmental protection efforts are unparalleled. More than half of Denmark's electricity comes from wind power, and Iceland uses geothermal energy for heating. This environmental quality is practically a natural oxygen bar.

Furthermore, the Nordic countries are extremely rich in natural resources. For example, Norway, the "Land of a Thousand Islands," possesses numerous natural resources, including not only fisheries but also rare resources such as oil and natural gas. As a result, Norway is known as the "Oil Capital" and is the world's third-largest crude oil exporter, with considerable crude oil reserves. Sweden, as Europe's largest exporter of iron ore, boasts abundant iron ore reserves. Meanwhile, the Nordic waters are also extremely rich in fisheries resources, home to the North Sea fisheries, one of the world's four major fishing bases. Finland, known as the "Land of a Thousand Lakes," also has considerable peat reserves, with currently explored reserves reaching 69 billion cubic meters. Although the Nordic region has a relatively small population due to climate and other factors, its area exceeds 13 billion square kilometers, and its population is only slightly over 20 million. In comparison, a single city in China can have a population exceeding 30 million. Under these circumstances, the economic development of the Nordic countries is naturally not to be underestimated.

But in ancient times... this desolate place, to put it simply, was a barren and desolate place!

Take the modern Vikings as an example (compared to the history of Asgard, the Vikings are indeed a modern phenomenon). The Vikings in Northern Europe combined the roles of pirate and merchant, primarily due to their environment and lifestyle. The geography of Northern Europe dictated their dependence on the sea, and their social organization required frequent sea voyages to explore and seek new habitats and resources. This process demanded both brave warriors and shrewd merchants. Therefore, the Vikings in Northern Europe served as both pirates and merchants.

The history of the Vikings and their pirate and merchant career.

The word "Viking" originates from Old Scandinavian and means "sea raiders." Their activities were primarily concentrated between 800 and 1050 AD, a period historians refer to as the "Viking Age." During this time, Vikings operated as pirates and merchants in many parts of Europe, including England, France, Spain, Italy, and even as far as the Mediterranean and Arabia. Viking society consisted mainly of three classes: nobles, freemen, and slaves. Nobles were the leaders of society, holding power and wealth, and were the most likely to go out to sea to raid. Freemen were the majority of society; they owned their own land and property and had the right to participate in social decision-making. Slaves were at the bottom of society; they had no rights, and their lives were completely controlled by their masters.

The Vikings primarily lived an agricultural and pastoral lifestyle, but due to the limitations of the climate and geography of Northern Europe, their agricultural development was not very successful. Therefore, they had to rely on the sea, obtaining their necessities through fishing and trade. Furthermore, due to their social organization, they frequently had to go out to sea to explore, searching for new habitats and resources. In this process, they needed both brave warriors and shrewd merchants. Thus, the Vikings in Northern Europe combined the roles of pirates and merchants.

That desolate place forced the modern Vikings to venture out.

Ten thousand years ago, the Asgardians were also forced by their environment to raid and plunder everywhere.

But Asgard is not like that now.

The environment here is just like the paradise in mythology.

The climate here is always the most suitable, and Asgard can produce all kinds of grains and fruits all year round, so the people of Asgard never have to worry about food.

At the same time, this place is also full of high technology from all over the universe... Although the Asgardians may seem crude and barbaric, in fact, they are far more technologically advanced than humans!

You know, even a husband like Thor can pilot a spaceship.

Everything you could want is here.

The Asgardians don't really care about anywhere else besides themselves.

This is similar to the Americans.

In the mid-90s, an American college student named Max Perelman was traveling in Sichuan province, more than 2400 kilometers from Beijing. During the winter in this southwestern Chinese province, he encountered a group of Tibetan tourists heading to Lhasa, the capital of Tibet. They embraced the young American, shared food from their backpacks, perhaps sat together around a campfire, or stayed in a hostel. These Tibetans had never left their villages and had never seen such novel technology as Perelman's camera. Yet, in the course of their conversation, one of the Tibetans asked Perelman: "How's Michael Jordan?" These Tibetan travelers from rural China not only knew about American sports leagues but also followed one of their stars and his team—the "Red Bulls," known in Asia as the Chicago Bulls—revealing a striking feature of the contemporary international order: the rest of the world is watching America. Foreigners follow American news stories as closely as they follow news from their own countries, listen to American pop music, and watch a vast amount of American television and movies (in 2016, the six major Hollywood studios alone accounted for more than half of the global box office). Sometimes, this focus on American culture comes at the expense of foreigners' understanding of their own countries. A 2008 study found that Canadians tend to know more about American history than their own. But that's only half the story. Americans also tend to focus more on their own country. For example, not a single foreign film is on the list of the 500 highest-grossing films of all time in the United States (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is ranked 505th, slightly higher than Jerry Seinfeld's less-than-classic Bee Movie, but about 100 places lower than Mall Cop). Another indicator of narrow-mindedness is the percentage of Americans with passports, a figure far lower than many other developed countries. Compared to 66% of Canadians and 76% of Britons, only about 40% of Americans have passports and therefore can travel abroad.

American narrow-mindedness can become American ignorance. This has long frustrated geography teachers and delighted late-night talk show hosts. Numerous YouTube clips, such as Jimmy Kimmel's "Can You Name a Country?", show several Los Angeles residents unable to recognize a single country on a world map. But this unfamiliarity with the world outside the United States is a stark reminder of this.

What makes the United States unique compared to other countries is that many of its past decisions were influenced by the British Empire. In 1794, to counter the looming threat of war from Britain, the US expanded while simultaneously building its military. To avoid European resistance, it adopted an inward-looking isolationist policy. Against this backdrop, the US focused on developing its domestic market, relying on regional economic competition to achieve its initial economic and capital accumulation. Simultaneously, the vast size of the US and intense internal competition meant that, before the Civil War, its primary goal was to establish a unified and stable domestic market. After the Civil War, the US completely broke down the North-South divide in its socio-economic system. The freed million slaves, gaining personal freedom, provided a vast labor force and market for the development of a market economy. From then on, the US economy was no longer built on the opposition between the modern factory system characterized by wage labor in the North and the slave labor system in the South, but truly became a unified whole. It is precisely because of this historical reason that Americans always prioritize the development and maintenance of their domestic market economy. America's strength does not come from concrete and steel, but from technological innovation. Many of America's most profitable companies earn more money than those in smaller countries, with the most profitable companies being incredibly wealthy, their net profits exceeding the GDP of many nations like Tanzania and Iceland. The foundation for this success is its talent pool. The US has only 5% of the world's population, yet it possesses nearly 45% of the world's productivity and 40% of its technological output. Companies like Apple, IBM, and Google are popular worldwide, and the US domestic market has also experienced significant growth due to technology. As a commodity-driven world, the characteristics of the US market are reflected in its products, which is one reason why Americans tend to focus on their own interests rather than the outside world. The US market is arguably the world's largest and most complex market. "Largest" here refers to its consumer market; while China's market excels in size, its profit margins are low. Its complexity stems from the fact that not only are there federal laws and regulations, but state laws also vary. To adapt to internal needs, a significant amount of energy must be focused on the domestic market to avoid legal trouble. This leaves insufficient time to pay attention to changes in the external environment.

Other differences in the US domestic market include product quality, sales seasons, advertising, and after-sales service. These various requirements and restrictions force Americans to prioritize domestic market demand. Because of their emphasis on domestic market development, they implicitly place higher demands on foreign trade with the US. Since their market is large enough, the US doesn't need to concern itself with external environments and changes, and naturally, they have less interest in international events and domestic news. Over time, people only care about what's happening around them. Ultimately, the world is driven by economics, which dictates people's behavior.

The same was true of the Asgardians.

In fact, many people did not understand why Asgard conquered other worlds with Odin at the beginning.

Because Asgard lacks nothing, they possess almost limitless energy and have virtually no need to worry about material things. Even the issue of resource depletion due to overpopulation, which Thanos fears, is a very, very distant prospect for the Asgardians.

Asgard's population has never been particularly large.

They do not exist because of the need to invade other worlds due to resource problems.

They don't even really need markets. It's interesting that, despite Asgard being very developed, their economy is still mainly based on small-scale farming, and their capitalism is not advanced.

Capitalism has always been a major driver of external expansion.

We learned about this topic in our political science class. The Industrial Revolution prompted the emerging bourgeoisie to seize commodity markets and cheap raw material sources worldwide. This was the fundamental reason for the global aggression and expansion of capitalist powers. The Industrial Revolution greatly promoted the development of the capitalist economy. Against this backdrop, the bourgeoisie urgently needed to expand commodity markets and raw material sources worldwide, which was the fundamental reason for the global expansion of the great powers.

But this problem does not exist in Asgard.

They have a king, and the king has great power; ultimately, they are a feudal society.

Therefore, although the Asgardians are warlike, they do not have an inherent drive to expand through war.

In this situation, the Asgardians themselves didn't have much desire to actively learn about other worlds in the universe, let alone actively go to other worlds.

If there's no demand, then who would bother wandering around the Rainbow Bridge for no reason?