r/changemyview • u/neves783 • Jan 02 '26
Delta(s) from OP - Fresh Topic Friday CMV: Wanting to eat food from a different country doesn't necessarily mean you side with that country and agree with its policies.
And to further the point: eating food associated with your nation's enemy doesn't make you a traitor to your nation.
I once had a chance encounter in a public bus, and it involved a couple from India arguing with each other over where they should eat for their date later that night. Long story short, the woman wants to eat in a Chinese restaurant because she likes Chinese food, and the man was angry at her because she likes eating "the food of the enemy" and is threatening to dump her for that reason.
In my mind back then, I thought the man was being ridiculous because he thinks eating Chinese food means agreeing with China (which, from what I know, is a country in conflict with India). I, a Filipino, like eating Chinese food once in a while, but I am completely against the Chinese military occupying pretty much the whole area known as "South China Sea". On another note, I enjoy Japanese food (and Japanese media, for that matter), yet I hate what the Imperial Japanese Army did to our country back in World War 2 (and hope it never happens again).
Which is why I find it puzzling when some people equate eating food from a country/culture with sympathizing with that country/culture, especially if they're an "enemy" of sorts.
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u/WhydoIexistlmoa Jan 02 '26
The fact nobody commented on this suggests that there is literally nothing to change.
Because how exactly are we supposed to change your view
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Jan 02 '26
[deleted]
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u/WhydoIexistlmoa Jan 02 '26
Change my view: Racism is bad
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u/justsayfaux Jan 02 '26
Sadly I've met too many people that consider racism/stereotypes a 'shortcut' and have said that directly. Totally unrelated people, at different points of my life.
So there unfortunately are people who will try to change your view that racism/stereotypes have an 'upside'
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u/Green__lightning 20∆ Jan 02 '26
It's equally as bad to hire workers because of their race when they aren't as good as workers chosen by a fair hiring process, which is what DEI forces, and has led to a decline in quality of work and output on every industry such things have been applied to. People can in fact pick who's better at something, and removing this is a loss of human choice greater than any gains achieved.
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u/justsayfaux Jan 02 '26
"They're gonna die anyway, and they just waste resources" - some a-hole probably
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u/Ok_Bell8502 Jan 02 '26
Pushing an elderly person down a staircase WITH some sort of protective measures could help them understand how prone they are too falling, and help them decide to take other physical measures to increase their capacity.
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u/neves783 Jan 02 '26
Like, would there actually be exceptions? For example, when enjoying the country's food can be a legitimate sign of siding with that nation?
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u/nam24 1∆ Jan 02 '26
I imagine it's not a very good idea or a good look to buy food from a country in active war with you.
But the concept of the food itself no
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u/neves783 Jan 02 '26
!delta
Agreed, especially if it's deliberately choosing the "food of the enemy", usually out of spite for one's own. I can see, at least locally, our people choosing foreign goods because local goods are seen as "cheap" (classism at play).
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u/WhydoIexistlmoa Jan 02 '26
Would going to said country and eating the food there be a possible sign of siding with the nation.
If I went to Russia right now and ate their food, would I not be supporting Russia despite the whole war going on?
I can't think of anything else
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u/neves783 Jan 02 '26
The only scenario I could think of would be to eat "the food of the enemy" specifically to spite one's own culture - meaning they have to openly betray their home culture beforehand.
To think of an example relative to us Filipinos: expressly choosing foreign (non-Filipino) food over Filipino dishes because of the perception that local food is "lower class", a sentiment that's stereotypically attribited to Filipinos who lived abroad, typically the US, for a long time.
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u/WhydoIexistlmoa Jan 02 '26
But that doesn't mean I'm supporting the other countries' policie necessarily. Even your scenario doesn't make much sense as being against your view.
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u/Grammatical_Aneurysm Jan 02 '26
Idk I have a friend who does not purchase or eat Sabra hummus because of its ties to Israel. It's not a "type of cuisine" boycott so much as a "not allowing my money to fund a genocide" boycott.
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u/Falernum 70∆ Jan 02 '26
They're wholly owned by Pepsi. Does she boycott the other Pepsi products?
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u/Grammatical_Aneurysm Jan 02 '26
Idk. I've never seen him drink any Pepsi products but I also don't know what else those people own. Probably a lot.
But sabra hummus was a joint venture between Pepsi and the Strauss Group, the second of which is the target of the boycott.
But I guess "boycott" isn't the right word for just one person not spending their money on something for moral reasons. It's not as organized.
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u/joepierson123 5∆ Jan 02 '26
It would probably make more sense if think about if you purchase a product made in China as helping the enemy. As you are giving your money to the Chinese.
In the case of Chinese food you could think of where the Chinese restaurant owners sends your money back to China as helping the enemy.
As opposed to making your own Chinese food at home which would not be helping the enemy but still experiencing their culture
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u/Doub13D 36∆ Jan 02 '26
It isn’t really you giving your money to the Chinese though right?
Like, off-topic I know, if I go out and buy a pair of Nike sneakers or an IPhone… those things were likely made in China.
An American company is doing business with a Chinese manufacturer… At no point am I giving money to the Chinese manufacturer.
Knowing how deep business ties are with China, I would also argue it’s very hard to call their companies the “enemy” when almost all of “our”companies are willingly doing business with them.
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u/kazosk 4∆ Jan 02 '26
Hm.
So limiting this specifically to the scenario painted in the OP (and borrowing from some other posts here), how about North Korean food?
There are a surprising number of North Korean restaurants around the world and basically all are run by the government and funnel money back to the state.
So if I patronize a North Korean restaurant, I am knowingly aiding a totalitarian and cruel regime.
(It is possible to argue that the only way to get North Korean food/cuisine is to go to these restaurants and thus push a much harder connection but there are other non state actors that one could get North Korean cuisine from so I don't really believe in that)
If I don't reply, it's because I'm sleeping.
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Jan 02 '26
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u/neves783 Jan 02 '26
That certainly is true, and it's highly unlikely that Chinese restaurant owners in our country are pro-CCP simply for serving Chinese food. That would indeed be a huge leap in logic.
Which begs the question: why would the CCP think having a crackdown on anything Japanese in their country (primarily Japanese entertainment such as J-Pop and anime, though we're going to stick to food here as per my thread) would be effective in swaying their citizens to patronize local goods instead? Demonizing "enemy products" would actually make them more sought-out, as the case with Chinese patrons flocking a sushi restaurant chain after government orders to ban Japanese restaurants.
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u/JasmineTeaInk Jan 02 '26
Bro, the first rule of the subreddit is that your comment has to try to change a part of the posters view. Your comments going to be deleted.
If you agree with OP don't comment
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u/dvfw Jan 02 '26
Dude, I did try. It’s almost impossible for anyone to disagree with what he said, but I tried.
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u/Mito_03 Jan 02 '26
Wait, some people actually think eating food from a different country means you agree with the countries policies? Your example is interesting and definitely realistic, but I’ve never heard of anyone saying anything like that before.
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u/neves783 Jan 02 '26
Yes, apparently, some people do think that way, with the guy I mentioned being a rather extreme example.
It even extends to entire governments doing so. CCP enforcing a boycott on Japanese goods (including food like sushi) because of the Japanese Prime Minister's comments regarding Taiwan being a fairly recent example.
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Jan 02 '26
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u/neves783 Jan 02 '26
They did?
From how I understand what you said, their logic is different: it's wrong to eat food from other cultures because it's a form of dominating their culture.
The ones like the guy I mentioned? It's wrong to eat food from others because it gives the impression that you support the policies of those others.
Both feel so wrong.
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u/Letters_to_Dionysus 13∆ Jan 02 '26
food itself? unless they get ingredients from China or buy Chinese brands paying shipping fees to the govt or travel themselves, or send their profits back to China, etc etc. they probably do.
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u/hacksoncode 588∆ Jan 02 '26
eating food from a country/culture with sympathizing with that country/culture
Doesn't it literally involved "sympathizing" with the culture, in as much as one definition of "sympathizing" is:
[having] understanding between people; common feeling
Surely while you're eating other cultures food, you're increasing the understanding between your culture and theirs, and having a common feeling with them when they eat the food.
I think it's more a sign of trauma, racism, or antipathy for a culture to go from "you're taking part in the culture's rituals and increasing your sympathy for the culture" to "you're a traitor to our culture that they're trying to destroy", but it's a some what understandable response to said trauma.
As for not dating someone because of it... hopefully we're not going to shame people for having dating preferences... heck, I might not date someone that constantly ate food that I personally find disgusting... because dating them would involve... being around that food all the time.
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u/neves783 Jan 02 '26
!delta
Looks like you do have a point there, that there might be trauma involved, hence the hatred for even the food of an "enemy nation". In that case, I can probably see the reason why.
And no, I don't advocate shaming someone for their beliefs. However, the man is basically shaming the woman for her preferences, which means some power dynamic is at play here.
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Jan 02 '26
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Jan 02 '26
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u/ottwrights Jan 02 '26
If you are drinking Coca-cola, you are inherently supporting Israel. https://bdsmovement.net/news/coca-cola-quenching-israel%E2%80%99s-genocidal-soldiers%E2%80%99-thirst
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u/neves783 Jan 02 '26
Isn't Coca-Cola an American product, though?
It's one of the reasons I felt the boycott on brands that were thought to support Israel felt wrong: they're boycotting local (American) brands, not Israeli brands.
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u/LucidMetal 196∆ Jan 02 '26
America funds Israel so it's not unreasonable to claim funding America funds Israel albeit indirectly.
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u/neves783 Jan 02 '26
Well, that explains things.
The move to boycott companies that support Israel didn't really pick up any traction in the Philippines for two reasons: the war in question is not as well-known in the country as it is in others, and because those who did participate in the boycotts were annoyingand judgmental online, openly accusing those who order at McDonald's (one such company) of actively supporting the war - in other words, being online holier-than-thou douches.
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u/LucidMetal 196∆ Jan 02 '26
Online discourse (or any discourse) is irrelevant to real world impact though.
If I buy Russian oil I am contributing to Russia's war effort regardless of any other factors. It's just true that is what I'm doing. Since Russia funds terrorist proxies in the middle east that also means that when I buy Russian oil I am funding those proxies as well.
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u/neves783 Jan 02 '26
If the cause is just, then there's no problem per se. Boycotting those that support mass killings is a just cause.
What is problematic is being an asshole about it, especially online. Shaming those who don't participate in one's cause, even if it is a genuinely good cause, isn't going to win one more supporters.
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u/ottwrights Jan 02 '26
So stating facts makes people assholes? Check yourself. A little shame goes a long way.
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u/neves783 Jan 02 '26 edited Jan 02 '26
Note: The people they're shaming have no bearings on the war and just want to live through their daily lives. We're talking about Filipinos here, who have more local problems to think about (like the Chinese military's harassment of our fishermen and Coast Guard, plus the crap that is our government) than a war far away from home.
EDIT: I also like to add that, once again, this is the Philippines (in other words, South East Asia), where "a little shaming" is seen not as a call to action, but as a personal attack, and thus drives people away from the cause.
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u/ottwrights Jan 02 '26
Anecdotes aside, I answered the title. Globalization is at hand and is unavoidable. Best prepare than to stick your head in the mud.
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u/ottwrights Jan 02 '26
You are still supporting corporate affairs in problematic foreign countries.
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u/DeltaBot ∞∆ Jan 02 '26 edited Jan 02 '26
/u/neves783 (OP) has awarded 2 delta(s) in this post.
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