[wholepointofcc]

> just a mass-market t-shirt

The very idea of a "market" which is a "mass-market" and a "t-shirt" as a clothing item, which then become together a "mass-market t-shirt" (meaning globalised production chains, exploitative corporate governance, fast fashion, conspicuous consumption, etc) is already in itself an example of permeating "American culture".

[WilTimSon]

American culture isn't 'mass-market' though, mass-market clothes exist everywhere and so does exploitative governance, consumption, etc. The fact that some of that clothing makes it over to remote regions doesn't mean they're suddenly going to be permeated with 'American culture', they aren't cavemen discovering fire. It's just an item of clothing, albeit one that somehow found its way into their particular place of residence. Turkish bazaars are chock-full of these, maybe her dad went to one in a big city and brought this to her to wear. Does that mean she's somehow aware of capitalism, mass production, or American culture?

[wholepointofcc]

> Does that mean she's somehow aware of capitalism, mass production, or American culture?

Yes.

You seem to disconnect in your thought the very fact that these production models are American culture. The indigenous operation of markets before imperialism would basically use different production models and produce different goods.

The very thing you're describing is a consequence of American cultural hegemony.

Edit: Of course culture never occurs in a vacuum and transculturation goes both ways. Also I'm not denying advantages or affirming disadvantages of the current state of transculturation between cultures. I'm simply pointing out that we (US-influenced western etc etc) are so deeply into it that we don't even perceive it as "ours" and simply perceive it as "the way things are"