In America, we have culture. We have things like baby showers and fireworks on the Fourth of July. And these can be really great, but after searching far and wide for the most awesome cultural practices the globe has to offer, GlobalPost has compiled a list of items that we think more Americans should really consider adopting.

In truth, the fears about CIA infiltration and those about Japanese cartoon characters are part of the same anxiety: a feeling that China's lack of soft power presents a weak underbelly to the outside world.