Why does she want those jeans?

In ASTU class we’ve begun focusing on our big questions for the big research essay. I have been trying (albeit struggling) to make the connection of the Levi jeans from Joe Sacco’s Safe Area Gorzade to the theme of distance/proximity and connection/disconnection. The narrator/author, Joe Sacco, is asked by a Bosnian woman for a pair of authentic Levi’s 501 jeans. During the time period that this novel takes place, the 90s, Levi jeans were very “hip.” Even though their country is riddled with war and desolation do they still want to feel like a part of the global community? I am trying to find the connection between Western culture’s prominent control vs. countries of disconnection and distance.
It’s always baffled me why our Western culture has such a profound global influence.
So, out of blatant curiosity, I typed into Google: “Why is Western culture…” and the most common searches that appeared underneath were:
Why is Western culture so sexualized
Why is Western culture superior
Why is Western culture dominant
Why is Western culture bad
All these searches got me thinking.. What do they all have in common? Is it maybe that Western culture is seen as more liberal and hyper-sexualized and therefore bad? Or is it because of our liberty and freedom of sexuality that we are dominant?
I decided to click on the first option: Why is Western culture so sexualized
To summarize, it seems that there was a personal liberation movement headed by the Protestant Reformation in the 1500’s. This apparently gave way to the open culture in which we live. However it is the power of the media that pushes sexuality. As they say: sex sells.
So, with that cleared up, I moved on to the next search: Why is Western culture superior. Just to note, I do not in any way believe that Western culture is superior. Anyways, most of my findings on this topic were bias although there was some emphasis on Westerner’s obvious individual rights. Western dominance was much of the same results. For the final and perhaps most interesting search: Why is Western culture bad? This search resulted in a bevy of strange answers. A large portion of them being bias bloggers ranting about negativity in society.
It seems that there is a key term that is bringing all these thoughts and ideas together: individual rights. So is that why Western culture is idolized; because we have more liberty within our society?
Going back to my initial thoughts which was does Western culture have the control. Well, I am looking forward to going into further depth for my essay and hope filling bridging the gap between a poor Bosnian woman and her need for a pair of Levi’s 501 jeans.