Cultural Relativism

Cultural relativism is the dominant belief today and a postmodern one at that.  However what isn't being asked is a simple and essential question.
How do you define a culture? Who gets to define it?
Defining what a culture is, where it begins and where it ends is a difficult task.  The definition of how we define a culture is further culturally relative.  We talk about "western culture" but then German, or English culture.  Subcultures are often identified, but what keeps them from being their own cultures?
I am reminded of a German counselor who I worked with at a summer camp.   Bavarians are known for being way too friendly, informal and bizarre to the rest of Germany.He said once "People think pretzels are German but they're not.  They're Bavarian...." So seriously that it was hilarious.
We need look no closer than our own culture though.  People in the west of my own state are considered to have a weird vocabulary and an unhealthy pride in their football team (go Eagles!).  Or people from New England who appear to middle Americans as myself unfamiliar with the letter R.  Who think differently and act differently, yet we're all "American".

Ultimately as it stands cultures are defining what is and isn't a culture.  Each culture determines who is us and just different as opposed to who is something else.  To say truth is relative to culture (as an absolute) is an absolute claim from a nebulous construct that originates in the individuals culture.  What if another culture defines culture or cultural identity differently?  The same is true for the postmodern philosophy which it desperately clings to.  To claim there are no absolutes is an absolute.  To claim each culture defines morality is an absolute morality claim.  For most relativists they realize the futility of living it out when they tell a male dominating culture not to abuse women.

I had a friend in high school who was very much cultural relative and therefore into "tolerance".  Female circumcision came to discussion.  We both agreed it was wrong.  But she resignedly shrugged it off as I told her "you can try to be tolerant but there are some things you just can't", she agreed resignedly knowing the trouble it gave her philosophically.  I could say it was wrong and she knew it was, but she had no ability to say so since it was another culture.

The same ideology is hyper-critical of Western culture because it is "ours" while embracing others, to a point.  How they determine who within western culture is of the same culture is another story.  Can someone from an atheistic culture talk down a person from a Christian culture? Should they tolerate the Christians? It is essentially a self-refuting attempt to be nice not philosophical.  And one that tries to define culture as it wants and proclaim it true everywhere.  Who can you critique and say is wrong, and who can't you?  If one group does define cultures diffeently they will be "intolerant" of people we could consider in their own.This very thing becomes culturally relative.  We define who is what culture by our own culture and apply it as true everywhere. Yet the concept remains present all places.  People know Truth exists and must live in it, whether we acknowledge it or not.  Applying the postmodern cultural relativist method to determine who we can and cannot be critical of then, leads to a serious problem of defining who is and isn't with you. Cultural relativism is a culturally relative concept masquerading as ultimate.   The reality is Truth is all places and all should be open to scrutiny, regardless of how you may define where your culture ends and where another begins.