American Exceptionalism

[ihopehefails]

In every way that is important to me.

I asked for examples. This country is not even remotely perfect and never has been. There are many in our society who do not agree with you at all. And here are MANY around the world that have had it with our imperialistic attitudes, stupidity, ignorance, arrogance and disdain for honoring treaties and pacts. There are many who tire of us meddling in their political process and "propping up" leaders that we think we can control or sway to serve our interests, no matter how much of a dictator or butcher he may be. Why can you not admit that this country is not the perfect shining beacon of whatever righty "by god" patriotism that you wear on your sleeve? This country is far from all bad, but we are also far from rightly owning our arrogance.

Why is it that people on the left seem to think that any aspect of their personality is devoid of their nationality and heritage. Its not a matter of blind faith but a simple basic human desire to hold yourself in self-esteem that is no different or any more harmful than one person having self-esteem in who they are such as being tall, rich, poor, musical, and etc and since a generation raised on Oprah told us that self-esteem is good I can't see why self-esteem based on one's home nation is the exception to the teachings of Oprah.

 

[ihopehefails]

I think there's delicious irony when Dick (how appropriate) Cheney talks about the Constitution.

That's like Hugo Chavez talking about the wonders of a free media.

The French Philosopher Bernard-Henri Levy noted in a 2006 interview with the WSJ: “In France, with the nation based on roots, on the idea of the soil, of a common memory…the very existence of America is a mystery and a scandal…The ghost that has haunted Europe for two centuries is America’s coming together as an act of will, of creed. It shows that there is an alternative to organic nations.” [A society that took shape through conscious decisions and willful sculpting by its various founders and builders. –Medved]

Sure...I agree with that French guy, about how unique and great our system of government is.

HOWEVER, what I find IRONIC is that someone like Cheney is lauding this "alternative to organic nations," when he's the one who was undermining this "alternative" (the foundation of our Republic, AKA the Constitution) from '01-'09.

I find it ironic that people can yell and scream at everyone for violating the constitution when it was the communist progressive philosophy of "organic government" (note I did not say organic nations) which was the same idea repeated by Hitler and Marx can go around and complain about the natural byproduct of their thinking taking root in our politicians.

 

[Political Junky]

Yeah we provide democracy around the world whether they want it or not. and if a million or so of them die in the process, well that is just the price of Americanized democracy.

Wasn't that how the "Church" operated during the Inquisition?

Exactly.

 

[ihopehefails]

loving your country is great

Lying to yourself and others about how the rest of the world views your country leads to 911 attacks

Another post why we deserved 911...

Do you actually go around blame rape victims if they happen to be to attractive?

Actually Truth didn't say we deserved 9/11, that's simply you spinning what she said because you can't address what she actually said.

What truth said was that the reason why the 911 attacks happened were because we were lying to ourselves and the rest of the world. Obviously us denying how others might feel about us leads to those attacks. That is what I read and that sounds like that we provoked them into something but what kind of justifiable provocation existed before that other than US citizens liking ourselves other than projecting a false image to the rest of the world?

Do you go around and beat the tar out of people who like themselves or you just don't plain like even thought they might not have done anything to you other than making you angry?

 

[ihopehefails]

Yeah we provide democracy around the world whether they want it or not. and if a million or so of them die in the process, well that is just the price of Americanized democracy.

Wasn't that how the "Church" operated during the Inquisition?

Exactly.

Sometimes I wonder why people on the left didn't mind when communist wanted to spread themselves around the world using the same methods that you seem to disdain W using in Iraq? I just wonder why spreading democracy, freedom, and even religion by invasion is barberic but when the communist wanted to do it it was OK.

I'm sure you guys complained about the communist doing the same thing so I am going to start looking for post complaining about why the communist are spreading themselves around the world through force.

I'm sure they are around here somewhere...

 

[kwc57]

I'm no believer in Newspeak definitions. I AM a believer in American exceptionalism. We are exceptional.

.... I'm sure your mother thinks you are exceptional. ....

She did, when she was alive. You haven't deserved the right to even speak of her. (Imagine those words spoken at a sub-zero - Fahrenheit - temperature, too.)

Imagine me not giving a flying rip.

 

[Kevin_Kennedy]

Another post why we deserved 911...

Do you actually go around blame rape victims if they happen to be to attractive?

Actually Truth didn't say we deserved 9/11, that's simply you spinning what she said because you can't address what she actually said.

What truth said was that the reason why the 911 attacks happened were because we were lying to ourselves and the rest of the world. Obviously us denying how others might feel about us leads to those attacks. That is what I read and that sounds like that we provoked them into something but what kind of justifiable provocation existed before that other than US citizens liking ourselves other than projecting a false image to the rest of the world?

Do you go around and beat the tar out of people who like themselves or you just don't plain like even thought they might not have done anything to you other than making you angry?

No, what Truth said was that our aggressive foreign policy has made it so that people across the world don't like us, and some of them have enough hate for us that they're willing to attack us over it. I saw no implication that Truth was saying we somehow deserved to be attacked, simply the common sense notion that our actions around the world do have consequences.

 

[L.K.Eder]

america is not exceptional. find another concept to feel better about your insecurities.

 

[PoliticalChic]

america is not exceptional. find another concept to feel better about your insecurities.

In the speech that JFK had prepared for delivery on the day that he was assassinated:
“ We in this country, in this generation, are--by destiny rather than choice--the watchmen on the walls of world freedom. We ask, therefore, that we may be worthy of our power and responsibility, that we may exercise our strength with wisdom and restraint, and that we may achieve in our time and for all time the ancient vision of "peace on earth, good will toward men." That must always be our goal, and the righteousness of our cause must always underlie our strength. For as was written long ago: "except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain."
Remarks Prepared for Delivery at the Trade Mart in Dallas - John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum

 

[PoliticalChic]

Actually Truth didn't say we deserved 9/11, that's simply you spinning what she said because you can't address what she actually said.

What truth said was that the reason why the 911 attacks happened were because we were lying to ourselves and the rest of the world. Obviously us denying how others might feel about us leads to those attacks. That is what I read and that sounds like that we provoked them into something but what kind of justifiable provocation existed before that other than US citizens liking ourselves other than projecting a false image to the rest of the world?

Do you go around and beat the tar out of people who like themselves or you just don't plain like even thought they might not have done anything to you other than making you angry?

No, what Truth said was that our aggressive foreign policy has made it so that people across the world don't like us, and some of them have enough hate for us that they're willing to attack us over it. I saw no implication that Truth was saying we somehow deserved to be attacked, simply the common sense notion that our actions around the world do have consequences.

In “Escaping Submission,” Egyptian-born Nonie Darwish writes:
“I now belong to the greatest and most moral country that ever existed on the earth. The U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights [practiced in] this graceful country allowed me to practice any religion or no religion and gave me human rights I could only [have] dreamed of under Islam. I am lucky and more than lucky, I am saved. I was never discriminated against even after 9/11.”

 

[Murf76]

In the speech that JFK had prepared for delivery on the day that he was assassinated:
“ We in this country, in this generation, are--by destiny rather than choice--the watchmen on the walls of world freedom. We ask, therefore, that we may be worthy of our power and responsibility, that we may exercise our strength with wisdom and restraint, and that we may achieve in our time and for all time the ancient vision of "peace on earth, good will toward men." That must always be our goal, and the righteousness of our cause must always underlie our strength. For as was written long ago: "except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain."
Remarks Prepared for Delivery at the Trade Mart in Dallas - John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum

I doubt JFK would have been accepted by the Socialist Democrats of today. They'd have called him a "warmonger" for not doing a proper curtsy and allowing Russia to point nukes at us from Cuba.

 

[L.K.Eder]

america is not exceptional. find another concept to feel better about your insecurities.

In the speech that JFK had prepared for delivery on the day that he was assassinated:
“ We in this country, in this generation, are--by destiny rather than choice--the watchmen on the walls of world freedom. We ask, therefore, that we may be worthy of our power and responsibility, that we may exercise our strength with wisdom and restraint, and that we may achieve in our time and for all time the ancient vision of "peace on earth, good will toward men." That must always be our goal, and the righteousness of our cause must always underlie our strength. For as was written long ago: "except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain."
Remarks Prepared for Delivery at the Trade Mart in Dallas - John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum

certain bravado from JFK's generation i can try to understand, as some of them had to clean up the consequences of other nations', east and west, thinking they were exceptional. the current generations have nothing to bray about. your undelivered speech snippet is irrelevant. americans are not and the USA is not exceptional. certain posters are speshial, though.

 

[Si modo]

america is not exceptional. find another concept to feel better about your insecurities.

In the speech that JFK had prepared for delivery on the day that he was assassinated:
“ We in this country, in this generation, are--by destiny rather than choice--the watchmen on the walls of world freedom. We ask, therefore, that we may be worthy of our power and responsibility, that we may exercise our strength with wisdom and restraint, and that we may achieve in our time and for all time the ancient vision of "peace on earth, good will toward men." That must always be our goal, and the righteousness of our cause must always underlie our strength. For as was written long ago: "except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain."
Remarks Prepared for Delivery at the Trade Mart in Dallas - John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum

certain bravado from JFK's generation i can try to understand, as some of them had to clean up the consequences of other nations', east and west, thinking they were exceptional. the current generations have nothing to bray about. your undelivered speech snippet is irrelevant. americans are not and the USA is not exceptional. certain posters are speshial, though.

Lilliputians are cute.

 

[L.K.Eder]

In the speech that JFK had prepared for delivery on the day that he was assassinated:
“ We in this country, in this generation, are--by destiny rather than choice--the watchmen on the walls of world freedom. We ask, therefore, that we may be worthy of our power and responsibility, that we may exercise our strength with wisdom and restraint, and that we may achieve in our time and for all time the ancient vision of "peace on earth, good will toward men." That must always be our goal, and the righteousness of our cause must always underlie our strength. For as was written long ago: "except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain."
Remarks Prepared for Delivery at the Trade Mart in Dallas - John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum

certain bravado from JFK's generation i can try to understand, as some of them had to clean up the consequences of other nations', east and west, thinking they were exceptional. the current generations have nothing to bray about. your undelivered speech snippet is irrelevant. americans are not and the USA is not exceptional. certain posters are speshial, though.

Lilliputians are cute.

small petty people who think they appear bigger when they fill their empty heads and lives with nationalistic pride are misguided and get laughed at by me.

 

[☭proletarian☭]

america is not exceptional. find another concept to feel better about your insecurities.

In the speech that JFK had prepared for delivery on the day that he was assassinated:
“ We in this country, in this generation, are--by destiny rather than choice--the watchmen on the walls of world freedom. We ask, therefore, that we may be worthy of our power and responsibility, that we may exercise our strength with wisdom and restraint, and that we may achieve in our time and for all time the ancient vision of "peace on earth, good will toward men." That must always be our goal, and the righteousness of our cause must always underlie our strength. For as was written long ago: "except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain."
Remarks Prepared for Delivery at the Trade Mart in Dallas - John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum

Ignoring the fact that he spits on the Founding Fathers and the Constitution by basically declaring this a Christian nation, his woprds are total bullshit. As Cuba, Mexico, Vietnam, Russia, Valenzuela, or the rest of Southeast Asia or Latin America whether the US believes in freedom and self-determination, The answer is 'no'.

 

[☭proletarian☭]

What truth said was that the reason why the 911 attacks happened were because we were lying to ourselves and the rest of the world. Obviously us denying how others might feel about us leads to those attacks. That is what I read and that sounds like that we provoked them into something but what kind of justifiable provocation existed before that other than US citizens liking ourselves other than projecting a false image to the rest of the world?

Do you go around and beat the tar out of people who like themselves or you just don't plain like even thought they might not have done anything to you other than making you angry?

No, what Truth said was that our aggressive foreign policy has made it so that people across the world don't like us, and some of them have enough hate for us that they're willing to attack us over it. I saw no implication that Truth was saying we somehow deserved to be attacked, simply the common sense notion that our actions around the world do have consequences.

In “Escaping Submission,” Egyptian-born Nonie Darwish writes:
“I now belong to the greatest and most moral country that ever existed on the earth.

Let's ask the people of Iraq about that.

The U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights [practiced in] this graceful country allowed me to practice any religion or no religion

-but not hold public office

and gave me human rights I could only [have] dreamed of under Islam.

as opposed to a secular nation?

Also, he needs to learn his rhetoric. The official line is that the Constitution protects, not grants, rights.

I am lucky and more than lucky, I am saved.

Hallelujah! Praise the Lord and pass the Ammunition! GOP!GOP!GOP!

 

[Si modo]

certain bravado from JFK's generation i can try to understand, as some of them had to clean up the consequences of other nations', east and west, thinking they were exceptional. the current generations have nothing to bray about. your undelivered speech snippet is irrelevant. americans are not and the USA is not exceptional. certain posters are speshial, though.

Lilliputians are cute.

small petty people who think they appear bigger when they fill their empty heads and lives with nationalistic pride are misguided and get laughed at by me.

You're still cute. The little folks usually are, especially when they cry about it.

 

[Murf76]

certain bravado from JFK's generation i can try to understand, as some of them had to clean up the consequences of other nations', east and west, thinking they were exceptional. the current generations have nothing to bray about. your undelivered speech snippet is irrelevant. americans are not and the USA is not exceptional. certain posters are speshial, though.

Do you understand that the terminology is NOT about being "special"?... that it's about being the "exception" to the standard norm?

In the days of our founding... the norm was monarchy and class division. The ideals of free and equal men were unique to our new country, because this philosophy had actually been put into practice.

Was it perfect? No. Even then, our framers worried about the issue of slavery and that the philosophy of free men was tainted by it. But in time, under the brilliance of their system of governance... we have evolved. So that today, not only slaves but women as well have achieved legal equality.

There are places all over the world where women are still chattel and human-trafficking is common. For Americans, only 5% of world population, a status quo of that nature is abhorrent, unthinkable. And yet, this 5% of global population has had a mighty influence on the world in terms of changing that dynamic.

THAT is the the "exception" to the rule we're talking about. We took a philosophy, grounded in the idea that human beings should be free, and through hardship and even mistakes... put it into actual practice. We proved to the world that it could be done. We proved to the world, as a nation of immigrants, that diversity in religious, racial, and political thought can be overcome. And we keep on proving it, day after day.

 

[L.K.Eder]

certain bravado from JFK's generation i can try to understand, as some of them had to clean up the consequences of other nations', east and west, thinking they were exceptional. the current generations have nothing to bray about. your undelivered speech snippet is irrelevant. americans are not and the USA is not exceptional. certain posters are speshial, though.

Do you understand that the terminology is NOT about being "special"?... that it's about being the "exception" to the standard norm?

In the days of our founding... the norm was monarchy and class division. The ideals of free and equal men were unique to our new country, because this philosophy had actually been put into practice.

Was it perfect? No. Even then, our framers worried about the issue of slavery and that the philosophy of free men was tainted by it. But in time, under the brilliance of their system of governance... we have evolved. So that today, not only slaves but women as well have achieved legal equality.

There are places all over the world where women are still chattel and human-trafficking is common. For Americans, only 5% of world population, a status quo of that nature is abhorrent, unthinkable. And yet, this 5% of global population has had a mighty influence on the world in terms of changing that dynamic.

THAT is the the "exception" to the rule we're talking about. We took a philosophy, grounded in the idea that human beings should be free, and through hardship and even mistakes... put it into actual practice. We proved to the world that it could be done. We proved to the world, as a nation of immigrants, that diversity in religious, racial, and political thought can be overcome. And we keep on proving it, day after day.

i understand the concept, that is why i can see the pitfalls and reject it. the concept is neither new nor unique. as i wrote, if it helps getting you or anyone through a bad day, have at it, but don't expect to be taken seriously by anyone not belonging to your "tribe".

 

[L.K.Eder]

Lilliputians are cute.

small petty people who think they appear bigger when they fill their empty heads and lives with nationalistic pride are misguided and get laughed at by me.

You're still cute. The little folks usually are, especially when they cry about it.

i enjoy seeing your stumbling and bumbling approach trying to reach me in your usual ham-fisted manner, wherein both fist are filled with balsa-wooden spoons.