It really bugs me the rightwing thinks Americans are "exceptional"

[2aguy]

I feel like the idea of America's exceptionalism is inextricable for many people, largely conservatives, from patriotism. It's not really about America being objectively the best, it's about pride in your country. It's just rooting for your team. "Seahawks are the best!" "America is an exceptional nation!" You see it less with liberals, because for many reasons we reject what we think of as jingoism.

Then again, its not just politics that influences these things. I'm from a family of Atlanta Falcons fans, so my own team-rooting has always been more...cautiously optimistic.

The notion of exceptionalism comes from the point that we are a nation founded on principals of individual liberty, not a caste system......and that focus has allowed our people to succeed faster and in more ways than any other country on earth, Wealthier, more powerful and at the same time abusing that wealth and power less than any other country in our position....... that is what makes our people exceptional......since people are people everywhere, what makes us different and exceptional is, or was, our belief in individual freedom of action...

 

[Papageorgio]

So much bothers the little liberal minds.

 

[Pogo]

When I compare other countries to us, like anything else we have certain strengths and weaknesses. We could learn a lesson from many countries when it comes to education and how they do it, but we have too much blind pride to change it. Take a lesson from Finland, they know how to educate. I also notice the lack of litter and the cleanliness. Here there are tons of garbage along our roads, highways, etc. Our cities are filthy and dirty. We also have certain things that are better here. If that touches a nerve, get over it. The first step to becoming great is noticing all your faults.

Good to see not everyone lets the point sail blithely over their head. Well said.

 

[healthmyths]

I don't deny the fact that exceptional people built this nation. That is without question. I'm proud of that. However, this idea that Americans of today are more exceptional than other people in this world is such non sense. Stupid, entitled, materialistic, and arrogant is what Americans are.

My god, just look at the Tea Party. There are foreigners who admire America, but when they look at the Tea Party, they just scoff or laugh. Tea baggers, in terms of intelligence, are much stupider than the average person the world over. They are also selfish, arrogant and racist. I mean this is the movement who bitches about government spending but also insists on ridiculous tax cuts. How can you respect people who don't understand the concept of revenue?

And yes, I do think there are some great Americans living today. I just don't think being American has anything to do with it.

In terms of citizens, America is not at all superior to the rest of the world. Let's stop pretending that it is.

American Exceptionalism is just another generic catch phrase that can mean whatever you want.

The word "exceptionalism" means: "the condition of being different from the norm."
Exceptionalism - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary

In my perception then the USA is exceptional because the USA is a nation made up of MORE people that are exceptional that come from countries
that don't provide the encouragement to be exceptional.
NO country in the world is made up of more people coming from other countries then the USA.
More of these people that come are exceptional people that see the USA as providing an environment more conducive to their exceptionalism!

 

[2aguy]

I don't deny the fact that exceptional people built this nation. That is without question. I'm proud of that. However, this idea that Americans of today are more exceptional than other people in this world is such non sense. Stupid, entitled, materialistic, and arrogant is what Americans are.

My god, just look at the Tea Party. There are foreigners who admire America, but when they look at the Tea Party, they just scoff or laugh. Tea baggers, in terms of intelligence, are much stupider than the average person the world over. They are also selfish, arrogant and racist. I mean this is the movement who bitches about government spending but also insists on ridiculous tax cuts. How can you respect people who don't understand the concept of revenue?

And yes, I do think there are some great Americans living today. I just don't think being American has anything to do with it.

In terms of citizens, America is not at all superior to the rest of the world. Let's stop pretending that it is.

American Exceptionalism is just another generic catch phrase that can mean whatever you want.

The word "exceptionalism" means: "the condition of being different from the norm."
Exceptionalism - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary

In my perception then the USA is exceptional because the USA is a nation made up of MORE people that are exceptional that come from countries
that don't provide the encouragement to be exceptional.
NO country in the world is made up of more people coming from other countries then the USA.
More of these people that come are exceptional people that see the USA as providing an environment more conducive to their exceptionalism!

What makes our country different is that exceptional people have the freedom to be exceptional.....they are not held back the way they are in other countries who have cultures reliant on class systems and social blocks to progress.......that is why so many people have come here.....

Of course....the libs are changing that.....they want rich, white democrats to have all the advantages....and everyone else to accept government handouts.....controlled by the rich, white democrats.......

 

[Liminal]

I don't deny the fact that exceptional people built this nation. That is without question. I'm proud of that. However, this idea that Americans of today are more exceptional than other people in this world is such non sense. Stupid, entitled, materialistic, and arrogant is what Americans are.

My god, just look at the Tea Party. There are foreigners who admire America, but when they look at the Tea Party, they just scoff or laugh. Tea baggers, in terms of intelligence, are much stupider than the average person the world over. They are also selfish, arrogant and racist. I mean this is the movement who bitches about government spending but also insists on ridiculous tax cuts. How can you respect people who don't understand the concept of revenue?

And yes, I do think there are some great Americans living today. I just don't think being American has anything to do with it.

In terms of citizens, America is not at all superior to the rest of the world. Let's stop pretending that it is.

American Exceptionalism is just another generic catch phrase that can mean whatever you want.

The word "exceptionalism" means: "the condition of being different from the norm."
Exceptionalism - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary

In my perception then the USA is exceptional because the USA is a nation made up of MORE people that are exceptional that come from countries
that don't provide the encouragement to be exceptional.
NO country in the world is made up of more people coming from other countries then the USA.
More of these people that come are exceptional people that see the USA as providing an environment more conducive to their exceptionalism!

In other words there is no real definition for American exceptionalism. Just another vague rhetorical concept.

 

[Soggy in NOLA]

I don't deny the fact that exceptional people built this nation. That is without question. I'm proud of that. However, this idea that Americans of today are more exceptional than other people in this world is such non sense. Stupid, entitled, materialistic, and arrogant is what Americans are.

My god, just look at the Tea Party. There are foreigners who admire America, but when they look at the Tea Party, they just scoff or laugh. Tea baggers, in terms of intelligence, are much stupider than the average person the world over. They are also selfish, arrogant and racist. I mean this is the movement who bitches about government spending but also insists on ridiculous tax cuts. How can you respect people who don't understand the concept of revenue?

And yes, I do think there are some great Americans living today. I just don't think being American has anything to do with it.

In terms of citizens, America is not at all superior to the rest of the world. Let's stop pretending that it is.

American Exceptionalism is just another generic catch phrase that can mean whatever you want.

The word "exceptionalism" means: "the condition of being different from the norm."
Exceptionalism - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary

In my perception then the USA is exceptional because the USA is a nation made up of MORE people that are exceptional that come from countries
that don't provide the encouragement to be exceptional.
NO country in the world is made up of more people coming from other countries then the USA.
More of these people that come are exceptional people that see the USA as providing an environment more conducive to their exceptionalism!

In other words there is no real definition for American exceptionalism. Just another vague rhetorical concept.

If this has to be explained to you, it isn't worth the effort.

 

[2aguy]

Belief in individual freedom and limited government...that is what makes America...or made America exceptional....no other country before us was created on those 2 ideas....and we advanced farther, faster, passing up countries who have been around since the beginning of civilization. and we abused our power and wealth less than all the other countries that came before us...and in just over 200 years we surpassed all of them....why.....we are people, with the same intelligence levels, physical abilities.......but what made us different is individual freedom and limited government.....

Sadly, like the kids of a wealthy business owner.....the left feels guilty about our success, and doesn't understand where it came from or how to duplicate it.....they just want to throw it away.....

 

[Liminal]

I don't deny the fact that exceptional people built this nation. That is without question. I'm proud of that. However, this idea that Americans of today are more exceptional than other people in this world is such non sense. Stupid, entitled, materialistic, and arrogant is what Americans are.

My god, just look at the Tea Party. There are foreigners who admire America, but when they look at the Tea Party, they just scoff or laugh. Tea baggers, in terms of intelligence, are much stupider than the average person the world over. They are also selfish, arrogant and racist. I mean this is the movement who bitches about government spending but also insists on ridiculous tax cuts. How can you respect people who don't understand the concept of revenue?

And yes, I do think there are some great Americans living today. I just don't think being American has anything to do with it.

In terms of citizens, America is not at all superior to the rest of the world. Let's stop pretending that it is.

American Exceptionalism is just another generic catch phrase that can mean whatever you want.

The word "exceptionalism" means: "the condition of being different from the norm."
Exceptionalism - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary

In my perception then the USA is exceptional because the USA is a nation made up of MORE people that are exceptional that come from countries
that don't provide the encouragement to be exceptional.
NO country in the world is made up of more people coming from other countries then the USA.
More of these people that come are exceptional people that see the USA as providing an environment more conducive to their exceptionalism!

In other words there is no real definition for American exceptionalism. Just another vague rhetorical concept.

If this has to be explained to you, it isn't worth the effort.

Thank God for that. I don't think I could sit through another one of your explanations.

 

[Pogo]

I don't deny the fact that exceptional people built this nation. That is without question. I'm proud of that. However, this idea that Americans of today are more exceptional than other people in this world is such non sense. Stupid, entitled, materialistic, and arrogant is what Americans are.

My god, just look at the Tea Party. There are foreigners who admire America, but when they look at the Tea Party, they just scoff or laugh. Tea baggers, in terms of intelligence, are much stupider than the average person the world over. They are also selfish, arrogant and racist. I mean this is the movement who bitches about government spending but also insists on ridiculous tax cuts. How can you respect people who don't understand the concept of revenue?

And yes, I do think there are some great Americans living today. I just don't think being American has anything to do with it.

In terms of citizens, America is not at all superior to the rest of the world. Let's stop pretending that it is.

American Exceptionalism is just another generic catch phrase that can mean whatever you want.

Ah, like "Progressive"? Or even "Liberal" on these pages? So what, if anything, does it mean to you?

It's not a term I use or embrace but for some clue what we're talking about here's some disturbing description from our rhetorical Commons (Wiki):

Although the term does not necessarily imply superiority, many neoconservative and other American conservative writers have promoted its use in that sense.[4][5] To them, the U.S. is like the biblical "City upon a Hill"—a phrase evoked by British colonists to North America as early as 1630—and exempt from historical forces that have affected other countries.[6]

...American exceptionalism was tied to the idea of Manifest Destiny,[18] a term used by Jacksonian Democrats in the 1840s to promote the acquisition of much of what is now the Western United States (the Oregon Territory, the Texas Annexation, and the Mexican Cession of California and New Mexico and adjacent areas).

....
Historian Dorothy Ross discussed three currents in American exceptionalism:

1. Protestant American Christians believed American progress would lead to the Christian Millennium.[20]
2. American writers also linked their history to the development of liberty in Anglo-Saxon England, even back to the traditions of the Teutonic tribes that conquered the western Roman empire.[21]

.... Parts of American exceptionalism can be traced to American Puritan roots.... One Puritan leader, John Winthrop, metaphorically expressed this idea as a "City upon a Hill"—that the Puritan community of New England should serve as a model community for the rest of the world.[32][33] This metaphor is often used by proponents of exceptionalism. The Puritans' deep moralistic values remained part of the national identity of the United States for centuries, remaining influential to the present day.

Peggy Noonan, an American political pundit, wrote in The Wall Street Journal that "America is not exceptional because it has long attempted to be a force for good in the world, it attempts to be a force for good because it is exceptional".
--- much more at "American Exceptionlism" link
​

As you already noted, it's meant many things to many sources over time, some positive and some negative, including simply the "exceptional" (at the time) Liberal idea of government by the People replacing the traditional government by the Élite. But the worrisome cherrypicked negative aspects above, which sadly seem to be the more contemporary descriptions, seem to have turned that definition around 180 degrees, from "cast off the "Elite" to "We ARE the Ëlite!" It would seem, at least as some use it, the term has come to embrace that which it formerly despised.

Much like some here do with the word "Liberal".

Funny how these things evolve.

 

[peach174]

I don't deny the fact that exceptional people built this nation. That is without question. I'm proud of that. However, this idea that Americans of today are more exceptional than other people in this world is such non sense. Stupid, entitled, materialistic, and arrogant is what Americans are.

My god, just look at the Tea Party. There are foreigners who admire America, but when they look at the Tea Party, they just scoff or laugh. Tea baggers, in terms of intelligence, are much stupider than the average person the world over. They are also selfish, arrogant and racist. I mean this is the movement who bitches about government spending but also insists on ridiculous tax cuts. How can you respect people who don't understand the concept of revenue?

And yes, I do think there are some great Americans living today. I just don't think being American has anything to do with it.

In terms of citizens, America is not at all superior to the rest of the world. Let's stop pretending that it is.

American Exceptionalism is just another generic catch phrase that can mean whatever you want.

The word "exceptionalism" means: "the condition of being different from the norm."
Exceptionalism - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary

In my perception then the USA is exceptional because the USA is a nation made up of MORE people that are exceptional that come from countries
that don't provide the encouragement to be exceptional.
NO country in the world is made up of more people coming from other countries then the USA.
More of these people that come are exceptional people that see the USA as providing an environment more conducive to their exceptionalism!

In other words there is no real definition for American exceptionalism. Just another vague rhetorical concept.

You are the one not getting it.
Just because it has been explained it different ways does not mean a vague rhetorical concept. The basic concept is there and you are not able to see it.
You are not getting the concept of Freedom from Government and individualism.
Government needs to get the hell out of the way and stop trying to control us, so that Americans have the freedom to become exceptional again.
We have become the Despot ruler and Oligarchy that the Revolutionary War was fought over.

 

[Soggy in NOLA]

I don't deny the fact that exceptional people built this nation. That is without question. I'm proud of that. However, this idea that Americans of today are more exceptional than other people in this world is such non sense. Stupid, entitled, materialistic, and arrogant is what Americans are.

My god, just look at the Tea Party. There are foreigners who admire America, but when they look at the Tea Party, they just scoff or laugh. Tea baggers, in terms of intelligence, are much stupider than the average person the world over. They are also selfish, arrogant and racist. I mean this is the movement who bitches about government spending but also insists on ridiculous tax cuts. How can you respect people who don't understand the concept of revenue?

And yes, I do think there are some great Americans living today. I just don't think being American has anything to do with it.

In terms of citizens, America is not at all superior to the rest of the world. Let's stop pretending that it is.

American Exceptionalism is just another generic catch phrase that can mean whatever you want.

The word "exceptionalism" means: "the condition of being different from the norm."
Exceptionalism - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary

In my perception then the USA is exceptional because the USA is a nation made up of MORE people that are exceptional that come from countries
that don't provide the encouragement to be exceptional.
NO country in the world is made up of more people coming from other countries then the USA.
More of these people that come are exceptional people that see the USA as providing an environment more conducive to their exceptionalism!

In other words there is no real definition for American exceptionalism. Just another vague rhetorical concept.

If this has to be explained to you, it isn't worth the effort.

Thank God for that. I don't think I could sit through another one of your explanations.

You'd never understand it.. no matter how simplified.... now go take another bong hit.

 

[Pogo]

Belief in individual freedom and limited government...that is what makes America...or made America exceptional....no other country before us was created on those 2 ideas....and we advanced farther, faster, passing up countries who have been around since the beginning of civilization. and we abused our power and wealth less than all the other countries that came before us.......

This post would have made sense if it was posted 200 years ago; indeed Liberalism was exceptional for its time. It was a positive idea in governmental evolution (at least in its own context) and has since been duly copied and adapted. It's no longer the Exception. And it's in no way limited to this country.

And that's a good thing as regards the whole of humanity, not a bad one. We had a good idea; we put it into practice; it worked; others followed suit. All good, now let's move the fuck on and drop the perpetual nostalgic end zone celebration.

As the old saying goes, "remember, you're unique -- just like everyone else".

 

[Liminal]

I don't deny the fact that exceptional people built this nation. That is without question. I'm proud of that. However, this idea that Americans of today are more exceptional than other people in this world is such non sense. Stupid, entitled, materialistic, and arrogant is what Americans are.

My god, just look at the Tea Party. There are foreigners who admire America, but when they look at the Tea Party, they just scoff or laugh. Tea baggers, in terms of intelligence, are much stupider than the average person the world over. They are also selfish, arrogant and racist. I mean this is the movement who bitches about government spending but also insists on ridiculous tax cuts. How can you respect people who don't understand the concept of revenue?

And yes, I do think there are some great Americans living today. I just don't think being American has anything to do with it.

In terms of citizens, America is not at all superior to the rest of the world. Let's stop pretending that it is.

American Exceptionalism is just another generic catch phrase that can mean whatever you want.

Ah, like "Progressive"? Or even "Liberal" on these pages? So what, if anything, does it mean to you?

It's not a term I use or embrace but for some clue what we're talking about here's some disturbing description from our rhetorical Commons (Wiki):

Although the term does not necessarily imply superiority, many neoconservative and other American conservative writers have promoted its use in that sense.[4][5] To them, the U.S. is like the biblical "City upon a Hill"—a phrase evoked by British colonists to North America as early as 1630—and exempt from historical forces that have affected other countries.[6]

...American exceptionalism was tied to the idea of Manifest Destiny,[18] a term used by Jacksonian Democrats in the 1840s to promote the acquisition of much of what is now the Western United States (the Oregon Territory, the Texas Annexation, and the Mexican Cession of California and New Mexico and adjacent areas).

....
Historian Dorothy Ross discussed three currents in American exceptionalism:

1. Protestant American Christians believed American progress would lead to the Christian Millennium.[20]
2. American writers also linked their history to the development of liberty in Anglo-Saxon England, even back to the traditions of the Teutonic tribes that conquered the western Roman empire.[21]

.... Parts of American exceptionalism can be traced to American Puritan roots.... One Puritan leader, John Winthrop, metaphorically expressed this idea as a "City upon a Hill"—that the Puritan community of New England should serve as a model community for the rest of the world.[32][33] This metaphor is often used by proponents of exceptionalism. The Puritans' deep moralistic values remained part of the national identity of the United States for centuries, remaining influential to the present day.

Peggy Noonan, an American political pundit, wrote in The Wall Street Journal that "America is not exceptional because it has long attempted to be a force for good in the world, it attempts to be a force for good because it is exceptional".
--- much more at "American Exceptionlism" link
​

As you already noted, it's meant many things to many sources over time, some positive and some negative, including simply the "exceptional" (at the time) Liberal idea of government by the People replacing the traditional government by the Élite. But the worrisome cherrypicked negative aspects above, which sadly seem to be the more contemporary descriptions, seem to have turned that definition around 180 degrees, from "cast off the "Elite" to "We ARE the Ëlite!" It would seem, at least as some use it, the term has come to embrace that which it formerly despised.

Much like some here do with the word "Liberal".

Funny how these things evolve.

Changing the meaning of language is a big part of the political dynamic these days. Americans aren't exceptional, just lucky. America may be an exceptional place, but Americans are far from exceptional. You only have to read this forum to understand that.

 

[Pogo]

We have become the Despot ruler and Oligarchy that the Revolutionary War was fought over.

 

[Liminal]

I don't deny the fact that exceptional people built this nation. That is without question. I'm proud of that. However, this idea that Americans of today are more exceptional than other people in this world is such non sense. Stupid, entitled, materialistic, and arrogant is what Americans are.

My god, just look at the Tea Party. There are foreigners who admire America, but when they look at the Tea Party, they just scoff or laugh. Tea baggers, in terms of intelligence, are much stupider than the average person the world over. They are also selfish, arrogant and racist. I mean this is the movement who bitches about government spending but also insists on ridiculous tax cuts. How can you respect people who don't understand the concept of revenue?

And yes, I do think there are some great Americans living today. I just don't think being American has anything to do with it.

In terms of citizens, America is not at all superior to the rest of the world. Let's stop pretending that it is.

American Exceptionalism is just another generic catch phrase that can mean whatever you want.

The word "exceptionalism" means: "the condition of being different from the norm."
Exceptionalism - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary

In my perception then the USA is exceptional because the USA is a nation made up of MORE people that are exceptional that come from countries
that don't provide the encouragement to be exceptional.
NO country in the world is made up of more people coming from other countries then the USA.
More of these people that come are exceptional people that see the USA as providing an environment more conducive to their exceptionalism!

In other words there is no real definition for American exceptionalism. Just another vague rhetorical concept.

You are the one not getting it.
Just because it has been explained it different ways does not mean a vague rhetorical concept. The basic concept is there and you are not able to see it.
You are not getting the concept of Freedom from Government and individualism.
Government needs to get the hell out of the way and stop trying to control us, so that Americans have the freedom to become exceptional again.
We have become the Despot ruler and Oligarchy that the Revolutionary War was fought over.

Even more vague.

 

[Liminal]

American Exceptionalism is just another generic catch phrase that can mean whatever you want.

The word "exceptionalism" means: "the condition of being different from the norm."
Exceptionalism - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary

In my perception then the USA is exceptional because the USA is a nation made up of MORE people that are exceptional that come from countries
that don't provide the encouragement to be exceptional.
NO country in the world is made up of more people coming from other countries then the USA.
More of these people that come are exceptional people that see the USA as providing an environment more conducive to their exceptionalism!

In other words there is no real definition for American exceptionalism. Just another vague rhetorical concept.

If this has to be explained to you, it isn't worth the effort.

Thank God for that. I don't think I could sit through another one of your explanations.

You'd never understand it.. no matter how simplified.... now go take another bong hit.

I can always take comfort from the fact that you don't understand it either.

 

[peach174]

I don't deny the fact that exceptional people built this nation. That is without question. I'm proud of that. However, this idea that Americans of today are more exceptional than other people in this world is such non sense. Stupid, entitled, materialistic, and arrogant is what Americans are.

My god, just look at the Tea Party. There are foreigners who admire America, but when they look at the Tea Party, they just scoff or laugh. Tea baggers, in terms of intelligence, are much stupider than the average person the world over. They are also selfish, arrogant and racist. I mean this is the movement who bitches about government spending but also insists on ridiculous tax cuts. How can you respect people who don't understand the concept of revenue?

And yes, I do think there are some great Americans living today. I just don't think being American has anything to do with it.

In terms of citizens, America is not at all superior to the rest of the world. Let's stop pretending that it is.

American Exceptionalism is just another generic catch phrase that can mean whatever you want.

The word "exceptionalism" means: "the condition of being different from the norm."
Exceptionalism - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary

In my perception then the USA is exceptional because the USA is a nation made up of MORE people that are exceptional that come from countries
that don't provide the encouragement to be exceptional.
NO country in the world is made up of more people coming from other countries then the USA.
More of these people that come are exceptional people that see the USA as providing an environment more conducive to their exceptionalism!

In other words there is no real definition for American exceptionalism. Just another vague rhetorical concept.

You are the one not getting it.
Just because it has been explained it different ways does not mean a vague rhetorical concept. The basic concept is there and you are not able to see it.
You are not getting the concept of Freedom from Government and individualism.
Government needs to get the hell out of the way and stop trying to control us, so that Americans have the freedom to become exceptional again.
We have become the Despot ruler and Oligarchy that the Revolutionary War was fought over.

Even more vague.

Can't get any more plain than Freedom from Government and individualism.

 

[Pogo]

I don't deny the fact that exceptional people built this nation. That is without question. I'm proud of that. However, this idea that Americans of today are more exceptional than other people in this world is such non sense. Stupid, entitled, materialistic, and arrogant is what Americans are.

My god, just look at the Tea Party. There are foreigners who admire America, but when they look at the Tea Party, they just scoff or laugh. Tea baggers, in terms of intelligence, are much stupider than the average person the world over. They are also selfish, arrogant and racist. I mean this is the movement who bitches about government spending but also insists on ridiculous tax cuts. How can you respect people who don't understand the concept of revenue?

And yes, I do think there are some great Americans living today. I just don't think being American has anything to do with it.

In terms of citizens, America is not at all superior to the rest of the world. Let's stop pretending that it is.

American Exceptionalism is just another generic catch phrase that can mean whatever you want.

The word "exceptionalism" means: "the condition of being different from the norm."
Exceptionalism - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary

In my perception then the USA is exceptional because the USA is a nation made up of MORE people that are exceptional that come from countries
that don't provide the encouragement to be exceptional.
NO country in the world is made up of more people coming from other countries then the USA.
More of these people that come are exceptional people that see the USA as providing an environment more conducive to their exceptionalism!

In other words there is no real definition for American exceptionalism. Just another vague rhetorical concept.

You are the one not getting it.
Just because it has been explained it different ways does not mean a vague rhetorical concept. The basic concept is there and you are not able to see it.
You are not getting the concept of Freedom from Government and individualism.
Government needs to get the hell out of the way and stop trying to control us, so that Americans have the freedom to become exceptional again.
We have become the Despot ruler and Oligarchy that the Revolutionary War was fought over.

Even more vague.

See the last line -- Peach and I arrived at the same spot.

That's the whole point of the earlier definition post -- it IS vague when a term has been haphazardly applied over time, from one of Liberal government by The People to Manifest Destiy to communists to a general hubristic catchall. Vague is kind of inevitable. That's why I'm always a stickler for proper definitions like "Liberal". And also why I'm always demanding one for "Progressive". You can't communicate with Vague.

 

[Liminal]

American Exceptionalism is just another generic catch phrase that can mean whatever you want.

The word "exceptionalism" means: "the condition of being different from the norm."
Exceptionalism - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary

In my perception then the USA is exceptional because the USA is a nation made up of MORE people that are exceptional that come from countries
that don't provide the encouragement to be exceptional.
NO country in the world is made up of more people coming from other countries then the USA.
More of these people that come are exceptional people that see the USA as providing an environment more conducive to their exceptionalism!

In other words there is no real definition for American exceptionalism. Just another vague rhetorical concept.

You are the one not getting it.
Just because it has been explained it different ways does not mean a vague rhetorical concept. The basic concept is there and you are not able to see it.
You are not getting the concept of Freedom from Government and individualism.
Government needs to get the hell out of the way and stop trying to control us, so that Americans have the freedom to become exceptional again.
We have become the Despot ruler and Oligarchy that the Revolutionary War was fought over.

Even more vague.

Can't get any more plain than Freedom from Government and individualism.

More generic concepts. You might just as well consider yourself exceptional because you like food and water.