What's your Stance on America?

[Sava]

If only life was a video game.

[GhengisFarbâ„¢]

Originally posted by Dry
I would compare the US to MOO3.

What? The US is the worst nation of all time? Completely devoid of any redeeming qualities? Every living thing in the universe would have a tangibly better existence if it had never existed?

I think comparing the US to MoO3 is going a bit extreme.

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by Japher
I kind of blame the UK and France more so than the US for many of the dictatorships currently having problems. Also, I am trying to recall any that the US has directly and personally installed themselves.

They are myriad. Latin America is the most pronounced example, but we've had our fingers in the pie in every continent. We only rarely installed the dictator directly, generally preferring to give money, arms, and direction to those who would overthrown their own democracies and then confering legitimacy upon them once they were in power.

[chequita guevara]

The poll is too simplistic, anyway. I abstained.

[Cruddy]

I voted 8. It's really about 7 and a half, but 8 is about right.

Some of the details of the USA I don't like (capital punishment, defence expenditure versus healthcare, Latin American foreign policy) but the main ideals, the core standards of the US, are very admirable.

For comparison - I'd give New Zealand a 10, Australia a 9, and my own country a 6.

Originally posted by Japher
I kind of blame the UK and France more so than the US for many of the dictatorships currently having problems. Also, I am trying to recall any that the US has directly and personally installed themselves.

Examples?

Many international boundaries are down to the UK and France, and many of these have caused wars. Fair comment.

But don't forget the world's largest democracy is also partly down to the UK (but mostly down to the Hindus).

[Atahualpa]

Ten options???? Havent you learned from your enlighted leader: "Either you are with us or you are against us!" There is no 2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9 and all those who have not voted 10 are quite obviously against so we can reduce this poll to 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 and 9 being against US and 10 being for US.

Well so, I can't vote on such a poll because I dont like having just 2 options

[MrFun]

Originally posted by Japher
I am trying to recall any that the US has directly and personally installed themselves.

You have to be joking with us in saying you can't think of any dictatorships that the United States had installed?


Does Saddam Huessein ring any bells? In fact, that might be one reason why he is so adamantly unrepetent -- he was a partner with United States at an earlier time.

[Q Classic]

I am trying to recall any that the US has directly and personally installed themselves.

Syngman Rhee of skorea was directly and personally installed by the US government.

[JimmyCracksCorn]

I think you couldn't ask for a better country/political system to be the world power. The United States government is filled with checks and balances that really moderate what kind of power the US exerts over itself and the rest of the world.

Imagine if George Bush were PM of Canada and Canada was a world power... with the kind of authority the PM has here, we'd be fighting 10 wars right now and the world would look something like a crater. As crazy as GWB may seem at times, be thankful he's president of the United States and not President of the USSR or some other theoretical, highly centralized, superpower.

[Sprayber]

Originally posted by Sava
I love my country; I hate my government.

10 for USA
0 for all the politicians

[Kuciwalker]

[SIZE=1] Originally posted by
Imagine if George Bush were PM of Canada and Canada was a world power...

I'm sorry, my imagination isn't quite that powerful.

[KrazyHorse]

I agree; the thought of us electing a ****wit like Dubya is a real stretch.

[OzzyKP]

Originally posted by JimmyCracksCorn
I think you couldn't ask for a better country/political system to be the world power. The United States government is filled with checks and balances that really moderate what kind of power the US exerts over itself and the rest of the world.

Imagine if George Bush were PM of Canada and Canada was a world power... with the kind of authority the PM has here, we'd be fighting 10 wars right now and the world would look something like a crater. As crazy as GWB may seem at times, be thankful he's president of the United States and not President of the USSR or some other theoretical, highly centralized, superpower.

Good point.

[MrFun]

Originally posted by JimmyCracksCorn
I think you couldn't ask for a better country/political system to be the world power. The United States government is filled with checks and balances that really moderate what kind of power the US exerts over itself and the rest of the world.

Imagine if George Bush were PM of Canada and Canada was a world power... with the kind of authority the PM has here, we'd be fighting 10 wars right now and the world would look something like a crater. As crazy as GWB may seem at times, be thankful he's president of the United States and not President of the USSR or some other theoretical, highly centralized, superpower.

Well, if you call the history of installing dictatorships in different parts of the world moderation . . . . .

[GhengisFarbâ„¢]

Originally posted by MrFun



You have to be joking with us in saying you can't think of any dictatorships that the United States had installed?


Does Saddam Huessein ring any bells? In fact, that might be one reason why he is so adamantly unrepetent -- he was a partner with United States at an earlier time.

To me there's a difference between "installed" and supported.

I don't remember the US conquering Iraq and then declaring Saddam our Regent to run it.

The US has supported a lot of dictatorships because they made deals or were working towards objectives the US was interested in. But, I don't feel the US has installed dictatorships so much and simply funded as backed local leaders that were pro-US objectives at the time.