"What We Think of America."

[Imran Siddiqui]

Do you live there? If not, don't tell it's not that bad.

Um.. YES... duh, he lives in Jacksonville!

And ask JohnT, GP, etc... if they South is that bad. A lot of people like the South. I found it very nice, which is why I'm going to be living there (let me tell you, the phone service and cable service people are much nicer than the ones you'd get up North).

[rah]

The reason I posted that was because I actually read some of the articles that were written. Either I selected badly and ended up with just the anti-american ones, or they were all a bit slanted. For every bad story like i read, there are many more positive ones. So lacking seeing them above, I provided one of the good ones, that I know is true. For all of the failings of the US, it's still one heck of a country. And it's our job to keep it that way.

RAH

[Hueij]

I don't have to read all the linked articles to give my opinion here... When I was a kid during the late 50's, early 60's, America was some sort of fairy land. We all read the Donald Duck magazine and it was filled with cars, tv sets, refrigirators, tv's etc. Things we didn't have over here. So in our minds we had a picture of some sort of "promised land". I remember the footage of the Kennedy assasination, all those huge black shining cars in a row we never have seen over here.

Then, WW2 slowly disappeared into our unconscience, and the 60's came to full bloom, the trees reached into the skies, we became aware of American rascism. By then we all had tv and we saw what happened to American blacks and we were shocked. Next came Nam. And by then America (to my generation) had really fallen of it's pedestal. We learned about America's doings in South and Central America, J Edgar Hoover, Nixon came and went (Spirow Agnew!!) and that's it.

Since then i'm kind of neutral about the US but I have to admit that some of the US posters here, from their white suburbian middle class ivory towers reaaly get on my nerves sometimes.

Hope this made any sense and that my meaning didn't get lost during all my ramblings

[Hueij]

Rah, great story. It's stories like that that makes the US something special but only if the Americans today remember where they come from... They are no better or more blessed than the rest of us...

[Bereta_Eder]

My uncle has immigrated to the US.

He has won the nobel price fo architecture. He designed a very big bridge. I think it was the brisge of Manhattan?

I only have some pictures of him in the family photo albums.
he looks completely american and completely rich.

[Wraith]

Che, thanks for these. I needed a laugh

Here's a quote from the second one. Found this particularly amusing.

All this does is remind everyone that it was the police who came to evict them in the first place, after the neighbours complained. It wasn't the first time. My sister's children can only relax when they listen to rap. Its rhythm restores their equilibrium. They are talented musicians who write their own lyrics and set them to music. If this were a different kind of area, this unsolicited music might be seen as nourishment for its audience's soul.

Wraith
"His mind is like a steel trap -- full of mice"
-- Foghorn Leghorn

[Victor Galis]

And ask JohnT, GP, etc... if they South is that bad. A lot of people like the South. I found it very nice, which is why I'm going to be living there (let me tell you, the phone service and cable service people are much nicer than the ones you'd get up North).

-Ah, so you don't live in my neighborhood.

And ask JohnT, GP, etc...

-They're all Southerners. They don't see the deficiencies of their land.

For every bad story like i read, there are many more positive ones.

-Quite on the contrary, for every good story, there are two bad ones. Just look, there's not that many millionares, but there's plenty of poor people. Even if every poor person doesn't have a bad story... do the math.

[uh Clem]

I have a vision of some, uh, young lady on a streetcorner asking RAH's grandfather if he'd like to play Hide The Salami, and he thought, "Wow! Yeah, that sounds like lots of fun!"

Probably waited all night, wondering why she never showed up...





________________________________________

Mel Carnahan for Attorney General

[Provost Harrison]

Originally posted by Caligastia
Great post Rah.

Without a doubt, the USA is the greatest country in the world.

God bless America.

Consider your affiliation with any commonwealth nation terminated

[Sava]

I love America, but hate the government. I love America, but like few Americans. It's the only country I've ever lived in, so I can't comment on if its the best. So far, so good. Although I wouldn't die in a foreign war for a politician, I would defend freedom and die for it. I shall not be subjugated! Even if America as a nation ceases to exist tomorrow, it's legacy of freedom will be remembered for thousands of years just like people remember the Roman Empire. Personally, I think America as a nation will last for maybe 150 more years. The world is at somewhat of a climax. I believe the times we live in are the most important thus far in the history of human civilization.

[Alexander's Horse]

America reminds me a lot of Australia - a land of opportunity, a place where you can make a new start, re-invent yourself.

Which sometimes makes me wonder why my family arrived here shortly after the First Fleet and basically did squat for 7 generations

Maybe life is too good

[Shi Huangdi]

There are plenty of negative views about us out there, but that comes with the territory of being the the most powerful country in the world. I am sure Britain took plenty of flak back in the day, heck they still do from certain places in the world.

[Victor Galis]

Yeah, when you're most powerful people know more about you, so they have more grounds for criticism.

[Alexander's Horse]

Originally posted by Shi Huangdi
There are plenty of negative views about us out there, but that comes with the territory of being the the most powerful country in the world.

Oh you can have that - noone is flying passenger jets into our landmarks.

[Lord Merciless]

My impression about those articles is that Brits are overwhelmingly anti-American, while Arabs complaint a lot of America's double-standard in Middle East. Other Europeans, Germans in particular, still respect America and are grateful about what it has done for them. East Europeans, like that Ivan guy from Prague, tend to be even more pro-american. Indians also give mostly positive responses.

I find it very ironic that our people from our closest ally hate us that much.