Something to think about

[P4Plenty 1]

Is America the greatest country in the world??

 

 

[johnp 45]

47th time this has been posted.

 

[P4Plenty 1]

48th

 

 

[e80hydro 120]

The heck with that. What about this????????????????

[johnnyrebel70 0]

The heck with that. What about this????????????????

 

That can't be real I mean look at that thing it's cocked, loaded and has a threaded barrel

[gunguy1960 2]

This is the question which seperates the political divide, if you ever want to know which side the person falls on just ask them this, do they hesitate, try to reframe it, dismiss it or do they give a quick and firm yes? It is the ultimate question to find out who believes in American exceptionalism or thinks we are just another country "evolving" with the continuing tinkering of our mighty elected officials.

[PhilipJFry 4]

This is the question which seperates the political divide, if you ever want to know which side the person falls on just ask them this, do they hesitate, try to reframe it, dismiss it or do they give a quick and firm yes? It is the ultimate question to find out who believes in American exceptionalism or thinks we are just another country "evolving" with the continuing tinkering of our mighty elected officials.

 

 

I can't disagree enough. The founding fathers were brilliant men, and formed a government that they knew could one day, possibly turn into tyranny. The brilliance didn't lie in their ideas for the rules of government, it lied in their foresight that since power corrupts, the people of the country could decide for themselves how to be governed. The smartest concept they put forth, was the idea that they didn't have all the answers. they knew the world would constantly change, as they had seen for themselves during their lifetimes, and they knew people and governments would change along with it. they knew for all their hard work and diligence, that somewhere along the line, the Constitution (and government) would have to be changed or amended as society changed. The genius was putting the faith in the common people to guide their employees (govt) to make decisions, however hindsight may view them. did the founding fathers beleive in "American exceptionalism" as you put it? i would think they scorned pride in favor of humility and faith in common decency. the problem that eventually arose is that we now elect people who "have all the answers". we elect people because they share our common ideas, not because they are men of principle and character. In my lifetime, i've never heard a politician admit "I was wrong" and take their lumps, and i probably never will. it's always "an error of good judgement", " I was mistaken/misunderstood/taken out of context", "the pressure got to me", and there's no personal accountability anymore. Am I proud to be an American? Yes and no. Yes, when i think about the men who fought and died for our country, so that other people could be free. No when i see "religious people" protesting these heroes funerals and spitting on their graves in the name of god. Yes when I see people working hard and doing the right thing, even when it's the harder road to travel. No, when i see people dealing drugs and lying/cheating/stealing/politicking/f&^$ing their way to the top. Yes when i see people living free and without worry, No when i see fear-mongering, divisiveness, and hostility.

[maintenanceguy 510]

We weren't even on most other countries radar until WWII. During WWII, we both gained military clout world wide and more importantly, our workforce became a well oiled machine and was more productive than it had ever been before helping the war effort. That level of productivity continued for several more years making the US prosper. We became the greatest country in the world, in the eyes of much of the world, because ALL of America worked our collective bottoms off to achieve something.

 

Today, we don't. Everyone wants a 35 hour work week, retirement at 65, an office job, a 1 hour lunch break. The number of Americans who work for the government and produce nothing has gone through the roof. America shifted from producing tangible things with value and creating value out of none to just moving money around.

 

As long as we continue to pay people to not work - through dozens of government programs, America can not be the greatest country in the world.

 

We were set up to be and we probably could be but we no longer follow our guiding principles.

 

But it's survived 237 years. It's been a pretty good run. And we'll get to build something good again from the ashes someday.

[BleedingOrange36 0]

We weren't even on most other countries radar until WWII. During WWII, we both gained military clout world wide and more importantly, our workforce became a well oiled machine and was more productive than it had ever been before helping the war effort. That level of productivity continued for several more years making the US prosper. We became the greatest country in the world, in the eyes of much of the world, because ALL of America worked our collective bottoms off to achieve something.

 

Today, we don't. Everyone wants a 35 hour work week, retirement at 65, an office job, a 1 hour lunch break. The number of Americans who work for the government and produce nothing has gone through the roof. America shifted from producing tangible things with value and creating value out of none to just moving money around.

 

As long as we continue to pay people to not work - through dozens of government programs, America can not be the greatest country in the world.

 

We were set up to be and we probably could be but we no longer follow our guiding principles.

 

But it's survived 237 years. It's been a pretty good run. And we'll get to build something good again from the ashes someday.

+1

There's not many people in my generation that want to work hard anymore. I would say 25% of the people I grew up with actually have a trade.

I'm blessed to have multiple trades, from welding to carpentry, mechanics and machining. Industrial electrician, and electronics technician. People I meet don't want to work hard anymore.

The younger people that work with me always walk by and say why the hell would you do that (insulation or ceiling work at 120degrees.... I simply say... Because its my job.

They all want computer jobs, which I understand is an excellent and lucrative field..... But what happens when the grid goes down? I'd be glad to know I build and fix stuff with my hands..... But still have a decent background in IT and network infrastructure.

People are growing soft, and its becoming the biggest problem.

[mipafox 438]

America is, without a doubt, the worst country in the world. It is the only modern western country in which you have no rights whatsoever. That would make it arguably the worst, but what makes it certain is that we were clearly tasked as "the last, best hope" for saving the Human Race from eternal slavery during the 20th Century. And all hope is now lost, because of us.