thanks dad

Yah America sucks-n-stuff

just remember you are stupid if you dont spend 1/10th of the time hating your country

Yah, me know dis. Butt I no I priddy dum aneeways (=" /. er )-: oh :- )

I'm the one trying to have a discussion instead of throwing profanities around.

__________________
"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

Oh dear…I shouldn’t have come.

Just like Noahath, I hesitated about posting in this thread – in fact even opening it (curiosity won <sigh>).

Okay, now that I’m here…

Matt, I’m going to try to explain to you why your post dismays me rather than sways me.

I very much agree with the idea that a good way to counter negative perceptions of a nation (or any group or individual) is to promote its positive facets.

But there was no need for you to couch your post in sarcastic jibes indiscriminately targeted at America’s critics.

Your post is preachy. Your remarks make me feel as if you make no distinction between well-intentioned critics and malevolent detractors. They are misdirected because stories such as this will have about as much chance to turn around a troll or a bigoted anti-American, as a positive story about Blacks would turn around a rabid racist, or a positive story about Jews would turn around a rabid anti-Semite.

Meanwhile, those of us who are well-intentioned don’t need a lecture about the good that America does. We are well aware of it. It is the fact that all criticisms of the United States, whether expressed by Americans or non-Americans, are dismissed as anti-Americanism, which is a source of great distress and frustration for me.

I purposely sought out an American political discussion board, because it seems to me that the US role in the world is of such critical importance today. That’s the reason why I am here.

You could have posted the two stories in their respective forum. The first would have made an interesting post in the Science and Technology forum, and the second perhaps in International Politics (with a different intro).

The same situation came up on the board where I use to post. The politics section was filled with negative threads about the US and other nations. So I suggested that a Science, culture and general issues section be set up. It was. I recall one thread I posted about the first Native American to fly on a US space mission. I thought this was a really interesting, positive story. Well, what happened? Conservative Americans jumped on the thread to attack the astronaut for identifying as a Native American. Soon enough, the thread was ruined. And those who ruined it were among the most vocal at deploring anti-Americanism on the board.

I have posted some positive threads about the US space program in the Science and Technology forum here too. Where were you, Rakkasan or any of the others who are complaining that there is a lack of positive stories about the US on this board?

Tethys

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-- Harry S. Truman

And try posting any thread praising something positive Clinton did, or expressing praise for any “liberal” entity or project in the United States.

Even your “USNS Comfort” story. I betcha it would have its critics among Libertarians and Conservatives on this board. I betcha It would not be viewed by all Americans as a story promoting a positive action by the US.

Tethys

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-- Harry S. Truman

you are not discussing anything you put your pious and holier than thou 2 cents in there that basically bad is good discussion i said its bullshit so you come back with the cursing complaint

geuss its better than grammer check

before my statement was jumped by the boards resident hard ass blue koolaide drinkers

i was trying to relate the FACT even if there is some positive stories on ANY board they are immediatley crushed by the anti bush crowd and turn into a thread like this that basically if you do not hate america 10% of the time you are a piece of shit, or really if you dont listen to the people who spend their time trashing america instead of supporting it, you are a moron..........

the fact is the majority of internet political discussion board posters are liberal and see the whole world as "half full" and i bet that in 08 when madame hillary takes over and fucks over this country, they will lose their critical analysis and become as happy as a clown

No problem, junior.

__________________
When they come a wull staun ma groon
Staun ma groon al nae be afraid
Thoughts awe hame tak awa ma fear
Sweat an bluid hide ma veil awe tears

Where did you pull this from?

__________________
When they come a wull staun ma groon
Staun ma groon al nae be afraid
Thoughts awe hame tak awa ma fear
Sweat an bluid hide ma veil awe tears

An overall simplistic thread, saved by the fact that Americans, as opposed to the US Gov't, do some good in other nations (other than Europe).

But that good is far outweighed by the far greater bad that the gov't and corporations (same thing) do in these locales.

Bah, if America only did bad things, most posters wouldn't bother posting about it, anyway. How many threads about North Korea can you find on this forum? Everybody knows there's not one solitary positive thing to say about North Korea, except perhaps that it's far away. So what would be the point? NK sucks, end of discussion. No, the problem is that the US do good things, that most foreigners used to like the US, but that they are dismayed by what the Bush administration has done to your country. We're shocked, therefore we post. Who's going to be shocked by anything NK could possibly do?

I fcking hate your fcking smileys...

If you are trying to show a positive side to America you have failed miserably with your hostility.

__________________
"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"