Ive done my showing overseas where it counts thank you very much it was quite positive and even in a war zone i was a ambassador not the ugly american , i dont consider a political discussion board a place we are actually making the world love us < My question why is that so important to you? must i kiss the arse of all foreigners on this board to be a good american in your view POM? and where do you get hostility? I am not angry i just think your point of view is fricken ( since cursing hurts your feelings) wrong and i state it.....did the board change as I have been working , are we all suppose to agree with eachother? , and must all americans agree that america sucks?

interesting that an american sucks thread, that acutally is postives that makes some people say hey we dont suck that bad, gets the "americans" who dont like their coutnry all upset and slinging the sniper shot one liners all over the place.....geuss there is something to what i presume was the intent of this thread to say america doesnt suck.....that makes you upset doesnt it POM?

And what I was trying to relate is that Conservatives will equally crush a positive story thread, if anything about that story does not sit with their own political ideology. Thus, the example I gave, whereby a thread I had posted about the first Native American astronaut turned into a quarrel about the astronaut’s’ blood line and how certain people abuse their blood line to get welfare, etc. This onslaught came from conservatives, so intent on pushing their own wheelbarrow, they could not see that 1) they were crushing a thread that promoted a positive story about the US, and 2) they were making Americans look bad by displaying their intolerance for the world to see. And this is only one example.

Also, there are many stories and views posted by conservatives that create a negative image of the US. For example, conservatives post a lot of threads about shocking crimes, often taking aim at the legal system or the authorities. To a non-American like me, these stories back up the perception that the US is a violent society, and make me question the perception that the US justice system is fair.

Well, I would dispute your assertion that it is a “fact” that “the majority of internet political discussion board posters are liberal”. All we can say is that the majority are likely to have strong political views, ranging from Left to Right. And even if what you claim is a “fact”, then perhaps conservatives should join in.

And that comes back also to what I was saying …the positive threads I have posted about the US here have been mostly ignored by those who complain that there is a lack of positive stories about the US.

Tethys

__________________
-- Harry S. Truman

Sniper shots? What are you talking about. I merely offered a explanation of why people don't discuss positive things as much. If discussion (which usually involves disagreement) isn't allowed in a positive thread about America then you just explained why it is never discussed.

__________________
"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!"

No, you are not all supposed to agree with each other…that’s the point.

I think the fact that Americans can disagree with each other, and post their views on a board such as this, can project a positive image of America. When it descends into polarised mud slinging, that can come across as pretty negative. But the point is, when some Americans label other Americans as “un-American”, “unpatriotic”, “America hater”, “anti-American”, etc, the group making such accusations is the group that comes across as saying that all Americans are supposed to agree with each other.

What’s obvious about this thread is that in fact no one is saying that America sucks. And no, it’s not because Matt posted a couple of feel good stories. It’s because, in the main, people here who criticise the Bush Administration, or US foreign policy, or some aspect or other of US life, do not think that America sucks.

The reaction to this thread is not directed at the two stories that Matt posted. It is directed at the assumption that there is a substantial “America sucks” fellowship out there.

Tethys

__________________
-- Harry S. Truman

I think you hit the nail on the head. Many seem to equate disagreement with government policy and the current administration as hating America when being critical of the government and calling them on things we do not like is very much American and one of the best things about America. The fact that we can in fact point out the flaws of our leaders and some things they do that we view as horrible is one of the best things about this country and why I do in fact love it. There Rak I actually went ahead and contributed to the positiveness of this thread by pointing out what I love about America although I'm sure it isn't what was being fished for or what you where hoping for.

__________________
"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!"

I wondered what Tethys was doing posting on a thread titled 'America Sucks' - and after reading the OP I realised the thread title was wrong.

The thread isn't about 'America Sucks ' but about some good things American people are doing.

To title it 'America Sucks' is to invite the kind of controntational stance people here seem to love so much.

In yesterday's paper here there were a couple of reports of really positive stories about the US/Americans. Had this thread had a positive, rather than a negative, orientation in its title I would have been inclined to grab those and add them to the thread.

Because it starts out as negative, it encourages the continuity of negativism.

Thank you, partofme. It's a consolation to read your post. Yes, that's exactly it. America's greatness is in part due to the freedom its people have to dissent. Must that freedom go before people realise this?

Tethys

__________________
-- Harry S. Truman

Right on, Daisy...and , yes, you would not normallyfind me in a thread titled “America sucks”, but I ventured into it because Matt had posted it and I thought, “hello?”.

Yes, it lured us in, but I very much agree with you that all this thread does is to perpetuate the very acrimony and negativism it aimed to counter.

And yes, I would never conttribute a positive story about the US on a thread with such a warped title

I respect Matt, but I’m so mad at him right now.

Tethys

__________________
-- Harry S. Truman

Anybody who has seen the explosion of colour come autumn in Ohio, or experienced a glorious summer day in the mountains of Vermont knows that America does not suck.

Conversely, anybody who has earned the title "collateral damage" knows that often American policy does suck.

I could sit here and wax prosaic for hours on the beauty of America and Americans, or I could criticize the problems. I prefer the latter because the ideal end result would be the resolution of said problems, in order that even more facets of the United States could be beautiful.

__________________
"Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God."
Matthew 5:9

Only problem is, is that hill-o-beans hasn't a chance in hell of winning the white house :-)

__________________
3 types; Leaders. Followers. Users.

Glad I could help :-)

__________________
3 types; Leaders. Followers. Users.

America sucks.

America doesn't suck.

America sucks.

America doesn't suck.

America sucks.

America doesn't suck.

Here's the deal.

Any organized civilization of humans will have a set of unhappy humans. Unhappy about this that or the other. It's part of the human condition.

So FAR, the way Americas civilization has been organized has allowed the most freedoms, opportunities and "pursuits of happiness" as any civilization ever in existence.

That's not to say it's the best or can't be improved. It can certainly be RUINED though.

Even if it reached some kind of perfection there would be people bitching and moaning and complaining. There will ALWAYS be unhappy zealots, weirdos and assholes.

__________________
3 types; Leaders. Followers. Users.

Larson, Matt,

So what's the whole purpose of this thread? Only because the current government of the United States of America has sent nurses out of job at home to useless mission to South America (like anyone needs them there) and like Youssif wasn't one in a thousands kids myhamned in Iraq by YOUR stormtroopers? You must be so proud having that girl photo as your slogan underneath your every post. Such a humanist you are.

That is a rather common assertion, that America is the most free, best country ever in existence, etc. I won't agree or disagree with that point, but will question just what you mean by it. Do you mean at this moment in time, we are the best at all the things you listed? Do you mean that over the course of our history, we are the best when compared to the histories of other countries?

Are Canada, Australia, Japan, or Sweden less 'free' than the United States? If so, in what ways, and how did you reach your conclusion? Does your statement have any substance, or is it just unfounded opinion.

Please note by unfounded opinion I absolutely do not mean there is no foundation in saying America is free and great. I only mean to question the comparison implicit in saying "America is best." I am not questioning the freedom of America. I am questioning why you think America does all the things you listed better than Canada does it. Or Japan. Or Sweden. Or any one of the other numerous free countries out there.

Is saying "America is the best country on Earth" similar to saying "The Office is the best show on television," or does the quoted portion of your post have any substance?

__________________
"Some years ago I had a sobering realization about women, which was that there are just too many nice ones. One simply can't fall in love with, sleep with, or marry all the nice women...One of the saddening facts of life is that there is always going to be a delightful woman somewhere who, for whatever accident of timing or attraction, simply slips by and recedes to return only in a dream."
-Larry McMurtry in Roads

Why won't some one to point out that the term 'Americas civilization' is inaccurate to say the least?