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valkery
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valkery
1,255 posts
Nomad

Why is America so arrogant? We who live in America think that all our ideas are the best, our way of living is great for everyone and that anyone who doesn't do it our way, should. Then we decide to go over to the Eastern world that is dominated by a primarily Muslim culture, and decide to take a government that isn't run by a religion and force it onto those that are. America recreated Israel. Then we decide that going over to Iraq and taking out their leader and trying to impose our way of life on them was a good idea. We live in a perminant state of hate and misunderstanding between our counterparts in the Eastern world, and we don't care. Americans think that since we have the best way of life, that everyone should follow our example if they want to prosper. Oh, wait, we are running on China's money, our banks are to stupid to understand money, and we decide to bail out giant motor vehicle companies, because we can. It seems to me that we don't really have any clue as to what makes a country prosper. We keep barely getting by on the seat of our pants, and then we have the gaul to try to force our ideas, morals and culture on a completly different civilization.

Why do we do that? What conceviable reason is there for the US to try to force it's failing way of life on another part of the globe.

Oh, this discussion was started in my English class today...

  • 59 Replies
RedLlama
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RedLlama
178 posts
Nomad

Good point E1337, the UN can't rely on the US either, the US is not a peacekeeper, but in todays world, can we let genocide go on?

Xzeno
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Xzeno
2,301 posts
Nomad

I'm a bit confused. What's wrong with cultural imperialism? Misogyny and racism aren't acceptable, even in the holy name of diversity. If a culture promotes treating women as second class citizens, it should be altered or destroyed.

So which cases lead to cultural imperialism being wrong? Is it wrong per se and must be qualified to be acceptable? Must it be qualified to be wrong?


Just sayin' we have enough stuff to worry about, rather than waging unnessicary wars.
I always found it interesting that, on a national level, people start to view trying to help others as meddling and looking out for yourself regardless of others as the only morally acceptable stance.
quakingphear
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quakingphear
410 posts
Peasant

In what I've seen most other countries adopt 'Western' ideas or trends pretty voluntarily, they just end up altering them to their ways slightly. Look at jeans. People outside the US are crazy for them. In some cases it's a status symbol dressing like an American, or they're just in vogue.

As for US foreign involvement, you forgot the dozens of foreign governments the CIA either overthrew or put into place. I think a more constructive question is, "How do we fix the damage that's already been done?" Assuming help is even wanted, it might be a better thing to focus on.

valkery
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valkery
1,255 posts
Nomad

Hence why Obama trode carefully when he was talking to Mubarak.


Yet the right wing still calls him a Muslim activist and socialist. If he was not for the Islamic takeover of Egypt, or against it, how can you infer that he wants the Islamic people to take over America.

Oh, and I would like to point one thing out. Religion relys on people believing in it, correct? If people don't want to believe in a religion, it dissappears, correct? So the best way to make sure that Islam doesn't take over the US is to not believe in it. Definetly.
Dragonblaze052
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Dragonblaze052
26,677 posts
Peasant

the right wing, whose standard takes of slinging mud

since they can't make black smears anymore

since he learns left of center, he must be a socialist.


You have proven yourself no better than we.
ChillzMaster
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ChillzMaster
1,434 posts
Nomad

Oh. My. God. Time to rip into some anti-American lies. Prepare yourself, you're about to be blows away by KNOWLEDGE.

Why is America so arrogant?
Arrogant? Let's see if some bragging Americans do now is not without justification
1) Defeating a major superpower with a handful of farmers
2) Starting and maintaining the first majorly successful modern republic
3) Defeating a different superpower's "invincible" navy of 200 ships with 12 (this is from the quasi war w/Napoleon's France)
4) Dominating a continent withing 150 years of conception (took Russia at least 1000 to do that)
5) Repelled the same superpower it won independence from a few years later
6) Set the guidelines for modern foreign policy
7) Established with tyrannical monarchs who was the boss in the Western Hemisphere
8) Dominated the oil industry in the mid-late 1800's to teh mid-early 1900's
9) Inspired a bunch of rebels who made their own democracy, let those rebels join the Union, and then proceeded to defeat (handily) the empire from which the rebels rebelled.
10) Defeated two monarchs in a hard-fought trench war
11) Maintained dominance and crafted humongous feats of man in the worst economic depression of all time
12) Mass-produced steel, which was rare at its mass-production
13) Saved the world from three facist powers
14) Saved the world from a Communist power
15) Saving the world from Terrorism

hm. Pretty sure i missed a few, but lets move on.

We who live in America think that all our ideas are the best, our way of living is great for everyone and that anyone who doesn't do it our way, should.


Our ideas are based off of Greek Democracy, and after our success, England, France, Russian(eventually), the Netherlands, and Spain quickly followed in our footsteps. So, are the Greeks, French, Russian, English, Dutch, and Spanish all imposers of democracy, are they also big bullies on the block?

Then we decide to go over to the Eastern world that is dominated by a primarily Muslim culture, and decide to take a government that isn't run by a religion and force it onto those that are


Asia is a mix of Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, and Taoist beliefs. The Muslims just happen to be in the news more often. Theocracies also tend to have dictators who utilize the religion of the people to acquire more power and wealth for themselves. (i.e. Iran)

America recreated Israel.
Britain made Isreal. Yea. It was to give Europeon Jews a place of sanctuary after WW2

Then we decide that going over to Iraq and taking out their leader and trying to impose our way of life on them was a good idea.

Saddam Hussein was a dictator who funded and aided the monsters who flew the planes into the World Trade Center, and was potentially holding Nuclear Weapons. A free democracy was later established, so people who originally had no representation, could now vote for the best man to lead a free iraq to better days.

We live in a perminant state of hate and misunderstanding between our counterparts in the Eastern world, and we don't care.

We consistently work with China on how to keep the Koreans from blowing each other up, Russia and us are cool now cuz democracies stick together, and India has more troubles to worry about in the form of Pakistan than us.

Americans think that since we have the best way of life, that everyone should follow our example if they want to prosper

With teh exception of China, the top 10 nations in Economic, Military, and Technology are all democracies. US, UK, France, RU, Germany, Japan.

Oh, wait, we are running on China's money, our banks are to stupid to understand money, and we decide to bail out giant motor vehicle companies, because we can.


We dont run on China's money, you obviously don't understand global manufacturing. It's one of the more darker themes of the modern world. the nations of the world order products, and since China is communistic and has cheap labor, they can easily make the products. And if China ever had the idea to declare war the US could easily just not pay the debt. That banking comment? Look who's at the top of the world bank list
We bail out our motor companies because its one of our major industries and a huge source of income to the nation. I don't like general motors though... they piss me off.

It seems to me that we don't really have any clue as to what makes a country prosper. We keep barely getting by on the seat of our pants, and then we have the gaul to try to force our ideas, morals and culture on a completly different civilization.


Lets see how america stands up in the world nowadays, eh? All with Freedom and Democracy and Capitalism.
#1 Military
#1 Tecnnology
#1 Single Nation Economy

And we've been prospering ever since 1776, where we beat that filthy monarch and won our FREEDOM. America represents FREEDOM, and will always fight tyranny and injustice to bring about a FREE WORLD.

I just successfully dissected your entire post, disproved it entirely, and did it all with hard facts. I would LOVE to see you try to disprove me.
spens159
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spens159
8 posts
Nomad

Oppression of women similar to how they do in various Middle East countries is wrong and needs to be changed.

This is fact. This is not arrogance or forcing our ways on other people.

Einfach
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Einfach
1,448 posts
Nomad

Oppression of women similar to how they do in various Middle East countries is wrong and needs to be changed.


In future posts, it would be nice to be a little more specific. Include:
What they do to women
and
Why this is wrong - the underlying reason.

That way we can properly respond to your post.
This is fact. This is not arrogance or forcing our ways on other people.

What creates morality?
Einfach
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Einfach
1,448 posts
Nomad

Pretty sure i missed a few, but lets move on


Talk about inventions that revolutionized (haha - get it?) the world. Other than that, pretty good.
We bail out our motor companies because its one of our major industries and a huge source of income to the nation.

Aww... you were on a roll. -1

Motor companies do not need to be bailed out, AND it is a disservice to the citizens of the country to do so, because you are supporting a business that cannot support itself, thus deviating from the free market system.
All with Freedom and Democracy and Capitalism.

An ideal system would have
1. A completely free market (unlike the US, which executes deficit spending, which doesn't stimulate the economy at all [I'll justify this point later])
2. The only laws being those that prevent people from committing acts of aggression against each other.
3. Smaller taxes for military and police reasons - do policing in the most free-market way possible - having companies compete for a contract from the government, thus minimizing the cost on the taxpayer.

Such a system would have the highest standard of living in the world given the same parameters as other countries, and even the &quotoor" would have better standards of living than the "lower classes" in other countries.
valkery
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valkery
1,255 posts
Nomad

10) Defeated two monarchs in a hard-fought trench war


If you are talking about WWI, we didn't get into that war until near the end, and we suffered way less casualties and wounded than anyone else, because we sent way less people...

11) Maintained dominance and crafted humongous feats of man in the worst economic depression of all time


We also put ourselves into the worst depression of all time.
Kasic
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Kasic
5,552 posts
Jester

Who cares? Everyone always thinks what they are doing is the best, and what they believe is the best, why would they follow it if they thought it wasn't? Culture has no right to exist, it's just how we act.

Kevin4762
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Kevin4762
2,420 posts
Nomad

I disagree with everything posted here referring to the US being arrogant or superior.

Britain was far worse, but we flip flopped positions. Britain now is a bit more isolationist while the US needs to stick its big fat nose into everything.

Xzeno
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Xzeno
2,301 posts
Nomad

What they do to women
I'm sorry, I was under the impression that our goal was productive discourse, not quibbling about every statement. The oppression of women in the middle east is well documented enough to be common knowledge. You're on the Internet. Information is at your fingertips.

Why this is wrong - the underlying reason.
Oppressing women for being women is doing unnecessary harm with extreme prejudice. Denying the unethical implications of misogyny isn't going to gain you much support in the modern political climate, as a side note.

What creates morality?
Chemical evolution. Same thing that creates everything we think and feel.

This is fact. This is not arrogance or forcing our ways on other people.
Actually, it's both. It's just not wrong.
seVain5
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seVain5
219 posts
Nomad

Chemical evolution. Same thing that creates everything we think and feel.

Even if you believe in macroevolution, it doesn't mean the whole universe was created by it. The theory is that everything living came from a simple living cell.
I disagree with everything posted here referring to the US being arrogant or superior.

The US is definitely not superior, even though it holds one of the most powerful positions in the world. China basically owns us. If they stopped lending us money, the country would fall apart.
Kevin4762
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Kevin4762
2,420 posts
Nomad

The US is definitely not superior, even though it holds one of the most powerful positions in the world. China basically owns us. If they stopped lending us money, the country would fall apart.


Who are you talking about? It seems like you are attacking me even though you are actually adding on to what I am saying.
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