Petty cartoons like this annoy me. We have political freedom. We know that we can walk into a voting booth with no fear of getting shot. The truly worst thing about America is that Americans don’t appreciate what we have.
My understanding of “American Exceptionalism” is that int’s not simply that we’re “better” than other countries (with which I sometimes agree, at least in theory) but that, since we’re “better” we’re allowed to play by a different set of rules; “exceptions” are to be made for us.1) We’re allowed to interfere with other countries’ internal affairs, but by no means are they allowed to interfere with ours (even to the extent of expressing opinions on our presidential candidates), because we’re “special.”2) We’re allowed to consume vastly more of the planet’s natural resources (both in absolute terms and proportional terms) than anybody else, because we’re “special.”3) Anything which lessens the importance of the U.S. dollar in the world economy is impermissable, because we’re “special.”For the last 100 years or so we’ve been the 800-lb gorilla who sits anywhere he wants to, and we’ve come to believe that we DESERVE to remain so, that we OUGHT to remain so, because we’re “the good guys.” If we HAVE been “exceptional” by desert rather than by circumstance, I deeply believe we have exceptional obligations and responsibilities as well as privileges. More than anyone else, we must play fair, play by the rules, and be gracious and compassionate to those who are not so fortunate as to live here (I’m not being sarcastic; by accident of birth, most of us are far better off than most of the rest of the world’s population).If we really ARE the “good guys”, we better start acting like it.
RCMinor, in what way was DirtyDragon “playing the race card”?I’d vote for a thousand RINO’s, White or Black, before I’d vote for anyone endorsed by the Tea-Party.(I simply HATE the loss of the “Edit Comment” option…)
lewisbower almost 13 years ago
You got my vote Barney.
lovelandclay Premium Member almost 13 years ago
Petty cartoons like this annoy me. We have political freedom. We know that we can walk into a voting booth with no fear of getting shot. The truly worst thing about America is that Americans don’t appreciate what we have.
Plods with ...™ almost 13 years ago
From WebsterDefinition of EXCEPTIONALISM. : the condition of being different from the norm…That’s ME!!!!
Dirty Dragon almost 13 years ago
In Tea Party-ese “The President ought to be saying it” roughly translates to “What did he say? He said the President is near”
fritzoid Premium Member almost 13 years ago
My understanding of “American Exceptionalism” is that int’s not simply that we’re “better” than other countries (with which I sometimes agree, at least in theory) but that, since we’re “better” we’re allowed to play by a different set of rules; “exceptions” are to be made for us.1) We’re allowed to interfere with other countries’ internal affairs, but by no means are they allowed to interfere with ours (even to the extent of expressing opinions on our presidential candidates), because we’re “special.”2) We’re allowed to consume vastly more of the planet’s natural resources (both in absolute terms and proportional terms) than anybody else, because we’re “special.”3) Anything which lessens the importance of the U.S. dollar in the world economy is impermissable, because we’re “special.”For the last 100 years or so we’ve been the 800-lb gorilla who sits anywhere he wants to, and we’ve come to believe that we DESERVE to remain so, that we OUGHT to remain so, because we’re “the good guys.” If we HAVE been “exceptional” by desert rather than by circumstance, I deeply believe we have exceptional obligations and responsibilities as well as privileges. More than anyone else, we must play fair, play by the rules, and be gracious and compassionate to those who are not so fortunate as to live here (I’m not being sarcastic; by accident of birth, most of us are far better off than most of the rest of the world’s population).If we really ARE the “good guys”, we better start acting like it.
fritzoid Premium Member almost 13 years ago
RCMinor, in what way was DirtyDragon “playing the race card”?I’d vote for a thousand RINO’s, White or Black, before I’d vote for anyone endorsed by the Tea-Party.(I simply HATE the loss of the “Edit Comment” option…)