What's Wrong with Americans?

[catbert836]

We don't remember Vietnam, we don't think anything is wrong with pre-emption, we don't care if our presidents violate the constitution and consider themselves above the law so long as they are faithful to their wives, we have largest rich-poor gap of any developed country, we have the highest rate of gun-related murders, we supply terrorists with training and weapons to terrorists as long as they fight our enemies, and then cry bloody murder when they turn on us. We think its OK to expand the deficit and ruin the environment because "we don't have to worry about it", and we consistently believe anything politicians tell us as long as they pay homage and wrap themselves in the flag.
Now, I'm not saying that anyone on this site or in the Democratic Party is in favor of the aforementioned ideas. Far from it. What I'm saying is that there are several serious problems with this country, and the first step to correct them is to identify them.

[catbert836]

1. Anyone?

[Kanary]

2. Collective psychopathology

A lot of the country lives in a permanent trance.

:shrug:

Kanary

[LynnTheDem]

3. Lots of things

Ignorance.

Arrogance.

Nationalism.

Laziness.

Hypocrisy.

We think the USA is literally the be-all and end-all; we think the USA is #1 in everything, which in fact just isn't true; we're not the #1 most free nation; we're not #1 in technology; we're not #1 in medical research; we're not #1 in standard of living; we have a child death rate that ranks as 3rd world.

And as long as Americans continue to deny the facts, truth, and reality, and instead sit back and chant "we're the best", nothing will get fixed and things will continue to get worse.

And the rest of the world sees our own people dying of hunger, dying from lack of money to pay for medical care, ever more American families living in poverty, living homeless; sees and suffers our hypocrisy as we kill their children while we beat our breasts and chant how great we are and how much the world loves us.

[david_vincent]

4. Well put, Lynn

Of course it wouldn't be hard to make a list of things that we do lead the world in.
Incarceration rate, firearms fatalities, etc.
Another thing that's seldom mentioned is that the US is unquestionably the best country to be rich in. There is no better place to be if you're truly wealthy. So a case could be made that we're number one in hubris as well. And we all know what that leads to.

[Doctor_J]

8. mostly ignorance

i think if people access to real news, and if there were a counter to the hate radio that floods the AM band, things would turn around in a hurry. there is just no way to overcome bone ignorance. if the TRUTH about the invasion - the real cost in $, the cost in lives, the fact there there was no cnx between saddam and 9/11, no cnx between iraq and 9/11, and all the bush/saudi involvment - had been stressed beginning on 9/12/01, support for the attack would be about 10%.

at some point we will hit critical mass with the media problem in this country, and then things will start to improve post haste.

[HEyHEY]

5. The whole "don't fuck with me" mentality the nation is raised with

[jimshoes]

6. This might sound a little campy but

it seems like that Star trek episode where there was an evil force that got stronger on negative emotions. The neo-con republicants are the same way. They feed off negative energy. That's how their party works. Create strife and discontent, it serves their purposes well.

[Kanary]

7. USians have raised sociopathology to a lofty level --nobody is exempt,

even all us "enlightened" ones.

We're all infected.

Kanary