derangel
Feb 14th, 2005, 7:00 AM
November's presidential elections made some people wonder if there aren't really two different versions of the U.S. I sometimes wonder myself. Keep in mind, I'm not pointing fingers or mentioning democrats or republicans or what have you. On the one hand you have people who are truly decent, who are altruistic, will gladly die for their friends, are compassionate and do their best to help the rest of the world, are open-minded, open to new experiences and new ways of thinking, accepting of other people's way of doing things, and morally mature. These are people who are concerned about making sure that everyone is treated equally and fairly; after all, we're all still human, regardless of race, gender, etc.
And on the other hand, you have the exact opposite. You have people who are not only shamefully ignorant, but proud of it! People who are vindictive and blood-thirsty, who wave the word "patriotism" around as a new way of saying "we're the best country on earth, and we'll shoot anybody who says otherwise." People who are not so much concerned about the well-being of others as they are about always being right. These are the people who would discriminate against those of other countries and even fellow Americans based on race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, etc.
So which is the real America? Well, they both are. America is representative of the human race as a whole in that it shows everything from the greatest good to the most profound evil. These are two very distinct philosophies and attitudes, and they run rampant in the States. I say, we separate all these people into two groups and let them start two new countries. That way, they can all have what they want and they don't have to piss off the other side.
Personally, I think I'll just move to an uncharted jungle island in the pacific where I can run naked and weave baskets out of hemp. Knowing my luck, though, my island will have a rich oil supply and the U.S. will decide that I'm ruling the island with an iron fist and have somehow managed to MacGuyver a nuclear weapon together out of bat guano and coconut shells, and they'll spend billions of dollars to send a bunch of soldiers to my island so that one of them can kick me off a ledge into the ocean to be eaten by a shark. And then they'll shoot the shark for good measure.
I've seen both sides of America up close and personal. There are some genuinely good and decent people in the country, but for every one of those there are ten others that cause me a great deal of embarassment. How do I tell the rest of the world that we're not all like these morons?
In the days following the events of 9/11, after it was revealed that those responsible were Midde-Eastern Islamic extremists, there was a nasty backlash aimed at anyone who was Islamic, Middle-Eastern, or was suspected of being either. Several Islamic friends at my school were harassed. Why? Are people in this country really that stupid? Do they think that every Islamic or Middle-Eastern person is a terrorist? Or was this some obscure form of revenge? Who knows? I don't claim to know the minds of idiots.
Which America would you rather live in?
PS- taking resident applications for the island of the naked basket-weavers
And on the other hand, you have the exact opposite. You have people who are not only shamefully ignorant, but proud of it! People who are vindictive and blood-thirsty, who wave the word "patriotism" around as a new way of saying "we're the best country on earth, and we'll shoot anybody who says otherwise." People who are not so much concerned about the well-being of others as they are about always being right. These are the people who would discriminate against those of other countries and even fellow Americans based on race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, etc.
So which is the real America? Well, they both are. America is representative of the human race as a whole in that it shows everything from the greatest good to the most profound evil. These are two very distinct philosophies and attitudes, and they run rampant in the States. I say, we separate all these people into two groups and let them start two new countries. That way, they can all have what they want and they don't have to piss off the other side.
Personally, I think I'll just move to an uncharted jungle island in the pacific where I can run naked and weave baskets out of hemp. Knowing my luck, though, my island will have a rich oil supply and the U.S. will decide that I'm ruling the island with an iron fist and have somehow managed to MacGuyver a nuclear weapon together out of bat guano and coconut shells, and they'll spend billions of dollars to send a bunch of soldiers to my island so that one of them can kick me off a ledge into the ocean to be eaten by a shark. And then they'll shoot the shark for good measure.
I've seen both sides of America up close and personal. There are some genuinely good and decent people in the country, but for every one of those there are ten others that cause me a great deal of embarassment. How do I tell the rest of the world that we're not all like these morons?
In the days following the events of 9/11, after it was revealed that those responsible were Midde-Eastern Islamic extremists, there was a nasty backlash aimed at anyone who was Islamic, Middle-Eastern, or was suspected of being either. Several Islamic friends at my school were harassed. Why? Are people in this country really that stupid? Do they think that every Islamic or Middle-Eastern person is a terrorist? Or was this some obscure form of revenge? Who knows? I don't claim to know the minds of idiots.
Which America would you rather live in?
PS- taking resident applications for the island of the naked basket-weavers