I can see that some of you are going to be viewig my points as anti-American. *shrug* I don't think we're any worse than the rest of the world, if the truth be known.
The current social systems of education and media seem to be almost explicitly geared towards churning out mentally lazy, conformist, easily led sheep who will not get off their asses for anything but making sure they and their families stay comfy and well-supplied with what the media assures us all we can't be happy without. Or to oppress the living crap out of anyone who isn't part of the official, socially accepted norm...passive-agressively if possible.
We are trapped in a two-party system of government where both parties are corrupt and in some cases less than benign, by our own fear of making waves and belief that we cannot make a difference. This belief is manufactured and fostered by our own institutions and enforced by our government.
An excellent example of how far our goverment will go towards ignoring our freedoms and our own "time honored" rights as set down in the Constitution and Bill of Rights is the recent roundup and imprisonment of the bicyclists who yearly do their big gathering in NYC because they just happened to coincide with the big Republican Convention this year...
Get a load of THIS story. Wonder why we didn't see some live media coverage on that puppy.
Kinda sounds like any other country, eh? So it's not so hard to see why I at least do not indulge in the mutual admiration club of the myth of American superiority.
Those of us discussing this openly and freely on the internet are part of a minority who hasn't, for one reason or another, taken the programming our society instils in us through education and media. Doesn't make us any better than the average joe who HAS bought in... just different. We're aware of the lie, but what are we doing about it really? Not much, aside from sitting in front of our computers, bandying about words and ideas and clever turns of phrase. So I wouldn't go as far as to say I'm much different in my effect than some poor schmuck who actually believes in the superiority of the USA and the goodness of our government.
And just for Telnarus, who has not had the distinct (dripping with sarcasm) joy of reading my political views before... I AM telling you EXACTLY how I feel about it. Unadorned. Uncensored. And, as I noticed you've served in our armed forces... Congratulations. You've made a real difference and you should be damned proud. No sarcasm there. I have nothing but respect and admiration for the people who will pick up a gun and defend my white, fat, spoiled ass from people who would dearly love to stomp it based on my position of being semi-wealthy, semi-free and all-spoiled out of my mind. I may hate my government, and I may judge that the things it directs you to do are often unjust and tyrranical... but I will not condemn YOU for doing the brave and responsible thing.[/url]