Americans! Have you ever been ashamed to be an American?

Josiah said:
The polarzation and anger are so pronounced that there is virtually no common ground between the left and the right. If Obama supports something, even if it was originally a Republican idea as in the case of the ACA, the right wing opposes it automatically. Their motive is to not give Obama anything that might be considered a victory.
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This I have definitely picked up on.
 
Thanks for explaining things, QuickSilver. It reminds me of the mythological hydra, that no matter now many heads were chopped off, more regenerated. The fight for justice and equality never ends, just wears a new guise.
 

I live in New Jersey. Despite all of the noise on the nightly news, from my personal experience, I think things are getting better. We have many Hispanic, Indian, and Oriental people in the area. Eleanor and I used to go to breakfast Sunday mornings and enjoyed watching many racially mixed couples there with their families. All very happy. Hey! Kids are kids, everywhere.
We have a 100% dedicated Catholic friend, who has mixed marriages in her family that she accepts very well.
In my personal conversations, I find most people I talk to becoming much more liberal regarding things like gay marriage, assisted suicide, etc. Hate speech is not 20% of what it was not so very long ago.
I think what's happening, is that there has been a huge and rapid influx of many different ethnic groups. The internet has made for a rapid exchange of views. Many of those were held in secret. People have now discovered how many others held them. "You mean I don't have to hate people because they are different?"
Many establishment types see their way of life suddenly threatened. As they lose control, they get more and more desperate, and louder and louder in their protests. We are going through an adjustment period, but I think the trend line is in the right direction.
Having said that, if I could be a Canadian, I would in an instant, but they would have to move the border much further South. :D
 
Josiah said:
The polarzation and anger are so pronounced that there is virtually no common ground between the left and the right. If Obama supports something, even if it was originally a Republican idea as in the case of the ACA, the right wing opposes it automatically. Their motive is to not give Obama anything that might be considered a victory.
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Orchestrated again by those wishing to take complete control.... and I may add, fueled by deeply ingrained racism. It's being used to advance an agenda that is NOT going to bode well for the average American. I really wish people would wake up to the fact that they are being used to destroy themselves.
 
Underock1 said:
I live in New Jersey. Despite all of the noise on the nightly news, from my personal experience, I think things are getting better. We have many Hispanic, Indian, and Oriental people in the area. Eleanor and I used to go to breakfast Sunday mornings and enjoyed watching many racially mixed couples there with their families. All very happy. Hey! Kids are kids, everywhere.
We have a 100% dedicated Catholic friend, who has mixed marriages in her family that she accepts very well.
In my personal conversations, I find most people I talk to becoming much more liberal regarding things like gay marriage, assisted suicide, etc. Hate speech is not 20% of what it was not so very long ago.
I think what's happening, is that there has been a huge and rapid influx of many different ethnic groups. The internet has made for a rapid exchange of views. Many of those were held in secret. People have now discovered how many others held them. "You mean I don't have to hate people because they are different?"
Many establishment types see their way of life suddenly threatened. As they lose control, they get more and more desperate, and louder and louder in their protests. We are going through an adjustment period, but I think the trend line is in the right direction.
Having said that, if I could be a Canadian, I would in an instant, but they would have to move the border much further South. :D
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You have to remember Underock.. You are in New Jersey.. It's a Northern and a Blue State, despite who your Governor is. Your experiences are a far cry from those in the deep South and in the Western and Plains States. They don't see that diversity.. nor do they want to. It's been portrayed as "UnAmerican" and a threat to their way of life. Look at how the President has been portrayed.. "not a true American"... Doesn't love America.... not really one of us" These are very uninformed and insulated people for the most part. I don't see it getting better, I see them digging in all the harder.
 
QuickSilver said:
You have to remember Underock.. You are in New Jersey.. It's a Northern and a Blue State, despite who your Governor is. Your experiences are a far cry from those in the deep South and in the Western and Plains States. They don't see that diversity.. nor do they want to. It's been portrayed as "UnAmerican" and a threat to their way of life. Look at how the President has been portrayed.. "not a true American"... Doesn't love America.... not really one of us" These are very uninformed and insulated people for the most part. I don't see it getting better, I see them digging in all the harder.
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True. Try a few years in the bible belt. I'm surprised I never bit my tongue off!
 
Ameriscot said:
True. Try a few years in the bible belt. I'm surprised I never bit my tongue off!
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]
What's unfortunate is that the intolerance is being passed on to the younger generation. Perhaps with the exception of Gay Rights, (which now has support by the majority of Americans) most of the old prejudices are being passed along.
 
QuickSilver said:
]
What's unfortunate is that the intolerance is being passed on to the younger generation. Perhaps with the exception of Gay Rights, (which now has support by the majority of Americans) most of the old prejudices are being passed along.
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I saw that while I lived in TN. These holier than thou people say gay people can't be christian, or hate the sin not the sinner, and other choice bits of ignorance.

Is it the majority that are for gay rights? Or rights but not marriage? Good to hear anyway. Of my siblings 2 of us are very pro gay marriage, the other two are for rights and civil partnerships but not marriage.
 
Jackie22 said:
I agree, Annie, a good example is the lady elected mayor in Missouri.
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I think the election of a Black president has given this racism a license to be more overt than was possible before. It is almost encouraged by politicians who use "Dog Whistle" words to incite and inflame the base. They pick up on it and feel it's ok to show their true colors in the open. I'm not sure we are MORE racist than before.. just more open and honest about it.
 
Quicksilver, I don't want to misstate things from recall. If you are inclined, check out "America by the Numbers" on the Web. Its a PBS World Channel series. View the episode,"The Politics of the New South". I think you would find it interesting and, as I did, surprising. The whole series was great. World Channel has a lot of great stuff. Its the station I go to first now.
 
QuickSilver said:
I think the election of a Black president has given this racism a license to be more overt than was possible before. It is almost encouraged by politicians who use "Dog Whistle" words to incite and inflame the base. They pick up on it and feel it's ok to show their true colors in the open. I'm not sure we are MORE racist than before.. just more open and honest about it.
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That is true, QS, I also think President Obama plays it down, trying to not rock the boat and stir up more racist actions....we have a very intelligent president that has proven himself in spite of all the slander in his face.
 
Underock1 said:
Quicksilver, I don't want to misstate things from recall. If you are inclined, check out "America by the Numbers" on the Web. Its a PBS World Channel series. View the episode,"The Politics of the New South". I think you would find it interesting and, as I did, surprising. The whole series was great. World Channel has a lot of great stuff. Its the station I go to first now.
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Thank you.. I did watch it and can only comment that Clarkston Georgia is now over 80% minority.. whereas it used to be 89% white.. There are however thousands of towns that are STILL a majority of Whites. While becoming fewer, they still exist.. and they will not give up their intolerance and continue to pass it along.
 
QuickSilver said:
Thank you.. I did watch it and can only comment that Clarkston Georgia is now over 80% minority.. whereas it used to be 89% white.. There are however thousands of towns that are STILL a majority of Whites. While becoming fewer, they still exist.. and they will not give up their intolerance and continue to pass it along.
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I don't think we should characterize every town that has a white majority as necessarily racist. There are a lot of people moving into the South from liberally inclined areas of the country. We are like homogenized milk. The skim and the cream are gradually being blended together. Then we throw in varied ingredients from Starbuck's or maybe Hershey syrup and go "umm".
I agree with you Quicksilver. We ain't there yet. While I hate their music, I pay attention to the attitudes of the younger generation. They don't want any part of this crap. With all of its problems, I thnk the world is an immensely better place than the one that I grew up in. Just the view of someone on the cusp of senility.
 
Underock1 said:
I don't think we should characterize every town that has a white majority as necessarily racist. There are a lot of people moving into the South from liberally inclined areas of the country. We are like homogenized milk. The skim and the cream are gradually being blended together. Then we throw in varied ingredients from Starbuck's or maybe Hershey syrup and go "umm".
I agree with you Quicksilver. We ain't there yet. While I hate their music, I pay attention to the attitudes of the younger generation. They don't want any part of this crap. With all of its problems, I thnk the world is an immensely better place than the one that I grew up in. Just the view of someone on the cusp of senility.
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I love your optimism... Send some this way please..
 
Underock1 said:
I don't think we should characterize every town that has a white majority as necessarily racist. There are a lot of people moving into the South from liberally inclined areas of the country. We are like homogenized milk. The skim and the cream are gradually being blended together. Then we throw in varied ingredients from Starbuck's or maybe Hershey syrup and go "umm".
I agree with you Quicksilver. We ain't there yet. While I hate their music, I pay attention to the attitudes of the younger generation. They don't want any part of this crap. With all of its problems, I thnk the world is an immensely better place than the one that I grew up in. Just the view of someone on the cusp of senility.
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I guess I am more pessimistic than you, I think the young are "tuning out". Looking at our polarity, our elitism, open racism I can understand. If I weren't a battle hardened old fighter, I would tune out also.
 
I'm laughing here because all of my life I've had people beating on me for being a pessimist. I prefer to call myself a realist. There are no two people that have ever walked the planet that agree on everything. We are after all, the sum of who our parents were, where we were born, when we were born, and whatever experiences life has thrown at us. In order to fully understand another person, we would have to be that person. I don't think it is possible to overestimate the effects of the internet. People are talking to each other around the world. Ideas are being exchanged. I think the good ones will prevail.
There are sick, ( and I mean that in the medical sense ), minds, but I think the vast majority of people would agree that its more fun to share a hamburger together, than it is to beat the daylights out of each other over skin color or mystical beliefs.
I remain optimistic.
 
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