What I love most about America...? by FAR... The People !

Elyzabeth

Elyzabeth

Member
Location
Bristol, England
You really don't realise how blessed we are, and although imperfect,

our Democracy is truly Democratic, whereas in places in places like the UK,

that is far from the case.


They vote once every five years, and you vote for the PARTY you want in power,

you don't even have the choice of electing who you want to represent you,



....AND I'm So tired of hearing anti American sentiments !
 

Has anyone been saying that America is not a democracy?
I must have missed it.

However, democracy comes in a variety of forms.
It does no harm to compare and contrast the systems of different countries and to think about the strengths and weaknesses of all the models.
 
While definitions can go back and forth the US is really a Republic, go look at the pledge of allegiance , while very similar politically they differ somewhat in that democracies are somewhat more socialistic. (Republican party remember?)
 

America is a Representative Democracy which means the popular vote elects a spokesperson who may or may not follow the wishes of his/her constituents, not a true Democracy. Yes we can vote for individual candidates every two years but in reality, unless we cast a ballot for a slim-chance candidate (often a throw away vote) we are usually voting for one of two parties.

America is still the best place to live but there are signs that some ideological radicals are eroding our greatness. I hope the general population realizes the danger in time to save what we have.
 
Elyzabeth said:
You really don't realise how blessed we are, and although imperfect,

our Democracy is truly Democratic, whereas in places in places like the UK,

that is far from the case.


They vote once every five years, and you vote for the PARTY you want in power,

you don't even have the choice of electing who you want to represent you,



....AND I'm So tired of hearing anti American sentiments !
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Hmmmmmmmmmm! I am sure many Americans are very pleasant people. But I thank my lucky stars I live in the UK, the NHS might not be perfect, but at least it is free at point of need to all. We don't have the US crazy gun culture, which causes so many tragedies. We aren't a flag waving nation on the whole, and we don't have the highly unpleasant god botherers to the same extent as they do, and the ghastly TV evangelist scam merchants who prey on the gullible.
 
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marinaio said:
I'll won't trash the UK in similar fashion but I have to ask, have you ever spent any time in the US or are you parroting the garbage in the rags over there?
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I am in touch with quite few Americans who moan about their healthcare system and their crazy gun laws.
 
justme, the point is we can't trust a single point of view to form a general opinion, there are too many biases involved for that to be trustworthy. I admit that my only intimate knowledge of the UK is through a fairly lengthy correspondence with a young lady from Pinner some fifty years ago, we met in San Remo on the Italian Riviera, where she was on holiday.
 
in addition to what marinaio said, there are many, many gun laws on the books already. They are not enforced because it would take 1 cop per 5 people to enforce them, (cost prohibitive). Most were passed for political warm and fuzzy to the placate.
 
I don't like thinking in terms of 'countries' or anything political. We are humanity. We are sharing this EARTH. I totally dislike the idea of 'better than's' ... I believe there is GOOD in every single person...even if it is well hidden at times. It is time to 'think without borders'...
I have to think of that age old joke about a Methodist person entering the Pearly Gates and St Peter told the man to keep his voice down. When he asked why, St Peter pointed to a group standing together chatting away. "They are Catholic (Baptist, Mormon, etc, who cares) ...and they think they are the only ones here."
 
Elyzabeth said:
You really don't realise how blessed we are, and although imperfect,

our Democracy is truly Democratic, whereas in places in places like the UK,

that is far from the case.


They vote once every five years, and you vote for the PARTY you want in power,

you don't even have the choice of electing who you want to represent you,



....AND I'm So tired of hearing anti American sentiments !
Click to expand...

Elysabeth, not satisfied with knocking the NHS and now this................if you don't like our system the answer is in your hands.:rolleyes:
 
I'm sick of people trashing America too, if they don't like it, they can always move to another country of their liking. I'm born and raised in the USA, I'm not very happy with the government past and present, but I love the country and the freedom we have as American citizens. I would never want to live somewhere else. I agree with Marinaio that Americans need to be aware of the changes taking place, and do what is needed to keep the liberties that made this country great. In the least, don't bury their heads in the sand and think all is well.

There are no crazy gun laws here. It seems that the gun crime rate is higher, but there are many more people in certain congested areas of many different nationalities and backgrounds. I don't think that the communities are quite as dense in other countries as they are here, and the population in other countries is much more homogeneous.

I understand that just a few cities have the highest gun crime, and they are the ones with strict gun control laws. The criminals and gangs will get their weapons of choice, regardless of whether they strip the responsible law-abiding American citizen from all their guns and rifles. I don't want a nanny government taking care of me like I'm a baby, and I don't want any of my privacy or freedoms taken away. As they say, 'those who give up their freedom for security...will have neither'.

As far as TV evangelists, I don't like them, but I don't see what that has to do with the American government. It's freedom of speech, and if people want to worship them, that is their choice. They deserve to be preyed upon if they can't think clearly and make those personal religious decisions for themselves. Should the government 'protect' the gullible from greedy preachers? I say no, these people have to use their brains and think for themselves.
 
SeaBreeze in her post Elyzabeth said this.............AND I'm So tired of hearing anti American sentiments !...........................don't you think that can work in reverse to us British, when she knocks the NHS and now our voting system.
 
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They vote once every five years, and you vote for the PARTY you want in power,

you don't even have the choice of electing who you want to represent you.
.............................................................................................................


Thats the problems with todays American voters,years ago it use to mean something to go to the voting booth and you felt proud of it.
Today, most voters have no idea who or what they are voting for and who stands for what.
The media today just about tells everyone why you should vote for this person or that person because its the right thing to do and America will be better off for it.

To this day we STILL elect the same ones year in and year out and America STILL drags along with it same old policies and it seems those in Congress have no idea what to do about it,except yell and scream at each others for 4 years and accompolise nothing.
 
There are people that are tired of what has been happening in America. We have been having more violent mass gun killings of schools, work places, etc. than any other country. Our political system is fighting one another in a most degrading, hateful, manner and the corporations and big, successful businesses have taken over the influence of our government.

So, it is very easy to say to someone who is dis-satisfied with our country "if you don't like it, move to another country of your liking." So easy to say! People who have lived here all their lives and have seen the degradation and violence that is taking over in the USA and dare to object to it, then are supposed to like it may I ask in all honesty?
 
Oh, and I forgot to add, these same people that have been born and raised and have their roots in the USA. Meaning their forefathers have been here since the mid 1800's, are supposed to sell their property and all their life's gatherings, say goodbye to their friends and family..all while they, loyally, have worked and paid their taxes honestly and voted every year. Seems their country is "........." them and not the other way around.
 
Elyzabeth said:
You really don't realise how blessed we are, and although imperfect,

our Democracy is truly Democratic, whereas in places in places like the UK,

that is far from the case.


They vote once every five years, and you vote for the PARTY you want in power,

you don't even have the choice of electing who you want to represent you,



....AND I'm So tired of hearing anti American sentiments !
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That is not quite true, ever heard of a swinging voter???

We can vote for who we feel will be the best person for the job.

I haven't always voted for the same party.
 
As she always does, I think that Seabreeze has expressed very well the sentiments of many of us here in America. We love our country, even with the imperfections, and issues with unscrupulous politicians.
I think it is right and proper that those of us on the forum who live in other countries, like the UK or Australia, also feel that same heartfelt commitment to their country as well.
No matter where we are from, there will always be benefits and drawbacks to life in that country, but loving the country where you live is a good thing, and a blessing.
Overall, all of us live in some of the countries that have the most freedoms in the world; as compared to many of the countries where people are almost totally controlled, and have no say in their government.
I love this country, and even with the problems we struggle to overcome here; I still want to live in America, and think it is the best place on this earth.
 
Michael. said:
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CONTRASTS BETWEEN THE AMERICAN AND BRITISH POLITICAL SYSTEMS

The following URL explains it all in what I call 'Easy Speak'
.

http://www.rogerdarlington.me.uk/USvsUK.html

.
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That is an excellent link, Michael. In particular it clarifies how we can be using the same words but talking about different concepts.
As an example

In the US, politicians constantly talk about the problems and the aspirations of the middle class. In the UK, politicians tend to talk more about the needs of the working class. They mean something similar but the language is different because the perceptions are different. In America, the working class is seen as the poor and most citizens perceive themselves as middle-class or aspiring to be so. In Britain, the middle-class is seen as a comfortable minority with the majority of the population perceiving themselves as working class.
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I see myself and my family as working class because we are all wage earners rather than small business owners. We work for a boss, not for ourselves, but we could mostly be described as middle income earners. I have one brother in law who is self employed. His lifestyle is roughly the same as ours but his political thinking is much further to the right of ours.
 
Maybe you all should start thinking of the violence, drugs and environmental destruction that has been taking place also. We are headed for a great disaster. So many of those imperfections and unscrupulous actions can be prevented if people think hard about what their children and grandchildren are going to face in the future.
 

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