(Just a mention. I like your signature, and note its source.)

I am an ex associate - 03 June 2007 01:42 AM

The British did teach Americans one thing…a superior attitude goes a long way

Yeah, but when we do it we spell correctly and don’t have hotdog eating contests 😜

Those’ll be the first two things to go in respective order.

erslyman - 02 June 2007 10:10 PM

Somehow jingoism or super-patriotism, the red white and blue worn on the sleeve has been a part of American life for the longest time. I’m from the American south, live in New York City.  American superiority, that hoax, continues unfettered, I’m afraid. No, not every American believes it so. But it does persist.

Decades ago I recall the olympics in Los Angeles, quite jingoistic, Though the chinese and soviet union, if I remember correctly didn’t participate. Anyway, my point is that Americans pretended that they were superior athletes then.

Again, I point toward recently basketball olympics in which so called great American professional basketball players attempted to compete and lost. All sorts of excuses ensued. Aspersions cast on black professionalism.

I guess what America lacks is a world view. I have friends in America who won’t watch American TV. They watch BBC for a less partial, more informed view on the world.

And how is this any different from the citizens of most other countries?  Just look around you, superiority complexes aren’t restricted to Americans.

Yeah…just look at the French.  😛

😊

I was reading something about countries rebuilding & getting back on with things after World War 2…and the countries that did the best had patriotism from their own citizens.  Or something like that…the more patriotism the country had, the better they fared afterwards.

So I guess it pays to be a patriot.

And I think if there is a problem w/ patriotism (and I like to think of myself as a patriot)...that it’s that some people idealize the way a country was at some other point in history & go…“THAT’S the way it should be!”  ....And 2 things happen here.  Either they have no real idea what is happening today…and they are thinking only of this past time…OR…they are blaming people for not being the way it WAS.  As if there were some sort of problem w/ the progression of the nation…as if there were a need to punish those who have moved forward from that particular time.  I’m not saying there aren’t things that have “progressed” that aren’t horrible, awful, tragic things…but there is so much more than JUST those things.  So,  [here] you can’t send your kid down to the corner store to get a box of eggs from Mr. Hooper the grocer…b/c of who knows what happening along the way…but that child will instead have a chance to attend any university in the country & become anything he/she wishes to be.  Not too bad a trade-off.  I don’t like that I’ve traded that home-town feel in for big-city worries…but regardless, my child will have a chance to do so many more things than were possible 50 or 75 years ago.  75 years ago my daughter had very few options…a mother, a secretary, or a nurse.  Now she could be the next Patton or President if she wanted.

I don’t think there’s anything wrong with patriotism in the RIGHT arenas.

I never claimed to spell well (says me who hates hot dogs).  And thank you for noticing the quote.  Several countries has had periods in time in which they have had their times in the sun.  The Spainish had their time in the 15th and 16th centuries

On the subject of cultural differences, I felt the urge to post this for some random reason;

http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2007/05/25/science-tone-vocal.html

They say the results could help explain why some cultures prefer one kind of music to another, particularly if differences in vowel sounds found in the languages produce different resonances.

International/Cultural differences may just be embedded into the human psych, I guess is what I am aimming for.

Renquist - 02 June 2007 09:11 PM

We should put a stop to this superiority complex by taking over again and placing the US under the control of Her Majesty’s Empire once more 😜

Yup, and we dutch take New York back and introduce some decent real coffesshops.

Maegan - 03 June 2007 01:27 PM

Yeah…just look at the French.  😛

😊

I was reading something about countries rebuilding & getting back on with things after World War 2…and the countries that did the best had patriotism from their own citizens.  Or something like that…the more patriotism the country had, the better they fared afterwards.

So I guess it pays to be a patriot.

So that

Renquist - 03 June 2007 11:52 AM

Yeah, but when we do it we spell correctly and don’t have hotdog eating contests 😜

Those’ll be the first two things to go in respective order.

http://www.wookey.co.uk/bigeat/index.htm

ORLY?

Incidentally, I don’t know if I’m one of “those people” but, yeah, I love my country. I don’t want to live anywhere else but here. I’m not sure what’s so horrible about that, though. If I thought there was a place I’d rather be, I’d be there - not here.

Heck…I don’t even know if I love my country, so much as I love my state.  I don’t ever want to leave Florida.  I told Jason it was a divorceable offense if he came home one day w/ a transfer request!  😉