How can US Citizens continually disrespect our nation?

[randal]

I recently put up a 9/11 image at the top of my homepage, and a person I know decided to comment on me adding it on.

She says: "thanks for the little 9/11 thing up there: i'd almost forgotten."

My response:
"Would you be so snide about other historical, nation-affecting events? What about December 7th? What about November 22nd? It seems like the only thing about the USA that you actually like is the equal rights idealogy that you pedantically embrace. Please take care and remember that men, both great and small, died for you to be able to do so. Showing them some semblance of respect is the smallest thing you can do while on your way to bashing our exemplary nation."

She is one of the wanna-be hippies running around and she attends the University of Colorado at The People's Republic of Boulder.

My question is this: How can people continually disrespect the wealth of opportunity and freedom that America affords them, yet give no credence or respect to the national events and people that allow those liberties?

 

[Red Dawn]

My question is this: How can people continually disrespect the wealth of opportunity and freedom that America affords them, yet give no credence or respect to the national events and people that allow those liberties?

Because most Americans only are interested in what they have at stake personally. From Martha Stewart and the Greedy Corporate Heads right down to the "Hippies" running around on the College Campuses

 

[ElFenix]

well the gov't isn't allowed to stop them.

 

[Descartes]

How can people continually disrespect the wealth of opportunity and freedom that America affords them, yet give no credence or respect to the national events and people that allow those liberties?

How did the bombing "allow those liberties"? It seems she commented on 9/11 and you decided to rant.

The media has capitalized on 9/11 to the extreme. People have used 9/11 as an excuse for everything wrong in business, and their lives. I don't think I'm alone in feeling that the frenzy following the tragedy caused many to lose sight of what really happened.

 

[Electric Amish]

The wife and I are getting pretty sick of all the 9/11 crap.

amish

 

[notfred]

Maybe she just has a really bad memory? I don't see why yo're so mad.

 

[vi edit]

Feel better now?

 

[Hooligan]

There's always the first amendment .... and most people disrespect our government, but love our nation.

 

[randal]

I understand that many feel that the tragedies of this nation have been capitalized upon and commercialized to the extreme. The part that gets to me so much is that she has no feelings of respect or sadness regarding *anything* that has made this country what it is. From the 60k+ dead americans in vietnam to the throngs that died in WWII to the initial founders of our country, the only thing that creates the slightest glimmer of patriotism is the equal rights movement -- disregarding the fact that without all of the other nationalistic events, equal rights would not exist.

I continually petition her to move to a better country, where she is more free and more able to express her anti-american, anti-establishment views, yet she never is able to come up with a better place to do that than right here in the ol' US of A.

I also fully understand that having millions of sheep flocking to whatever the media says is popular is also wrong. I just think that the extreme prejudice with which she views her nation is a flagrant mockery of what this country stands for, and it saddens me. I'm only 20, I've never served, and I'm not a crazy conservative -- but I fully recognize the value of the freedom that we have here that nobody else, worldwide, has, and more importantly, I understand and respect how we acheived it.

I cannot fathom how other people do not see this.

 

[JellyBaby]

The media has capitalized on 9/11 to the extreme. People have used 9/11 as an excuse for everything wrong in business, and their lives. I don't think I'm alone in feeling that the frenzy following the tragedy caused many to lose sight of what really happened.

I agree. Sept. 11th means many things to many people depending on their understanding of why we were attacked.

How can people continually disrespect the wealth of opportunity and freedom that America affords them, yet give no credence or respect to the national events and people that allow those liberties?

It's not that crystal clear. It's absolutely true America affords its citizens tremendous opportunity and liberty but it's also true it takes them away from people half-way across the globe.

I have incredible respect for the Founders and for many things my country has done and am constantly surprised by the good in people here. On the flip side I take issue with politicians, individuals and policies that today erode all we have accomplished.

So with dissenters, try to understand their point-of-view. If they lack one, jump all over them. But if toss out something that makes you go, "hmmm", look into it and see if there's more than meets the eye.

 

[Hooligan]

Originally posted by: randal
I understand that many feel that the tragedies of this nation have been capitalized upon and commercialized to the extreme. The part that gets to me so much is that she has no feelings of respect or sadness regarding *anything* that has made this country what it is. From the 60k+ dead americans in vietnam to the throngs that died in WWII to the initial founders of our country, the only thing that creates the slightest glimmer of patriotism is the equal rights movement -- disregarding the fact that without all of the other nationalistic events, equal rights would not exist.

I continually petition her to move to a better country, where she is more free and more able to express her anti-american, anti-establishment views, yet she never is able to come up with a better place to do that than right here in the ol' US of A.

I also fully understand that having millions of sheep flocking to whatever the media says is popular is also wrong. I just think that the extreme prejudice with which she views her nation is a flagrant mockery of what this country stands for, and it saddens me. I'm only 20, I've never served, and I'm not a crazy conservative -- but I fully recognize the value of the freedom that we have here that nobody else, worldwide, has, and more importantly, I understand and respect how we acheived it.

I cannot fathom how other people do not see this.

amen brother, amen

 

[notfred]

Originally posted by: randal
I continually petition her to move to a better country, where she is more free and more able to express her anti-american, anti-establishment views, yet she never is able to come up with a better place to do that than right here in the ol' US of A.

This is the OPPOSITE of what the US is about. The reason the USA is what it is is because people have the right to speak thier mind, cast thier votes, and change the country for (what they beleive is) the better.

What if George Washington had just left instead of fighting for change? Or Abraham Lincoln, or Martin Luther King Jr?

 

[randal]

This is the OPPOSITE of what the US is about. The reason the USA is what it is is because people have the right to speak thier mind, cast thier votes, and change the country for (what they beleive is) the better.

What if George Washington had just left instead of fighting for change? Or Abraham Lincoln, or Martin Luther King Jr?

I know that the USA is all about freedom of expression. I value that above just about anything else that our country stands for. What gets me is when people devalue how that liberty came about -- standing up against communism during ww2, good or bad, agree or not, enabled us to maintain our liberty. She does not see this. She does not recognize that although the founding fathers were insanely conservative, they penned the freedoms that we have. She abhores them because of their exceedingly right-wing political stance.

I definitely can understand people's displeasure regarding American politics and international policy. I disagree with some of it as well. But completely disregarding the things that allow such disagreement infuriates me to no end. It's like taking everything for granted, from the clothes on their back to the food in their mouth to the flag that they burn -- somebody had to stand up and fight to allow that. Not respecting that, or even recognizing that, is absolutely reprehensible.

 

[TNTrulez]

Originally posted by: notfred

Originally posted by: randal
I continually petition her to move to a better country, where she is more free and more able to express her anti-american, anti-establishment views, yet she never is able to come up with a better place to do that than right here in the ol' US of A.

This is the OPPOSITE of what the US is about. The reason the USA is what it is is because people have the right to speak thier mind, cast thier votes, and change the country for (what they beleive is) the better.

What if George Washington had just left instead of fighting for change? Or Abraham Lincoln, or Martin Luther King Jr?

Yep

 

[UNCjigga]

What happened on November 22? A turkey got stuffed?

 

[notfred]

Originally posted by: randal
standing up against communism during ww2

In WWII we fought ther Germans and the Japanese. Neither was communist. The Germans were Nazis, but that's not why we fought them, we fought them because they tried to take over Europe. Same with the Japanese, we fought them because they tried to take over the entire Pacific.

 

[randal]

Originally posted by: uncJIGGA
What happened on November 22? A turkey got stuffed?

Kennedy's assassination ...

*sigh*

randal

 

[Hooligan]

I mean here's my take on this whole subject:

I used to be one of those guys who'd look at an immigrant who talks bad about America or even those in America who choose to spew hate and think, we need to either get rid of these people or deport them. Then I thought about it and had an epiphany, if there weren't these kinds of people we'd never know how great of a country this is. We would also never know how the world thinks of us. We can't please everyone 100 percent of the time, but it's nice to know how we can change or how're we're effecting people elsewhere in the world.

Radicals in our country are the greatest critics of America. Let me make a clarification first, I'm saying radicals not in those who choose violence to get their point across, but those who speak against the general "views" of America. People who voice their opinions of the things America does represent the greatest embodiment of Americanism, in that they use their freedoms to express their thoughts to everyone. I may not like what they have to say, but I'll fight for their right to say it (wasn't that a quote by some famous person or what-not).

Just one of the things that makes me proud to be Asian American

 

[fatalbert]

Originally posted by: randal

This is the OPPOSITE of what the US is about. The reason the USA is what it is is because people have the right to speak thier mind, cast thier votes, and change the country for (what they beleive is) the better.

What if George Washington had just left instead of fighting for change? Or Abraham Lincoln, or Martin Luther King Jr?

I know that the USA is all about freedom of expression. I value that above just about anything else that our country stands for. What gets me is when people devalue how that liberty came about -- standing up against communism during ww2, good or bad, agree or not, enabled us to maintain our liberty. She does not see this. She does not recognize that although the founding fathers were insanely conservative, they penned the freedoms that we have. She abhores them because of their exceedingly right-wing political stance.

I definitely can understand people's displeasure regarding American politics and international policy. I disagree with some of it as well. But completely disregarding the things that allow such disagreement infuriates me to no end. It's like taking everything for granted, from the clothes on their back to the food in their mouth to the flag that they burn -- somebody had to stand up and fight to allow that. Not respecting that, or even recognizing that, is absolutely reprehensible.

ummm, we stood up to facism in WWII, not communism, the soviets were our allies.

I understand that by the end of the war we were jockying (sp?) for position with them but we didn't stand up to them really.



back to the purpose of this thread I'll just whip out a quote, although I forgot who said it,


"I may disagree with what you say, but I'll fight to the death to defend your right to say it."



I think that basically is all you need to keep in mind to deal with those type of people.

 

[Hooligan]

"I may disagree with what you say, but I'll fight to the death to defend your right to say it."

yeup

 

[chemos]

maybe she's just tired of seeing 9/11 everywhere she goes. i sure am. maybe what the hippie was trying to tell you is that you could put up a graphic to help remind people of any problem our nation faces, and you chose one that people are already reminded of every hour on the hour.

 

[ElFenix]

i just realized why i can't remember what happens nov 22... its because thanksgiving moves around and its not always that day.

EDIT: oh, yeah, that too


this is what i get for starting to write a message then leaving for an hour

 

[Digobick]

WTF? What makes you think this girl is being sarcastic about her comments? Maybe she actually forgot. Maybe this girl is just too busy to realize what any day is, I know I sure am. If it weren't for every major network saying "REMEMBER!!" then I wouldn't have realized that Sept. 11 was this week. Today doesn't feel like the 9th...more like the 2nd.

Perhaps you're the one that needs to lighten up.

 

[Iron Woode]

Originally posted by: randal

Originally posted by: uncJIGGA
What happened on November 22? A turkey got stuffed?

Kennedy's assassination ...

*sigh*

randal

One would think that remembering November 11th would be more important.