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Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,208
Top Banana
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OP
Top Banana
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,208 |
In the spirit of unity, I thought I'd create a thread for those who love America - which is most likely anyone who exercised their right to vote. I love our Freedom and sometimes need to be reminded that people who disagree with me on political issues care just as much about the issues. I do feel as though this country is getting more and more divided and my sour attitude definitely doesn't help the situation. So for what it's worth, my apologies to all who were offended by my post in the wallowers thread. This is such a great online community and I love that everyone is so thoughtful and considerate of each other. I don't hope Obama fails - I hope he succeeds in all his endeavors to improve this country. He loves it as much as I do. And like others have mentioned, what a privilege to have the freedoms we do.
A government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always
depend on the support of Paul.
-George Bernard Shaw
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Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 9,509
Nobel Peace Prize Winner
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Nobel Peace Prize Winner
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 9,509 |
It's the only country I know of where people are happy the election is over because robocalls will finally stop!  In the past two months I've gotten more calls from computers than actual humans AND I'm on the "Do Not Call List". Clearly our wonderful politicans don't believe their phone calls count as harrissing the general public. I, for one, disagree. Seriously, I think what makes our country so great is the amount of variety of people we have here. If everyone were the same and had the same opinions and liked and disliked the same things, what a boring place this would be. I do wish we had more reporters of Lane and Kent caliber to investigate said (above-referenced) politcians, but they're going to the wayside in this day and age of instant news and the desire that everything (including in-depth investigations) happen overnight.
VirginiaR.
"On the long road, take small steps." -- Jor-el, "The Foundling"
---
"clearly there is a lack of understanding between those two... he speaks Lunkheadanian and she Stubbornanian" -- chelo.
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Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 9,362
Boards Chief Administrator Emeritus Nobel Peace Prize Winner
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Boards Chief Administrator Emeritus Nobel Peace Prize Winner
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 9,362 |
Steph, thank you for showing us a prime example of what is so admirable about our little community and what makes it so great to hang out here. 
Athos: If you'd told us what you were doing, we might have been able to plan this properly.
Aramis: Yes, sorry.
Athos: No, no, by all means, let's keep things suicidal.
The Musketeers
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Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 1,791
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 1,791 |
I do love America, and I love the fact that we have free speech, but some of the reactions to the elections have made me very sad. Not here, I haven't looked at the wallowers thread, but my family and friends on Facebook. I'm almost dreading seeing my brother and sister-in-law in a few weeks since we're on opposite ends of the political spectrum, and OH, the anger! But by then they should have calmed down. I love that we have the opportunity as a country to choose our leaders. I love that every four years, we the people have a chance for our voice to be heard. And I love that we're able to express our beliefs in any why we can, even if other people disagree. Unless you're on a tear like Ted Nugent. 
"You need me. You wouldn't be much of a hero without a villain. And you do love being the hero, don't you. The cheering children, the swooning women, you love it so much, it's made you my most reliable accomplice." -- Lex Luthor to Superman, Question Authority, Justice League Unlimited
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Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 732 Likes: 1
Columnist
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Columnist
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 732 Likes: 1 |
And I love that we're able to express our beliefs in any why we can, even if other people disagree. Unless you're on a tear like Ted Nugent. [/QB] Or Michael Moore .
Shallowford
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Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,357
Top Banana
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Top Banana
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,357 |
I love America in part for our right to vote but more importantly, the option to say who we're voting four or not. It is only public record WHETHER you voted, not who you voted for. That is the epitome of a free and fair election.
I love America for its newspapers and the time and careful research that usually goes into each one regardless of the bias. They can only do what they do in a country where free speech is not only allowed it is encouraged (right there in the first ten amendments.).
CLARK: No. I'm just worried I'm a jinx.
JONATHAN: A jinx?
CLARK: Yeah. Let's face it, ever since she's known me, Lois's been kidnapped, frozen, pushed off buildings, almost stabbed, poisoned, buried alive and who knows what else, and it's all because of me.
-"Contact" (You're not her jinx, you're her blessing.)
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Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 732 Likes: 1
Columnist
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Columnist
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 732 Likes: 1 |
I love that my country is the kind of country that inspired Gordon Sinclair, a Canadian, to write this: ============================================================
"Let's Be Personal" Broadcast June 5, 1973 CFRB, Toronto, Ontario
Topic: "The Americans" (click to return)
============================================================
The United States dollar took another pounding on German, French and British exchanges this morning, hitting the lowest point ever known in West Germany. It has declined there by 41% since 1971 and this Canadian thinks it is time to speak up for the Americans as the most generous and possibly the least-appreciated people in all the earth.
As long as sixty years ago, when I first started to read newspapers, I read of floods on the Yellow River and the Yangtze. Who rushed in with men and money to help? The Americans did.
They have helped control floods on the Nile, the Amazon, the Ganges and the Niger. Today, the rich bottom land of the Mississippi is under water and no foreign land has sent a dollar to help. Germany, Japan and, to a lesser extent, Britain and Italy, were lifted out of the debris of war by the Americans who poured in billions of dollars and forgave other billions in debts. None of those countries is today paying even the interest on its remaining debts to the United States.
When the franc was in danger of collapsing in 1956, it was the Americans who propped it up and their reward was to be insulted and swindled on the streets of Paris. I was there. I saw it.
When distant cities are hit by earthquakes, it is the United States that hurries into help... Managua Nicaragua is one of the most recent examples. So far this spring, 59 American communities have been flattened by tornadoes. Nobody has helped.
The Marshall Plan .. the Truman Policy .. all pumped billions upon billions of dollars into discouraged countries. Now, newspapers in those countries are writing about the decadent war-mongering Americans.
I'd like to see one of those countries that is gloating over the erosion of the United States dollar build its own airplanes.
Come on... let's hear it! Does any other country in the world have a plane to equal the Boeing Jumbo Jet, the Lockheed Tri-Star or the Douglas 107? If so, why don't they fly them? Why do all international lines except Russia fly American planes? Why does no other land on earth even consider putting a man or women on the moon?
You talk about Japanese technocracy and you get radios. You talk about German technocracy and you get automobiles. You talk about American technocracy and you find men on the moon, not once, but several times ... and safely home again. You talk about scandals and the Americans put theirs right in the store window for everyone to look at. Even the draft dodgers are not pursued and hounded. They are here on our streets, most of them ... unless they are breaking Canadian laws .. are getting American dollars from Ma and Pa at home to spend here.
When the Americans get out of this bind ... as they will... who could blame them if they said 'the hell with the rest of the world'. Let someone ELSE buy the Israel bonds, Let someone else build or repair foreign dams or design foreign buildings that won't shake apart in earthquakes.
When the railways of France, Germany and India were breaking down through age, it was the Americans who rebuilt them. When the Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central went broke, nobody loaned them an old caboose. Both are still broke. I can name to you 5,000 times when the Americans raced to the help of other people in trouble.
Can you name me even one time when someone else raced to the Americans in trouble? I don't think there was outside help even during the San Francisco earthquake.
Our neighbors have faced it alone and I am one Canadian who is damned tired of hearing them kicked around. They will come out of this thing with their flag high. And when they do, they are entitled to thumb their nose at the lands that are gloating over their present troubles.
I hope Canada is not one of these. But there are many smug, self-righteous Canadians. And finally, the American Red Cross was told at its 48th Annual meeting in New Orleans this morning that it was broke.
This year's disasters .. with the year less than half-over… has taken it all and nobody...but nobody... has helped.
ORIGINAL SCRIPT AND AUDIO
COURTESY STANDARD BROADCASTING CORPORATION LTD.
(c) 1973 BY GORDON SINCLAIR
PUBLISHED BY STAR QUALITY MUSIC (SOCAN)
A DIVISION OF UNIDISC MUSIC INC.
578 HYMUS BOULEVARD
POINTE-CLAIRE, QUEBEC,
CANADA, H9R 4T2 I was in high school and had tears of pride the first time I heard Byron McGreggor's version, found here: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3yu5q_byron-macgregor-the-americans_news
Shallowford
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Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 2,292
Kerth
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Kerth
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 2,292 |
I'm proud of my country because it allows a form of same-gender "marriage" - with a few differences to "regular" marriage, but still. I'm proud of my country because everyone is in health insurance, and nobody is stopped from getting a regular, often-used treatment because they cannot pay for it. I'm proud of my country because, whenever there is a demonstration of facists or nazis, there are people demonstrating against them. (And the latter usually are more numberous.) And I'm still proud that these people are granted their right to hold demonstrations. I'm proud of my country because people without an income or too low an income to support themselves are supported by the state. (Some people overuse it, though.  ) I'm proud of my country for trying to help in the world wherever needed, yet trying to avoid warmongering. I'm proud of my country for having learned from its past. I'm proud of my country for its tolerance for religions - even between local leaders of different religions, there is a lot of tolerance. I'm proud of my country for having overcome being split in two and reunited decades later. And I'm proud of my country because everbody can hold a political office, whether they're born in another country (Cem Özdemir, Philipp Rösler), have non-standard sexual preferences (Guido Westerwelle) or a woman from the former "Democratic" Republic (Angela Merkel). As you can tell, I'm not American - but there are many more countries in the world you have every right to be proud of.
The only known quantity that moves faster than
light is the office grapevine. (from Nan's fabulous Home series)
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