Okay, you can officially say that hell froze over.
But seriously, it has come to my attention that I come off as "anti-American" with my posts. I'm not going to deny that I severely disagree with most everything that President Bush stands for (exception being increased domestic security), but does that make me "anti-American"? Did that make the conservatives here "anti-American" when they severely disliked former President Clinton?
I have gone outside this country a few times. Several times to Canada (it's like an hour away), twice to the U.K., twice to France, once to Switzerland, and once to Italy/Vatican City. For better or for worse, putting politicians aside, I do love America. Where I get into trouble is that, while many see the country for what it is, I see it for what it could be.
However, I would be blind if I didn't say that America didn't take much of the full force of criticism in this forum. I can say that some of the criticisms are warranted, but I would say that many of these same criticisms can easily be applied to other nations. I guess, really, it is easy to knock on America in this forum, because this is the one nation you can honestly say that everyone here knows about; and if you started talking about Liechtenstein politics, we'd have quite a few people saying "What???"
The last few days, I have been forced to revisit September 11th, thanks to a recurring nightmare (FYI, it really isn't that bad, though). Honestly, it has only made me appreciate the men and women who serve to protect our nation even more--the firemen, the policemen, and even the troops. I am thankful for their service more than you can imagine.
Well, the purpose of this post was mainly to say that, despite my criticisms, I am patriotic in my own way. No, I don't wave flags and, no, I'm not going to turn a blind eye to whatever President Bush does in the name of it either; but, with that, if I really didn't give a shit about this nation, would I even care what they do?
I'm not telling people here to suddenly censor themselves either--if you choose to wholly ignore this post, I'll make no fuss about it. I mainly wrote this for myself and to promote understanding. Take it for what you will.
Melon
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"He had lived through an age when men and women with energy and ruthlessness but without much ability or persistence excelled. And even though most of them had gone under, their ignorance had confused Roy, making him wonder whether the things he had striven to learn, and thought of as 'culture,' were irrelevant. Everything was supposed to be the same: commercials, Beethoven's late quartets, pop records, shopfronts, Freud, multi-coloured hair. Greatness, comparison, value, depth: gone, gone, gone. Anything could give some pleasure; he saw that. But not everything provided the sustenance of a deeper understanding." - Hanif Kureishi, Love in a Blue Time
But seriously, it has come to my attention that I come off as "anti-American" with my posts. I'm not going to deny that I severely disagree with most everything that President Bush stands for (exception being increased domestic security), but does that make me "anti-American"? Did that make the conservatives here "anti-American" when they severely disliked former President Clinton?
I have gone outside this country a few times. Several times to Canada (it's like an hour away), twice to the U.K., twice to France, once to Switzerland, and once to Italy/Vatican City. For better or for worse, putting politicians aside, I do love America. Where I get into trouble is that, while many see the country for what it is, I see it for what it could be.
However, I would be blind if I didn't say that America didn't take much of the full force of criticism in this forum. I can say that some of the criticisms are warranted, but I would say that many of these same criticisms can easily be applied to other nations. I guess, really, it is easy to knock on America in this forum, because this is the one nation you can honestly say that everyone here knows about; and if you started talking about Liechtenstein politics, we'd have quite a few people saying "What???"
The last few days, I have been forced to revisit September 11th, thanks to a recurring nightmare (FYI, it really isn't that bad, though). Honestly, it has only made me appreciate the men and women who serve to protect our nation even more--the firemen, the policemen, and even the troops. I am thankful for their service more than you can imagine.
Well, the purpose of this post was mainly to say that, despite my criticisms, I am patriotic in my own way. No, I don't wave flags and, no, I'm not going to turn a blind eye to whatever President Bush does in the name of it either; but, with that, if I really didn't give a shit about this nation, would I even care what they do?
I'm not telling people here to suddenly censor themselves either--if you choose to wholly ignore this post, I'll make no fuss about it. I mainly wrote this for myself and to promote understanding. Take it for what you will.
Melon
------------------
"He had lived through an age when men and women with energy and ruthlessness but without much ability or persistence excelled. And even though most of them had gone under, their ignorance had confused Roy, making him wonder whether the things he had striven to learn, and thought of as 'culture,' were irrelevant. Everything was supposed to be the same: commercials, Beethoven's late quartets, pop records, shopfronts, Freud, multi-coloured hair. Greatness, comparison, value, depth: gone, gone, gone. Anything could give some pleasure; he saw that. But not everything provided the sustenance of a deeper understanding." - Hanif Kureishi, Love in a Blue Time