May 8, 2020 10:35 AM
BlueSeaneey
132894
3833
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diatribein
What's your definition of a shithole country, because I got mine and it looks a lot like this?
aTallIrishman
Wow, that's not the reaction I would expect to reading about the emancipation proclamation...
craze
so edgy. you must bleed a lot.
Asharil
*Flips book open on WW2* BeCaUsE wE bEaT ThE GeRmAnS tHe WoRlD oWeS uS.
Kaldera0
Just read more about agent orange and it made me sad about American history :(
cjandstuff
Reading about all the dumb things people did during the Spanish Flu, and watching people do the exact same things today.
FormulaFuzzball
Can't even find the page about the famous immigrant Nikola Tesla
Promethianfire
America may often fail to live up to its principles, but it's got the most beautiful set of principles any nation has failed to live up to.
jm151
something something road to hell...
ElbowDeepinaTinyOctopus
You're about 3/5th right.
wierdmedicine
Actions speak louder than words
icanhearjimi
I like this.
It's not mine. It's by a Canadian author named Spider Robinson who spent a while living in the U.S.
OhmyBandit
PooPculture
You either die broadcasting historical documentaries or live long enough to run 24 hour marathons of "Swamp People"
mrmcboogernuts
scuba7jb
DepressedYetBlessed
I was going to post a meme questioning aliens, like how dumb of an idea. But what if .... Aliens
For as the philosopher Oscar Gamble said, “They don't think it be like it is, but it do"
Derettahs
The History Channel did to history what MTV did to music videos.
JollyWatson
I'm convinced the history channel has almost doubled the amount of conspiracy nuts out there
makingmywaydowntownsteppedinglassbleedingfastandimdeadnowbanana
If we don’t learn from history, then we are doomed to repeat history, then if we don’t learn from history, then we are doomed to repeat it.
AlmostScientist
The ones that learn from it are doomed to watch everyone else repeat it.
aflarge
Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it. Those who don't forget history are doomed to watch all the forgetful bastards repeat it.
YaSoYaSoYaSo
Happy is the country that has no history.
canadaMonster
America is the only country in the world that only considers its flaws and never considers their glories. Didn’t used to be this way.
TheWombatStrikesAgain
Have you fallen into a weird parallel dimension and can't get out?
Skawomplious
We've got work to do for sure, but I'm happy to be here and wouldn't be anywhere else.
aThingWithTheStufAndTheJunk
This country was founded by middle-class racists who were mad about gun control and taxes. It's absolutely what America's about. Which is 1/
why we should strive to be better, not revel in some twisted nationalism.
Theauthenticdonaldtrump
It's easy to America bash. Biggest baffoon in the room. But sometimes that ogre does something smart or caring and it goes unnoticed
HumanFromPlanetEarth
nhnmreWatcher
Wait a minute. Are you saying life isn’t a fairy tale and the world doesn’t run on hugs? Children think that.
falk0r420
v
AngryGraphicDesigner
We Americans don't learn much from history, and tend to repeat it over and over and over again
definitelynotaseagull
Why are you booing him? He's right
We humans. FTFY
Lynith
If history teaches us one thing, it's that US can do whatever we want with minimal consequences. If anything, they're learning.
I hate that I agree with you
SansAandAnguS
As a non American I just don't understand the extreme resistance to public health carer, gun control and affordable education.
Actually, I also don't understand not having a wage award, that tipping system is bullshit.
OneSwellGoose
Because if you have not 100% planned out your life from the moment you were conceived then it's entirely your fault you are poor.
tarataqa
The rich do not like paying ANY taxes. Especially if it benefits poorer people more than them.
ShiningForceMax
America's not great, but it IS one of theleast-shitty places around, which is pretty great.
MrTuttlesDriversEDClass
You mean America isn't perfect. It is great and better than most places around the world to live
Pandaphant
Ah right, no healthcare, debt for education, terrible leadership, and everyone's got guns. I'm packing immediately.
No healthcare???
Did they stutter? They know what they mean.
How can it be not great but also pretty great
Being on the top of the shit pile doesn't mean you don't stink. Reading comprehension will help you go far.
Was simply pointing out that he contradicted himself
Mrstealyomemes4th24
Why don't you guys just have another revolution?
Jusmar
All the ones who would actually revolt vehemently hate violence so they screech into the internet
Some of us tried in 1860, but it didn't go so well.
Drizzt893
I know this is a joke, but we have the attitude, and we have the righteous fury. The problem is that the people that are being for change/
Aren't the people that are aggressive. Aggressive people want less government control, making them right leaning, while the people that/
Are getting walked all over, starving, dying, and being ignored want more government control, making them left leaning. The people that/
Who in their right mind wants more government? All they do is fuck things up and tax us to pay for it
Anyone that needs help and doesn't get it. More assistance means more government.
Feel the urge to use force aren't the ones that need a change.
BritTeaBag
I think the real problem with having a revolution is that drone beats gun
Because revolutions very rarely produce regimes better than what they replace.
Trelkeen
America has done so awful thing but the true history of America is setting founding principles above where we were at the time & striving to
YellowDrank
They are awful in todays terms, but so were most things. You are misrepresenting history if you even think you have a clue how it was.
I don't claim to know what it was like living in that time. I can only look back and see.
squeakypanda
Only great parts of our history is helping in a war and going to the moon.It's pretty shitty otherwise because we're entitled little shits
You're missing one hell of a lot.
You're mistaken but i truly pity you. It must be truly awful to live with a worldview of so much hate and toxicity. I hope things get better
angrytaco
"going to the moon" was the result of us being the greatest superpower in the world. The results of us working together, instead of dividing
perchingbird
I mean the entire motivation was fuck the russians, and it used shit tons of Nazi scientists, though we did a great job at throwing money
bring ourselves up to that level of our goals that we have set for our country. The US history has dark spots but it is a trendline upward.
dalaiyoda
What goes up, etc.
MajorSession
It's really not. Like, before Covid took over the news you were actively committing Genocide. You have Neo-Nazi's in the streets right now!
LarvaLamp
I would like a source for this "genocide" you speak of.
UN definition of genocide. You were committing type e. https://www.un.org/en/genocideprevention/genocide.shtml and source for performing >
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/oct/30/adoption-separated-migrant-children-pro-lifers-deep-disrespect-for-maternity
Democracy was invested thousands of years ago and you guys were 200 years late to abolishing slavery. Actions speak louder than words
GetOffMyLawnYa
In 1665 The US wasn't.
dabooty
The US fought a major war to free slaves... get it right
And everyone else just passed it peacefully with no fuss.
Which still disproportionately targets minorities
True
And then you replaced slavery with the prison industrial complex
No one claimed the US invented democracy and like it or not there are dark spots in the history of the US but they don't erase the trend
Dude what trend? Ya’ll have been slacking hard compared to the rest of the developed world. USA just rich & even that’s uneven
it depends on how you measure things. if you presume the rest of the west is right then yeah...we are different. I personally don't agree
Anyway I’m sorry for bashing you so hard
ExternalBoysenberry
is it tho
Eh, it has been, historically. And I think we're still above where we started.
CheesecakePi
Last I checked, slavery has gone away. Women and minorities can vote. Native Americans aren't systematically oppressed and murdered. I /1
don't know about you, but I'd call that an improvement. 2/2
You abolished slavery late and literally still have systemic racial inequality. Also ain’t you building pipe lines through natives land?
OvertleyBadpickuplines
2 steps forward, and one step back. Is one step forward.
EADimgur
Fuck me if that ain't the most apt American description I've ever heard
FNHuskys
You know, as a Canadian, I'm getting sick and tired of the American bashing. It's not perfect, and there are history lessons 1/2
But there are warts, and skeletons in the closets on every country on earth. I think America is great, and deserves a bit more Thanks
ArtfullySane
As a Canadian who grew up in America. It really isn't that great.
What about WW2? What about the civil war? Enough of this glib bs
Kbantar
You mean when the U.S. imprisoned many Americans in concentration camps for daring to be Asian?
*Asian-American
Correct. I should have said, "of Asian descent".
How about liberating Jews from the holocaust?
So? That's not on topic for how the U.S. is in many ways worse than any other western nation.
Like which one do you mean... Canada? That’s a joke
Also, as far as I can recall, the United State is the only western country to fight a major war to free enslaved people
prophet002
You can find your tea...... IN THE BAY YOU SORRY RED COATS!!! *fires musket*
nooneneedsmorethan16kofram
American History? Must be a leaflet
LychFinderGeneral
Nonsense, Civilization taught me that George Washington founded the United States in 4,000 BC
Ah, you experienced the current US education purely based on fiction? Don’t worry, your President did too.
JustinSane6
Yes, it just says, “We created this land and everything has been awesome ever since.”
No, just one sentence: „So much winning, cough...“
Vexedi
I mean if by created you mean murdered the folks that were there already, sure.
That’s exactly what I mean they would say, and have, in that situation.
" History started July 4,1776. Everything prior was a mistake." - Ron Swanson
ComradeCrev
To be fair, America is still a baby nation. At this age, Rome was still trying to unite the neighbours in the Second Latin War.
Babybunz
Arbitrary metric. America is a wealthy empire that’s how you judge it, not as a “baby nation”
SpikeMarshall
I mean America is functionally older than a lot of other countries; GERMANY, ITALY, GREECE, BELGIUM all came about post 1776
That's why I used "nation", not "country".
Kerberos623
Laughs in Scandinavian
Functionally maybe. But culturally and historically, those are all successors to much older nations (except maybe Belgium).
Eh. Aside from Germany those countries had very little commonality or consistent history before forming
LasciviousHedgehog
New Zealand is younger and has their shit together
alchemist12345
South Sudan is the youngest and is already falling apart. Maybe a country's "age" has nothing to do with how civil or developed it is?
Yeah but they talk super funny.
lenonymes
New Zealand is also barely a country compared to the US. Like...if New Zealand were a state, they'd rank below ALABAMA in population and GDP
So you are saying the US is bigger and richer and is still unable to cope?
I'm saying it's unable to cope BECAUSE of those facts. Too many idiots, and too many rich people to make those idiots dance to their tune.
sumowoman
Why don't you work on it on state level?
Owl2017
Oh interesting! Is there a certain time period from creation that most nation's either pass or fail?
I couldn't quote it, but there are a few articles about the average "life span" of a country or empire. Helpful without a source, I know
AawesomeAardvaark
No, but i'd guess around 2023
Mayans thought 2012 so let's see whose right!
CulturallyEmbiggened
Yeah, we try and lacquer over that with some Norman Rockwell post-war idyllic imagery. Buffs right out, like it never even happened!
iwanttobebobdylan
And western films with John Wayne.
Hadespuppy
Even that would be smoke and mirrors. Norman Rockwell was not afraid to make political statements with his art
dreadpiratekirk
There is no war in Ba Sing Se
InspiredForestRaptor
[deleted]
spiffylookingnerfherder
A 50's that never was, that includes POC and LQBTQ folks in an idyllic, prosperous country free of war and strife*does* sound nice, but I..
..feel like the MAGA crowd have something a little different in mind.
Zeroforwinger
Obviously America has its problems. But, is there a country that has done it better?
aggressivelysouthern
There is a very long list.
PicassoCT
Is there a country that has done better with power.. No.. All principles corrode away.. First outside then Inside.. with all empires
The longer i think, the more im sure, that the best way to handle power in an empire, is to throw it around like a hot potato, by lot
between a independent coalation or federation of democratic states. Never let it rest long enough to start corroding.
For the us, the best solution would be, if the ruling of the empre wouldnt happen in washington, but instead go around from state to state.
NoonaComputerTerror
Most
Most countries are more just? Could you name some?
https://www.cato.org/human-freedom-index-new This one marks us as 15th "most free" nation worldwide, behind the UK, Ireland, Germany, Canada
If we’re cherry picking, as people often do when complaining about America, we could certainly find fault with UK and German history
Yes.
PhunPhact
We're at the bottom of the barrel as far as first world countries go. We just have the best media/PR to convince us otherwise.
beerandliberty
I don't know what media you've been following, but unless they are biased right (fox news) then they dish the shit out like Halloween candy.
Most northern European countries seem to be doing a better job by most metrics. I love the US but we could learn a lot from others.
That’s fair. A lot of Scandinavia has a higher quality of life rating. However they don’t have the diversity of America.
Could you explain how diversity precludes us from having a Scandinavian social safety net?
ExecutorHideo
By "diversity" do you mean race, or wealth? Because if US reduced diversity in wealth, it means less poor/homeless, and less ultra-rich.
Race
This. We share our wealth. It doesn't matter what your skin colour is. Everyone pays taxes and everyone gets help when they need it.
If no one is hoarding all the money at the top, and no one is starving living paycheck to paycheck, less diversity is a good thing.
Lovingnsfwcomments
Knilore
Phone refuses to load this but hopefully one is "Mine" officially called "Manifest Destiny" if we want it we own it.
speciltokens6
Yes toball
EchoWhiskyBravo
It ain’t perfect, but it’s been (mostly) ahead of the curve, in light of the rest of the world.
HushP
Yes
KootchieKoo
How 'bout those endless GoodRx ads where the mom can't get the meds her son needs w/o a coupon, and we're all like "sure, makes sense"
chromed
Oof
jdasler
Not enough choices....
CreatureFromtheBlackLegume
What's national prayer breakfast?
Zephyr00
No idea. Grew up in the Pacific NW and have never heard of such things here.
Zugzoo
Fraud! NPR covers it every year. Everyone in PNW listens to NPR while we drink IPAs, go to farmers market, and roast coffee
glaug
It's pretty bad. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Prayer_Breakfast
therealZzzzz
OMFG. We’ve got one too ! ?
What the hell is lunch debt??Or national prayer breakfast?? These don't make any sense
ilikestuffsomeofthetime
I suggest you try google bud, lunch debt is a thing in america
I have 2 children in school and work for a school district and have LITERALLY never heard this phrase. This isn't as widespread as you think
CharlieCocoaButter
Basically some parents have to pay for kids food at school, if they dont then they get into a lunch debt, sometimes dont get food 1/?
It depends on the area if it is a thing or not, in some areas kids can't graduate if the lunch debt is not paid off. 2/2
As an American, I haven't heard of any of these...so I'd go with a obese joke like "Would you like cheese on that?"
override367
Medical bankruptcy is the most common kind of bankruptcy in the USA. How are you so sheltered that you've never heard of it?
I'm just living my life. No one I've ever known or met has ever mentioned it.
The national prayer breakfast has been on the news every year it's happened since forever, school lunch debt is more recent but still -
I guess my cellphone tailors my news and fails to mention national prayer breakfasts. Is school lunch debt related?
quite a thing, schools across the nation have taken to threatening to take children away for not paying the debt, which the parents cant-
Take children where?
and I find it really hard to believe you don't know about all the mass shootings of the last 5 years
Neoeon
Oi vey.
nopost
Fuck off, Nazi trash. Conflating corporate greed and Christian government interference with Jews, you piece of shit.
Me: Uses a casual cuss word most people have never heard that I heard on The Simpsons maybe(?) which I use all the time like the word fuck.
You: THIS REPLY. ...Maybe yall want to go have a sit down on a quite room somewhere and consider your life choices and anger issues.
AnUnknownErrorOccurred
I had to google lunch debt. So glad we're cutting education funds to fix the economy and help those CEOs buyback their stocks. /s
woodchucc3211
We spend more on education than most and it’s funded locally so suck a dick with your lying whore mouth
Well all that fucking education fund is CLEARLY not going to schools, considering lunch debt, and teachers being underequipped and underpaid
StrangePoster
It goes to college sports lol
Id be inclined to believe that if College Tuition wasnt several thousa... Actually, yeah. I believe it.
I was talking about local funding. I know how it works. Fucking retard.
Obviously not or you’d know that it’s not being cut. Face it, you’re an ass clown that wants to critique using lies. Keep silent idiot
Perhaps we should federally fund schools based on a set of criteria instead of the current setup, which is just a poverty trap
It’s not a money issue, my local schools get tons of cash but the performance is crap. They did get a new indoor swimming arena though...
There are tons of public schools. The problem is one county over there is a horrible shithole school. County level funding sucks
school lunch debt is definitely a matter of money
Midlands1234
E. Gun show
RodgerRodger
School shootings? Morbid obesity? Corruption? Imprisonment of masses of your own people? Taking stupidity to a whole new level...
This is so cool and strong.
PourMeAPuppersPlease
Yep, it's all going down the pan
ADisrespectfulCarrot
And being unwaveringly proud of it all!!!
riplikash
3 of those aren't very uniquely American. Just very true in America.
... I think "Legalized privatization of Slavery via imprisonment" is an interesting contender, as its in the fucking CONSTITUTION.
Steven054
All that and we're still the most powerful and influential country on Earth. Kind of embarrassing isn't it?
China is probably more influential
Easykehl
“prison industrial complex” or “mass incarceration” are more succinct.
thelonesurvivorsactofvalor
I didn’t even know about this private prison industry until lately (European here). Dude, that shit is scary!
Anonaru
The only thing worse than watching this shit show on the outside is to be a self-aware member of its cast [Send Help]
Bigcurly2000
Us Brits are taking a fair stab at being fat and corrupt
muhvitus
What do you think the school lockdown drill is there?
Drills and safety procedures are in place as a result of the "quintessentially American" school shootings. Call a spade a spade.
smax410
Tbf, corruption isn’t uniquely American, but it is among developed nations.
Bstone1
America is a third world nation cosplaying a first world nation.
hardlyfatal
Among all nations. Developing nations are marinating just as deeply in it as anywhere else.
NeoBrunswickois
Never forget that Canada's auditor-general spent $23.6 million and 2 years to find around $400,000 in questionable expenses by senators.
EmanNiemThcin
Meh.. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_Perceptions_Index
Seems to be the standard political model these days everywhere. But US corruption looks glaringly obvious to a non US citizen currently.
Coyote8
It's weird what having a free press will do to your image.
MinistryofHumanity
Yep.....this is quite literally the only difference between corruption in a developed nation as opposed to an underdeveloped one.
Yokuho
Pizza is a vegetable.
CynicalEuropean
Flour, olive oil. tomato, oregano, All veggies (we will ignore the cheese and massive mounds of meat)
... So and are bread an vegetables?
Flour yeast water. Sounds fairly vegetable to me.
ThrowAwayAcct0000
Ketchup is a vegetable.
Gababu
tbf! if they didn't say that then they wouldn't have given us pizza at lunch in school. YOU DO NOT want to eat the public school veggies.
Nah, napkins are vegetables because they're made of paper which is made from plants!
NoUseYourName9000
American paper is made from trees not plants
... Trees are plants
ClumsyBagOfSaltWater
Is there a country this doesn't apply to?
No. The strong always take from the weak.
LusciousLucius
Eventually, yeah. Sometimes you'll get a somewhat moral gov for a while. Never lasts for long.
Doumdidoum
The Swiss, the Czech, the Irish, the Omani, the Malay, the Koreans, the Polynesians, the Sikhs can look at their history without wincing.
SteveNotSteve
It’s easy to see the history of other countries as untainted when you don’t know their history.
Many of these aren't countries. Each one of them has 'wince-able' acts in it history.
The Sikh don't have a country currently. The rest do. Nobody got a perfect sheet but these people have a great +/-. Better than the US.
shhh, we're complaining about America because everyone loves to complain about the most popular.
MisaisReal
The most popular? In which category?
Ogre6
Finally. Someone said it.
If Americans weren't claiming exceptionnalism, they wouldn't be scrutinized like that.
iamthemanwithnoname
We don't have any of those things in the UK. We have plenty of other problems but these bitches ain't 4.
Someone doesn't know their own country's history
What? I know our history well. We are not know for lunch debt or medical bankruptcy. Dunblane was a major event but not representative.
I am responding to the comment not the initial post
Drakorise
Trust me bro, you don't want to be bragging about what is or isn't in the UK history books
True. I have no pride at all for my country and it's shameful past. But we have made some progress in the last 100 years.
ImNotStalkingYouBTWYoureOutOfMilk
Pretty much most european and asian countries, since our histories are more like a library than a single book
Yes. Christian Europe and communist Asia history is a glorious trove of moral values completely free of atrocity.
I think you should spend some time in a library, specifically learning how to read.
Speaking of literate. Are you really from 'most European and Asian countries'? Can one not read a 'history book' from a library?
Forgoeing the Oxford Comma is acceptable due to the character limit, also I speak of the scale of history between the US and ROTW.
amp99
ILikeChocolateAndRaspberries
T0go
The second wave of European explorers reported some settlements where the living fled without burying the dead (~30 years after contact)
To be clear because either the dead were too many or the living were too afraid of disease to return to town
GenesisNynja
Sad shit man
Yes but if it had not happened French fries and pizza would never have been invented. Mixed feelings
KonRon
how's that european invented those foods in europe related to killing indians in america?
Brits took America from Indians. Americans took it from them. Indians took it from the tribe before them. And so on. All by force.
kemsat
The “Indians” had the land, mostly alone, to fight over with each other. Just like the old world existed without the Indians.
Point is, there was 1 founder. After him, people just took land from each other. Indians took land from Indians. Was that somehow better?
What part did the British play in the 'manifest destiny' policy of the US? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manifest_destiny
OneFinalEffortIsAllThatRemains
Nothing. But it’s human nature to expand explore and control.
That may be the worst kind of apologism or rationalisation for genocide I've ever encountered.
I didn’t say it is or was. Stop trying to sensationalize the point. All peoples are the same. Don’t think aboriginal peoples can be monster/
NO ONLY MERICA BAD
Absolutely not; the British empire clearly only grew as a result of mass slavery, violence, genocide and subjugation. However, the... 1/2
suggestion that only the British were responsible for "taking" America from the Native Americans is obviously false. 2/2
Unlike every other nation on earth, which is presently populated by descendants of original human settlers.
Most nations founded in recent history weren't done as a result of mass genocide and slavery.
Pretty much the only nations for which this is true are nations which were colonies of European or Asian powers until recently.
ScrapCode
Name one
abeyoye
One is already named. You can name an imaginary number. Wait, those are named too.
The Czech Republic.
Pogroms agents Jews in Prague (still part of their history)
Intrspace
Not all, but many, yes. In Europe, it is all a question of migration and assimilation. Some modern countries almost haven't changed their --
theforceiswith
Yeah but what about 20,000 years ago when we “assimilated” the Neanderthals? All humans are like this, it’s what humans do, sadly.
borders since the Migration Period (375-568 AD) just because they didn't migrate or assimilate. Notably ones like the Czech Republic, --
whose core regions haven't changed since the Slavs settled that area after the Germans migrated to the newly vacated Gaul to the west
Shanata
People existed well before that. They are living on someone else's graveyards same as everyone else.
gypsyspot
Slavs have had much historic tribal infighting though right? I don't see how that's much better. Lots of violent death there
diatribein
What's your definition of a shithole country, because I got mine and it looks a lot like this?
aTallIrishman
Wow, that's not the reaction I would expect to reading about the emancipation proclamation...
craze
so edgy. you must bleed a lot.
Asharil
*Flips book open on WW2* BeCaUsE wE bEaT ThE GeRmAnS tHe WoRlD oWeS uS.
Kaldera0
Just read more about agent orange and it made me sad about American history :(
cjandstuff
Reading about all the dumb things people did during the Spanish Flu, and watching people do the exact same things today.
FormulaFuzzball
Can't even find the page about the famous immigrant Nikola Tesla
Promethianfire
America may often fail to live up to its principles, but it's got the most beautiful set of principles any nation has failed to live up to.
jm151
something something road to hell...
ElbowDeepinaTinyOctopus
You're about 3/5th right.
wierdmedicine
Actions speak louder than words
icanhearjimi
I like this.
Promethianfire
It's not mine. It's by a Canadian author named Spider Robinson who spent a while living in the U.S.
OhmyBandit
PooPculture
You either die broadcasting historical documentaries or live long enough to run 24 hour marathons of "Swamp People"
mrmcboogernuts
scuba7jb
DepressedYetBlessed
I was going to post a meme questioning aliens, like how dumb of an idea. But what if .... Aliens
DepressedYetBlessed
For as the philosopher Oscar Gamble said, “They don't think it be like it is, but it do"
Derettahs
The History Channel did to history what MTV did to music videos.
JollyWatson
I'm convinced the history channel has almost doubled the amount of conspiracy nuts out there
makingmywaydowntownsteppedinglassbleedingfastandimdeadnowbanana
If we don’t learn from history, then we are doomed to repeat history, then if we don’t learn from history, then we are doomed to repeat it.
AlmostScientist
The ones that learn from it are doomed to watch everyone else repeat it.
aflarge
Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it. Those who don't forget history are doomed to watch all the forgetful bastards repeat it.
YaSoYaSoYaSo
Happy is the country that has no history.
canadaMonster
America is the only country in the world that only considers its flaws and never considers their glories. Didn’t used to be this way.
TheWombatStrikesAgain
Have you fallen into a weird parallel dimension and can't get out?
Skawomplious
We've got work to do for sure, but I'm happy to be here and wouldn't be anywhere else.
aThingWithTheStufAndTheJunk
This country was founded by middle-class racists who were mad about gun control and taxes. It's absolutely what America's about. Which is 1/
aThingWithTheStufAndTheJunk
why we should strive to be better, not revel in some twisted nationalism.
Theauthenticdonaldtrump
It's easy to America bash. Biggest baffoon in the room. But sometimes that ogre does something smart or caring and it goes unnoticed
HumanFromPlanetEarth
nhnmreWatcher
Wait a minute. Are you saying life isn’t a fairy tale and the world doesn’t run on hugs? Children think that.
falk0r420
AngryGraphicDesigner
We Americans don't learn much from history, and tend to repeat it over and over and over again
definitelynotaseagull
Why are you booing him? He's right
Promethianfire
We humans. FTFY
Lynith
If history teaches us one thing, it's that US can do whatever we want with minimal consequences. If anything, they're learning.
AngryGraphicDesigner
I hate that I agree with you
SansAandAnguS
As a non American I just don't understand the extreme resistance to public health carer, gun control and affordable education.
SansAandAnguS
Actually, I also don't understand not having a wage award, that tipping system is bullshit.
OneSwellGoose
Because if you have not 100% planned out your life from the moment you were conceived then it's entirely your fault you are poor.
tarataqa
The rich do not like paying ANY taxes. Especially if it benefits poorer people more than them.
ShiningForceMax
America's not great, but it IS one of theleast-shitty places around, which is pretty great.
MrTuttlesDriversEDClass
You mean America isn't perfect. It is great and better than most places around the world to live
Pandaphant
Ah right, no healthcare, debt for education, terrible leadership, and everyone's got guns. I'm packing immediately.
MrTuttlesDriversEDClass
No healthcare???
ElbowDeepinaTinyOctopus
Did they stutter? They know what they mean.
MrTuttlesDriversEDClass
How can it be not great but also pretty great
ElbowDeepinaTinyOctopus
Being on the top of the shit pile doesn't mean you don't stink. Reading comprehension will help you go far.
MrTuttlesDriversEDClass
Was simply pointing out that he contradicted himself
Mrstealyomemes4th24
Why don't you guys just have another revolution?
Jusmar
All the ones who would actually revolt vehemently hate violence so they screech into the internet
Derettahs
Some of us tried in 1860, but it didn't go so well.
Drizzt893
I know this is a joke, but we have the attitude, and we have the righteous fury. The problem is that the people that are being for change/
Drizzt893
Aren't the people that are aggressive. Aggressive people want less government control, making them right leaning, while the people that/
Drizzt893
Are getting walked all over, starving, dying, and being ignored want more government control, making them left leaning. The people that/
Mrstealyomemes4th24
Who in their right mind wants more government? All they do is fuck things up and tax us to pay for it
Drizzt893
Anyone that needs help and doesn't get it. More assistance means more government.
Drizzt893
Feel the urge to use force aren't the ones that need a change.
BritTeaBag
I think the real problem with having a revolution is that drone beats gun
Promethianfire
Because revolutions very rarely produce regimes better than what they replace.
Trelkeen
America has done so awful thing but the true history of America is setting founding principles above where we were at the time & striving to
YellowDrank
They are awful in todays terms, but so were most things. You are misrepresenting history if you even think you have a clue how it was.
Trelkeen
I don't claim to know what it was like living in that time. I can only look back and see.
squeakypanda
Only great parts of our history is helping in a war and going to the moon.It's pretty shitty otherwise because we're entitled little shits
Promethianfire
You're missing one hell of a lot.
Trelkeen
You're mistaken but i truly pity you. It must be truly awful to live with a worldview of so much hate and toxicity. I hope things get better
angrytaco
"going to the moon" was the result of us being the greatest superpower in the world. The results of us working together, instead of dividing
perchingbird
I mean the entire motivation was fuck the russians, and it used shit tons of Nazi scientists, though we did a great job at throwing money
Trelkeen
bring ourselves up to that level of our goals that we have set for our country. The US history has dark spots but it is a trendline upward.
dalaiyoda
What goes up, etc.
MajorSession
It's really not. Like, before Covid took over the news you were actively committing Genocide. You have Neo-Nazi's in the streets right now!
LarvaLamp
I would like a source for this "genocide" you speak of.
MajorSession
UN definition of genocide. You were committing type e. https://www.un.org/en/genocideprevention/genocide.shtml and source for performing >
MajorSession
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/oct/30/adoption-separated-migrant-children-pro-lifers-deep-disrespect-for-maternity
wierdmedicine
Democracy was invested thousands of years ago and you guys were 200 years late to abolishing slavery. Actions speak louder than words
GetOffMyLawnYa
In 1665 The US wasn't.
dabooty
The US fought a major war to free slaves... get it right
wierdmedicine
And everyone else just passed it peacefully with no fuss.
wierdmedicine
Which still disproportionately targets minorities
dabooty
True
wierdmedicine
And then you replaced slavery with the prison industrial complex
dabooty
True
Trelkeen
No one claimed the US invented democracy and like it or not there are dark spots in the history of the US but they don't erase the trend
wierdmedicine
Dude what trend? Ya’ll have been slacking hard compared to the rest of the developed world. USA just rich & even that’s uneven
Trelkeen
it depends on how you measure things. if you presume the rest of the west is right then yeah...we are different. I personally don't agree
wierdmedicine
Anyway I’m sorry for bashing you so hard
ExternalBoysenberry
is it tho
Skawomplious
Eh, it has been, historically. And I think we're still above where we started.
CheesecakePi
Last I checked, slavery has gone away. Women and minorities can vote. Native Americans aren't systematically oppressed and murdered. I /1
CheesecakePi
don't know about you, but I'd call that an improvement. 2/2
wierdmedicine
You abolished slavery late and literally still have systemic racial inequality. Also ain’t you building pipe lines through natives land?
OvertleyBadpickuplines
2 steps forward, and one step back. Is one step forward.
EADimgur
Fuck me if that ain't the most apt American description I've ever heard
FNHuskys
You know, as a Canadian, I'm getting sick and tired of the American bashing. It's not perfect, and there are history lessons 1/2
FNHuskys
But there are warts, and skeletons in the closets on every country on earth. I think America is great, and deserves a bit more Thanks
ArtfullySane
As a Canadian who grew up in America. It really isn't that great.
dabooty
What about WW2? What about the civil war? Enough of this glib bs
Kbantar
You mean when the U.S. imprisoned many Americans in concentration camps for daring to be Asian?
tarataqa
*Asian-American
Kbantar
Correct. I should have said, "of Asian descent".
dabooty
How about liberating Jews from the holocaust?
Kbantar
So? That's not on topic for how the U.S. is in many ways worse than any other western nation.
dabooty
Like which one do you mean... Canada? That’s a joke
dabooty
Also, as far as I can recall, the United State is the only western country to fight a major war to free enslaved people
prophet002
You can find your tea...... IN THE BAY YOU SORRY RED COATS!!! *fires musket*
nooneneedsmorethan16kofram
American History? Must be a leaflet
LychFinderGeneral
Nonsense, Civilization taught me that George Washington founded the United States in 4,000 BC
nooneneedsmorethan16kofram
Ah, you experienced the current US education purely based on fiction? Don’t worry, your President did too.
JustinSane6
Yes, it just says, “We created this land and everything has been awesome ever since.”
nooneneedsmorethan16kofram
No, just one sentence: „So much winning, cough...“
Vexedi
I mean if by created you mean murdered the folks that were there already, sure.
JustinSane6
That’s exactly what I mean they would say, and have, in that situation.
OvertleyBadpickuplines
" History started July 4,1776. Everything prior was a mistake." - Ron Swanson
ComradeCrev
To be fair, America is still a baby nation. At this age, Rome was still trying to unite the neighbours in the Second Latin War.
Babybunz
Arbitrary metric. America is a wealthy empire that’s how you judge it, not as a “baby nation”
SpikeMarshall
I mean America is functionally older than a lot of other countries; GERMANY, ITALY, GREECE, BELGIUM all came about post 1776
ComradeCrev
That's why I used "nation", not "country".
Kerberos623
Laughs in Scandinavian
TheWombatStrikesAgain
Functionally maybe. But culturally and historically, those are all successors to much older nations (except maybe Belgium).
SpikeMarshall
Eh. Aside from Germany those countries had very little commonality or consistent history before forming
LasciviousHedgehog
New Zealand is younger and has their shit together
alchemist12345
South Sudan is the youngest and is already falling apart. Maybe a country's "age" has nothing to do with how civil or developed it is?
icanhearjimi
Yeah but they talk super funny.
lenonymes
New Zealand is also barely a country compared to the US. Like...if New Zealand were a state, they'd rank below ALABAMA in population and GDP
LasciviousHedgehog
So you are saying the US is bigger and richer and is still unable to cope?
lenonymes
I'm saying it's unable to cope BECAUSE of those facts. Too many idiots, and too many rich people to make those idiots dance to their tune.
sumowoman
Why don't you work on it on state level?
Owl2017
Oh interesting! Is there a certain time period from creation that most nation's either pass or fail?
EADimgur
I couldn't quote it, but there are a few articles about the average "life span" of a country or empire. Helpful without a source, I know
AawesomeAardvaark
No, but i'd guess around 2023
Owl2017
Mayans thought 2012 so let's see whose right!
CulturallyEmbiggened
Yeah, we try and lacquer over that with some Norman Rockwell post-war idyllic imagery. Buffs right out, like it never even happened!
iwanttobebobdylan
And western films with John Wayne.
Hadespuppy
Even that would be smoke and mirrors. Norman Rockwell was not afraid to make political statements with his art
dreadpiratekirk
There is no war in Ba Sing Se
InspiredForestRaptor
[deleted]
[deleted]
spiffylookingnerfherder
A 50's that never was, that includes POC and LQBTQ folks in an idyllic, prosperous country free of war and strife*does* sound nice, but I..
spiffylookingnerfherder
..feel like the MAGA crowd have something a little different in mind.
Zeroforwinger
Obviously America has its problems. But, is there a country that has done it better?
aggressivelysouthern
There is a very long list.
PicassoCT
Is there a country that has done better with power.. No.. All principles corrode away.. First outside then Inside.. with all empires
PicassoCT
The longer i think, the more im sure, that the best way to handle power in an empire, is to throw it around like a hot potato, by lot
PicassoCT
between a independent coalation or federation of democratic states. Never let it rest long enough to start corroding.
PicassoCT
For the us, the best solution would be, if the ruling of the empre wouldnt happen in washington, but instead go around from state to state.
NoonaComputerTerror
Most
Zeroforwinger
Most countries are more just? Could you name some?
CulturallyEmbiggened
https://www.cato.org/human-freedom-index-new This one marks us as 15th "most free" nation worldwide, behind the UK, Ireland, Germany, Canada
Zeroforwinger
If we’re cherry picking, as people often do when complaining about America, we could certainly find fault with UK and German history
CulturallyEmbiggened
Yes.
PhunPhact
We're at the bottom of the barrel as far as first world countries go. We just have the best media/PR to convince us otherwise.
beerandliberty
I don't know what media you've been following, but unless they are biased right (fox news) then they dish the shit out like Halloween candy.
spiffylookingnerfherder
Most northern European countries seem to be doing a better job by most metrics. I love the US but we could learn a lot from others.
Zeroforwinger
That’s fair. A lot of Scandinavia has a higher quality of life rating. However they don’t have the diversity of America.
spiffylookingnerfherder
Could you explain how diversity precludes us from having a Scandinavian social safety net?
ExecutorHideo
By "diversity" do you mean race, or wealth? Because if US reduced diversity in wealth, it means less poor/homeless, and less ultra-rich.
Zeroforwinger
Race
sumowoman
This. We share our wealth. It doesn't matter what your skin colour is. Everyone pays taxes and everyone gets help when they need it.
ExecutorHideo
If no one is hoarding all the money at the top, and no one is starving living paycheck to paycheck, less diversity is a good thing.
Lovingnsfwcomments
Knilore
Phone refuses to load this but hopefully one is "Mine" officially called "Manifest Destiny" if we want it we own it.
speciltokens6
Yes toball
EchoWhiskyBravo
It ain’t perfect, but it’s been (mostly) ahead of the curve, in light of the rest of the world.
HushP
Yes
KootchieKoo
How 'bout those endless GoodRx ads where the mom can't get the meds her son needs w/o a coupon, and we're all like "sure, makes sense"
chromed
Oof
jdasler
Not enough choices....
CreatureFromtheBlackLegume
What's national prayer breakfast?
Zephyr00
No idea. Grew up in the Pacific NW and have never heard of such things here.
Zugzoo
Fraud! NPR covers it every year. Everyone in PNW listens to NPR while we drink IPAs, go to farmers market, and roast coffee
glaug
It's pretty bad. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Prayer_Breakfast
therealZzzzz
OMFG. We’ve got one too ! ?
MrTuttlesDriversEDClass
What the hell is lunch debt??Or national prayer breakfast?? These don't make any sense
ilikestuffsomeofthetime
I suggest you try google bud, lunch debt is a thing in america
MrTuttlesDriversEDClass
I have 2 children in school and work for a school district and have LITERALLY never heard this phrase. This isn't as widespread as you think
CharlieCocoaButter
Basically some parents have to pay for kids food at school, if they dont then they get into a lunch debt, sometimes dont get food 1/?
CharlieCocoaButter
It depends on the area if it is a thing or not, in some areas kids can't graduate if the lunch debt is not paid off. 2/2
tarataqa
As an American, I haven't heard of any of these...so I'd go with a obese joke like "Would you like cheese on that?"
override367
Medical bankruptcy is the most common kind of bankruptcy in the USA. How are you so sheltered that you've never heard of it?
tarataqa
I'm just living my life. No one I've ever known or met has ever mentioned it.
override367
The national prayer breakfast has been on the news every year it's happened since forever, school lunch debt is more recent but still -
tarataqa
I guess my cellphone tailors my news and fails to mention national prayer breakfasts. Is school lunch debt related?
override367
quite a thing, schools across the nation have taken to threatening to take children away for not paying the debt, which the parents cant-
tarataqa
Take children where?
override367
and I find it really hard to believe you don't know about all the mass shootings of the last 5 years
Neoeon
Oi vey.
nopost
Fuck off, Nazi trash. Conflating corporate greed and Christian government interference with Jews, you piece of shit.
Neoeon
Me: Uses a casual cuss word most people have never heard that I heard on The Simpsons maybe(?) which I use all the time like the word fuck.
Neoeon
You: THIS REPLY. ...Maybe yall want to go have a sit down on a quite room somewhere and consider your life choices and anger issues.
AnUnknownErrorOccurred
I had to google lunch debt. So glad we're cutting education funds to fix the economy and help those CEOs buyback their stocks. /s
woodchucc3211
We spend more on education than most and it’s funded locally so suck a dick with your lying whore mouth
ExecutorHideo
Well all that fucking education fund is CLEARLY not going to schools, considering lunch debt, and teachers being underequipped and underpaid
StrangePoster
It goes to college sports lol
ExecutorHideo
Id be inclined to believe that if College Tuition wasnt several thousa... Actually, yeah. I believe it.
AnUnknownErrorOccurred
I was talking about local funding. I know how it works. Fucking retard.
woodchucc3211
Obviously not or you’d know that it’s not being cut. Face it, you’re an ass clown that wants to critique using lies. Keep silent idiot
override367
Perhaps we should federally fund schools based on a set of criteria instead of the current setup, which is just a poverty trap
woodchucc3211
It’s not a money issue, my local schools get tons of cash but the performance is crap. They did get a new indoor swimming arena though...
perchingbird
There are tons of public schools. The problem is one county over there is a horrible shithole school. County level funding sucks
override367
school lunch debt is definitely a matter of money
Midlands1234
E. Gun show
RodgerRodger
School shootings? Morbid obesity? Corruption? Imprisonment of masses of your own people? Taking stupidity to a whole new level...
ShiningForceMax
This is so cool and strong.
PourMeAPuppersPlease
Yep, it's all going down the pan
ADisrespectfulCarrot
And being unwaveringly proud of it all!!!
riplikash
3 of those aren't very uniquely American. Just very true in America.
ExecutorHideo
... I think "Legalized privatization of Slavery via imprisonment" is an interesting contender, as its in the fucking CONSTITUTION.
Steven054
All that and we're still the most powerful and influential country on Earth. Kind of embarrassing isn't it?
ilikestuffsomeofthetime
China is probably more influential
Easykehl
“prison industrial complex” or “mass incarceration” are more succinct.
thelonesurvivorsactofvalor
I didn’t even know about this private prison industry until lately (European here). Dude, that shit is scary!
Anonaru
The only thing worse than watching this shit show on the outside is to be a self-aware member of its cast [Send Help]
Bigcurly2000
Us Brits are taking a fair stab at being fat and corrupt
muhvitus
What do you think the school lockdown drill is there?
RodgerRodger
Drills and safety procedures are in place as a result of the "quintessentially American" school shootings. Call a spade a spade.
smax410
Tbf, corruption isn’t uniquely American, but it is among developed nations.
Bstone1
America is a third world nation cosplaying a first world nation.
hardlyfatal
Among all nations. Developing nations are marinating just as deeply in it as anywhere else.
NeoBrunswickois
Never forget that Canada's auditor-general spent $23.6 million and 2 years to find around $400,000 in questionable expenses by senators.
EmanNiemThcin
Meh.. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_Perceptions_Index
RodgerRodger
Seems to be the standard political model these days everywhere. But US corruption looks glaringly obvious to a non US citizen currently.
Coyote8
It's weird what having a free press will do to your image.
MinistryofHumanity
Yep.....this is quite literally the only difference between corruption in a developed nation as opposed to an underdeveloped one.
Yokuho
Pizza is a vegetable.
CynicalEuropean
Flour, olive oil. tomato, oregano, All veggies (we will ignore the cheese and massive mounds of meat)
ExecutorHideo
... So and are bread an vegetables?
CynicalEuropean
Flour yeast water. Sounds fairly vegetable to me.
ThrowAwayAcct0000
Ketchup is a vegetable.
Gababu
tbf! if they didn't say that then they wouldn't have given us pizza at lunch in school. YOU DO NOT want to eat the public school veggies.
Steven054
Nah, napkins are vegetables because they're made of paper which is made from plants!
NoUseYourName9000
American paper is made from trees not plants
Steven054
... Trees are plants
ClumsyBagOfSaltWater
Is there a country this doesn't apply to?
GetOffMyLawnYa
No. The strong always take from the weak.
LusciousLucius
Eventually, yeah. Sometimes you'll get a somewhat moral gov for a while. Never lasts for long.
Doumdidoum
The Swiss, the Czech, the Irish, the Omani, the Malay, the Koreans, the Polynesians, the Sikhs can look at their history without wincing.
SteveNotSteve
It’s easy to see the history of other countries as untainted when you don’t know their history.
ClumsyBagOfSaltWater
Many of these aren't countries. Each one of them has 'wince-able' acts in it history.
Doumdidoum
The Sikh don't have a country currently. The rest do. Nobody got a perfect sheet but these people have a great +/-. Better than the US.
tarataqa
shhh, we're complaining about America because everyone loves to complain about the most popular.
MisaisReal
The most popular? In which category?
Ogre6
Finally. Someone said it.
Doumdidoum
If Americans weren't claiming exceptionnalism, they wouldn't be scrutinized like that.
iamthemanwithnoname
We don't have any of those things in the UK. We have plenty of other problems but these bitches ain't 4.
nopost
Someone doesn't know their own country's history
iamthemanwithnoname
What? I know our history well. We are not know for lunch debt or medical bankruptcy. Dunblane was a major event but not representative.
iamthemanwithnoname
I am responding to the comment not the initial post
Drakorise
Trust me bro, you don't want to be bragging about what is or isn't in the UK history books
iamthemanwithnoname
True. I have no pride at all for my country and it's shameful past. But we have made some progress in the last 100 years.
ImNotStalkingYouBTWYoureOutOfMilk
Pretty much most european and asian countries, since our histories are more like a library than a single book
ClumsyBagOfSaltWater
Yes. Christian Europe and communist Asia history is a glorious trove of moral values completely free of atrocity.
ImNotStalkingYouBTWYoureOutOfMilk
I think you should spend some time in a library, specifically learning how to read.
ClumsyBagOfSaltWater
Speaking of literate. Are you really from 'most European and Asian countries'? Can one not read a 'history book' from a library?
ImNotStalkingYouBTWYoureOutOfMilk
Forgoeing the Oxford Comma is acceptable due to the character limit, also I speak of the scale of history between the US and ROTW.
amp99
ILikeChocolateAndRaspberries
T0go
The second wave of European explorers reported some settlements where the living fled without burying the dead (~30 years after contact)
T0go
To be clear because either the dead were too many or the living were too afraid of disease to return to town
GenesisNynja
Sad shit man
T0go
Yes but if it had not happened French fries and pizza would never have been invented. Mixed feelings
KonRon
how's that european invented those foods in europe related to killing indians in america?
nhnmreWatcher
Brits took America from Indians. Americans took it from them. Indians took it from the tribe before them. And so on. All by force.
kemsat
The “Indians” had the land, mostly alone, to fight over with each other. Just like the old world existed without the Indians.
nhnmreWatcher
Point is, there was 1 founder. After him, people just took land from each other. Indians took land from Indians. Was that somehow better?
amp99
What part did the British play in the 'manifest destiny' policy of the US? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manifest_destiny
OneFinalEffortIsAllThatRemains
Nothing. But it’s human nature to expand explore and control.
amp99
That may be the worst kind of apologism or rationalisation for genocide I've ever encountered.
OneFinalEffortIsAllThatRemains
I didn’t say it is or was. Stop trying to sensationalize the point. All peoples are the same. Don’t think aboriginal peoples can be monster/
Promethianfire
NO ONLY MERICA BAD
amp99
Absolutely not; the British empire clearly only grew as a result of mass slavery, violence, genocide and subjugation. However, the... 1/2
amp99
suggestion that only the British were responsible for "taking" America from the Native Americans is obviously false. 2/2
Promethianfire
Unlike every other nation on earth, which is presently populated by descendants of original human settlers.
amp99
Most nations founded in recent history weren't done as a result of mass genocide and slavery.
Promethianfire
Pretty much the only nations for which this is true are nations which were colonies of European or Asian powers until recently.
ScrapCode
Name one
abeyoye
One is already named. You can name an imaginary number. Wait, those are named too.
amp99
The Czech Republic.
ScrapCode
Pogroms agents Jews in Prague (still part of their history)
Intrspace
Not all, but many, yes. In Europe, it is all a question of migration and assimilation. Some modern countries almost haven't changed their --
theforceiswith
Yeah but what about 20,000 years ago when we “assimilated” the Neanderthals? All humans are like this, it’s what humans do, sadly.
Intrspace
borders since the Migration Period (375-568 AD) just because they didn't migrate or assimilate. Notably ones like the Czech Republic, --
Intrspace
whose core regions haven't changed since the Slavs settled that area after the Germans migrated to the newly vacated Gaul to the west
Shanata
People existed well before that. They are living on someone else's graveyards same as everyone else.
gypsyspot
Slavs have had much historic tribal infighting though right? I don't see how that's much better. Lots of violent death there