Myths That Some Americans Believe

This is not a comprehensive list, and I look forward to any additions you might give me, either through the comments section or email. This means you will need to check back from time to time to read any additions that the great members of the blogosphere might contribute. These are in order of my personal loathing of their stupidity.

1. The United States of America is a democracy. Anyone who believes this nonsense has never read the founding documents, the Federalist Papers or most of the first 150 years of this country's history. We are a Constitutional Republic. We were created as such to protect the smallest minority in the world: the individual.

2. There is no such thing as a stupid question. Ever watch a press briefing with Donald Rumsfeld? Of course, there are stupid questions. This stupid saying is a hold out from the days you quite correctly chastised older children for hurting the feelings of younger children for asking "simple" questions. But when "journalists" ask the POTUS why he won't admit that there never were WMDs in Iraq, it's time to use a Cluebat (TM).

3. Inanimate, non-sentient objects (a.k.a firearms, drugs) cause crime. So illogical is this belief, that (breathe deeply and try not to gag) lawyers will bring suit against legal, legitimate firearms dealers and manufacturers for the actions of criminals who even stole the guns they used to commit felonies.

4. We need to learn what it is about us that makes other cultures and countries hate us.
No we don't. Those of us with intelligence already know. We are prosperous. Our rules and customs make it so that you can come here from Vietnam, India, Russia, Cuba, China, etc. and become a millionaire in a few or more years if you apply yourself. You can walk around in burka, a turban, a yarmulka, or dreadlocks and its nobody's business but your own. You can say (almost)* anything you want, but nobody has to listen. This freedom has made us prosperous and hence, powerful. We can project our power to protect our interests as we enjoy trade with the world. And this trade has carried with it the aroma of freedom, something that despots and tyrants and religious nuts just can't stand.

5. Rich people don't pay their fair share. Before you remotely try to agree with that garbage, go to the IRS website and look at their own charts which show that the bottom 50% of income earners only pay 4% of income tax, and the top 1% of income earners (the filthy rich) pay almost 30% and all the rest of us pay everything else.

6. Earned Income Tax Credit Let me see . . . ? The words, "Earned Income," "gosh, that would suggest an income that was earned, like, you know, worked for. So, you, like, you know, get tax credit for earning that income, right?" No, buffy, but thanks for playing the game. Because you are so inept and useless, spent your time getting high, knocked up or both, you get a check issued by the government out of the pockets of millions of other Americans who actually went to work and paid taxes.

7. If a bill in Congress has a really great name, it must be good. Welcome to Animal Farm by George Bu - - - er, Orwell. "Can you say, Medicare Reform Bill? I knew that you could. We have already increased discretionary spending beyond any year since WWII. But remember, it's for the childr - - er, seniors. You kids can't vote yet. Too bad, an X-Box subsidy might have been cheaper. Also see, "Earned Income Tax Credit" "Patriot Act" "Farm Bill" "NAFTA" Any gun control bill since 1934, etc. etc. etc.

*inciting riots, endangering people by yelling fire in a crowded theater, defamation, slander, libel.

Comments

[Darren]

I'm Canadian, and thus I usually happily bash the States at every opportunity. However, I lived in Ireland for two years, and the States-bashing over there was so bad, I actually found myself defending your nation.

For European nations (I discussed the subject with the people of several western European countries), it had nothing to do with prosperity (they're pretty prosperous over there). Universally, it was two areas: foreign policy and cultural export.

They complained that US foreign policy was expansionist and inconsistent. I'm not arguing for or against this, just reporting what they told me.

Cultural export refers to all of the music, movies, fast food restaurants, etc that gets foisted on them by the US. They bemoaned the Americanization of the planet. While, obviously, cultural governing bodies around the world are as responsible for this trend as the US, individuals were frustrated by it.

Additionally, they couldn't get their head around things like American attitudes toward capital punishment or firearms. These attitudes often struck them as barbaric.

Generally these people knew and liked individual Americans--they just took issue with the society at large.

[Commander Will]

Thanks for commenting.

I do find it laughable that Western EUnichs blame the U.S. for the export of our culture. Last time I checked, they were willingly buying plenty of entertainment, etc. We don't send C130s or C7s over there to airdrop videos and DVDs and CDs on their cities.

Considering that their murder rate is climbing while ours continues to drop is quite telling of barbarism. Especially when State after State over here continues to pass "shall issue" concealed carry law and there are close to 300,000,000 firearms legally owned in the U.S.

Expansionist Policy? Last time I checked, we haven't admitted a State since Hawaii. And according to our Constitution, the citizens of a territory have to first vote to decide they WANT to be a State in the Union, and then a majority of the States have to vote to admit them. Puerto Rico still has not voted to become a State, but they sure enjoy being a territory, protected by the powerful United States.

Finally, I have to laugh every time some Euroweenie calls Bush a cowboy, thinking it's an insult. Hello? One of the most cherished NFL football teams is: The Dallas COWBOYS!

[Kevin]

I'm Canadian, and thus I usually happily bash the States at every opportunity. However, I lived in Australia for six years, and the States-bashing over there was so bad, I actually found myself defending your nation.

For the most part Australians, like Canadians, appreciate Americans as individuals. However most Australians regard US foreign policy as a blunt instrument used to subdue the world in the name of "protecting interests". Like many Candians, they have a hard time reconciling American foreign policy with Americans - who seem to be predominantly decent people.

Perhaps more than many other countries, they despise the purchase and disposal of authentic Aussie culture and cultural icons by multi-national corporations. They can be fiercly nationalistic and the notion that they prefer American culture can get you more than an ear-full.

You point number four comes close to an understanding but skirts it neatly. If tolerance and prosperity were the criteria for distaste, then effigies of beavers and wallabies would be burned daily all over the world.

It is "project[ing] our power to protect our interests" that gets the worlds shorts in a knot. That and the, well .... hypocracy, of protectionist terms imposed on some trade while demanding the demolition of other countries' trade barriers (eg: cotton, sugar, textiles etc).

[Sue]

Jumping in with my two cents here: I, too, am Canadian, and find a couple of your myths puzzling, but I'll comment just on #4. I don't understand how you make the logical assertion that "This freedom has made [America] prosperous and hence, powerful." This seems like a mighty simplification of the forces that shaped America's rise to power. I would suggest that your government's policies in many other areas, mostly economic, are what has made America prosperous, but those policies are not always in support of freedom. Protectionist policies that limit the import of foreign goods, for example, are good for the economy but limit the freedom of American consumers and corporations to choose to purchase the supplies that best meet their needs, wherever those are made or grown. The anti-communist policies of the McCarthy era were (some might say) economically or politically driven, and certainly contributed to a sense of power in Washington, but certainly didn't protect the freedom of individuals.

Many other countries (Canada for example) have the same freedoms as the United States. We have not reached the same level of prosperity as your country (although I'm quite happy with where we are in the world right now) but I'd say I am just as free to wear or say whatever I like as I would be if I lived 200 miles to the south.

Finally, although I appreciate your sentiment in saying that Americans do NOT need to try to understand why other nations "hate" them, I would suggest that self-awareness can lead to greater growth. America might become even more powerful and prosperous if it worked cooperatively with the rest of the world instead of dashing away any inclination to understand your global neighbour's opinions of you.