Hard Light Productions Forums
Off-Topic Discussion => General Discussion => Topic started by: Prophet on January 02, 2008, 09:44:23 am
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In a Los Angeles Times poll, 69 percent of teenagers surveyed said they thought it was legal to copy a CD they own and give it to a friend.
Americans are idiots. Seriously. If this goes on, I may have to exterminate every single american asshole once I have control of the planet...
Serves these people right to have created RIAA to **** themselves up in the ass with a dry dick.
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Americans are idiots. Seriously. If this goes on, I may have to exterminate every single american asshole once I have control of the planet...
That stings more than a little, man. Watch the generalizations?
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Americans are idiots. Seriously. If this goes on, I may have to exterminate every single american asshole once I have control of the planet...
Serves these people right to have created RIAA to **** themselves up in the ass with a dry dick.
EX-TER-MIN-ATE!! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!!
(this is just to verify that I am not American.)
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Everyone is guilty until proven othervise. Similarly, every american is an idiot until proven othervise. Not that I have met much americans, so I don't have any experience about smart americans. You may be american since you got offended, but since this is teh interweb, I'll treat you as "generic something".
Anyway. I'm on a Yankbashing spree now on account of that another alien aircraft crashed on Earth. And once again it specifically targeted US of A. Lots of people got killed, yes. But I'm still annoyed because they all go in to the states and then get killed by teenagers who often seem to be socially inept, fashionable and beautiful.
So while americans are dumb and annoying. You mat take comfort on the fact that you are all fashion models and can take on anything in the universe and win.
(Disclaimer: As my previous post on the subject of stupid americans indicate, this is not personal. Nor do I think all americans gibbering drooling asswipes, you just put that image of yourself to the world. And so on and so on... So come to the internet and get offended whydontcha.)
And getting back on topic. The tenacity of RIAA makes their lawyers seem equal to suicide bombers. Both of which I have no real experience, since this is a really nice place to live. But I must say again how. seriously ****ed up are things across the puddle...
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Hey, Prophet, cut it - that behavior is unacceptable (to any country's citizens) and you know that - consider this a warning.
I know everyone wants to be hip and all and bash them, and you obviously admit your own ignorance on the subject by admitting that your cross-section of the American population that you've come in contact with is very little - never mind the fact that America is still one of the top if not the top sources of R+D, never mind that it's universities are still globally sought after for the sciences, never mind that many of their research depts are the most well-financed and best-equipped in the world, oh no, all Americans are idiots.
And oh, if that random *****ing about the alien crash is about some movie, what do you expect? The American movie industry to make movies for Scandanavia? No, they're American, and they play to an American audience, hence, they make movies related to America. Show me another country's movie industry that makes films about exclusively about and set in other countries, and I'll show you a bankrupt firm.
Anyway, you saved that dreadful post with a plea to get back on topic, so do it. Random American bashing doesn't have a place in this topic, unless it's somehow related to the RIAA - and you can bash both intelligently and in a connected fashion, not just being a ravenous anti-American ignoramus from another country who hates Americans "just because".
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mmmmmm...............
i think that bashing americans as a sport is to easy, its like clubbing baby seals on an ice pack ( in this I'm not saying there to fat and blubbery to run away)...... American society has huge faults as do so many other and as other ppl have pointed out.. The basic problem stems for me and many others with there stance that they speak for the freeworld (freeworld= anywhere they can patent something even your genetic material)
We can not condemn the american ppl for the actions of there government and foreign policy but we can condemn them for putting them there in the 1st place, i understand that it is difficult to make a choice between a 2 parties that are the same but the solution is there; just think!
We can not regard american society today without regarding where the controlling influences within this society came from, "the mayflower" etc.
the American society was based on "fear" and now uses this "fear" to oppress its own ppl.
but then again where would we be without american society , no freespace , no Norm Chomsky etc etc etc
andi aka captain custard
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Now, see, there's the difference - you're taking a shot at the American government and society as a whole, and you're doing it intelligently. Prophet, meanwhile, is conducting a wholesale burning of the American people, revealing himself to be prejudiced and ignorant of the facts. The first is ok, the second is not. An analogy; andicirk, you attacked the argument, Prophet attacked the person. I'm going to split these two threads, though, as knowing HLP I don't see this staying on topic.
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i could care less about the america bashing, we deserve most of it :D
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If more people thought like that you probably wouldn't get based.
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Hey, Prophet, cut it - that behavior is unacceptable (to any country's citizens) and you know that - consider this a warning.
I know everyone wants to be hip and all and bash them, and you obviously admit your own ignorance on the subject by admitting that your cross-section of the American population that you've come in contact with is very little - never mind the fact that America is still one of the top if not the top sources of R+D, never mind that it's universities are still globally sought after for the sciences, never mind that many of their research depts are the most well-financed and best-equipped in the world, oh no, all Americans are idiots.
And oh, if that random *****ing about the alien crash is about some movie, what do you expect? The American movie industry to make movies for Scandanavia? No, they're American, and they play to an American audience, hence, they make movies related to America. Show me another country's movie industry that makes films about exclusively about and set in other countries, and I'll show you a bankrupt firm.
Anyway, you saved that dreadful post with a plea to get back on topic, so do it. Random American bashing doesn't have a place in this topic, unless it's somehow related to the RIAA - and you can bash both intelligently and in a connected fashion, not just being a ravenous anti-American ignoramus from another country who hates Americans "just because".
*agrees*
It would be the same if I started calling the French people surrender monkeys or the Germans Nazis. It's stupid and ignorant and gets real old real fast.
If more people thought like that you probably wouldn't get based.
Well there is such a thing as acknowledging that we have faults in our society, and then there is having very little self-respect or not acknowledging what our country does right.
While I don't think we as Americans should be particularly arrogant, I don't think we need Europe and Australia telling us how to run our society.
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Actually I think that the subject of anti-americanism is actually the more interesting of the two so let's thrash it out once and for all.
1. It's not acceptable to say all Americans are idiots. There are plenty of Americans on this board who aren't idiots and I don't blame them one iota for taking exception at you saying they are.
2. While America may not be a land full of idiots I know of no other culture which celebrates idiocy to such a large degree. And that is largely what causes America to be viewed as a land of idiots. Cause many presume that only a land of idiots would be proud of their idiocy.
For instance you have a president who is an idiot and who was still voted in by people who presumably aren't. And he's not the only example of this. Look at Dan Quayle. Now I can't see that happening over here in the UK. Blair and Brown might be slimy bastards but that is about standard for politicians. I can't think of a British politician I can say is actually stupid. Their policies might be idiotic but usually that's for self serving reasons rather than actual idiocy on their part. Any politician who was an idiot wouldn't get far.
But it's not just politics. America has a culture that celebrates stupidity. Look at Jerry Springer as exhibit A of that. I can't see that show lasting more than a season in the UK. While we have our own shows in the same genre there is nothing even remotely close because no one over here is prepared to humiliate themselves that way because they know everyone will take the piss out of them when they get back home. In America though being on Jerry Springer seems to be a badge of honour for some.
Now I'm not saying America stands alone in this. There is a trend towards idiocy over here too but America is still the world leader in this. And that's why you get this reputation.
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I don't watch television, I don't give my (scarce) money to the media, and I was too young to vote until this year. I read news from all over the world and post it on a blog so that my friends (who might otherwise remain ignorant) will be informed.
I'm an atheist, a transhumanist, and a science fiction writer. In all these respects I think I defy the stereotype of the idiotic American. Moreover, I think that a large minority, and perhaps even the majority, of Americans defy that stereotype.
To hold me responsible for actions I had no way of affecting is unjust.
It's fine to assault American culture and politics, but remember that a lot of America (again, maybe a majority, particularly in regions like the Northeast and the Pacific coast) don't buy into that culture and work against the politics.
So clearly not all Americans can be idiots.
These points have all been made already, I suppose. I apologize if I'm redundant.
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mmmmmmmmmmm part 2
While I don't think we as Americans should be particularly arrogant, I don't think we need Europe and Australia telling us how to run our society.
i think as americans your just going to have to accept the rest of the world telling you how to run your society as long as you as a people continue to dictate international politics, destroy "unfriendly" regimes and in the name of god and country put 6 billion life's at risk!
And at the end of the day why?
a/ for some higher moral purpose
b/ to stop poverty
c/ for a better environment for the children of the world
or just maybe for the bottom dollar !!!!!
over the last 60 years we have seen the rise of the american colonialism, your country in terms of a society is still in its teens and as such suffers from its impulsive actions , its arrogance and its ability to just walk away and leave a problem because it no longer "interests" it.
Please do not read this as a hatred of americans as a teacher who works with people with difficulties , b4 they can make changes for the "better" it is necessary that they first know there faults and except them b4 they can make the changes that are for the "better"
andi aka captain custard
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(Disclaimer: As my previous post on the subject of stupid americans indicate, this is not personal. Nor do I think all americans gibbering drooling asswipes, you just put that image of yourself to the world. And so on and so on... So come to the internet and get offended whydontcha.)
Nice work on ignoring the inconvenient part of my post UT. Hey, you happen to american by any chance...?
Like we all know, this topic has been discussed before. And I have taken part in those discussions. And I have stated how nice and wonderful many yanks may be after one gets to know them. Too bad they aren't interested on me knowing them so I'm stuck with these idiots who get be on the news. Let me make this clear. I'm not anti-american (infact I think there actually are good things that have come out of the good ol rebellious hive that became the US of A. Like Penn & Teller for example), but I most certainly am anti-idiocy (you can imagine the daily mental distress this causes me). And since the states supply the world with much of her entertainment and also enforces its laws, views and culture, often by force, people around the globe are exposed to considerable amount of american idiocy. Often more than their own native brand of peculiarity (is that a word?).
And I see this trend continuing. And that means people continue to lose it and give some back. And if you like living in that best god damn country in the whole wide universe (that was a sarcastic remark, just to be clear), you might want to get used to it. Or you may feel pride about it. Or you may mark me as the leading face of the current anti-american party and crucify me for all to see. Wotevar.
(DISCLAIMER which Unknown Target will ignore again: Everything I had said above is completely known to everyone. I just wasted my time by typing something everybody knows. Common sense I think it is. If you are an american and find it to rouse some feeling in you, then there's hope for you yet.)
I'm also pleased how I unintentinally created a topic with heated philosophical debate and hate. If I could lure some loud mouth in here to ignite a flame war (I'm too much of a wuss), that would be something...
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i think as americans your just going to have to accept the rest of the world telling you how to run your society as long as you as a people continue to dictate international politics, destroy "unfriendly" regimes and in the name of god and country put 6 billion life's at risk!
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I can't really say that we don't tell other countries how to run themselves either, so it's all fair game. But by the way, notice that you say "how you run your society" - if it was up to me, I wouldn't do any of that stuff, as would a large portion of the American public. You need to learn to differentiate between hating Americans and hating American policies.
And at the end of the day why?
a/ for some higher moral purpose
b/ to stop poverty
c/ for a better environment for the children of the world
or just maybe for the bottom dollar !!!!!
Or maybe;
A) Because our bonehead president and cowardly Congress gave it the ok.
B) Because our bonehead president and cowardly Congress gave it the ok.
C) Because our bonehead president and cowardly Congress gave it the ok.
or, just to throw things out of whack,
D) Because our bonehead president and cowardly Congress gave it the ok.
Once again, learn to differentiate between the politics and the people. I've heard that, generally, Europeans find American tourists some of the friendliest folks that travel over there, yet they still are citizens of the US, so you have to learn to dislike the politics but give the people a fair chance. To not do so is to display racism and ignorance (which I'm not saying you're racist or ignorant, I'm just saying).
over the last 60 years we have seen the rise of the american colonialism, your country in terms of a society is still in its teens and as such suffers from its impulsive actions , its arrogance and its ability to just walk away and leave a problem because it no longer "interests" it.
Britain leaving Iraq. Russia leaving Iraq (in the 80s). Darfur and the UN. The US isn't the only one guilty of "walking away". They just catch the most flak because they're the only superpower left in the world, and everyone likes to peck at the big guy and root for the underdogs - it's human nature.
Please do not read this as a hatred of americans as a teacher who works with people with difficulties , b4 they can make changes for the "better" it is necessary that they first know there faults and except them b4 they can make the changes that are for the "better"
I don't see it as hatred, and I'm not being hostile in any way :) Let's try and keep this thread as clinical as possible :D
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Edited after Prophet replied:
Nice work on ignoring the inconvenient part of my post UT. Hey, you happen to american by any chance...?
What part, exactly, did I ignore? I simply got on your case for being ignorant and hateful - which you just displayed again in that comment. If I'm American or not, what's it matter?
Like we all know, this topic has been discussed before. And I have taken part in those discussions. And I have stated how nice and wonderful many yanks may be after one gets to know them. Too bad they aren't interested on me knowing them so I'm stuck with these idiots who get be on the news. Let me make this clear. I'm not anti-american (infact I think there actually are good things that have come out of the good ol rebellious hive that became the US of A. Like Penn & Teller for example), but I most certainly am anti-idiocy (you can imagine the daily mental distress this causes me). And since the states supply the world with much of her entertainment and also enforces its laws, views and culture, often by force, people around the globe are exposed to considerable amount of american idiocy. Often more than their own native brand of peculiarity (is that a word?).
Hm...funny, it sounds awfully anti-American when you say the entire country is full of idiots.
And I see this trend continuing. And that means people continue to lose it and give some back. And if you like living in that best god damn country in the whole wide universe (that was a sarcastic remark, just to be clear), you might want to get used to it. Or you may feel pride about it. Or you may mark me as the leading face of the current anti-american party and crucify me for all to see. Wotevar.
You haven't been crucified. What I see is you overreacting to a warning against your decorum on the forum (hey that rhymes).
(DISCLAIMER which Unknown Target will ignore again: Everything I had said above is completely known to everyone. I just wasted my time by typing something everybody knows. Common sense I think it is. If you are an american and find it to rouse some feeling in you, then there's hope for you yet.)
Not saying anything to this, just letting you know that I didn't "ignore it".
I'm also pleased how I unintentinally created a topic with heated philosophical debate and hate. If I could lure some loud mouth in here to ignite a flame war (I'm too much of a wuss), that would be something...
No, it wouldn't be something, it would be locked.
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Bush got elected (and re-elected, for that matter) for two reasons. The first being that the Republican party is organized, the second being that the Democratic party is not. Had the Dems been even half as organized/efficient as the Reps, they would have won with an embarrassing lead. If using bush being elected as an argument, it'd have to be against the competency of the Democratic party or for the effectiveness of the Republican party. The argument holds little (if any) water for anything else.
As for the idiocy, one loud and obnoxious moron will always out speak a group of 20 or so reasonable and mild geniuses. America seems to have one of, if not the most, diverse clustering of classes. We have brilliantly educated people who are on par with the Israeli scientific community, and we have total dip****s that are on par with dropouts in Glasgow. Both extremes. But as the rule states, we are known only for our worst traits because they overwhelm our best.
To call me an idiot based on being an American because of the lowest of our class is akin to me asking Sandwich how many Palestinian kids he shot in the back to get that higher rank. Oh, and I've said it before, I'll say it again. By saying "Not all Americans are idiots" implies that the vast majority of them are.
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And I have stated how nice and wonderful many yanks may be after one gets to know them. Too bad they aren't interested on me knowing them so I'm stuck with these idiots who get be on the news.
I guess this says how much you pay attention to HLP.
I'm not anti-american (infact I think there actually are good things that have come out of the good ol rebellious hive that became the US of A. Like Penn & Teller for example)
The unbolded statement only tends to negate the bolded statement.
but I most certainly am anti-idiocy (you can imagine the daily mental distress this causes me). And since the states supply the world with much of her entertainment and also enforces its laws, views and culture, often by force, people around the globe are exposed to considerable amount of american idiocy. Often more than their own native brand of peculiarity (is that a word?).
Agreeable, yet as UT stated, that's American policies, not the actual population.
And I see this trend continuing. And that means people continue to lose it and give some back. And if you like living in that best god damn country in the whole wide universe (that was a sarcastic remark, just to be clear), you might want to get used to it. Or you may feel pride about it. Or you may mark me as the leading face of the current anti-american party and crucify me for all to see. Wotevar.
So are you trying to say that the American's hubris is people don't like Americans? This seems to contradict what you said earlier about being anti-stupid, which happens to include Americans. Or are you saying that stupid people take pride in their nationality?
Americans are idiots. Seriously. If this goes on, I may have to exterminate every single american asshole once I have control of the planet...
(DISCLAIMER which Unknown Target will ignore again: Everything I had said above is completely known to everyone. I just wasted my time by typing something everybody knows. Common sense I think it is. If you are an american and find it to rouse some feeling in you, then there's hope for you yet.)
:wtf:
I'm also pleased how I unintentinally created a topic with heated philosophical debate and hate. If I could lure some loud mouth in here to ignite a flame war (I'm too much of a wuss), that would be something...
Ironic how you think it would be entertaining to lure a loudmouth flamer here, while it seems one such post exists at the top of the page...
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mmmmmmmm part 3
please read all above b4 reading below as im to lazy to quote
no problems,
America is the only super power left because it wants to be the only super power ,and uses every tactic political and financial it can to guard this position , but it still has its achillies heel and this is what has caused the problems within the middle east at the moment, i pray that its weakness is not exploited in some ways because then we all die!!!!!!
but maybe thats the grand plan ,
pray with me for a secular state if thats not to ironic
as always no offence meant and if caused my apologies in advance
andi aka captain custard
grrr no spell check so good luck
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America is the only super power left because it wants to be the only super power ,and uses every tactic political and financial it can to guard this position , but it still has its achillies heel and this is what has caused the problems within the middle east at the moment, i pray that its weakness is not exploited in some ways because then we all die!!!!!!
Are you saying it shouldn't want to be the only superpower? I mean, what country wouldn't want that position? If somehow the Vatican got to that position, I'm sure it'd do everything it could to stay there. Also, America is the only super power left because of a long history stemming back to World War II, and the fall of the Soviet Union.
but maybe thats the grand plan ,
pray with me for a secular state if thats not to ironic
as always no offence meant and if caused my apologies in advance
So you're saying now that the US wants to destroy the world? And a secular state would make that more likely/much worse than what we have now, don't you think?
EDIT: Oops, my bad. I thought secular meant that the state was run religiously, not the opposite. I'm leaving the original post, so quotes don't get broken, but for the record, I think a religious run state is bad, and would be much worse than what we have now :p
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For instance you have a president who is an idiot and who was still voted in by people who presumably aren't. And he's not the only example of this. Look at Dan Quayle. Now I can't see that happening over here in the UK. Blair and Brown might be slimy bastards but that is about standard for politicians. I can't think of a British politician I can say is actually stupid. Their policies might be idiotic but usually that's for self serving reasons rather than actual idiocy on their part. Any politician who was an idiot wouldn't get far.
But it's not just politics. America has a culture that celebrates stupidity. Look at Jerry Springer as exhibit A of that. I can't see that show lasting more than a season in the UK. While we have our own shows in the same genre there is nothing even remotely close because no one over here is prepared to humiliate themselves that way because they know everyone will take the piss out of them when they get back home. In America though being on Jerry Springer seems to be a badge of honour for some.
The President of my country is an idiot too....and a liar of a unprecedented caliber..He would make Regan and Bush look like angels. And yet he is still in power.
I'm an atheist, a transhumanist, and a science fiction writer.In all these respects I think I defy the stereotype of the idiotic American.
Hey, GB, what' has this got to do with a stereotypical idoit?
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While I don't think we as Americans should be particularly arrogant, I don't think we need Europe and Australia telling us how to run our society.
Given America is continually telling everyone else how they should run theirs.....
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Hey, GB, what' has this got to do with a stereotypical idoit?
He's using himself as an example to prove that the stereotype isn't true.
While I don't think we as Americans should be particularly arrogant, I don't think we need Europe and Australia telling us how to run our society.
Given America is continually telling everyone else how they should run theirs.....
Yea, that is a true and unfortunate fact :( But then, everyone else tells Americans what to do with their society, so really it's just a case of people all across the board thinking their way of life is best.
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Oh yeah... I forgot that first post of mine... It was supposed to be outrageus enought that people understand it's a joke and not take it seriously. But I guess nothing is clear in internet without using ****load of smilies. Oh well, lesson learned to be forgetten again. Well since it's a joke that means I won't ever rule the world and thus all americans have no need to fear me. So sizzler can relax. Really, it's all right now...
I guess this says how much you pay attention to HLP.
I don't pay that much attention to nationatilies in here. People are from all over the world and some don't even disclose their origins. So I don't bother keeping track of them all. My wild guess is that Yanks are a minority here anyway.
but I most certainly am anti-idiocy (you can imagine the daily mental distress this causes me). And since the states supply the world with much of her entertainment and also enforces its laws, views and culture, often by force, people around the globe are exposed to considerable amount of american idiocy. Often more than their own native brand of peculiarity (is that a word?).
Agreeable, yet as UT stated, that's American policies, not the actual population.
So these policies now cover entertainment as well? There are a lot of american TV programs shown around the globe. All kinds of them. And news olse cover other things than just politics. I did not mix those.
As for the rest. A couple of nice dissections of my post that enable focus on one sentence while ignoring the rest.
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So you're saying now that the US wants to destroy the world? And a secular state would make that more likely/much worse than what we have now, don't you think?
A secular state is exactly what the US needs to return to being. Not to do so violates church and state separation. The integration of one into the other is always a bad thing. The Church of England, the Spanish Inquisition, and Jihadist methodology is proof enough of that.
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So you're saying now that the US wants to destroy the world? And a secular state would make that more likely/much worse than what we have now, don't you think?
A secular state is exactly what the US needs to return to being. Not to do so violates church and state separation. The integration of one into the other is always a bad thing. The Church of England, the Spanish Inquisition, and Jihadist methodology is proof enough of that.
My bad, I thought secular meant religious run, apparently it's the opposite :p
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Oh yeah... I forgot that first post of mine... It was supposed to be outrageus enought that people understand it's a joke and not take it seriously. But I guess nothing is clear in internet without using ****load of smilies. Oh well, lesson learned to be forgetten again. Well since it's a joke that means I won't ever rule the world and thus all americans have no need to fear me. So sizzler can relax. Really, it's all right now...
I guess this says how much you pay attention to HLP.
I don't pay that much attention to nationatilies in here. People are from all over the world and some don't even disclose their origins. So I don't bother keeping track of them all. My wild guess is that Yanks are a minority here anyway.
but I most certainly am anti-idiocy (you can imagine the daily mental distress this causes me). And since the states supply the world with much of her entertainment and also enforces its laws, views and culture, often by force, people around the globe are exposed to considerable amount of american idiocy. Often more than their own native brand of peculiarity (is that a word?).
Agreeable, yet as UT stated, that's American policies, not the actual population.
So these policies now cover entertainment as well? There are a lot of american TV programs shown around the globe. All kinds of them. And news olse cover other things than just politics. I did not mix those.
As for the rest. A couple of nice dissections of my post that enable focus on one sentence while ignoring the rest.
1) Yes, I'm sure no one really thought that you would kill all Americans, but you'd really need to specify that you were joking that you thought all Americans were idiots. (which in a way, you did, but then you went on to say things otherwise) I'm sure no one doubts that there isn't enough hating of Americans on this forum. (just look a this thread for example. If no one hated America, then this thread wouldn't exist)
2) Okay, sure reasonable enough. For future reference (http://clustrmaps.com/counter/maps.php?url=http://www.hard-light.net).
3) US entertainment, IMHO, represents the population of the US even worse. I for one, barely watch any TV at all. The TV that I do watch, isn't TV, just episodes of canceled TV shows on my computer. And of the people who do watch TV, not everyone watches everything. And even though things like Family Guy are incredibly dumb, watching them doesn't make you an idiot. Sorry for the lack of clarity in that post, but I guess I meant to say that entertainment represents the US about as little as government policies.
4) I didn't respond to the rest of your previous post for the same reason that you did not respond to mine.
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The President of my country is an idiot too....and a liar of a unprecedented caliber..He would make Regan and Bush look like angels. And yet he is still in power.
Fine, Croatia wins the prize for second dumbest country on Earth. Congratulations on a well run campaign. It's taken me years but I finally figured out what you were up to.
That means you can stop now. :p
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(http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b311/WMCoolmon/american_irony.gif)
Oh, the irony...
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The interesting part is, I have quite literally walked through the door after a week away in Glasgow, and this was the first thread that was visible.
So there's more irony at play than even that...
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I'm risking a warning here, but here goes:
My bad, I thought secular meant religious run, apparently it's the opposite
This has got to be the funniest and the most ironic sentence (given the context) I have read here in recent times - at least for three different reasons!
Considered making it my new signature, but the old one is still more generally applicable.
Mika
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Maybe there should a thread called like "I hate these countries" where everyone could bash any country they happen to like (pun intended). Probably a bad idea, though. There has to be people who could not take it as humor.
But wait, then I would need to insult every other country on Earth.
EDIT: Wait a second, I thought Scuddie is from Great Britain, since if memory serves that's one of their military slang words.
Mika
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The interesting part is, I have quite literally walked through the door after a week away in Glasgow, and this was the first thread that was visible.
So there's more irony at play than even that...
Yeah. This is all being done on the internet, which is not only at its core wholly an invention of the US (for the US military, no less), but one of the biggest literal expressions of the phrase "Freedom of speech" that was ever known to mankind.
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And this is being done by a Mod who has just had an 11 hour coach journey and, within five minutes of signing on to this site, is dragged into this discussion for some indiscernible reason.
I'm tired, I have a headache, and I'm not quite certain what you are implying by your original post.
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Ahh.
The irony is the American patriotism in the coloring and order of the names in the who's online field for a patently anti-patriotic thread.
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Aha! Now I get it, thanks, sorry if I seem a bit snappish, as I say, 11hours on a coach doesn't do wonders for my attention span or my temper :)
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Oh, and on the actual subject matter, there are only 32 Boroughs in London, but I bet you couldn't find a single Londoner on the Street that could name them all, and they aren't even as numerous as the US States.
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American and proud of it. Most of us hate Bush, and aren't too happy with his war. That said, I am joining the Marines. So basically, if your perception of America is only from the media, and you've never been here, and you STILL hate us on 'general principle,' then go to hell.
Personally, I think England is a failed police state which punishes innocents and rewards criminals.
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To a degree, you are correct, though I will point out that there is a massive contradiction in that sentence.
What we are is a wannabe Police State that didn't build enough jails to be effective, so what we turned into was a society that hunts down your every crime and then lacks the power to do anything about it.
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I'm risking a warning here, but here goes:
My bad, I thought secular meant religious run, apparently it's the opposite
This has got to be the funniest and the most ironic sentence (given the context) I have read here in recent times - at least for three different reasons!
Considered making it my new signature, but the old one is still more generally applicable.
Mika
Ok...I don't get why that's so funny but have fun :p
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My view is pretty mutch simple in this debate; I do not call an enitre nation idiots unless proven otherwise. Like most of you stated, I think the whole Anit-anericanisam is a wee bit overstated. If you ask any of the american haters they will tell you that hate Bush an his government and not the people.
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(http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b311/WMCoolmon/american_irony.gif)
Oh, the irony...
:lol:
that just cracks me up
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I guess what I'm trying to say is, I've seen heard lots of misrepresentations and mis-quotes about the US on European Media, just as I've seen lots of mis-quotes etc about the EU and UN on American Media.
The thing is, I try to take away the sensationalism and see what value there is in the criticism. As has been mentioned before, the US does have a habit of trying to push it's own internal agendas on other countries, it's not alone in that habit, but it's noticeable because it's big. That said, the UN has a lot of problems with power-playing getting in the way of actual decisive action. Once again, it's the larger powers that sent the UN to 'Camp Veto', where nothing productive ever gets done, and that's not just the US, Russia and the UK both do it too.
I suppose in most cases, the best way to look at it is to try and ignore the sensationalism and ask yourself, 'is there any validity in this outside view?', if there isn't, don't worry about it, you don't have to care what the neighbours think, but it's also worth thinking 'Is there a nugget of truth in this mountain of bull?'
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'Is there a nugget of truth in this mountain of bull?'
chicken or golden?
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:lol:
After pulling it out of a mountain of bull, I wouldn't bite it to find out ;)
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'Is there a nugget of truth in this mountain of bull?
chicken or golden?
After pulling it out of a mountain of bull, I wouldn't bite it to find out
shhhh thats one of the special secret sauces with a world wide patent
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McDonalds? :p
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I'd rather not talk about that... I'm never touching an energy drink again :blah:.
As for projecting what a person sees as the best way to live, it's fine by me. That is, if they acknowledge it as an idea and not as if it were so. But then again, who am I to force people to present their ideas as opinion and not fact? That right is reserved only for people in power :rolleyes:.
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This is an awesome troll topic.
I'M AM KOREAN
SON OF A ***** AMERICAN
AMERICAN IS PIG
DO YOU WANT A HAMBURGER?
DO YOU WANT A PIZZA?
AMERICAN IS PIG DISGUSTING
GEORGE WALKER BUSH IS A MURDERER
****ING U.S.A
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Just to quote one of our dumb cartoons, that is actually quite a truthfully saying..
Dumb people are blissfully unaware of how dumb they really are.
:p
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@Swantz
Stop Trolling. :p
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Stop Trolling.
Do you want fries with that sir?
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And the inverse is equally true. The smartest of people don't recognize their full potential. That's probably why we have a lot of idiots in power. I mean hell, I might make a better president than Bush, but I just don't see that as being plausible, even though it could very much be true. And that's not even taking my lack of experience and education into account.
EDIT: Could someone please trim this thread? It's REALLY starting to get out of hand.
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Hey, GB, what' has this got to do with a stereotypical idoit?
He's using himself as an example to prove that the stereotype isn't true.
That doesn't answer my question. I asked what does THIS ("I'm an atheist, a transhumanist, and a science fiction writer") have to do with not being an american idiot?
Fine, Croatia wins the prize for second dumbest country on Earth. Congratulations on a well run campaign. It's taken me years but I finally figured out what you were up to.
That means you can stop now.
Actually, my goal is so spread the hate for idiots in power...
The smartest of people don't recognize their full potential.
Smart people don't want to be in politics...smart people are humble..that's why you generally don't hear much of them.
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I dont care what any of you think about my country!
We still have more nukes than you :drevil:
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Anyway. I'm on a Yankbashing spree now on account of that another alien aircraft crashed on Earth. And once again it specifically targeted US of A. Lots of people got killed, yes. But I'm still annoyed because they all go in to the states and then get killed by teenagers who often seem to be socially inept, fashionable and beautiful.
When did that happen?
I know everyone wants to be hip and all and bash them, and you obviously admit your own ignorance on the subject by admitting that your cross-section of the American population that you've come in contact with is very little - never mind the fact that America is still one of the top if not the top sources of R+D,
In most hi-tech R&D centers, most of the engineers doing the R&D are either from India or China. Same goes for PHD research programs. Very few americans actually do any kind of of R&D because "science isn't cool", instead it's cool to be "stupid".
Now, see, there's the difference - you're taking a shot at the American government and society as a whole,
Then again the government is made "by the people and for the people", so by extension you're still bashing americans.
2. While America may not be a land full of idiots I know of no other culture which celebrates idiocy to such a large degree. And that is largely what causes America to be viewed as a land of idiots. Cause many presume that only a land of idiots would be proud of their idiocy.
Seconded. As I mentioned earlier, a large portion of the scientists and engineers doing research and so forth aren't actually americans. Sooner or later we will pay a heavy price for this, since that number of immigrant engineers is going down because their home countries are becoming much richer and because of the obscene visa policies.
So basically, if your perception of America is only from the media, and you've never been here, and you STILL hate us on 'general principle,'
I am an american and spent most of my life there, yet I still have the same perception as karajorma. I found the idiot culture to be somewhat.....suffocating.
EDIT:
As an addendum I think it's worth pointing out that the media has quite a lot to do with this
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080102-whats-wrong-with-the-news-today-a-former-dateliner-talks.html
The institution that is the media is totally rotten in america which, considering the enormous influence it has on american society, makes this detrimental at best, some what dangerous at worst.
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Now, see, there's the difference - you're taking a shot at the American government and society as a whole,
Then again the government is made "by the people and for the people", so by extension you're still bashing americans.
So I'm technically not a person because I can't vote yet?
:p I love doing that... yes I know it's a fallacious statement, yes it was a joke.
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I've seen lots of references to America's "Idiotic Society."
Anyone want to explain this in some detail?
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Actually im an American and i happen to agree :nervous: but please, watch the stereotypical crap
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The smartest of people don't recognize their full potential.
Wisdom is knowing that one is not wise, or for the Eastern bent, admitting you do not understand is the first step to enlightenment.
BUT ANYWAYS.
I'm going to take the horrible stance that telling someone how to do something is not inherently wrong. We refer to it as "advice" on the person-to-person level, and while not always useful or good, it is almost always well-intentioned. We bristle when it was not solicited, usually, out of injured pride. So it is with nations.
So whenever I see someone spouting off about "not telling us how to run our (or their) country" I view it as the product of hubris. Because, after all, that's what it is; it's not being done to screw people up, after all. A more rational reaction would be to evalutate it logically and then apply or ignore the advice, but pride in one's system dies hard, much harder than pride in one's country.
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I actually don't see as much "telling the US what to do" as I see plain bashing.
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's funny, because I actually read that the other way around. :p
Though I do see a lot of bashing here. But most of the people doing the bashing have probably already stated their views on what the US should do in another thread, realized that it didn't make a difference then, and don't feel like restating them now because it's not any more likely to make a difference. If we are speaking in generalizations, it's a lot easier to state you opinion when you don't know it's meaningless than when it's already been illustrated as such.
At any rate, I feel like this focus on stupidity is rather silly and what's expected of a bunch of internet forum nerds. The majority of a population is not going to be above-average in any one area. So if you expect everyone to be smart, you're going to be plain wrong, because by definition the majority will be less-than-smart. So if we assume that the majority of people on HLP are, indeed, smart in the area of research and science, of course any culture by Those Other People is going to seem "stupid".
Plus, add to the fact that the people doing R&D aren't going to be spending long hours every day to produce the next episode of the OC, or running around taking photographs of Paris Hilton. Just a thought.
So I don't think it's necessarily that American culture celebrates stupidity as it is that American culture is much more widely known than anybody else's culture. The best and brightest of other people's culture rises to the top, while the crap largely remains hidden...it's kind of like judging your family vs judging your friend, because you know a lot more about your family than your friend, you can come up with a lot more crap than your friend who gets to control what you see.
And for instance, I know some Japanese anime that is pretty good, but occasionally I hear about these Japanese game shows and see them and it seems rather...dumb. But that's not the sort of thing that people who are interested in Japanese culture will celebrate. At least, not the people I've hung around with. :p
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So I don't think it's necessarily that American culture celebrates stupidity as it is that American culture is much more widely known than anybody else's culture.
In China famous scientists and/or engineers like stephan hawking are treated like celebraties and are seen as role models. The same cannot be said in america......
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Or in GB for that matter, or a lot of other 1st/2nd world countries.
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Sure they are. Hawking, Noam Chomsky (controversial man), Kip Thorne, Jared Diamond...these are common names.
There are parts of American society that celebrate these kinds of people and parts that don't. It's a really diverse place.
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I never met anyone in university who considered any of those people role models, and even then half of them didn't know who those people actually were.
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Well, depends where you go to school. Even in my public high school they were commonplace, and it was by no means an elite institution.
As I said, it's a diverse place.
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I never met anyone in university who considered any of those people role models, and even then half of them didn't know who those people actually were.
Does anyone ever consider anyone a role model these days? I respect Hawking, but I don't aspire to be like him. I have my own life that I want to live, not someone else's to model it after.
And I'm willing to bet that more people in China don't rave over Hawking than in the US. Mostly because of the massive population difference.
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i joined in this discussion a while back and my intention was not to bash americans but at the same time i found my frustration at general US policies being vented...
it changes nothing,
and nothing changes,
silence is our only crime
andi aka captain custard