Downtown Vancouver - A Literal War Zone

fjashdflkjashldsjkf wrote:

1) Your reading comprehension is awful. I said greatest force for good. Obviously there are horrible atrocities committed by the US over last 65 years. Just like every other nation on Earth and certainly every other internatinoal power in history. Listing 5 or 10 or twenty of these and believing that they prove your point is nonsense. Tell me did the British empire ever do anything wrong in your judgement?

If you judge a person as being good, you judge them based on the fact that their good attributes outweigh their bad. The U.S. is a massive economic force so naturally it has done a lot of good in the World, but it has also done a lot of bad. It wouldn't be fair to say that the U.S. is one of the greatest forces of evil in history, based off of the amount of deaths and political and economic turmoil that have been perpetrated by the U.S.

I certainly never said that the British empire didn't do anything wrong but, for my money, they did more to spread democracy throughout the World, over a longer time period, and with a smaller population base than the U.S. The U.S. has definitely done a lot to advance capitalism throughout the World, but it has done so at the expense of human rights abuse and a vastly widening disparity between the haves and the have-nots in the developing World. Again, I highly recommend "Shock Doctrine" by Naomi Klein.

2)You are saying that US policy has resulted in massive unemployment and a huge drop in standard of living as a general rule? Nonsense. The standard of living worldwide has skyrocketed like no other time in history at a time when the US is as economically and fiscally influential as any other world power in history. Of course policy has probably not favored a few countries but as a general rule US influence is proportionally and positively related to growth of economies around the world. As an example, 3 economies destroyed by war and with massive US military prescence and influence in last 60 years. Germany, South Korea, Japan. Compare this to former soviet states and North Korea.

Yes, I am saying that this is the case in most developing countries. The economic boom in the developing World has definitely made a few people rich beyond their wildest imaginations, but it has also resulted in huge slums and a drop in standard of living for the vast majority of its citizens. For example, the standard of living for black farmers in South Africa is actually much lower now, AFTER apartheid because of the economic policies that were forced on South Africa when the new government took power. There have also been massive layoffs and a decline in standard of living in many South American countries, as the U.S. imposed strict economic reforms through the IMF and the World Bank. The economy may have grown in many Third World countries but, when 90% of the profits are going to the top 1% of the population, you tend to get inflation in prices, which hurts the 99% of the population who isn't seeing much in the way of economic benefits

Then there's also the fact that the U.S. helped overthrow democratically elected governments like Allende in Chile, backing fascist dictators like Pinochet and Suharto, who tortured and killed anybody who disagreed with them, resulting in hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of citizens being killed and tortured.

I agree that Germany, South Korea and Japan were worthy achievements for the U.S., but they occurred at the very start of your 65 year period and the policies that created these successes have been sorely lacking in more recent wars, such as Iraq. You also have to balance the fact that the U.S. nuked two Japanese cities. Doing it once would have probably been sufficient to end the war. The second time was clearly a political message to the Soviets and inexcusable.

Also, I definitely never said that the Soviet Union was to be admired but I don't think that U.S.-backed fascism or communism are the best solution for the World. I'm in favor of freedom and democracy, over the corruption inherent in pure, unrestrained capitalism.

3)what percentage of Americans wear Canadian flags on their backpacks when traveling abroad? Ive honestly never heard of this before and not sure how it proves anything. also if they do it says more about the people who they are visiting who would judge them and mistreat them based on their nationality.

I mostly agree with this, but there are stereotypes for different nationalities and the American one is arrogance. I do think that the American image has vastly improved abroad since Obama was elected.

4) People who hate the US hate us because we are the Yankees we are top dog. This is the way the human psyche works. Tons of people love the US. Please watch video of Irish fawning all over Barack Obama or his first speech in Germany when 100,000's attended and cheered wildly.

Definitely true. The love for Barack Obama probably had more to do with those countries approving of the American electorate's decision than it did with loving the U.S. though. The rest of the World is both bombarded and affected by American politics, and the World loves Obama and hated Bush.

5)Bill Gates donates more money to pay for vaccines in third world countries than any country on the planet!

"Bill and Melinda Gates announced today that their foundation will commit $10 billion over the next 10 years to help research, develop and deliver vaccines for the world’s poorest countries." Their website also reports that rates of vaccination in third world countries has never been higher in Human history.

Pretty sure he is an American and pretty sure most of the vaccines were discovered and are produced in the United States.

I did say that the U.S. has done some good as well. This is definitely an example. I don't hate the U.S. It's definitely in the top 10 and probably top 5 countries where I would want to live and has traditionally been a bastion for freedom, which I respect (although acts like the Patriot Act and airport scanners seem to be eroding this). It is a shame though that so much of the research money for drugs and vaccines is going into things like pills for weight loss, prevention of hair loss, sex drive... etc.

6)US = greatest force for direct good in human history when we look at lives saved and increase in living standards.