As you stated, it is also important to know who funds Al-Jazeera... as well as FOX, CNN and the other big pushers of popular sentiment. Not sure what your lack of getting punched by a football player in 1980 has to do with an article about the funding of fear? I can tell you that in 2002 I was in line at a restaurant and some guy nudged passed me and said, "out of my way Mohammed". -I got pissed, really pissed and pushed back past him and said, "my name is Steve asshole". (I'm half mexican and people always think I'm arabic)
Is it a great country? Yes. Let's keep it that way. Fuck Al Jazeera? Okay, but fuck the people that propogate open racism and ethnocentrism too! FUCK THEM!
Comment wasn't directed at OP. It was in the general direction of Al-Jazeera and co. > it stays that way because people ask questions like, "who funds muslim baiting in America". No, actually, the reason we arrived to this point is preponderantly due to Anglo-Saxon sociopolitical and cultural norms, beginning with Magna Carta, and as refined by the founders + Protestant ethics. The essential positive core of this is certainly something to cherish and protect. I.e. there is a distinct and clearly identifiable cultural foundation that informs the American norms. Further, this is not an internal dialogue between Americans. (That would be perfectly acceptable; in fact, per above, a requirement.) In this case, it is a publication of a foreign propaganda entity that is asking pointed questions. The target audience of Al-Jazeera is also not merely Americans; they have a global audience. And it is a component of the on-going effort to repaint and repackage America for the post-coldwar world. It is, of course, also quite helpful to their cause to alienate a certain sub-set of Americans from their own society -- "I am so ashamed to be an American" is a comment one runs into with increasing frequency in various forums that conflate NATO and Globalist activity with the American "Empire". One gets tired of it. None of this in any way whitewashes the faults of our society or the sordid episodes in this nations's history e.g. native Americans. We're not angels over here but comparatively, we have absolutely nothing to be ashamed about (minus the degradation of the conduct our US military -- again, an erosion of American heritage.) > As you stated, it is also important to know who funds Al-Jazeera... as well as FOX, CNN and the other big pushers of popular sentiment. It would not surprise me a bit if they were all funded by the same group (including the rabble rousers who incite hate against Muslims in USA). > Okay, but fuck the people that propogate open racism and ethnocentrism too! FUCK THEM! Ethnocentrism, and open racism is something that sometimes -- there are certainly exceptions -- I have to deal with in my neighborhood; I agree it is an unreasonable position to hold. Some people refuse to speak English and insist on speaking their own language ("ethnocentrism") which kinda sucks since I don't speak their language, and there is open hostility to the "other" ("racism").
> Perhaps you are in need of a forum cleanse?! Perhaps. This is the part of the sociopolitical issue we are facing these days, isn't it? anyway, google "i am ashamed to be an american". I just did and got "About 537 results (0.12 seconds) " if you select the last 24 hours ... > Not too long after our founding, the notion of "manifest destiny" crept in and has yet to leave [...] Agreed.
As for the the forums where people openly bash the US and claim shame for being from here, wasn't it you that stopped reading fiction to avoid the pitfalls of polluting your intake of information? Glad we found some common ground re: Manifest Destiny. Alright, this was a solid rant in both directions.