Below China and India, But Just Above Russia and Venezuela
"A majority of people believe that Israel and Iran have a mainly negative influence in the world, a poll for the BBC World Service suggests.
It shows that the two countries are closely followed by the United States and North Korea. "You can thank the neo-conservative, right-wing, Republican, Christian-fascists for their 6 years of "leadership" in helping us reach this Historic milestone!
How PROUD they must be! They worked SO HARD to get us here.
It's just tragic that they had to tell lie after lie to the American people, spend hundreds of billions of dollars and brutally extinguish thousands of brave American souls to achieve this goal.
How anyone with over 32 brain cells can admit to supporting this administration and its policies defies all logic, reason and common sense.
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13 comments:
Yea Canada!
WOHOO! IN YOUR FACE Russia!
Wait a minute...how many brain cells are we *supposed* to have, anyway? (I mean, I know it's loads more than 32, but still, you got me thinkin' about it, and now I wanna know!)
President Obama would flip those numbers, at least.
I wonder if the right wing sees that as a negative...
It's interesting that a do nothing country like Canada gets the best ratings for influence. I'm trying real hard but I cannot think of one thing they have done that has influenced the world. Somebody?
travel - I think that's kinda the point. They aren't standing up shouting at other countries, making demands about what other countries must and must not do, threatening sanctions or militarily invading other countries, overthrowing their governments and creating chaos.
They are content to be quietly Canadian, mind their own business, take care of their own people and help out the good guys as best they can when asked.
Maybe we should be a bit more canuk like, eh?
Well, actually, XO, I agree somewhat with you. Sometimes I think we should station our military on our borders, use our aid money to aid our own needy people instead of most of the rest of the world, tell the UN to take a hike, etc etc
But, .. they wouldn't get our $$$$ and we'd plunge below Israel/Iran in ratings
So, actually, I don't give a damn about what other countries think of our influence ...
Don't forget Canada got the American hostages out of Iran.
I really don't understand why the USA tries to be the police of the world but it doesn't take care of it's own. This treatment of our veterans is criminal. Katrina is a national shame. We should be ashamed of our country.
Spyder...
With all due respect, please never be ashamed of our country. Look at what we do for the rest of the world. I will grant you Iraq was a mistake, but this country is its people..you and me..even XO..lol
We differ in our politics but we have the freedom to do so and we aid people who are afflicted all over the world. I listened to a guy one day explain it this way...a foreigner in a German country or a foreigner in France cannot be German or French because to them it is by blood alone but America ... we are everybody..anybody can be an American.
Therefore, we should be proud of who we are. Ok..so you might be pissed off at Bush..it's 8 years..I'm pissed off at Clinton and I'm pissed off at Bush for lots of things as well, but...
We're here. Our ancestors are from all over the world. We've fought and died for this country. We've raised our kids here..they play together..there is opportunity like no where else on this earth.
We are unique.
But, even more, I will never, and I mean never be ashamed I am an American.
spyder - I don't think I could ever say that I'm ashamed of my country.
I'm often ashamed of our leadership, our laws, our policies and our ham-handed, piss-poor, bullying way of carrying out those policies, even when they are generous, well intentioned policies.
But I still love and admire what we aspire to be. If we actually lived up to the ideals expressed in the Declaration of Independence, The Bill of Rights, and The Constitution...my God. We truly would be the greatest country on earth. Ever.
But we don't and we aren't.
We twist, mutilate, spin and distort our lofty ideals into justifications for robbery, extortion, kidnapping, assasination, invasion, occupation and emperialism.
And we cheapen ourselves and diminish our stature in the world when we do so. Because like an addict, every one see's the truth, but us.
We are blind drunk on our status as the only Mega-Power on the planet and the rest of the world is getting tired of putting up with our shit.
I don't blame them.
I think we should be more like Canada and lead by example.
If we spent all of our resources living up to our own aspirations, everyone would want to be like us and have what we have. They would look at their own institutions and quality of life, compare them to us and say, fuck this...I want to be like them!
Instead, we try to force our way of life down their throats with a bayonette and their understandable response is "Fuck you! Get your bayonette out of my throat!"
I'm not "ashamed" of my country.
But I am very, very disappointed in it.
travel - good points! I agree. I can live in France, but I can never become a Frenchman. But a Frenchman can become an American. Or, in today's hyphenated society, a Franco-American.
Welcome back! How was the cruise?
When I've been in Canada I have heard of some different "ugly Americans" experiences. Americans going hunting or fishing while drunk and being obnoxious. When moose or deer hunting they take the head & horns but leave the body in the woods wasting all that good meat. They also leave all kinds of trash, beer bottles... I have run into some wonderful Americans in Canada, who have been great ambassadors for the USA.
We really need to step up to the plate so we don't have to be disappointed in ourselves. I believe one of the problems is lack of respect, for ourselves and others.
So what should we do to improve?
Thanks, XO. No cruise, but a week of fun and sun in Puerto Vallarta. I'd never been there before. Believe me, there is more than one Mexico, with Puerto Vallarta being a prosperous place for the locals who earn substantial sums from the tourists. One day we took a tour and questioned our Mexican tour guide extensively about his lifestyle as we wanted to really know about the locals and he was more than eager to share, being a very proud Mexican man. He said he lived in a nice house in the old town area with his extended family..grandkids, etc. He said he earned a good living as did much of the population as long as they knew one thing .. English. Unfortunately, the schools in Puerto Vallarta don't teach English so the kids have to learn it on their own if they want to work in the prosperous tourist industry even as a waiter at the many resorts. Isn't that crazy!!! Opportunity is only a language course away from poverty.
Off topic I know, but it amazed me.
Spyder - I agree, there is much we as Americans need to improve and no excuse for the kind of behavior you noted. I think the majority of people in this country are not truly represented by either the Democratic or Republican parties. The politicians are more concerned with their own reelections than they are about those they represent and in so doing, they misrepresent the common American to the rest of the world. In my opinion, it's time for a viable third party in this country that serves the people, but unfortunately $$$$ seems to run the show.
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