What happened to the USA?

[Uncle Gizmo]

Musk Brings his intellect and insight to bear on the USA...

Elon Musk's BRUTALLY Honest Interview about America

In a candid interview, Elon Musk shares his insights on global dynamics, particularly focusing on the historical and potential future roles of China and the ...

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What happened? Why has the country apparently degenerated into something practically obscene?

 

[Steve R.]

Musk is a bit off on China not being acquisitive. China did take over Tibet and Hong Kong. They have not, however, taken over places like Korea of Vietnam. However, China has been making noises to take over Taiwan and expanding into the South Pacific. Possible future "acquisitive" targets?

Musk, did not address (as that did not appear to be the point of the interview) the issue: What happened to the USA?
The US, by helping rebuild the world after WWII, was at its ethical peak. Since then it been a slow downhill slide. Consider, Eisenhower's Farewell Address. To be very brief on a very complex topic, the US has been using it's economic and military power as a "bully" to achieve vague objectives (nation building) without actually trying to win (Biden is preventing Israel from defeating Hamas). In short, the US has tied itself into a pretzel and is paralyzed.

 

[Uncle Gizmo]

Pretzel paralysed... That's a good description of some governments!

 

[The_Doc_Man]

In short, the US has tied itself into a pretzel and is paralyzed.

The problem is that we have to push (sometimes very hard) for a country to adopt a USA paradigm when doing so would totally upend the culture, and yet the USA is afraid to make more enemies.

It is analogous to (but NOT IDENTICAL to) parenting - where you have to tell the kids to avoid certain thrills and behaviors because you want to protect them - at a time when they want to experiment with everything. Which turns Mom and Dad into old stick-in-the-mud fuddie-duddies. That phase of teen angst and rebellion is simply friction between kids and parents as they rub each other the wrong way.

Our views of social and political gender equality and our views of tolerance for variations from "normative" roles simply fall flat in many Islamic and strict Christian cultures. Cultures where women must subjugate themselves to men (I DID say "strict Christians"), where gays are not tolerated, where the unity of the community is sacrosanct and therefore outsiders are not tolerated either. In the long run we believe that overall, the people affected by adopting our policies will be better for it - but we are afraid to go through the transition period because of what it takes to overturn the previous culture.

 

[Steve R.]

The problem is that we have to push (sometimes very hard) for a country to adopt a USA paradigm when doing so would totally upend the culture, and yet the USA is afraid to make more enemies.

We should never be pushing a country to adopt a USA paradigm. That leads to two themes.

This country was founded on Judaeo/Christian values. Over the past couple of decades these values have been diluted, bastardized, and even rejected by those on the left. The corruption of our culture was made clear soon after Biden took office when the Chinese in a meeting in Anchorage highlighted our cultural corruption. A bit difficult to "sell" your paradigm to others when it is corrupt and dependent on subjective interpretations that are highly transitory. What is valid today, may not be valid tomorrow.

An indication of our decline, the Western world has essentially abandoned (ceded) the Middle East to the Islamists. This has been both historical, going back to 1543, then in 1920, and now (1960s/1970s). Specifically, the West abandoned Lebanon. Since then Hezbollah has emerged there as a terrorist organization devoted to Jewish genocide. Currently, Biden is continuing to cede the Middle East to the Islamists by undermining Israel and providing aid to Iran to support the destruction of Israel. An anti-western tidal wave came and the West did nothing.

 

[AccessBlaster]

What happened to the USA?​

We stopped governing ourselves, turned it over to the "experts" while we sit back, drink our six pack and watch sports.

Sound familiar? If not, it will.

 

[Steve R.]

What happened to the USA?​

We stopped governing ourselves, turned it over to the "experts" while we sit back, drink our six pack and watch sports.

Sound familiar? If not, it will.

Which gets into luxury beliefs and Maslow's hierarchy of needs. So "while we sit back, drink our six pack and watch sports", our concerns for far off problems are only dimly aware of in a vague abstract manner. An indicator of our disassociation with hard core truths are the commercials on TV about the need to take care of our pets and feed them well. This, like drinking beer, is a luxury belief that we could not afford if the country should the country be experiencing problems such as food shortages.

Regretfully, because we do not have problems such as food shortages or a lack of beer, we don't perceive the need to plan ahead to prevent a future where pet food and beer may become an unaffordable luxury. As you wrote our planning has been: "turned it over to the "experts" while we sit back, drink our six pack and watch sports."

 

[Isaac]

I dunno about this talk of strict Christian cultures - Hungary sure seems like a happy nation right now.

Maybe it actually works if you don't fight it

 

[Cronk]

America is spending like a drunken sailor in port. Check www.usdebtclock.org

 

[Cotswold]

Is the USA a democratic nation?
Britain isn't, neither is Europe
But the excuse to invade or control is always to teach "them" the 'benefits' of democracy

(not far different to the Spanish teaching the Incas to be Christians,. It's for their own good you know)

----------------
P.S. By democrat I refer to the ideology, not the party.
In the UK our equivalent is the Labour Party and the Liberal Democrats.
I can't comment on the US Democrats but both of the above in the UK
tend to be autocratic and based in communism and Marxist doctrine.

 

[Pat Hartman]

strict Christian cultures

What a joke. Try being a woman living under Islam where you can't leave your house without the permission of a male relative. And then only if you are covered head to toe under yards of cloth because if you've got anything peeking out, you are liable to be whipped by the religious police as you are walking down the street.

 

[AccessBlaster]

"Congress is like two drunks arguing the bar bill on the Titanic"

 

[Uncle Gizmo]

"Congress is like two drunks arguing the bar bill on the Titanic"

That's about what this lady thinks...

She says it so well!!!

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[Uncle Gizmo]

Try being a woman living under Islam

Try being a Christian or a Jew!!!

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[AccessBlaster]

The only thing you're supposed to notice is that "Trump" has to be stopped at all costs, remember nothing else matters!

 

[Uncle Gizmo]

Although I doubt Putin has much regard for Christians and Jews, I'm pretty sure he will take a dim view of the Muslims killing five policemen! I wouldn't be surprised if there are Repercussions!!!

 

[Isaac]

Try being a Christian

No, seriously

 

[NauticalGent]

America is spending like a drunken sailor in port. Check www.usdebtclock.org

As a sailor, I take exception with that statement. When I ran out of money, I quit drinking and returned to my ship...

 

[Steve R.]

Try being a woman living under Islam ...

Try being a Christian or a Jew!!!

As the woman in her X (twitter) post noted, we live in an insane world. I've previously expressed that the US actively supports many Islamic countries that oppress non-Muslims. We even provide US troops as mercenaries to protect some these countries. Under Biden the US is even supporting Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah, entities that want to kill us. That is deranged. The US should be using its military, political, and economic power to protect Christians and Jews living in Islamic countries.

As a side note. Islamic countries are very open and aggressive about being based on Islam as the state religion. The West no longer has countries based on Christianity as the state religion.

To make matters worse, the US (within its own borders) is even actively denigrating Western values and supporting those who seek to undermine Western values within this country. The US is essentially committing cultural suicide.

 

[Pat Hartman]

Try being a Christian or a Jew!!!

You can't. Islam says to convert or kill or subjugate (make them pay tribute). At least there is a third option