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View Full Version : "Made in the U.S.A.: Spoiled Brats."


Rezie@Genesis
07-07-2008, 12:26 AM
came across this
what's your take on it?


written by columnist Craig R. Smith

The Newsweek poll alleges that 67 percent of Americans are unhappy with the direction the country is headed and 69 percent of the country is unhappy with the performance of the president. In essence 2/3s of the citizenry just ain't happy and want a change.


So being the knuckle dragger I am, I started thinking, ''What we are so unhappy about?''


Is it that we have electricity and running water 24 hours a day, 7 days a week? Is our unhappiness the result of having air conditioning in the summer and heating in the winter? Could it be that 95.4 percent of these unhappy folks have a job? Maybe it is the ability to walk into a grocery store at any time and see more food in moments than Darfur has seen in the last year?


Maybe it is the ability to drive from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean without having to present identification papers as we move through each state? Or possibly the hundreds of clean and safe motels we would find along the way that can provide temporary shelter? I guess having thousands of restaurants with varying cuisine from around the world is just not good enough. Or could it be that when we wreck our car, emergency workers show up and provide services to help all and even send a helicopter to take you to the hospital.


Perhaps you are one of the 70 percent of Americans who own a home. You may be upset with knowing that in the unfortunate case of a fire, a group of trained firefighters will appear in moments and use top notch equipment to extinguish the flames thus saving you, your family and your belongings. Or if, while at home watching one of your many flat screen TVs, a burglar or prowler intrudes , an officer equipped with a gun and a bullet-proof vest will come to defend you and your family against attack or loss. This all in the backdrop of a neighborhood free of bombs or militias raping and pillaging the residents. Neighborhoods where 90 percent of teenagers own cell phones and computers.


How about the complete religious, social and political freedoms we enjoy that are the envy of everyone in the world? Maybe that is what has 67 percent of you folks unhappy.


Fact is, we are the largest group of ungrateful, spoiled brats the world has ever seen. No wonder the world loves the U.S. , yet has a great disdain for its citizens. They see us for what we are. The most blessed people in the world who do nothing but complain about what we don't have , and what we hate about the country instead of thanking the good Lord we live here.


I know, I know. What about the President who took us into war and has no plan to get us out? The President who has a measly 31 percent approval rating? Is this the same President who guided the nation in the dark days after 9/11? The president that cut taxes to bring an economy out of recession? Could this be the same guy who has been called every name in the book for succeeding in keeping all the spoiled ungrateful brats safe from terrorist attacks?
The commander in chief of an all-volunteer army that is out there defending you and me? Did you hear how bad the President is on the news or talk show? Did this news affect you so much, make you so unhappy you couldn't take a look around for yourself and see all the good things and be glad?


Think about it -- are you upset at the President because he actually caused you personal pain OR is it because the "Media" told you he was failing to kiss your sorry ungrateful behind every day.


Make no mistake about it. The troops in Iraq and Afghanistan have volunteered to serve, and in many cases may have died for your freedom. There is currently no draft in this country. They didn't have to go.
They are able to refuse to go and end up with either a ''general'' discharge, an ''other than honorable'' discharge or, worst case scenario, a ''dishonorable'' discharge after a few days in the brig.


So why then the flat-out discontentment in the minds of 69 percent of Americans? Say what you want but I blame it on the media. If it bleeds it leads and they specialize in bad news. Everybody will watch a car crash with blood and guts. How many will watch kids selling lemonade at the corner? The media knows this and media outlets are for-profit corporations. They offer what sells, and when criticized, try to defend their actions by "justifying" them in one way or another. Just ask why they tried to allow a murderer like O.J. Simpson to write a book about how he didn't kill his wife, but if he did he would have done it this way -- Insane!


Stop buying the negativism you are fed everyday by the media. Shut off the TV, burn Newsweek, and use the New York Times for the bottom of your bird cage. Then start being grateful for all we have as a country. There is exponentially more good than bad.


We are among the most blessed people on Earth and should thank God several times a day, or at least be thankful and appreciative.


"With hurricanes, tornados, fires out of control, mud slides, flooding, severe thunderstorms tearing up the country from one end to another, and with the threat of bird flu and terrorist attacks, "Are we sure this is a good time to take God out of the Pledge of Allegiance?"

JETTAone420
07-07-2008, 12:30 AM
its shit like that makes me wanna grow my hair out roll a fat blunt and be a hippy

btw awesome sig rezie! mels on a roll!

Ivan
07-07-2008, 03:52 AM
Stupid.
so Americans are spoiled brats because we don't
live in shit whole country like Nigeria.

lucky us. I guess?
"Look one the bright side, at least I have all my fingers" wtf.

BexSoCal
07-07-2008, 06:49 AM
Craig R. Smith is clearly delusional.

He is one of those staunch Right-Wingers (yes, the left has them too but he is clearly a Neo-Con) that no matter how much truth he is presented with it is impossible to get him to put The Good of The Country above the good of his party.

I wouldn't wipe my butt with the paper that drivel is printed on.

fcastle
07-07-2008, 01:47 PM
This reminds me of when a wealthy guy tells you, "Money isn't everything."

Really? :rolleyes: Well, why don't we switch sides, trust-fund-baby, and see how the "other half" really lives?

ncttrnl
07-07-2008, 01:54 PM
We are very fortunate and we do tend to forget that but this article is a load of crap.

Anonymous
07-07-2008, 02:45 PM
I think this is an interesting topic and I'd like to see more opinions on this.
:bump:

Rezie@Genesis
07-07-2008, 06:00 PM
We are very fortunate and we do tend to forget that but this article is a load of crap.

i agree, we are very fortunate and a lot of times we take things for granted

your_blog_sucks
07-07-2008, 07:17 PM
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CALL AAA
07-08-2008, 12:02 AM
I'm pissed that I only have an S6 and an 1,800 sq/ft house. I should totally have an RS6 and a 4,800 sq/ft house. Fuck this. I'm moving to Venezuela.

It really cracks me up to hear people (especially high school kids) bitch about how bad things are in the United States. I always recommend that they leave the country at least once before they make a statement like that.

Frank
07-08-2008, 03:29 AM
im in high school and i like to be educated on stuff, i watch the news and meet the press (missin tim) but at school im pretty reserved about talking politics, but some kids start to just repeat what there parents said over dinner and bash on the military and other people that ensure there civil liberties. it seems our country has come to the point where its just not one side unhappy with the other, no matter who is in office it seems like there is a large group of people talking about impeachment just because everything isnt just hunky-dory

Anonymous
07-08-2008, 10:49 AM
The article is about a year a half old and it was stupid then and even more so now. The first line of the article lays out why it's a stupid argument. "The Newsweek poll alleges that 67 percent of Americans are unhappy with the direction the country is headed and 69 percent of the country is unhappy with the performance of the president."

It says in the first line that Americans are unhappy with the direction the country is headed and he goes on to point out the conveniences and luxuries of everyday living. The poll didn't ask if Americans were unhappy with their daily lives. It didn't ask if Americans were unhappy with their big screen tvs. It asks about the direction the country is going. Is it possible to be happy with my everyday life but not happy and concerned with the direction the country is going? The answer is yes. The article confuses everyday life with the direction the country is going and the performance of the president as if they all were the same.

Are you happy with the direction the country is going or has gone over the past 7 years? You must be or you can't enjoy your air conditioning.

I should answer his question of "what we are so unhappy about": expansion of executive powers, torture, illegal wiretapping, habeas corpus, signing statements, gas prices, foreclosure/housing crisis, illegal war, weak dollar, 4116, 30333

Is it contradictory to be unhappy about those things and still enjoy the conveniences of living in the U.S.? Not at all!

veedubber7
07-08-2008, 12:18 PM
reminds me of a quote I saw once "questioning the government is the most American thing you can do"

paultakeda
07-08-2008, 02:55 PM
The poll didn't ask if Americans were unhappy with their daily lives. It didn't ask if Americans were unhappy with their big screen tvs.


Anonymous wins.

ehppah
07-08-2008, 03:36 PM
Anonymous wins.

x2

show's how well most of us, including myself, can actually READ.

CALL AAA
07-09-2008, 12:48 AM
Anonymous wins.
I think Veedubber summed it up pretty damn well.

Anonymous
07-09-2008, 11:01 AM
I think this is an interesting topic and I'd like to see more opinions on this.
:bump:

My first post above was a little disingenuous. I recognized this article and wanted to see if any opinions had changed from this post: previous time on Socaleuro, with Jay Leno as the author (http://www.socaleuro.com/forum/showthread.php?t=22873&highlight=leno)

Rezie@Genesis
07-09-2008, 12:46 PM
yeah it was once mistaken for jay leno as the author.