Do you feel your identity as an American has been changed?

[caty]

As an American, I feel that my identity as an American has been changed. I don't feel that my government reflects the kind of people I, my family, my friends, and other associates are. We are against war. We are against sending our jobs to other countries. We are against tax cuts for the wealthy while the middle class and poor are struggling to find jobs and just squeeze by financially. We are for separation between church and state.

Do you think that how you feel about your identity as an American is changed when you don't feel your government is representing your beliefs?

When you hear what people in other countries say about Americans, do you feel offended because what they say does not reflect how we feel and how we really are?

[Arugula Latte]

1. Yes -- I do feel very different.

I feel that I'm outside of what people consider to be "Americans." Those SUV-driving, flag-decal slapping, Bush-voting types are not me.

I feel that, not only is my government not out to help me, my government is out to hurt me. By that I mean that it is doing everything it can to crush the influence of people like myself who care about fair taxation, enviromental protection, women's rights, smart international policy, and on and on. The executive branch is my enemy. That's a strange feeling.

As for people in other countries who say that Americans are ignorant and self-absorbed, I think there's a sound basis for that perception. True, millions of us know what is going on. But millions upon millions do not. Millions upon millions are stupid enough to vote for people like Bush, to fall for blatant propaganda, and not do anything when the Constitution and fair elections are flushed away. I think religion is a large part of the problem; if people are gullible enough to believe that some dude who lived 2,000 years ago is gonna come back to suck them all up into Heaven, then they will believe anything.

[Haole Girl]

2. I feel like other people, in other countries, look at us differently.

But, I still feel like we are the greatest country in the world...*despite* Bush! :patriot:

[tjwmason]

8. I think that Bush can help foreigners to re-enforce our prejudices

Thankfully I, for one, have come across many charming, delightful Americans (thanks D.U.) which dramatically undermines negative prejudices.

[Chan790]

3. Strange as it sounds...

having been born here, lived my entire life here, and most likely will die here that I've never thought of myself as anything other than a world citizen. I don't really have an identity as an American; as a vegetarian, a socialist, a taoist, an activist, a pacifist and a thousand other things? Yes. I don't know, maybe I'm strange but I've always thought national pride and patriotism to be bad things. I am definately embarrassed to be from the same place as the President though.

Do you think that how you feel about your identity as an American is changed when you don't feel your government is representing your beliefs?

I feel that my identity in general is abused by non-representation of my beliefs and ethics.

When you hear what people in other countries say about Americans, do you feel offended because what they say does not reflect how we feel and how we really are?

No. When I think of Americans...I think of many of the same things I hear. I feel that morans and fundies have taken what could have been called "American" at one time perhaps away from us all. Do I think these descriptions represent them? Yeah, I hope they drown in them.

:rant:

[Tyo]

10. I thought I was the only one

I don't have a really strong identity as an American either. Like you I was born here and I try to be a good citizen and what goes on in this country politically and socially is very important to me. But it's more like a contractual thing than a love affair.

[idgiehkt]

4. Yeah, like Maureen Dowd asked last year

http://www.tpmcafe.com/story/2005/9/26/02450/2713

This might have been Meet the Press,can't remember.

Ms. Dowd: "No. I mean, he's running around acting like a "Today" show weatherman. I think he's looking for a photo op. He doesn't realize that Americans are in an identity crisis. We're wondering, if we can't take care of our own, our most vulnerable in society, who are we? If we can't, you know, deal competently with Iraq, who are we?"

Right on. I don't know what the fuck America is anymore, but it sure isn't the red, white and blue crap I was taught in grade school. Maybe never was. Maybe that's the point of all this, that the masquerade is finally finished. All it took was making a big deal out of a blow job, looking the other way while some buildings fell, killing 600k people for the sake of convenience, killing a few thousand Americans out of neglect live and in technicolor, and then revealing pederasty as the innately conservative institution that it always has been. I do believe this adminstration killed whatever mythology of 'specialness' that America had left. It's better that way, it just sucks so many people had to die for it.

I mean we are all programmed with this overblown myth, but you've got the genocide of native americans right at the get-go (I'm thinking of the poem by Chrystos called "Winter Count" where she says "By their own report america has killed forty million of us in the last century" and ends with "Never forget, america is our hitler") and slavery, and horrible mistreatment of just about every immigrant group that has ever come here (read "The Chinese in America", by Iris Chang, for one example), and the struggles for unionization and safe working conditions, oppression of women, gays and transgendered people...and on and on. I guess the question that needs to be asked is how did we get sold that overblown arrogant American identity in the first place and why did we fall for it. It's so very strange. It's obviously a marketing campaign, but we still seem shocked when our country fucks up...well, that's too kind, when our country does evil, like it's somehow 'un-American'. So weird.

[trof]

6. What she said...and a bit more

All I can remember about American history in high school was a bunch of boring stuff about our founding fathers being right close to divinely inspired and all the brave battles we won.

Then a couple of years ago I listened to "Don't Know Much About History" on a long road trip and now I want to read Howard Zinn's "People's History of the U.S.".

Also read some modern biographies of our founding fathers.
They did some amazing things, but, warts and all, they did some pretty lousy stuff too.
I guess I didn't want them to be human?
But I'm all growed up now and I can accept it.

I've spent time in a lot of other countries.
If it wasn't so far from friends and family I could be pretty content in Great Britain (just about any of it), France, or Italy.

Since it's not likely I can move my tribe, I guess I'll spend the rest of my days here and just try to make the best of it.
Hooray for our side.

[bertha katzenengel]

5. I'm at once ashamed to be an American and I feel very lucky to be

an American. I know it's a cliche: I love my country, but I fear my government.

I'm ashamed to be associated in the world's eyes with the current American president. The U.S.A. is not the World's First Country, the World Leader, the World Dictator. It's just another country on the planet. We are not "the greatest" in terms of style of government or civilization or citizenship. We are certainly the greatest in military might, and that is nothing to be proud of -- especially when one eighth* of the military budget could well-educate every child through college and cure our homeless problem.

We're great in the spirit of our people, and that spirit is the most depressed I've seen in my lifetime. We're run by an oligarchy of greedy, arrogant, power-mad fools who believe they're above the law. It is disgusting, and it is embarrassing.

* This is a guess as part of my rant. I don't know what the actual figure is, but I do know if you took enough from the military budget to fund education and wipe out homelessness, the military would suffer no more than a flea bite.

[ScreamingMeemie]

7. I, as an adult, have never really felt that my government reflected

who I was as a person. I do hate feeling like the whole world is laughing/hating us.

[Jamastiene]

9. I was playing an online game today. Someone asked if

anyone playing the game was from the USA and for the first time ever, I did not answer. I figured from some past experiences, either they'd ask me to explain why Chimpy is president and demand I apologize for his vulgar, rude, stupid ways, or worse yet, they'd be some kind of nazi and say he was great. I did not want to hear either at the moment. I play the damn video games to get that blasphemous vile bastard out of my head for a little while. The last thing I wanted to have happen was to be reminded that the barabarian village idiot has taken over. I hung my head in shame thousands of miles away and in the privacy of my own room.

That's just how bad it is. We are but a mere shadow of what an American once was. We are all now considered the same dastardly barabarians by proxy in good people's minds, because we were unfortunate enough to have lost in that damn Supreme Court dust-up back in 2000. "Daddy, I wanna win. Make them give me the Presidency." I can just hear that fucking bastard son of a bush saying that when the cameras weren't rolling. Damn him to hell along with his hateful snobby mother. I could stand his father being president again better than this current fiasco rich boy snobbish son of a bush.

I'm ashamed of this knobby kneed wimp pResident we have now. I'm not ashamed of most Americans; just the minority with too much power in those states that get too many electoral college votes. Let's see; 14 in Bumfukt, Idaho and the 12 in Montana, and the tiny little numbers in all the other huge gigantic states with 200 people total who get tons of electoral college votes and vote Repuglican routinely. It still seems very wrong to me that 7 million people in NYC get the same amount of electoral college votes as 200 in Wyoming.

Disclaimer: If you are a DUer from one of these states, don't get all offended. I'm sure you know I'm not talking about you, especially if you didn't vote for that stupid, hairy, coke-snorting, knuckle dragging SOB that is destroying our country.

[Deja Q]

12. Don't you wonder if it's deliberate?

Offshoring combined with encouraging other countries to bash America?

[Deja Q]

11. Hmm

I support valid and just wars, to defend America from valid outside aggressors whose intent is real.
I support improving America's infrastructure.
I support my fellow Americans; particularly when they feel as much about improving America as I do.
And I do the best I can to survive within my means and to improve myself when I see and understand personal deficits.

Other countries who bash America should STFU if they take even one job from our corporations. It becomes a double-standard or hypocrisy for them to take what we offer while hating them. I may as well hate mcdonalds then go work for them because they offer a sweet sweet working wage.