Is America exceptional? Yes. In so many ways that uneducated, miseducated, or indoctrinated refuse to understand or admit.
American Exceptionalism is about the first modern Democracy, the first Constitution and Bill of Rights, recognizing that Humans have rights and grant governments temporary power and not the other way around, the least imperialistic, the most charitable, we fought wars to free others, creating more of the world's innovations, first to go to the moon, and so on. That's not jingoism, that's history.
To the left all countries have done good and bad (including America), so Stalin, America, Pol Pot are all loosely equivalent morally. Thus American Exceptionalism is ignorant patriotic jingoism only done by ignoring social injustices like slavery (blacks), genocide (Indians), Imperialism/Colonialism, Conquest (wars), income inequality, and so on. Thus the only exceptionalism they recognize is us being exceptionally bad.
The facts are that America has been exceptional in many ways, from our Laws, Liberties, Economics, Culture, Charity, Technology and even wars. Most of our wars were fought to free people and increase liberty, as opposed to conquest. No country has had as much power, and exploited it as little as we have. So while we're plenty flawed, we've behaved better than those that criticize us, often in the very areas that they criticize us. We gave the world more than any other 5 countries combined, despite being only 5% of the global population. And that's exceptional by definition.
America has been exceptional in many ways, from our Laws, Liberties, Economics, Culture, Charity, Technology and even wars. Most of our wars were fought to free people and increase liberty, as opposed to conquest. No country has had as much power, and exploited it as little as we have. So while we're plenty flawed, we've behaved better than those that criticize us, often in the very areas that they criticize us. We gave the world more than any other 5 countries combined, despite being only 5% of the global population.... and that's exceptional by definition.
The uneducated, miseducated, or indoctrinated refuse to understand or admit what makes America Exceptional, but these include the following:
The first country to give the world a people's Constitution on the principles that Humans have God given rights, and they temporarily give powers to Government, and not the other way around.
America created the Bill of Rights. Unlike Parliamentary systems that loan privileges to people (and can be taken away), free speech is not subject to thought police, the right of privacy, self defense, not to self incriminate, is not a priviledge. Decentralized government is necessary for cultural and geographic diversity, over one-size-fits all centralism.
America has both been the most powerful economically and the least imperialistic relative to that power imblanace.
America is a country that fought wars to free other people from tyranny (including the only country to have a Civil War to free a minority): Europe from the Nazi's, prevented the USSR from taking over Europe (Cold War), freed the Iraqi's from a tyrant, stopped the enslavement of Korea and slowed the enslavement of South East Asia from the communists.
The most philanthropic, and one of the most open to trade, even when it didn't benefit us.
America had the most entrepreneurial freedoms
At one point the lowest taxes and regulations
America pays more in healthcare in order to subsidize the world's medical innovation (over half is done by the U.S., more because of our free market).
America gave the world more than any other country in economics, culture, science and technology: from the Internet to microprocessors, going to the moon, Smart Phones, Search, Social Media, various drugs and medical innovations, the airplane, and so on.
Far from perfect, but just better than most of it's contemporaries at any given point in time. No other 5 countries combined have done as many innovations, because our economic and personal freedoms, our capitalism, and our willingness to invest in making the world a better place. That's not just jingoism, that's recognizing an outsized impact to humanity for it's population, geography, resources. It was the fertile soil of freedom/opportunity and optimism that allowed a undeveloped land to become the most powerful country in the world in under two centuries, despite the others having a multi-thousand year headstart.
Prager lists some of the things that are American Exceptionalism.
What makes America Exceptional?
The right to fail - to succeed, you need to be able to fail, learn from your mistakes, and try, try, again. (Entrepreneurial risks).
Most Philanthropic - or at least generous with trade and opening our markets
Fights for the freedom of others - the Anti-Switzerland. Instead of profiteering off war, or European Imperialism we expend to create free countries that will self-governed trading partners
💭 Bill Whittle
Bill Whittle on American Exceptionalism
Whittle lists some of the things that are American Exceptionalism
Bill covers American Exceptionalism like:
We're top on, despite being only 5% of the world's population:
Military exceptionalism: both the world's strongest power, the least abusive relative to that power.
Economic exceptionalism: produces more per person than any other place on earth. We've dominated in agriculture, industrial and information -- the 3 great economic ages.
Scientific exceptionalism: if Scientific citations are units of science, the U.S. produces 4x as many citations globally than the #2 U.K. More than the next 6 combined. Not to mention various innovations like the Internet.
Cultural exceptionalism: mentions how our movies are the top 50 in the world, our musicians like Michael Jackson, and how we influence the world culture.
We dominate anything we're involved in. Why? Because we believe in small government, individualism, and that wealth can be created through ideas and hard work. All things the left vehemently disagrees with, and holds down in other places.
Not all "Differences" are good; but exceptional means we are different. Differences have tradeoffs, and those tradeoffs are better in some ways or for some people. Here are some examples; bigger cars, homes, food, stores, cheaper goods, fewer taxes and tariffs, lower regulation, more diversity, 1A, 2A, 4A, University Pride, American Football, and so on.
American Exceptionalism is the belief that we've done things the rest of the world has not, and done things in a way that's Unique to America. Denialists (Anti-Exceptionalists) want to pretend that we've given the world nothing but misery, and all the countries have our freedom, justice, and their way is as good/better than the American way.
Eastern and Middle Eastern Civilizations were more advanced for thousands of years, had more resources, better climate, so why did Western Civilization "win" and become more advanced? The 3 theories are Oppression, Environmental, and Cultural. The first two are mostly bullshit. So what was it about the culture?
None of this is to say we are without flaws. Hardly. We've fucked up many things we got involved in... but compared to the alternative? That's what the America haters don't get.
Should we have slowed the plight in Vietnam? When we look at what happened with the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, or the Chinese/USSR Cultural Revolutions that killed tens of millions, I think the cost differential is obvious (to those with their eye's open).
We inherited slavery from Europe, Africa and the Middle East... and fought a war to free them. And then fought for their civil rights. We empowered Women and minorities. We don't always move as fast as they want, but we do move... and that's a cost of liberty.
If everyone has free will, then you move slower than if you are authoritarian or you just force popular opinion. You still get there, just a little slower. Since the left is addicted to change (even if it isn't for the better), they attack that individualism that would slow down their ideas of progress. And in order to back it up, they revise history and distort perceptions in order to further their cause. The truth about America's success, why we won, and what we've accomplished without progressive extremism, is all in their way -- so they just re-invent or ignore the past, rewrite the present, in order to control the future. But if I have to give up liberty and common sense to have their future, I want none of it.
🔗 More
Politics Power relations between individuals or groups, such as the distribution of resources or status.
Terms We need to agree on what terms mean. This used to be easy, before SJW's/Marxists started Orwelling our language.
The Left Lies When the truth disagrees with your agenda, you can grow (change) or lie. The left usually chooses the latter.
Alt-History This is a list of the alternate history that the left uses to twist perception and thus twist reality.
United States of America Articles about the USA, a country with a rich history that many people know far less about than they think they do.
Anti-American If your org/agendas works against America, American Values, the Constitution, or rule of law, then that's anti-American.
Capitalism America and freedom are founded on Capitalism; the idea that you can own property (the means of production).
United States of America Articles about the USA, a country with a rich history that many people know far less about than they think they do.
