The US has been drunk on the delusion of how noble and benevolent we consider ourselves since World War II.
We like to conveniently forget that at the time, many Americans looked up to the Nazis and were embracing eugenics. We were legally sterilizing subjective "undesirables," often without their knowledge, and we had no plans to do shit until the Axis, already steeped in conflict, decided to attack us directly from half a world away, committing one of the greatest self-inflicted tactical blunders in history thankfully.
America is all about subjugation, exploitation, and genocide. It just got a propaganda team to soften the way in which it talks about it since the mid 20th century.
At the end of the day, that's the magic of America: bullshitting. Lying. To ourselves and others. From "all men* are created equal" (Only applies to wealthy Caucasian land owners) to "manifest destiny" (genocide the people that already live here because its our destiny) to "separate but equal"(even apex American bullshitters couldn't say this one with a straight face) to "turning the bull loose"(get back to work slaves, this isn't a society) to "don't ask, don't tell" (we refuse to accept you as a human being, but hey come die gruesomely so our greedy fucks can access foreign oil markets). Our bullshit machine runs so deep, we are a nation capital exploitation farm that practically doubles as a religion.
People also forget that the people who came to the New World to escape religious persecution were being persecuted because their beliefs were so radical that no one wanted to deal with their bullshit anymore.
One of the best examples of U.S. government PR is the rebranding of the Department of War to the Department of Defense, even though its function didn't change. People don't like war, but call it defense and you're golden.
It was an extreme minority opinion regardless, this idea that America was almost on Germany's side is just revisionist bunk. Even the Republicans just wanted to stay "neutral." So neutral they didn't even want to sell anyone guns, the unAmerican swine.
The native fascist parties were clowns that started as a pyramid scheme and couldn't even do a coup right.
Of course, America was an apartheid state at the time, so it's really only the democracy and not invading your neighbors bit that we were doing better in the first place.
To be fair, every nation feels good about themselves. Be proud of the good things, neglect the bad things. Who would want to be the bad guy? This is how human mind works.
So what is Iceland's equivalent to the whole "being the most prolific funder and enabler of fascist terrorism in human history" that they are (supposedly) neglecting?
we had no plans to do shit until the Axis, already steeped in conflict, decided to attack us directly from half a world away
This is not accurate. "We" (specifically FDR) were already keeping Britain afloat financially in their war with Germany and were already literally fighting German U-boats in the Atlantic prior to Pearl Harbor. Even as far as Pearl Harbor was concerned, we were waging economic warfare against Japan by cutting off their oil and steel in response to their depredations in China - which embargo precipitated their sneak attack in the first place.
God I wasted so much time writing this.. it might be the longest ill ever write here.
There is a case to be made to show there is a clear representation and motive for exploitation and genocide. It would be tempting to dive into their happenings and those outcomes. However, it is important to acknowledge that US actions and policies have generated both positive and negative outcomes. While the US has championed democratic values and made significant contributions to global development and stability, it has also faced criticism for its military interventions, perceived imperialism, and involvement in conflicts with questionable justifications. Some examples
The colonization of America by European settlers resulted in displacement, mistreatment, and, in some cases, genocide of Native American tribes. The forced removal of indigenous peoples from their ancestral lands, such as the Trail of Tears, and the establishment of reservations had devastating consequences for Native American communities.
The institution of slavery played a significant role in the early development of the US, particularly in the southern states. Millions of Africans were forcibly brought to America as slaves, enduring inhumane treatment, exploitation, and a denial of basic human rights. Slavery's legacy has had lasting impacts on the social, economic, and political landscape of the nation.
The US has engaged in military interventions and supported proxy wars in various countries, often driven by economic and geopolitical motivations. Examples include the Spanish-American War, the Vietnam War, and more recent conflicts in the Middle East. These actions have been criticized for their human rights implications and for perpetuating cycles of violence and instability.
Rapid industrialization and economic growth has been accompanied by the exploitation of natural resources, both domestically and internationally. This has led to environmental degradation, displacement of local communities, and unequal distribution of wealth.
I would like to remind that it is just as important to note that these examples represent a dark chapter in America's history and acknowledging them is essential for learning from past mistakes. The outcomes from these mistakes do not reflect or recognize the progress made over time and the diverse perspectives and contributions of individuals. It is also essential to acknowledge that the benefits derived from contributions in various fields do not justify or negate the historical injustices committed. The impact of genocide and exploitation cannot be dismissed or overlooked but recognizing and addressing historical wrongs is crucial for creating a better society overall. (This is an easter egg, i dont think you anti-US types read comments this long and love to do these exaggerated and stupid long strings) In my experience, i would say there are 3 things we can do as a community to rectify these injustices.
Chill the fuck out and respectfully engage in critical reflection of policy decisions to ensure they align with principles of justice and respect. Just because we want to have a certain history represented does not mean we need to break society to get that message told. Nevertheless, we should seek to prioritize diplomacy, dialogue, and peaceful conflict resolution always regardless of the scenario. I do not think someone coming at me to berate on my inexperience or lack of knowledge is helpful.
Help establish people into power to acknowledge wrongdoings done to marginalized groups. Theres a lot here, it will require effort for education and awareness into a variety of topics but again, dont shove it in our faces.
Take steps to rectify economic exploitation by promoting fair trade practices, ethical investment, and responsible business conduct. Fight for transparency and accountability in multinational corporations' operations to ensure that economic activities do not perpetuate exploitation or exacerbate inequalities. This goes hand in hand with step 2 on education.
Rectifying the past is an ongoing process that requires active commitment, introspection, and engagement with affected communities. We should avoid tokenizing measures just as much as imposing unilateral judgements and solutions.
TLDR: Grog think we big bad but grog big heart. Grog work hard, make we good. Also, dont forget to SMASH that like button. If im a good boy i can add a bunch of links so some kind stranger can give me reddit gold
Edit: holy shit thanks for gold kind stranger! Much fedora tippings to you
This is revisionist tripe. The real reason we were slow to enter the war was that doing so was hugely unpopular among the two largest ethnicities in the US; Irish-Americans and German-Americans, for very obvious reasons. There were other reasons as well, but it's just a fact that Irish-Americans, many of whom would still have a living memory of the famine, were hostile towards the British, and German-speaking Americans, of whom there were millions, entire towns in fact, had no desire to go to war against Germany.
You leave this out because it's not convenient to your narrative.
The Boston massacre was basically an anti-police riot that turned into a police shooting. The police were acquitted of the murder, which lead to more protests and an eventual revolution. Anytime someone says "real Americans support the police," I point back to that.
The local police in the nearby "pieceful" (verry rich) subarb tend to portray themselves as "just folks helping out (we also enforce bylaws)".
the local city tends to have cops blatently break the law.
The antagonism is easy to see in the city. In the former, the former gives off a diffrent and hidden kind of oppression that Im in a position to only see the outer edge of (i dont live there).
To be fair though, the 3/5ths compromise wasn't about black people being 3/5ths of a human. Free states didn't want to count enslaved persons for the population when determining representation in congress while Slave owning states wanted to count each slave as part of the population and thus have a higher representation in congress than they should.
By your argument the slave owning people were wanting to count black people as a human and the anti slavery people didn't. If the free states had gotten their way then black people, by your assessment, wouldn't have been counted as people at all but would have likely caused the emancipation of slaves much much earlier.
Well ofc they follow the super moral bible that is filled with things like how you can beat the shit out of your slaves as long as they dont die. And how its ok to kill babies because a dude said no to another dudw because god made him do it.
As an illiterate American, I could not read that meme and it's only by chance through random mashing of the keys that I was able to craft this response.
They can read it was about taxes but they won’t get to read about the colonies being pissed about fair treatment to the Natives for their help in the 7 years war (fair is relative: read it as respecting their borders and claims to America)
Saddest thing among Americans is that they've been brainwashed into thinking they were the good guys in the revolution.
The revolution occurred because Britain took on a massive amount of debt to save Americans from the French and Natives. Britain wanted Americans to pay them back, but Americans just said 'no' and that's how we began fighting for our independence.
Our ancestors are shitbags. Plain and simple. "Opportunity" and "laissez-faire" are so important to American culture because they revolve around the idea "if you can get away with it, do it."
Well, it was their colony. I'm not sure where you're getting the 'kindness of their own heart' from.
Probably because you're biased and need to supplant legitimate arguments with ones that are easier for you to argue against.
The fact is that the colonies needed British help to win the French and Indian War. They got the help they needed and then decided they weren't going to repay those who helped them. It was a shitty move supported by greedy scumbags who got to shape the rest of the nation in their image.
How about you try arguing with what's actually said instead of supplanting it with what sounds nice in your head? You'd come across as less reddit-brained if you do so.
Wow. What next? calling someone a nazi if they were even dare to acknowledge that Americans weren’t all that great during WWII what with dropping atomic bombs on schools?
Thank you for transcribing the lyrics, because I couldn't understand them in the first 30 seconds and I wasn't willing to continue listening after that.
The message is good, the instrumentalists are proficient, but the vocals are painful. It was less "Rage Against The Machine" and more "Tantrum Against The Melody".
Opens history book on Europe/Asia/Africa/South America, etc. insert literally any place in the world. Wow! I'm funny on Lemmy! So dumb, good people in every country in the world. And just about every country has done unspeakable things to get to where they are today. Most of the time it's not because the good people even want to be involved it's because the rich make it happen. Blame the rich...they are the problem in every country.
You're not wrong, every country has done fucked shit. I think the point of this meme is to bring Americans down to that realisation that applies to their country too, tho.
There is a crazy amount of cognitive dissonance in this thread. Show me a single other modern society that didn't have serious and deeply ingrained racial and societal problems from the start. We can only move forward and do better, which is happening slowly. Put a magnifying glass on any country's past and you'll drum up all sorts of nasty shit. But people just love to shit on the US so here we are
conservative attitude is to deny or diminish anything wrong with history. same can be seen in Turkey. I think what is criticized is that denial, not that there was anything wrong. because as you said every country has their skeletons.
As someone whose government disappeared 43 students who were protesting in 2014, and opened fire on defenseless civilians protesting the summer Olympics in 1968 killing upwards of 350, I say you're not wrong. Hi, neighbor.
I think some context should be added on how hard it is to move to those countries though.
Sweden typically only has around 100k-150k immigrate per year.
Denmark had a record high immigration in 2022 of 121k people.
Norway typically has around 48k immigrate each year with 2023 being a big year at 53k.
New Zealand also had a record immigration year in 2023, 195k people which was up 220%.
The US has 1-3 million immigrants per year.
The USA has a total population of 331 million and ~50.6 million are immigrants (15% of the population).
Sweden has a total population of 10.4 million and ~2.15 million are immigrants (20% of the population).
Denmark has a total population of 5.8 million and ~650k are immigrants (11% of the population).
Norway has a total population of 5.4 million and ~720k are immigrants (13% of the population).
New Zealand has a total population of 5.1 million and ~1.4 million are immigrants (27.5% of the population).
If you're wanting to look at immigration from the USA here's how many Americans live in each of those countries.
Sweden - 22k
Denmark - 9.6k
Norway - 10.2k
New Zealand - 27.6k
Those may be some of the best places to live in the world, but there are more immigrants from other places living in the USA than the total combined population of Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and New Zealand. If they'd open up the doors I'm sure a lot of American's would love to move, but until then it seems like a case of pulling the ladder up behind them or cutting the rope bridge after crossing.
Great for people born in these countries. Now what about the rest of the world?
Winning the birth lottery isn't an achievement. Trying to make the world better - is.
And that's not to shame nordic countries for their achievement - they're doing most things right - but their challenge is so much easier compared to the U.S that it's ridiculous to compare them. Sweden doesn't need to face ISIS or Bin Laden committing terror on their territory or threatening their countries existence (although sweden's r@pe statistics say they do have a problem...)
But captioning your post with "If Americans Could Read" says otherwise. And the general opinions on Lemmy say otherwise. People here hate America, hate the west, and are against everything the west values.