Majority of Americans unhappy...

[Sonnie]

"The other day I was reading Newsweek magazine and came across some poll data I found rather hard to believe. It must be true given the source, right?

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, tornadoes, 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?"


Supposedly Jay Leno wrote this... whether he did or not is really irrelevant, it still speaks the truth in many ways.

[lcaillo]

I agree with the sentiment, though the guy who actually wrote it is Craig R. Smith

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/ar...TICLE_ID=53028

Only the last comment in the article is from Leno.

You can check out many of these things at www.snopes.com.

[OvalNut]

Sonnie, you just made my day!

I read the title, and was half expecting a hand wringing chastisement of all things boorishly American in light of an enlighted world view.... or some other such putrid tripe as that.

Instead, I was treated to what needs to be said, and published prominently wherever and whenever possible.

Thank you, thank you!


Tim

[ISLAND1000]

At age 65 sometimes I lose my enthusiasm for our nation. It often sounds like our nation has "gone to the dogs". But then along comes this piece in a place like this (HOME THEATER SHACK) filled with regular guys and gals, and I realize that THIS is a perfect example of the real "Heart of America". That other America, filled with naysayers and doomsday prophets, is the real illusion. I'll take THIS America . . . . . EVERY TIME!!!
Thanks Sonnie.

[tonyvdb]

Sonnie, Thanks for your thoughts. They are so very true.

I think one of the biggest issues people have these days is that they are not happy with what they have. They spend way beyond there means and then have to get two or three jobs, both the husband and the wife have to work and then the "family" unit suffers because of it. Its just a big downward spiral. Want more, spend more, get in dept more, have to work more and so on.

We have so much to be thankful for even here in Canada we are so blessed to live the way we do. I am so thankful for my wife and 5 girls and the roof over my head.

[Mike P.]

I agree with Tony 100%. Well said!

[yourgrandma]

Great, so I have to be the "liberal punk" (apparently I lean conservative, but I really couldn't care less)who doesn't think that just because things are better here than other places, we should sit back and let good enough be.

I love this country. There is no place on Earth I'd rather live. I am truly greatful and proud to be a citizen of this great nation.

That being said, there are things that NEED to be changed. And I don't think maintaining the status quoe qualifies GWB as a good president.

Cutting taxes is all well and good, but if math still follows the same rules it did when I was in elementary school, if one subtracts a larger number (inflated govt. spending) from a smaller number(fewer tax dollars), you have a negative.

People in this country are blessed with the right to complin about the state of affairs. If you feel things are peachy, that's great, but many do not feel the same way. I for one don't feel unhappy, but I can see the effects of poor policy on our country.

I will say, though, that the news drastically overstates the negative. They are in the business of selling fear, and I don't think people should judge the state of things by what a huge corporate media outlet tells them we do wrong.

So, yes, I agree. People are whiny. We are spoiled. We have the best setup going.

But settling for what we have could lead us to ruin, or at least greatly diminished grandure.

I guess you could say I'm glad for the things that allow me to be upset. People in the more unfortunate parts of the world have no way of voicing any opinions about how their country is run. They're too busy eating clay that costs a month's wage to eat for a week.

Don't want to start a "thing". I just wanted to share a slightly differing opinion.

[lcaillo]

yourgrandma wrote:

Great, so I have to be the "liberal punk" (apparently I lean conservative, but I really couldn't care less)who doesn't think that just because things are better here than other places, we should sit back and let good enough be.

Did the article say that things can't be better or that we should not try to make them so? Did it say that things are good enough? Sorry, I missed that. Who used the term that you put in quotes "liberal punk?" I missed that as well.

yourgrandma wrote:

I love this country. There is no place on Earth I'd rather live. I am truly greatful and proud to be a citizen of this great nation.

That being said, there are things that NEED to be changed. And I don't think maintaining the status quoe qualifies GWB as a good president.

Lots of us who share the view of the article think that President Bush has been a dissapointment in many ways.

yourgrandma wrote:

Cutting taxes is all well and good, but if math still follows the same rules it did when I was in elementary school, if one subtracts a larger number (inflated govt. spending) from a smaller number(fewer tax dollars), you have a negative.

This is true, but opponents who make this argument need to understand that the number from which you are going to be subtracting also increases when economic growth follows tax cuts, and that it shrinks when tax increases hurt the economy. Mathematics are the same. Whether you ignore the economic lessons that can be learned from the past is the difference.

yourgrandma wrote:

People in this country are blessed with the right to complin about the state of affairs. If you feel things are peachy, that's great, but many do not feel the same way. I for one don't feel unhappy, but I can see the effects of poor policy on our country.

I will say, though, that the news drastically overstates the negative. They are in the business of selling fear, and I don't think people should judge the state of things by what a huge corporate media outlet tells them we do wrong.

So, yes, I agree. People are whiny. We are spoiled. We have the best setup going.

We agree up to here, but below you assume that the article and those that appreciate it are happy with the status quo. I have not heard anyone here say that at all. Why do you assume that this is what is felt by people who have not said it? Being thankful for what we have and recognizing what is right with this country is more typical of people who are optimistic of where we can go, IME.

yourgrandma wrote:

But settling for what we have could lead us to ruin, or at least greatly diminished grandure.

I think most here would agree with that.

yourgrandma wrote:

I guess you could say I'm glad for the things that allow me to be upset. People in the more unfortunate parts of the world have no way of voicing any opinions about how their country is run. They're too busy eating clay that costs a month's wage to eat for a week.

Don't want to start a "thing". I just wanted to share a slightly differing opinion.

I am not sure that it is really that different. I have to ask, however, since changing things seems to be so important, what are your priorities and what, specifically, do you think we should do differently?

[yourgrandma]

I didn't read the article. It was more a comment on Sonnie's comments.

As for the liberal punk statement, that's a reference to what others have called me when making comments opposing the way they would have them. Nobody here said that, but the quotes just let the reader know that part of the sentence is not to be taken literally.

You are correct about the tax situation, from an economic standpoint, and in the long run, lower taxes spur growth. The problem I was pointing out was the spending. So many things could be trimmed. Here's where I sound like that liberal punk (in a conservative kind of way). The war on drugs. $19billion in 2003 alone. Well over $600 every second. Imagine what could be done with that money and the tax revenue generated by the legalization of canibus alone. I'm not saying all drugs need to be legal, but there are a few. And don't get me started on how very little sense the scheduling system for drugs makes. That's just one example of overspending. There are others. Like welfare abuse. EIC overpayments. Redundant programs and agencies. Mismanagement, embezzlement in the billions. Rebuilding and protecting cities that shouldn't have existed in the first place (and all the fraud therein).

That's just overspending. There are afterall two sides to any budget. When people talk about a deficit, they usually mean overspending. Deficit refers to lack of income, and is based on the assumption that the current budget is the standard.

Here's why I'm totally against the partisan system: Being in favor of change makes me a liberal. Being against micromanagement of people's lives makes me a conservative. Being in favor of decriminalization of many drugs makes me a liberal. I'm straying off topic, but essentially, the government has forgotten it's job and politicians allow their personal moral beliefs to run the country, which is not a good thing.

I appologize if I make no sense, I really don't follow politics, and therfore have no idea what I'm talking about. I'm just throwing out things I've noticed.

[lcaillo]

OK, so you have the right to complain, even if you don't know much about the matters you complain about. You can do so if you wish. We still have it pretty good here in the USA, don't we? Luckily, many of us do pay attention to politics, and perhaps it will be the reason that we continue to have it good, and maybe improve things.

[ISLAND1000]

lcaillo wrote:

We still have it pretty good here in the USA, don't we?

Until a US citizen has a chance to travel to another country whether it be Mexico or Canada, Britain or France, a country in Asia or Central America, or where ever, they just won't realize how good we have it here. Watching TV, reading books, or using the internet will NOT do it either. PEOPLE . . . . . we have it good! It CAN be better of course we all know that, but if I hear about the Canadian National Health Care system one more time I'll vomit and that's only ONE (small) life's example.

[alan monro]

I live in a Australia , it is roughly the size of America . We have a population of 23 Million . I get around a lot and have not yet found anybody unhappy living here . I think you have 300 million living there . With that amount of people living there the amount of discontent per area would have to be higher . Maybe it is those people you hear . Contented people usually are not vocal . I visit America every year as my son lives in Virginia and all i hear is patrononic Americans praising your President and Country . I have never heard otherwise . Puzzled Kind regards Alan .

[yourgrandma]

You are right. The discontent are more vocal.

[TwisterZ]

To quote Saturday Night Live "GWB is working tirelessly 24-7, that's 24 hours a week 7 weeks a year".

[OvalNut]

Speaking of Socialists, ... at this point would it be considered inappropriate to post a picture, looks to be a screen capture of a C-Span feed, of Hillary picking her nose on the floor of the US Senate? ...


Tim

[terry j]

I most certainly cannot say I fully understand American politics and or the American setup (for lack of a better word) so these couple of questions might be out of place or a complete m/understanding.

Richard, re your comment that you wouldn't want 'national healthcare' in the country, a) it means you don't have it now b) one of the 'proofs' you don't want it is your chinese experience with it. Maybe I don't know what national healthcare means, but from a distance it would seem that a frequent topic that comes up in American politics is the need for an inclusive healthcare system. I wonder if the healthcare system that we have here in Aus would be described as a 'national healthcare' system?? Sure, no-one could ever describe any government (human?) system as perfect, but by and large and in the main it does work well and very few people are left out of the loop.

I could have your comment totally backward but it got me wondering.

On a more humourous note re American elections etc, as 'what happens in American politics' (and so by extension American foreign policy, economic policy etc etc etc) has the capacity to greatly affect what happens in other countries so greatly, watching from the sidelines it is not too difficult to get the idea that (as it can affect us so greatly) we too almost have the right to participate in and help determine the election outcome!! ha ha

And who knows, with increased globalisation and interdependence between countries maybe in a hundred years this would not be such a crazy thought. I'm not particularly advocating it, just wondering aloud.

[OvalNut]

... (as it can affect us so greatly) we too almost have the right to participate in and help determine the election outcome!! ha ha

Ummmm, hmmmm, .... NO!


Tim

[lcaillo]

Personally, I see no reason to post unflattering pictures of any of our leaders, even those that I do not think very highly of, like Senator Clinton. I think in general, it is reasonable to show them the respect of their office by referring to them with their title. It may be old fashioned of me, but I believe that if you treat them like trash, you are more likely to get just that. If you treat them with respect, and expect more, and hold them to higher standards, then maybe we will get more.

I am sure that every one of our leaders has buggers and wipes their back side like every one of us. So what? I take no particular pleasure in ridiculing them. There is plenty of political humor to be had already.

[OvalNut]

Fair enough.


Tim