Is there anyting positive about the U.S.? (Representatives, generations, health care)

[prairiestate]

Despite being an American, I honestly have a hard time thinking of a single positive thing about the U.S. Just compared with European countries, we have:

No universal health care

Lower levels of educational attainment (i.e., lower average test scores, especially in science and math)

Minimal support for people in need (much smaller social safety net)

Limited (if any) knowledge of what goes on outside our country

Limited knowledge of what goes on inside our country

Abandoned most of our cities

Built new housing in the form of endless sprawl

exploited and dominated other countries for our own gain

etc.

The list could go on endlessly where we fall behind every other industrialized nation on earth. I'm not talking about our history, but our present. Is there anything positive about the U.S. currently?

[tijlover]

To me, travel, particularly foreign travel, is the best education you'll ever get!

If more Americans overcame their fears of foreign travel, got off their duffs, and saw more of the world, it would help our country greatly.

Come back from a foreign country: Why can't we have this here? And go screaming to our legislators, city council members that we want this, and not that.

[bustaduke]

Well I've been to Europe and I can tell you they don't have nothing compared to America.

busta

[pvjd]

I am sure that with a thread like this there are bound to be dozens of posts about how America is the best place on earth, if you don't like it leave, tree hugging socialist, etc., but the poster has very valid points. To some people it is not considered patriotic to speak ill of your country, but to me the ultimate form of love for country comes from recognizing some of the flaws, and asking what can be done to help improve. Blind nationalism will only lead to complacency, and we will never self-improve as a nation.

[texdav]

Many of the popnts that Op sees as bad ;I see as the good points. Less governamnt control of life is one the benefits. Dependent sate as Op seems to suggest to me is a deadend for most people and receipe for a large lower class that can never move except thru politics.Much like pre-capiatlist maekts in china.More like north korea than south korea.Most of the people I see favorig such things are mid life and later perosns who made no or bad choice earlier in life really and want so of what other gianed thru choices and effort. We should confine our giving to the hamndicapped who are cheated by such greed now in amble bodied people.

[League54]

Europe is DE-militarized which empowers the people. They also BAN fluoride in the water and BAN GMO foods. Europe protects the interests of its people, America protects the interests of big corporation profits at the cost of the people

[eastwestman]

I'm a Canadian without any real ties to the USA, but I will say that there's a tremendous good in the USA.

1) Fantasic cities laden with rich histories.
2) The greatest food in the world. Give me the cuisine of NYC, Chicago, or Miami anyday over Paris, Rome, Beijing....
3) Music---specifically rock music. Americans are responsible and thank God for that! America is home to the greatest rock band in the world----Pearl Jam!
4) Pearl Jam (they deserve their own entry)!
5)Friendly people. Sure, maybe not everyone, but I've met a ton of friendly Americans.
6)Higher education. America is home to some of the finest universities and colleges on earth.
7)Democray. True, it often gets basterdized by the powers that be, but your freedoms and democratic processes (notwithstanding the 2000 election debacle) are something to be admired.

__________________________________________________ ________________________

America, you're a great nation, but in my humble opinion, to become truly great, you really should get around to giving universal healthcare to your citizens. Putting profit before people when it comes to healthcare is just plain wrong. Also, do something about all the guns that wreak havoc in the communities.

[Book Lover 21]

I can only IMAGINE what this country would look like if we didn't have to spend so much money and man power protecting Europe of much of the rest of the world with our military. The possibilties boggle the mind..

[kronenborg]

i'm from the UK, but have been living in the US for the last 3 1/2 years. its funny, because previously its the last place i would have seen myself living. but the last few years have been a tremendously positive experience.

so yes, as with all places, there are some things which arent so great, but the OP asked for positive things so here goes (with the caveat that this is my personal experience and may not be applicable to others, or to other areas outside of where i live):

- amazingly welcoming and friendly people - given the relatively short time we have been there, we have a huge circle of friends, the majority of whom are american. people have gone out of their way to be hospitable to us and include us. this is very different from my experiences in the UK where people tend to look for a reason to be exclusive, not inclusive

- phenomenal countryside - you could easily spend your entire life exploring the United States, and still only have seen a fraction - with all the cultural, biological, and geographic diversity that there is. even in the small microcosm where we live, i love the fact that we can go skiing in under an hour during winter, but at the beach in under an hour during summer. people often mock americans for have a high percentage of non-passport holders, but, as an outsider, i can now better understand not travelling as an american, given what you have on your doorsteps

- the greater size of the US translates into larger houses, people dont live on top of each other so much, and lower housing costs. i know this seems like nonsense to those of you who live in the more densely populated areas of the US, but when i moved here from the UK (where i was living in a small 3 bedroom "multi-family home" with no garden), i couldnt believe the size of property i could afford over here, within an hour of manhattan.

- climate - ok, this is very geography-specific too, but i live in new jersey, and i know everyone complains about the weather (both in winter and summer) but i find it to be a much better climate than where im from - i dont mind winter being a "proper" winter, with plenty of snow, and i like heat in summer too...but the big deal is that the weather is proper outdoors weather from may through till october - this gives me 6 months of the year to really get stuck into outdoor activities, which i love.

- education - we chose to live in the area we do specifically because of the public schools. we have 4 kids, and from elementary through to high school the standard of education at the local schools is comparable to what i would expect from some private schools in the UK - and the academic results and colleges the kids go on to reflects that

- attitude - the positivity of the people i meet is constantly refreshing. the lack of the same level of cynicism and negativity, and go-getter attitude is totally the opposite of what you find in the UK

- sense of community - i often see people on these forums talking about how bad things are in the US in this respect, however, it is my experience that in my area, its like going back in time to how england was maybe 60 years ago (and i mean this in a good way) - people still talk to each other - older generations have lifelong friends who they went to highschool with, and still live in the same town - people care about what is going on in their town, at their church, on their street - crime (again, hyper-locally) is almost non-existent, and people routinely leave their doors unlocked when they go out. people know their neighbours, and care about them, and take pride in their town.

- patriotism - ok, this is perhaps a two edged sword, but its impossible not to appreciate the american sense of pride in their country. in england, if you so much as fly a union jack outside your house, people assume you are part of some ultra right-wing fascist party


i could go on...suffice is to say i love living here - while not without its faults, in my experience, its a great place to live, and raise a family.

[tablemtn]

if we didn't have to spend so much money and man power protecting Europe

We don't "have" to do any of that. We choose to do it, and we choose to elect politicians who choose to do it. It's a policy choice intentionally made by the American people - and often for their own benefit, if you look at things like military procurement contracts, and the districts where those contracts have gone.

We have no one to blame for those choices but ourselves, since we ultimately control the spending decisions via our elected representatives.