America the Miserable

A. MacAulay

I remember that America too, the 70's, unemcumbered with either doubt or curiosity.

The day after 9/11 I called an old friend from those days, whom I knew to have worked in the WTC. Luckily she had left that job some time before, but in her excitement and as an immediate reaction she declared without hesitation that the US Gov't was in some way behind it. I heard this opinion from several other sources.

I think Gore Vidal has clearly pointed to the dichotomy between America's assumption of empire and a naive self-image, unencumbered by doubt and curiosity. Americans, no matter how they are medially manipulated, willy-nilly, to be proud of America and themselves no longer really like themselves or what they have become.

flow555

America is having a full blown existential crisis. Although, most Americans don't seem to grasp this. Who are we? Who do we want to be? The sleeping giant is still sound asleep at the wheel. I agree with the author, when you are raised on optimism, you grow up believing "can do" is your birth right, and these resilient habits die-hard. It's a gripping story: will America and American grow up and confront the steep challenges? Or will we continue on the path of self-absorbed teenagers? These chapters are yet to be written.

Tripp

We have a major problem over here that is tearing us apart. It is hatred. We have no tolerance for others who have a different view, we spew hatred from the pulpits under the guise of "Christian" love, we have the "Bill Gates" who have amassed fortunes that rival the Rockefellers in the days before the income tax, we refuse to pay our fair share in taxes, the list goes on. I am a Virginian and our Commonwealth is broke. Our Governor and Legislature is having to slash education funding, we are closing most of the rest areas on our Interstates, law enforcement funding is being cut, funds for the poor and needy (read unemployed) are nill. But the Governor's platform was NO NEW TAXES, period. That put him in office. The small city in which I live has the highest unemployment rate in the State of 22%. However, it is actually about 36% because those who are on the official books fall off after 6 months, whether or not they found work. Our high school has the largest percentages of STDs and teen pregnancies in the state. Oh, we had the first DuPont nylon plant here that employed a 1,000 or more. In 1980 three local companies here combined to produce 86% of the world's fleecewear (sweatshirts and sweatpants, pullovers, "hoodies", etc). We were the world's largest producer of wood furniture, all being home-grown industries. We have a Walmart, though. Obama was here campaigning but the photographers had to stop and change film rolls. When they finished and looked up, the entourage was gone. Somebody did say something about how they felt "our hurt", though.

Lee

I think Americans are miserable for at least two reasons. First, people are becoming better informed and realize how bad America is on certain issues when compared to other developed countries. Health care comes to mind. What other country allows its citizens to become seriously ill or even die because they can't get medical insurance and don't have the money to pay for medical treatment. Crime is out of control in many cities and people don't feel safe. The country is flooded with predatory lawyers. Basically, most Americans are screwed by a system that is set up to benefit the top 1%, and they realize its better in many other countries. Second, the very nature of the American people has changed due to third-world immigration. Many native-born Americans realize this and they see little they can do about it since neither major party is against the third-world tidal wave. I would say that many Americans have lost all hope things will ever be good again and now they are just trying to hang on for dear life. This includes many with advanced degrees who now find themselves unemployed.

Tom

America has crashed into a conflict of intent between "rugged self-determination" and our fetish for saying anybody can do anything. Maybe it's not the best idea to tell several generations of children that they can do or be anything they want. The result has been that many of them are growing up to be not much at all. Understandably we are allergic to the old and fixed class ideas that different people have different "roles" in our economy, but the other extreme isn't working either. America is in decline and its people need to prepare themselves emotionally and psychologically for this brave new world. Christian conservatives continue to demand American dominance, but their ideas (and their faith) is part of a world that will not survive this century.