America is an infant

[Hobo Hilton]

Comparing America, age wise, to other countries of the world it is still an infant.
Will America survive it's infancy and grow through adolescence into an adult ?
IDK

What mistakes have we made as a country? Can these mistakes be corrected / overcome ?

 

[spamassassin]

Looking back at history, no democracy has lasted very much longer than the USA has existed. While we started as a republic but we're devolving into a simpleminded democracy very rapidly. Democracies are by their nature unstable, being that the term is essentially code for "mob rule". We're not nearly as screwed up as France which has itself gone through two monarchies, two empires, five republics, and one proto-fascist dictatorship but we're well on our way to what I would label as the end of the first American republic.

 

[Maggot]

Looking back at history, no democracy has lasted very much longer than the USA has existed. While we started as a republic but we're devolving into a simpleminded democracy very rapidly. Democracies are by their nature unstable, being that the term is essentially code for "mob rule". We're not nearly as screwed up as France which has itself gone through two monarchies, two empires, five republics, and one proto-fascist dictatorship but we're well on our way to what I would label as the end of the first American republic.

^^^The truth and and that breaks my heart.

There si so much arrogance in our country, on all sides of the aisle, its embarrassing. Where is George Washington and the like when we need them the most.

 

[quietmike]

As soon as we started allowing folks to vote for freebies the descent started. You can live cradle to grave, completely on the dole already, yet they still clamor for more.

 

[Maggot]

As soon as we started allowing folks to vote for freebies the descent started. You can live cradle to grave, completely on the dole already, yet they still clamor for more.

Ben beat you to that one.

1. change.millionvoices.org › quotes › benjaminBenjamin Franklin - Vote Themselves Money - Million Voices​

   
   “When the people find they can vote themselves money, that will herald the end of the republic.” Benjamin Franklin

 

[KZP]

I give it less than 50 years before Balkanization begins

Feels more like 50 months left.

 

[pmclaine]

We Are the oldest Constitutional Govt in the world.

One of the newer countries but still the oldest continuing Constitution.

I want to see it restored and continued.

 

[alamo5000]

The underlying premise is that all of these countries have been 'continuos' for a long time.

I challenge that assumption. It's not true at all.

You have places with long standing traditions and culture but that's not at all equal to a government.

Take China for example. There are between 80 and 90 major dynasties that are from that area.

If you average that out over 3,000 years it's like 25 to 30 years each. The current People's Republic has only been around since 1949. By historical averages they currently are double the lifespan of and average Chinese dynasty. That said it's a lot more complicated than that. The 'first' dynasty of Emperor Qin was about 1/3 the size of modern China so all this equating X to Y isn't really relevant.

While these various countries have long standing and identifiable cultures, historically the idea of a stable government is relatively rare.

 

[TurboTrout]

If we can make “democracy” into a bad word again, and stop people viewing the gov as a religion or parent figure, yes we’ll do just fine.

Problem is the main way you do that is not dump your crotch fruit off on the government to raise via state run “education” centers. Sadly most are oops pregnancies from low effort people.

 

[Maggot]

Feels more like 50 months left.

"Never underestimate Joe's ability to fuck things up." BO

He's off to a running start.

FJB

 

[nikonNUT]

Ben beat you to that one.

1. change.millionvoices.org › quotes › benjaminBenjamin Franklin - Vote Themselves Money - Million Voices​

   
   “When the people find they can vote themselves money, that will herald the end of the republic.” Benjamin Franklin

"When the people find that they can vote themselves money, that will herald the end of the republic. Sell not liberty to purchase power."
-Benjamin Franklin

and perhaps more poignant today...

“The American Republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public’s money”

-Alexis De Tocqueville

 

[Hobo Hilton]

The underlying premise is that all of these countries have been 'continuos' for a long time.

I challenge that assumption. It's not true at all.

You have places with long standing traditions and culture but that's not at all equal to a government.

Take China for example. There are between 80 and 90 major dynasties that are from that area.

If you average that out over 3,000 years it's like 25 to 30 years each. The current People's Republic has only been around since 1949. By historical averages they currently are double the lifespan of and average Chinese dynasty. That said it's a lot more complicated than that. The 'first' dynasty of Emperor Qin was about 1/3 the size of modern China so all this equating X to Y isn't really relevant.

While these various countries have long standing and identifiable cultures, historically the idea of a stable government is relatively rare.

You have brought a term / word into this discussion that I have used frequently for the past 2 years. That word is culture. I agree that cultures survive while governments, royalty and dictators fall by the way side. Can enough American cultures combine to keep the country afloat ?

 

[spamassassin]

Can enough American cultures combine to keep the country afloat ?

Kinda doubt it. There are quite a few distinctive cultures in the USA which are regionally based. California is its own thing, the deep south is its own thing yadda yadda. The most cosmopolitan regions still show a tendency toward self-segregation and factionalism so even in this "melting pot" there's a lot of things not well mixed and in times of strife, the differences rather than the similarities will be the thing that the masses cling to.

 

[alamo5000]

Can enough American cultures combine to keep the country afloat ?

The American Culture isn't one like other cultures. In other places they have folk songs or village dances. We have that too, but our unique flavor is wrapped in the freedom of speech and thought. We come up with stuff like rock music and funny irreverent movies.

One of my favorites of all time is "Back to School" with Rodney Dangerfield. Some guy that dropped out of the 7th grade went on to earn $300 million in tall and fat clothing stores, and then goes back to college where he tells the crusty old ivory tower to go screw itself. It's so 1000% American.

What is in my view one of the biggest things that we need to destroy is the radical online censorship. That whole cancel culture and being banned from Facebook or Twitter is 110% anti American.

Yeah if someone was there threatening mass murder that's one thing, but it's more like "I think Joe Rogan is a good guy and I really think Trump did a great job. I also think the 2020 election was fixed"...and you wind up with a lifetime ban just for holding an opinion that some internet company doesn't like.

That whole thing, including the 2020 election and so many other things are all directly in contradiction to being American.

We don't need to pick out a set of specific cultures in America, but rather we need to destroy those people and organizations that are trying to destroy our common culture.

 

[Snipe260]

Feels more like 50 months left.

This is more likely!

 

[WaltHer]

Feels more like 50 months left.

It's likely that Balkanization is and has been here for a long time. Maybe our differences have just been simmering on "low" because, generally speaking, things have been working out ok for most involved. I've read Woodard's characterization of the cultures within the eleven geographic regions that he identifies within the U.S. They seem to accurately represent the generalizations and stereotypes I have, including that of where I live. I wonder what will happen if things in the various parts of America stop working out ok for many involved?

This map shows how the US really has 11 separate 'nations' with entirely different cultures

From the utopian "Yankeedom" to the conservative "Greater Appalachia," looking at these cultures sheds a light on America's political divides.

www.businessinsider.com