A quick poll about the future of American Civilization.

[Tacoman]

Originally Posted by Fish

It's kinda funny to me, to see what the US has created and how people perceive it. We've created a nation with one of the highest standards of living in the world. Where the overwhelming majority never actually experiences true poverty or hunger. A nation where those in "Poverty" still own such pleasures as cars, TVs with hundreds of channels, Xbox/PS3, smartphones, etc. A nation where everyone has health care no matter what. We have systems to care for others who cannot care for themselves.

There's very little actual poverty in America. Not true poverty. Those in poverty in America live like royalty compared to some other parts of the world. Yet all we ever hear is people bitching about other Americans getting things they don't think those other people deserve. You hear more bitching of that type these days, than you hear about what we don't have. Yet we don't stop and think about what a good thing it is that Americans don't have to bitch about having unclean drinking water, or moldy and rotten food, or lack of electricity, or no health care at all, or actual real government oppression.

Nope, we sit here on our thrones, and type into our smartphones that have internet access nearly everywhere we go, while enjoying a diversity of cheap food, clean water, organized infrastructure, etc. While bitching about poor people getting a couple hundred dollars worth of free food.

America has become a nation of selfish unappreciative assholes who bitch all day while never realizing how easy of a life they live compared with much of the rest of the world.

:thumbsup:

[blaise]

Originally Posted by Fish

It's kinda funny to me, to see what the US has created and how people perceive it. We've created a nation with one of the highest standards of living in the world. Where the overwhelming majority never actually experiences true poverty or hunger. A nation where those in "Poverty" still own such pleasures as cars, TVs with hundreds of channels, Xbox/PS3, smartphones, etc. A nation where everyone has health care no matter what. We have systems to care for others who cannot care for themselves.

There's very little actual poverty in America. Not true poverty. Those in poverty in America live like royalty compared to some other parts of the world. Yet all we ever hear is people bitching about other Americans getting things they don't think those other people deserve. You hear more bitching of that type these days, than you hear about what we don't have. Yet we don't stop and think about what a good thing it is that Americans don't have to bitch about having unclean drinking water, or moldy and rotten food, or lack of electricity, or no health care at all, or actual real government oppression.

Nope, we sit here on our thrones, and type into our smartphones that have internet access nearly everywhere we go, while enjoying a diversity of cheap food, clean water, organized infrastructure, etc. While bitching about poor people getting a couple hundred dollars worth of free food.

America has become a nation of selfish unappreciative assholes who bitch all day while never realizing how easy of a life they live compared with much of the rest of the world.

I agree with a lot of that. I realize this is bringing DC over here, but if you're in DC and read posters like loneiguana you'd think we're a 3rd world nation.

[Bearcat]

Originally Posted by Fish

It's kinda funny to me, to see what the US has created and how people perceive it. We've created a nation with one of the highest standards of living in the world. Where the overwhelming majority never actually experiences true poverty or hunger. A nation where those in "Poverty" still own such pleasures as cars, TVs with hundreds of channels, Xbox/PS3, smartphones, etc. A nation where everyone has health care no matter what. We have systems to care for others who cannot care for themselves.

There's very little actual poverty in America. Not true poverty. Those in poverty in America live like royalty compared to some other parts of the world. Yet all we ever hear is people bitching about other Americans getting things they don't think those other people deserve. You hear more bitching of that type these days, than you hear about what we don't have. Yet we don't stop and think about what a good thing it is that Americans don't have to bitch about having unclean drinking water, or moldy and rotten food, or lack of electricity, or no health care at all, or actual real government oppression.

Nope, we sit here on our thrones, and type into our smartphones that have internet access nearly everywhere we go, while enjoying a diversity of cheap food, clean water, organized infrastructure, etc. While bitching about poor people getting a couple hundred dollars worth of free food.

America has become a nation of selfish unappreciative assholes who bitch all day while never realizing how easy of a life they live compared with much of the rest of the world.

A friend got back from a 2 year stay in Kenya a few months ago, and hearing the stories is not only proof of all of this, it's like time travel... corporal punishment, the lack of respect for women, makeshift schools with lazy and often absent teachers, 20 mile trips that can take 2+ hours one way, needing to be extra productive before the electricity goes out, washing clothes in buckets.

[Bugeater]

Originally Posted by Fish

It's kinda funny to me, to see what the US has created and how people perceive it. We've created a nation with one of the highest standards of living in the world. Where the overwhelming majority never actually experiences true poverty or hunger. A nation where those in "Poverty" still own such pleasures as cars, TVs with hundreds of channels, Xbox/PS3, smartphones, etc. A nation where everyone has health care no matter what. We have systems to care for others who cannot care for themselves.

There's very little actual poverty in America. Not true poverty. Those in poverty in America live like royalty compared to some other parts of the world. Yet all we ever hear is people bitching about other Americans getting things they don't think those other people deserve. You hear more bitching of that type these days, than you hear about what we don't have. Yet we don't stop and think about what a good thing it is that Americans don't have to bitch about having unclean drinking water, or moldy and rotten food, or lack of electricity, or no health care at all, or actual real government oppression.

Nope, we sit here on our thrones, and type into our smartphones that have internet access nearly everywhere we go, while enjoying a diversity of cheap food, clean water, organized infrastructure, etc. While bitching about poor people getting a couple hundred dollars worth of free food.

America has become a nation of selfish unappreciative assholes who bitch all day while never realizing how easy of a life they live compared with much of the rest of the world.

How is it selfish to be upset that people are being handed the same things that the rest of us work for?

[ToxSocks]

Originally Posted by Fish

It's kinda funny to me, to see what the US has created and how people perceive it. We've created a nation with one of the highest standards of living in the world. Where the overwhelming majority never actually experiences true poverty or hunger. A nation where those in "Poverty" still own such pleasures as cars, TVs with hundreds of channels, Xbox/PS3, smartphones, etc. A nation where everyone has health care no matter what. We have systems to care for others who cannot care for themselves.

There's very little actual poverty in America. Not true poverty. Those in poverty in America live like royalty compared to some other parts of the world. Yet all we ever hear is people bitching about other Americans getting things they don't think those other people deserve. You hear more bitching of that type these days, than you hear about what we don't have. Yet we don't stop and think about what a good thing it is that Americans don't have to bitch about having unclean drinking water, or moldy and rotten food, or lack of electricity, or no health care at all, or actual real government oppression.

Nope, we sit here on our thrones, and type into our smartphones that have internet access nearly everywhere we go, while enjoying a diversity of cheap food, clean water, organized infrastructure, etc. While bitching about poor people getting a couple hundred dollars worth of free food.

America has become a nation of selfish unappreciative assholes who bitch all day while never realizing how easy of a life they live compared with much of the rest of the world.

Killed it. I'd rep you, but **** you, you have enough of it already.

[WhiteWhale]

Originally Posted by Fish

It's kinda funny to me, to see what the US has created and how people perceive it. We've created a nation with one of the highest standards of living in the world. Where the overwhelming majority never actually experiences true poverty or hunger. A nation where those in "Poverty" still own such pleasures as cars, TVs with hundreds of channels, Xbox/PS3, smartphones, etc. A nation where everyone has health care no matter what. We have systems to care for others who cannot care for themselves.

There's very little actual poverty in America. Not true poverty. Those in poverty in America live like royalty compared to some other parts of the world. Yet all we ever hear is people bitching about other Americans getting things they don't think those other people deserve. You hear more bitching of that type these days, than you hear about what we don't have. Yet we don't stop and think about what a good thing it is that Americans don't have to bitch about having unclean drinking water, or moldy and rotten food, or lack of electricity, or no health care at all, or actual real government oppression.

Nope, we sit here on our thrones, and type into our smartphones that have internet access nearly everywhere we go, while enjoying a diversity of cheap food, clean water, organized infrastructure, etc. While bitching about poor people getting a couple hundred dollars worth of free food.

America has become a nation of selfish unappreciative assholes who bitch all day while never realizing how easy of a life they live compared with much of the rest of the world.

Something I say when I'm feeling like complaining about my lot in life:

"Well, I don't have it that bad. I shit in clean water."

[Mrs. Loopner]

Originally Posted by Fish

Yet we don't stop and think about what a good thing it is that Americans don't have to bitch about having unclean drinking water, or moldy and rotten food, or lack of electricity, or no health care at all, or actual real government oppression.

Nope, we sit here on our thrones, and type into our smartphones that have internet access nearly everywhere we go, while enjoying a diversity of cheap food, clean water, organized infrastructure, etc. While bitching about poor people getting a couple hundred dollars worth of free food.

America has become a nation of selfish unappreciative assholes who bitch all day while never realizing how easy of a life they live compared with much of the rest of the world.

Don't forget lazy and fat. Too lazy to turn on car blinkers or they're selfishly holding their cell phone.
Fat because they're too lazy to cook a healthy meal so they eat the cheap, horribly unhealthy fast food.

Lazy, fat and selfish will get you zero military defense. It'll be easy overtaking those attractive bunch of individuals. Just show them a McDonald's menu.

"Mission: Readiness' report, "Too Fat to Fight," said that 75 percent of young Americans between the ages of 17 to 24 do not qualify for the military because of failure to graduate [from high school], criminal records or physical problems. The study cited Department of Defense and health data."

http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/04/20...ary.fat.fight/ sorry if Q

[cdcox]

Originally Posted by Fish

It's kinda funny to me, to see what the US has created and how people perceive it. We've created a nation with one of the highest standards of living in the world. Where the overwhelming majority never actually experiences true poverty or hunger. A nation where those in "Poverty" still own such pleasures as cars, TVs with hundreds of channels, Xbox/PS3, smartphones, etc. A nation where everyone has health care no matter what. We have systems to care for others who cannot care for themselves.

There's very little actual poverty in America. Not true poverty. Those in poverty in America live like royalty compared to some other parts of the world. Yet all we ever hear is people bitching about other Americans getting things they don't think those other people deserve. You hear more bitching of that type these days, than you hear about what we don't have. Yet we don't stop and think about what a good thing it is that Americans don't have to bitch about having unclean drinking water, or moldy and rotten food, or lack of electricity, or no health care at all, or actual real government oppression.

Nope, we sit here on our thrones, and type into our smartphones that have internet access nearly everywhere we go, while enjoying a diversity of cheap food, clean water, organized infrastructure, etc. While bitching about poor people getting a couple hundred dollars worth of free food.

America has become a nation of selfish unappreciative assholes who bitch all day while never realizing how easy of a life they live compared with much of the rest of the world.

I'm solidly in the top half or the optimism spectrum on this poll, but...

* Our Seniors in Civil Engineering are working on a capstone project that would bring reliable safe drinking water to a community, but they would still have to drive to the treatment plant to truck water to their homes. In other words, even after a major upgrade to their water system, they still would not have clean running water in their homes.

* The bottom 15% of Americans only have health care in the life and death situations or when they can get access to free/subsidized health care. 45 million Americans.

* We are importing our scientific and engineering brain power. Native-born Americans make up an increasingly smaller share of the students in graduate programs in science and engineering. Our K-12 educational system has been lagging behind for decades. That just isn't going to lead to a world leading economy in the long term.

* There will never again be opportunity for the average unskilled, an uneducated American to support above the poverty line. We have a metric shit ton of these people. The poverty line for a family of 4 is around $23K, while the median individual income is around $27K. When grouped into households, 15% are below the poverty line for this $23K benchmark.

[Bugeater]

Originally Posted by DaFace

The issue with these types of statements is that they ignore that our perceptions about what a quality life is have changed dramatically compared to the "good old days". Cut the average house size in half, fix your own car, stop eating out, grow food in a garden, get rid of cable, internet, etc., and it wouldn't be as hard as you'd think. Sure, you'd be bored out of your mind, but people used to be perfectly content with sitting around and telling stories and reading books for entertainment.

It also ignores the fact that (I'm assuming) you're talking about a middle-class white family. I think you'd be hard pressed to find many minority families who would agree that life was better back then than it is now.

YOU SHUT THE HELL UP AND GET OFF MY DAMN LAWN

[ThaVirus]

Originally Posted by DaFace

The issue with these types of statements is that they ignore that our perceptions about what a quality life is have changed dramatically compared to the "good old days". Cut the average house size in half, fix your own car, stop eating out, grow food in a garden, get rid of cable, internet, etc., and it wouldn't be as hard as you'd think. Sure, you'd be bored out of your mind, but people used to be perfectly content with sitting around and telling stories and reading books for entertainment.



It also ignores the fact that (I'm assuming) you're talking about a middle-class white family. I think you'd be hard pressed to find many minority families who would agree that life was better back then than it is now.

Well said.

[Shaid]

I think we're descending slightly but will get our heads out of our asses in 20 years or so and start turning it around.

[GordonGekko]

I think we are stable, but a great symbol of the current state of the health of the economy of the US can be seen in the rebuilding of ground zero in NYC. It's been 13 years since 9/11 and they still haven't got any of the large towers open yet, and two of the towers proposed have been pushed back/postponed in construction due to the lack of anchor tenants. I think it says everything about what is going on in the US right now.

[Easy 6]

Broke and divided about the right path forward, yeah that sound right, GG.

[LiveSteam]

I dnt know where were headed, But if in 2016 the American people are stuck with voting for another Bush or Clinton. I say **** it & declare the winner king or queen & be done with it.

[notorious]

JFC

We are constantly making medical and technological breakthroughs. We can travel anywhere on the Earth within a short amount of time, and communicate through many different means with nearly anyone on the world. We are living longer and under better conditions than any previous generations.




Declining? GMAFB