Been seeing a lot about how the government passes shitty laws, lot of mass shootings and expensive asf health care. I come from a developing nation and we were always told how America is great and whatnot. Are all states is America bad ?

  • inasaba@lemmy.mlEnglish
    5·
    1 year ago

    You’re reading very far into my use of a word. I used it because its meaning is very applicable here. It’s not “empty ideological language.” It means something similar to “patriotic,” though I didn’t use that word because for some reason in the US patriotism is considered to be a good thing.

    This user seems to think the US superior to all other countries. The word’s definition certainly seems to apply:

    Militant devotion to and glorification of one’s country; fanatical patriotism.
    Prejudiced belief in the superiority of one’s own gender, group, or kind.

    • ExecutiveStapler@kbin.social
      1·
      1 year ago

      I agree you used chauvinistic to mean that, but you then followed it up by saying that you didn’t have to justify why what they said is wrong. You do. It’s also not the case that what they said was definitionally chauvinistic, although I’ll let that slide because it was something similar enough.

      Suppose it was the case that one nation was in every way better than all other countries. Shouldn’t the citizens of that country be proud of that? Beyond pride, shouldn’t they do everything they can to spread their glorious system to the world and bring prosperity to all? That doesn’t necessarily mean wars and colonialism, that simply means all soft power efforts to implement systems that show themselves to work. I think the answer to this hypothetical is this nations citizens should feel pride and should spread their system.

      The key point here is the United States isn’t better than every country in the world, thus Americans shouldn’t feel such extreme pride about their country. However, the United States is pretty good. I think some form of pride / patriotism are justified for Americans and even forms of soft power to implement effective policies are justified, but this answer is impossible to reach when you throw out all feel good thoughts about nations as chauvinistic.

      • Mane25@feddit.ukEnglish
        1·
        1 year ago

        Short memory, you said:

        The USA, for all its faults, remains the standard against which other countries measure themselves (and find themselves lacking).

        • Melllvar@startrek.websiteEnglish
          1·
          1 year ago

          How to interpret that sentence:

          1. The USA has its faults
          2. Other countries compare themselves to the USA
          3. THEY find THEMSELVES lacking

          How not to interpret that sentence:

          1. The USA is actually superior.