Posted on 03/21/2011 6:59:51 AM PDT by Kaslin
Mainstream media has become defeatist, abandoning the notion that Americans are uniquely able to accomplish great things. Worse yet, members of congress, mostly Democrats but some Republicans too, have become similarly defeatist. How sad.
When confronted with challenges, danger, or catastrophe, their common response is to shirk. These defeatists seem to think that Americans lack the grit, ingenuity, and raw courage to tackle complicated problems.
Consider the typical Democrat response to some recent crises. When there was an oil spill in the Gulf—Democrat leaders recommended that all off-shore drilling be abandoned. When there was an accident in a West Virginia coal mine, they urged Americans to adopt a strategy to move away from coal-fueled energy. When there was an accident at a nuclear power plant six thousand miles away, Democrat leaders championed avoidance, suggesting that no new permits should be issued and building and operation of nuclear plants in America should be discouraged.
In each of these cases, the defeatists seemed to be saying is that America was no longer capable of inventing better solutions to solve these and other challenges--better to just give up after any setback. They seem to imply that the problems are just too tough and our skills just too feeble. This ideology of despair was most succinctly captured by a journalist who suggests that America abandon nuclear power, claiming that "if Japan can't do it, no one can."
This peculiarly Democrat ideology of defeatism ignores some of America’s greatest strengths--our ability to innovate, to adapt and to overcome setbacks. Those on the Left are deliberately discouraging a belief in American exceptionalism. They do this by fear-mongering, encouraging helplessness and obstructing individual efforts.
In the past, obstacles, even failures, have been viewed by Americans as an opportunity to excel, as a chance to overcome and to gain the advantage by learning from mistakes and making a better product or service.
The airplane is a prime example. In the early 1900s, Wilbur and Orville Wright were undeterred by the seemingly insurmountable challenges in creating the first fixed-wing aircraft able to sustain heavier than human flight—even though many others before them had died trying. Charles Lindberg’s famous flight across the Atlantic almost 85 years ago wouldn’t have happened in the current environment because too many crashes and failed attempts had already occurred. But Lindberg’s innovation and perseverance sparked a flame that created an entire industry in the U.S.
With innovation there has always been the possibility of danger, but instead of abandoning the concept because of failures and dangers, Americans have always persevered and newer, safer and often cheaper technologies or solutions emerged from the failures of the past.
Instead of calling upon American innovation and competitiveness to overcome the problems of nuclear power plants or off-shore drilling, President Obama’s solution is to maximize the drama to advance his political agenda, then to discourage or discard the effort, perhaps because the President doesn’t believe in American exceptionalism either.
Obama doesn’t seem to believe that Americans are more innovative, more creative, more daring and more able to make a difference. It’s as if he and other Democrat leaders have given up on America’s greatness and want to manage expectations by lowering the bar of achievement.
Americans deserve a president who believes that we are an exceptional nation, capable of achieving everything that is good and great. We deserve a president who acknowledges and appreciates the extraordinary contributions in educational, defense, industry, medicine, technology and philanthropy that Americans have made to the world in the past 235 years. Nor are we finished.
America has enormous talent that can be summoned to accomplish great feats and achievements that the rest of the world believes impossible. A man on the moon? No problem. The U.S. can do that in less than ten years. Create a way to immediately communicate with anyone, anywhere in the world, via data packet exchanges that look like documents,that sound like phone calls, that have movie-caliber videos and that creates a social media network to share this data with billions of the world’s inhabitants? Piece of cake!
We have the talent. What the nation lacks is a leader capable of summoning the nation’s abilities. So far, all we seem to be getting is the thin gruel of defeatism that urges us to abandon hope, because the problems are just too hard.
I, for one, am sick of it.
We are a great people, capable of great sacrifices and great accomplishments. If only President Obama would believe it too.
If Obama isn’t great, no one can be great.
This is a replay of 1979; they tried this with Carter. Reagan came along and blew the whole thing out of the water.
Eh, this is nothing new. Politicians are for the most part weasels.
This “malaise” thing has been done before, under Carter. “Woe is us, America has failed. We’re all DOOMED!”.
And then Reagan showed up, and we proved the commies wrong.
Too bad…since American Exceptionalism is the only absolute guarantee on earth for the kind of infinite and uncontested Liberalism THEY enjoy.
In light of current events in Egypt, let’s examine this statement. Westerners take it for granted that the Egyptian people have the right to cast off the chains of tyranny and form a government of their own choosing. But why do we believe this?
A mere 250 years ago all human rights were granted or held by a sovereign of some stripe – king, potentate, warlord, political party, etc. But when the American colonies issued the Declaration of Independence, the world was forever changed.
The Rights of Man are now viewed as the province of Man, granted by God and Unalienable. No matter what course history may take, this document will shine down through the centuries, forever undimmed, as a beacon of hope for freedom and self-governance.
It is this principle that makes, not America so much, but Americans, exceptional. We know in our hearts that it is our right to never be a subject, nor hold another subject to us, to neither oppress nor be oppressed, to always champion freedom and oppose tyranny - this is our creed.
It is unfortunate that our current President was raised by those that did not believe in and actually reviled the exceptional nature of Americans. It has left him ignorant of the true gift of human dignity and self-determination.
Let us pray that he learn this lesson and that we always teach this lesson to our children.
American exceptionalism is a pernicious myth and a false religion.
“Giving up”? Dismantling is a more accuate term.
Surrender is a core principle of liberalism.
As they stare into their homemade palantirs all they see is hell, so they simply step on the gas.
Liberals see American exceptionalism as international bullying.
Our president? Sorry but as far as I am concerned we have no president at this time
Liberals are ACTIVELY KILLING American exceptionalism!!!
Math, Science, & History are discouraged, in favor of GPA focus.
Unions promote laziness and inefficiency.
Moral relativism erases any sense of right or wrong or consequence.
Wealth redistribution rewards mediocrity, etc...
This is a replay of 1979,indeed the media is gearing up for the 2012 elections.
Interesting conclusion based on evolutionary assumptions.
Having another worldview, I have a different viewpoint on roots of and reasons for liberalism.
More like they are doing everything in their power to undermine it and tamp it down. Get the libtard politicians and elite out of the way, and we will again show you what exceptionalism is.
Americans are better than other countries. Almost all of them. The country has more advances in medicine, space technology, etc. and still has a lot of potential.
Pretending won’t make this one go away. This guy makes Wilson and FDR look like libertarians. I’m pretty sure it will take force of arms.
Huh?
It also is feminist hooker talk... ie. “all men are the same, do the same things, countries and religions are all relatively evil concepts, I’m a liberal... well, except when it comes to buying a suv, I want the spiced up sophisticated shiny one”
... because liberals only see it through the hooker in bed lenses and won’t admit differing values.
They bully people with hooker talk and blackmail in a huried fashion, trial lawyer hypocisy style
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