Posted on 09/16/2002 4:14:03 PM PDT by Congressman Billybob
Interesting semi-racist post. Your take is that American WASP's are the only folks in the world who can be counted on to do the right thing? ....And that Europeans, South Americans, Asians are not really Americans? Even though they are American citizens? .... don-o
Tom is intimating that people who are a part of the American culture (Webster’s Seventh New Collegiate: behavior typical of a group or class) have always somehow been different from other cultures with respect to (what a certain right-wing radio talk show host chooses to call) rugged individualism.
His comment had nothing to do with race. And nowhere did he classify Americans simply as WASPS. Nor did he even intimate that naturalized Americans are not just as American as you or I.
If you’re not a leftist, you certainly have borrowed the put-words-in-my-opponent’s-mouth-and-then-refute-them strategy from the leftist playbook.
Sometimes thin-skinned, quibble-prone, race-hypersensitive people are loathe to even acknowledge that there are inherent differences in people, simply because of the environment in which they -- and often their ancestors – exist(ed). Whether race-hypersensitive people like it or not – and their frequent vocal protestations serve as evidence that they don’t – Americans, as a people, are different from Asians and Europeans in many ways.
If you define 'American' simply as 'one who lives within the geographical boundaries of America', you need to take off your blinders and start thinking outside of the box. Americans in general (especially those whose roots have been here for more than a generation) are a unique brand of people. And those whose families have walked on American soil for many generations, and whose ancestry/heritage is a source of pride to them, tend to be particularly rugged and individualist. That is not to say that other cultures do not boast either characteristic, or that Americans have a corner on them. They are simply often very common traits among Americans with deep roots. Their ancestors were, after all, the ones who traveled to the New World – and who crossed thousands of miles of unexplored, inhospitable territory in the expansion from east to west.
Stand on any street corner in France, or Italy, or Japan, or Indonesia, and – assuming you are fluent in the language – converse with the passersby. I guarantee you’ll know that you are not among Americans, simply because they are a different people. Not necessarily better or worse .... simply different.
Whether Tom was accurate in his assessment (only here in the United States would ordinary people ….) is irrelevant to your response. The fact that you labeled him a semi-racist for expressing a belief in cultural behavior differences says more about your intolerance than his.
My "ping list" is below my signature. Every time I post I put up either one or two click links for articles that Freepers might be interested in. I seldom put my whole articles on FreeRepublic because I don't want to clutter the bandwidth.
Only if I'm 99.44% sure an article will be of interest to FReepers, do I post it here in full.
Congressman Billybob
Click for major article on turnover in the House of Representatives: "Til Death Do Us Part."
To Bill Clinton: we know that you would have been finishing the job in the lavatory sink, principled and refined gentleman that you are. In short, you would have dodged the call to serve your country. Again.
There is a possibility that this article, slightly revised, will be published in the next issue of Insight, the biweekly magazine of the Washington Times.
Congressman Billybob
Click for major article on turnover in the House of Representatives: "Til Death Do Us Part."
Click for latest book: "to Restore Trust in America"
Latest column, "The Politics of Flight 93," is posted on FreeRepublic.
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