Recently I heard John McCain claim that this country is great because of the spirit and determination of the American People. It's a nice ass-kissing answer, good for an election season. Especially when you consider that, gasp, American people will be voting for him! But the comment makes it sound like there's something special about the American populace, he seems to imply that Americans are just better than people in the rest of the world. Hmm... where have I heard something similar to that before...?
(I'm not seriously saying that I think John McCain is that bad, I just thought it was a funny comparison of ideas)
Lets face it. People are people all over the world. People in America are not innately superior to people in Yugoslavia or Bangkok (I just like saying Bangkok). It's the system of America, our ideals, that create a mindset and a structure for people which allows us to succeed that makes America great.
So specifically what do I think makes America great now adays? Here we go:
1) Our tolerance of people who're different than us enables us to view people practically and judge them on qualities they have that actually matter.
Instead of worrying about the person's skin color, religion, or sex, we actually focus on what qualities will effect our interactions with them. This enables us to have more successful professional relationships and get more done. Good employees don't grumble over having to work with the hardworking Muslim guy because he has a different religion than them, they're thankful they have someone they can rely on to get the job done properly. Productivity is the goal, not homogeneity.
2) Separation of Church and State keeps us from enacting laws or worrying about issues that don't actually effect the success of the country.
As much as we all love to get pissy about abortion, it's not really an issue related to the functioning of our society. You could argue if it was outlawed there'd be more unwanted children, but I'd rather not go down that road. All I'm saying is, religious mandates typically don't contribute to cultural success, if anything they're counterproductive. Keeping religion out of government makes sure that government stays focused on passing laws which promote direct results instead of ideological or philosophical goals.
3) Freedom of Expression encourages creative thinking.
After all, what's the point in thinking something if you're not going to do anything about it? For example, in writing this, I've given the topic serious thought while laying out my views and even reconsidered what I was saying while I said it. Encouraging people to be free in their speech gets them into the practice of considering more angles of a situation, even controversial ones, which can sometimes be the solution to a problem. Openness is a good thing.
Ironically each of these principles is under attack by religious fundamentalists. (1) They want to discriminate against and make an issue of homosexuality. (2) They want to erode the seperation of Church and State by implying the country was founded on religious beliefs, posting the Ten Commandments, and mandating morality in law. (3) They want to censor pretty much all forms of media.
So how much longer is America going to be great if religion continues to grow in importance in America?
So specifically what do I think makes America great now adays? Here we go:
1) Our tolerance of people who're different than us enables us to view people practically and judge them on qualities they have that actually matter.
Instead of worrying about the person's skin color, religion, or sex, we actually focus on what qualities will effect our interactions with them. This enables us to have more successful professional relationships and get more done. Good employees don't grumble over having to work with the hardworking Muslim guy because he has a different religion than them, they're thankful they have someone they can rely on to get the job done properly. Productivity is the goal, not homogeneity.
2) Separation of Church and State keeps us from enacting laws or worrying about issues that don't actually effect the success of the country.
As much as we all love to get pissy about abortion, it's not really an issue related to the functioning of our society. You could argue if it was outlawed there'd be more unwanted children, but I'd rather not go down that road. All I'm saying is, religious mandates typically don't contribute to cultural success, if anything they're counterproductive. Keeping religion out of government makes sure that government stays focused on passing laws which promote direct results instead of ideological or philosophical goals.
3) Freedom of Expression encourages creative thinking.
After all, what's the point in thinking something if you're not going to do anything about it? For example, in writing this, I've given the topic serious thought while laying out my views and even reconsidered what I was saying while I said it. Encouraging people to be free in their speech gets them into the practice of considering more angles of a situation, even controversial ones, which can sometimes be the solution to a problem. Openness is a good thing.
Ironically each of these principles is under attack by religious fundamentalists. (1) They want to discriminate against and make an issue of homosexuality. (2) They want to erode the seperation of Church and State by implying the country was founded on religious beliefs, posting the Ten Commandments, and mandating morality in law. (3) They want to censor pretty much all forms of media.
So how much longer is America going to be great if religion continues to grow in importance in America?
1 comment:
"Instead of worrying about the person's skin color, religion, or sex, we actually focus on what qualities will effect our interactions with them."
This is the way it's ideally *SUPPOSED* to be.
The truth is very far from it sadly.
Post a Comment