The Truth About American Exceptionalism

[marmar]

from OnTheCommons.org:




The Truth About American Exceptionalism
America is exceptional but not in the way Republican Presidential candidates think

By David Morris


For Republican presidential candidates the phrase American Exceptionalism has taken on almost talismanic qualities. Newt Gingrich’s new book is titled, A Nation Like No Other: Why American Exceptionalism Matters. “American the Exceptional” is the title of a chapter in Sarah Palin’s book America by Heart.

And woe be to those who take issue with the phrase. 2008 Presidential candidate Mike Huckabee declares, “To deny American exceptionalism is in essence to deny the heart and soul of this nation.” 2012 Presidential candidate Mitt Romney insists, “The reorientation away from a celebration of American exceptionalism is misguided and bankrupt.”

What is this American exceptionalism Republicans so venerate? After interviewing many Republican leaders, Washington Post Reporter Karen Tumulty concludes it is the belief that America “is inherently superior to the world’s other nations”. It is a widely held belief. Indeed, most Americans believe our superiority is not only inherent but divinely ordained. A survey by the Public Religious Research Institute and the Brookings Institution found that 58 percent of Americans agree with the statement, “God has granted America a special role in human history.”

Let me make it clear at the outset. I too believe in American exceptionalism, although I don’t think God has anything to do with it. But I suspect my perspective will find little favor among Republicans in general and Tea Party members in particular. For I believe that America is exceptional in the advantages we’ve had over other nations, not what we’ve done with those advantages. ................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://onthecommons.org/truth-about-american-exceptionalism

[raouldukelives]

1. “God has granted America a special role in human history.”

I'm sure the countless casualties of our wars of choice would agree.

[Scuba]

2. If they believe so much in "American exceptionalism", then why...

...did they cut funding for the Patent Office??

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x914313

[BlueCaliDem]

3. The truth about American exceptionalism is that it's a big lie

and it's only perpetrated on the gullible American masses by a fine-tuned, well-oiled corporate oligarchy who spend billions to perpetuate the myth for their own nefarious agendas (wars, working tax free, getting bail outs, fighting living wages, brainwashing Americans into thinking universal health care is evil, etc).

America is exceptional only in that, for a wealthy, industrialized country, it still belongs in the Banana Republic, third world category.

[raccoon]

6. Great post! nt

[BlueCaliDem]

8. Thanks! :-) eom

[bemildred]

4. "American Exceptionalism" is a fancy way to say the rules do not apply to us.

Which is the sort of thinking the gets teenagers into trouble.

[BobbyBoring]

5. I get sick when I hear the term

We used to be exceptional in a good way. What made America great was our sense of community. If we had the attitude during WWII that we have now, we might all be speaking German or Japanese.

[Puzzler]

7. Britain felt the same way during the height if their power

[NothingRight]

9. Redefine the mindset, redefine the term

I watched a program on Link TV recently called "The Listening Project". Four journalists were sent to points around the globe to get a sense of the world's views of the United States.

One of the topics that struck me was when a young lady said "Everyone around the world knows about American culture, but what do Americans know about cultures around the world? Perhaps if they took some time to get to know about us, they wouldn't hate us so much."

We are taught from the time we are old enough to learn American history that we are the greatest nation ever conceived, and there is no comparison the world over. We have been to war all over the globe, fighting to defeat those who would seek to undermine our divine place as the voice of freedom and goodness.

Exceptionalism is defined as "the condition of being different from the norm".

American Exceptionalism has been defined as a theory that as a nation we are "qualitatively different from other nations."

The article linked makes it pretty clear that while we may have qualities that we can be immensely proud of, we have far too many qualities that should not exist in a nation that is truly exceptional, and those arise because the inequality of that exceptionalism that the GOP lauds is that which is destroying us.

We can be exceptional once again, but only when we change the mindset behind the new branding of exceptionalism will we be able to redefine the term.