American." We're an "empire," ain't we?

[dave502d]

An empire without a manufacturing base. An empire that must borrow $2 billion a day from its competitors in order to function. Yet the delusion is ineradicable. We're No. 1. Well ... this is the country you really live in:

• The United States is 49th in the world in literacy (The New York Times, Dec. 12, 2004).

• The United States ranked 28th out of 40 countries in mathematical literacy (NYT, Dec. 12, 2004).

• One-third of our science teachers and one-half of our math teachers did not major in those subjects. (Quoted on The West Wing, but you can trust it – their researchers are legendary.)

• Twenty percent of Americans think the sun orbits the Earth. Seventeen percent believe the Earth revolves around the sun once a day (The Week, Jan. 7, 2005).

http://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/dispatch/2005-01-21/cols_ventura.html

[Carolab]

1. And 55 percent believe in "the rapture"...

About says it all, doesn't it?

Yup. We're a bunch of losers, which is exactly why so many want to go and bomb the crap out of brown people!

[KlatooBNikto]

2. What about the eighty odd percent who think the earth is flat?

And, I would guess that would include our esteemed President?

[blogbear]

6. I'll bet they even believe the flat Earth tilts to them..

[Kerrytravelers]

3. I'm a teacher. Believe every word of this post. I see it every day..

[Doctor_J]

4. Unfortunately, yes.

because empires die out. If we'd kept up our 224-year history of being a democratic republic, we might have bucked history. But installing a dim-witted, drunken prince in the WH sealed our fate.

[ragin_acadian]

10. shitty isn't it?

we didn't even get a caesar, we just went straight to caligula.

[wtbymark]

5. yea- people from around the world look at us like children

and with chimp in office we look like the big school yard bully, we're big so the rest of the world doesn't know how to handle us now, they don't like it and their agendas are to save their own ass. So when the shit hits the fan, you'll see a lot of countries turn their backs on us.

[Spider Jerusalem]

7. Empire-wise, we're on our last legs.

Like the British Empire after WWII. Bankrupt, militarily overextended, our currency in decline, our manufacturing base eroded by international competition, and our position soon to be eclipsed by the rise of the "new" power to the west (in our case, China). Interesting that as history marches on, the same patterns keep emerging, even though the details change.

[strategery blunder]

"Twenty percent of Americans think the sun orbits the Earth?"

:wow::wtf::banghead::rofl::wow::wtf::banghead::rofl::wow::wtf::banghead::rofl:

[wookie294]

8. Multinational corporations are the new EMPIRE

Forget the USA and its people - corporations are the Empire, not people. There is another "nation" created in the world. It's called "multinational corporations." Average Americans pay for most of this empire thru taxes, but don't benefit from it. The Iraq war is a perfect example of how this new "nation state" called "multinational corporations" is financed by the American taxpayer with no actual benefit that accrues to him. So, Americans are suckers.

[amazona]

9. not an empire by any definition

An empire conquers other territories and has vast possessions, see under the Roman or British Empire.

We have, what, Guam? (Er, we still DO have Guam don't we?) We couldn't even win the war in Korea or Vietnam, and we're not winning in Afghanistan or Iraq. As far as adding territory, it is to laugh. We have actually lost territory, see under Panama Canal Zone. And Panama, the new operators of the territory, have a better safety record!

There is no definition of the word by which the United States of America is or ever has been an Empire.

Guess what, folks, the world is humoring us. But as a cold matter of fact, to call ourselves an Empire is pretty effin' delusional.