What Does it Mean to be an American?

To be an American is to embrace your God-given freedom to drive oversized gasoline-eaters filled with Saudi oil to a mall to do your citizen-duty as a good consumer and shop, shop, shop 'til you drop cheap junk made in China double-wrapped in plastic, with dreams of striking it rich to have a real non-vinyl masonry mansion resembling a French Chateau.

lily00 said:

The Bible talks about money being the root of all evil, and I do see your sarcastic point.

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Not money but the love of money is the root of evil.

lily00 said:

The Bible talks about money being the root of all evil, and I do see your sarcastic point.

But this is not what it means to be an American. I for one want to make a difference where I live and teach my daughter to do the same.

I don't know where it came from, but a quote is used, "United we stand, divided we fall." Unity is one thing I believe it means to be an American.

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For once, I wasn't being merely sarcastic. The one thing that unites US-Americans is the American super-consumerist culture, the big compensation cars, cheap junk, and hording of as much stuff and money as one can. President Bush the Second encapsulated it perfectly -- what the United States of America stands for and how to present a united, undefeated front in the face of a tragedy, the essence of the United States of America(ns) -- in the wake of the 2001 terrorist attacks when he told the shellshocked Americans to continue participation in the American economy.

lily00 said:

..."I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, Under God, Indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

...I am proud to be in a country founded under God.

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You do realize "under God" was added to the pledge in 1954, 178 years after our founding?

lily00 said:

That is pretty interesting, no I didn't know that. I just know why the pilgrims came over from Britain.

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The pilgrims weren't the first English settlers. That was Jamestown who were more run of the mill economic colonists.

ETA: And of course that doesn't even count Roanoke. The point being, the popular tale of America being settled by people seeking religious freedom isn't accurate.

PreviouslySeeking... said:

Not really. Personally, I think the US is technically "ok" really about average as far as countries go. What we have in abundance is PR aka Hollywood. A lot of Americans are unaware of the rights and protections the citizens of other countries have and make a lot of assumptions. Are we better than North Korea, Syria, Iran? Sure- but that isn't saying much. The USA is usually defended by being compared to 3rd world countries and countries at war or with significant civil strife- that is not a legitimate comparison. Compare US to peaceful 1st world countries across many different markers of stability, education, health, standard of living, and general satisfaction- we don't fair as well as the average American has been taught we should.

And honestly, we are getting worse, day by day.

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We would fare better, and those other countries would fare worse, if we had balanced trade.

What does it mean to be a U.S. citizen you ask?

We are shown by the miracles of the war of 1812 (similar to the Israelites of the Old Testament) that we are a special people to God.
We hold objective morality up as a light to the rest of the world. Even though we as a country have failed many times at trying to reach and maintain this morality, we keep on trying and it is an inspiration to all other countries.

Cuddles333 said:

What does it mean to be a U.S. citizen you ask?

We are shown by the miracles of the war of 1812 (similar to the Israelites of the Old Testament) that we are a special people to God.
We hold objective morality up as a light to the rest of the world. Even though we as a country have failed many times at trying to reach and maintain this morality, we keep on trying and it is an inspiration to all other countries.

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As a Canadian I must say that I am quite fascinated by the miracles of the War of 1812 unless you are referring to some of the battles that saved Canada from invading American armies. I think of battles like Stoney Creek, Queenston Heights and Chateauguay --- all of them with British red coats, Canadian militia and Indians outnumbered by Americans. At the Battle of Crysler's Farm 900 redcoats, 300 militia and 100 Indians faced 6000 invading Americans and defeated them. Those miracles? Just a few miles from where I live an American raiding party captured a Canadian militia officer and tortured him to death by roasting him on a spit. That miracle? Or the Battle of Moravian Town where the Americans defeated the Indians under Techumseh but retreated back across the border because the Indians had inflicted such heavy casualties. That miracle? The Americans should have won that war with no problem but they angered the Canadian settlers so badly with their atrocities --- like the burning of York (Toronto) and Newark (Niagara on the Lake). Those miracles?

Cuddles333 said:

What does it mean to be a U.S. citizen you ask?

We are shown by the miracles of the war of 1812 (similar to the Israelites of the Old Testament) that we are a special people to God...

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I believe we Americans tend to think we are a special people to God. I do not believe we are. God created everyone in His own image and his love and grace are available to all. I believe there are many times God looks at America, shakes his head, and cries. We aren't as special as we think we are.

lily00 said:

I have been thinking about this lately and would like to receive input.

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Speaking as someone with an American grandfather and wife but as one who Is not an American.

There is a big difference between peak America (America at its best just after WW2) and America today.
Peak America is characterised by Christian faith, freedom and immense opportunity. Modern America has lost some of that with secularism and materialism, political correctness, social immobility and massive inequality and its barriers to immigration.

America traditionally was about God, gold and guns. A place where anybody could make it and could defend their own piece of land called home. It was a beacon of hope for poor and oppressed people across the world, it was the liberator nation that set other nations free. It was the nation that gave us the Apollo landings and Marshall plan. For years peak America had sufficient standing with the rest of us to be the leader of the free world. It threatens to throw that all away now that it insists on America First economically and has massively mismanaged its own deficit situation , as its Christians credentials are eroded by extremist feminists, the gay lobby and a media that is no longer honest to God and has lost its Christian perspective , and as it closes the door of hope on those who aspire to become Americans from all over the world.

JackRT said:

As a Canadian I must say that I am quite fascinated by the miracles of the War of 1812 unless you are referring to some of the battles that saved Canada from invading American armies. I think of battles like Stoney Creek, Queenston Heights and Chateauguay --- all of them with British red coats, Canadian militia and Indians outnumbered by Americans. At the Battle of Crysler's Farm 900 redcoats, 300 militia and 100 Indians faced 6000 invading Americans and defeated them. Those miracles? Just a few miles from where I live an American raiding party captured a Canadian militia officer and tortured him to death by roasting him on a spit. That miracle? Or the Battle of Moravian Town where the Americans defeated the Indians under Techumseh but retreated back across the border because the Indians had inflicted such heavy casualties. That miracle? The Americans should have won that war with no problem but they angered the Canadian settlers so badly with their atrocities --- like the burning of York (Toronto) and Newark (Niagara on the Lake). Those miracles?

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Nation building is messy business.

Cuddles333 said:

What does it mean to be a U.S. citizen you ask?

We are shown by the miracles of the war of 1812 (similar to the Israelites of the Old Testament) that we are a special people to God.
We hold objective morality up as a light to the rest of the world. Even though we as a country have failed many times at trying to reach and maintain this morality, we keep on trying and it is an inspiration to all other countries.

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God didn't call the best and brightest into the church in the beginning, and neither did he give this land to the best and brightest in the fifteenth century. It was an unconditional promise to a certain people. This must be understood in order to understand America (see British Israelism).

Episaw said:

If you want to be the president of the United States, you have to be a bona fide America citizen.

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So Obama slipped through the cracks?

OldWiseGuy said:

Nation building is messy business.

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It certainly is. And the War of 1812 was certainly instrumental in building the Canadian nation.

lily00 said:

What would y'all say are American values? I would like to say Christianity, but I feel as if though many would say we are not a Christian nation like we used to be. I also think about our rights that so many have died for. This is unique to America.

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What exactly are you saying is unique to america?