At a basic level, my attitude on patriotism is captured by this t-shirt. And hold the snarky comments. My view is not influenced by the woman modeling it.
Or, if you want something with more substance, this Penn & Teller routine is very instructive.
But this polling data, taken from a recent report from the Pew Research Center, captures what is great about American exceptionalism.
When I periodically express my patriotic feelings, I am celebrating my happiness that I live in a nation where a majority of people still favor liberty over dependency.
Sorry, Dan, but if your attitude toward that t-shirt is NOT influenced by the woman modeling it, something has gone wrong.
How have those numbers changed over time? Do they simply fluctuate in a pendulous manner? Do they fluctuate in a pendulous manner around a trend?Or do they follow a particular trend?
+1 for the t-shirt comment.
!
But who was questioned, for the statistics?
[...] via Dan Mitchell [...]
[...] via Dan Mitchell [...]
Can I have my attitude influenced by the message and the medium?
People DO favor liberty over dependency, but they also, currently, favor communism over our current setup with Congress. They view communism as more likely to yield that liberty than the way our republic is currently operating. And the saddest thing is that they may be right.
Are there past data on individualism vs mandatory collectivism beliefs? Including comparisons to the three billon people of the emerging world ? So that one may see if there is American convergence or divergence to the world average — and thus inevitably convergence to the economic prosperity average?
Communism NEVER in America! Wake up voters!
To those who believe that America is not past the point of no return, to those who believe that there is still enough American exceptionalism to sustain a per capita prosperity six times the world average, I would like to remind that,
Americans elected Obama to correct Bush’s mistakes, and core American beliefs have become such that Romney is the only electable pro-growth candidate (chuckle!). In other words, the best hope is that the great American prosperity slide – which started in the 1990s complacency and arrogance of being the only superpower left on the planet, and then greatly accelerated in response to the 9/11 attacks—yes, this prosperity slide will proceed at a 2% annual rate under Romney, rather than 3% under Obama. Sure, a marked slowdown if one considers compounding, but hardly an indication that changes the final outcome: American standard of living declines away into the worldwide average.
Is this all you got left Americans? Pathetic! And enormously inadequate in a world where three billion people have finally woken up to the very ideas you once pioneered! Enjoy the ride down, these are the last few years you are enjoying on top of the world. The pitchforks are out, the delusion of top prosperity through collectivism and a flatter effort/reward curve is finally on American shores, thus the great submersion is under way… prepare your children to emigrate to environments of better opportunity… and prepare them to be treated as traitors by the pitchforks. The Desperation of Decline will bring many ugly things once inconceivable…
Reblogged this on The Conservative New Ager.
I would be interested to see how the Chinese would rank if included in this survey…seems they have a better handle on capitalism and individual responsibility than many other nations…
[...] I’m thankful for the usual things, such as my kids and being an American. [...]
[...] posted some polling data a couple of weeks ago that showed how the dependency mindset (as captured by these cartoons) is far worse in Europe than [...]
[...] posted some polling data a couple of weeks ago that showed how the dependency mindset (as captured by these cartoons) is far worse in Europe than [...]
[...] One of my favorite polls, for instance, compared the degree to which Americans and Europeans think it’s okay to mooch off government. [...]