Do you believe in the American exceptionalism

[Ahovking]

From the definition below do you believe in an American exceptionalism and why

American exceptionalism refers to the theory that the United States is qualitatively different from other nations. In this view, America's exceptionalism stems from its emergence from a revolution, becoming "the first new nation", and developing a uniquely American ideology, based on liberty, egalitarianism, individualism, populism and laissez-faire.

Historian Dorothy Ross discussed three currents in American exceptionalism:

1. 1Protestant American Christians believed American progress would lead to the Christian Millennium."
2. 2American writers also linked their history to the development of liberty in Anglo-Saxon England, even back to the traditions of the Teutonic tribes that conquered the western Roman empire.
3. 3Other American writers looked to the "millennial newness" of America, seeing the mass of "virgin land" promised an escape from the decay that befell earlier republics.

The French writer Alexis de Tocqueville first wrote about it in his 1831 work, Democracy in America:
The position of the Americans is therefore quite exceptional, and it may be believed that no democratic people will ever be placed in a similar one. Their strictly Puritanical origin, their exclusively commercial habits, even the country they inhabit, which seems to divert their minds from the pursuit of science, literature, and the arts, the proximity of Europe, which allows them to neglect these pursuits without relapsing into barbarism, a thousand special causes, of which I have only been able to point out the most important, have singularly concurred to fix the mind of the American upon purely practical objects. His passions, his wants, his education, and everything about him seem to unite in drawing the native of the United States earthward; his religion alone bids him turn, from time to time, a transient and distracted glance to heaven. Let us cease, then, to view all democratic nations under the example of the American people

 

[Ramius75]

i dont think America is that exceptional excepts its size and isolation location...

Imagine they started out SMALL in Europe or South East Asia, surrounded by rival countries...

 

[sophie]

Errbuddy knows is that USA #1

 

[Shekwan]

I think that every country has people with the attitude that they are in some way different, not least the one that is currently the most powerful. Weren't the Romans into their own exceptionalism in abig way?

I've seen it in really minor nations as much as the United States. Irish people think they're exceptional in that they "beat" Britain at the height of its power, or "built" other countries through emigration (as if thats something to be especially proud of ). I've noticed Koreans are inordinately proud of their language, its apparently the "most logical" - whatever that means. Australians think they're the greatest in the world at sports... The list goes on. Even on an individual level, most well adjusted people think they're awesome for some particular reason.

Americans do have that little bit of extra hubris in that they don't define the parameters of their exceptionalism, they're just better at everything.

the country they inhabit, which seems to divert their minds from the pursuit of science, literature, and the arts, the proximity of Europe, which allows them to neglect these pursuits without relapsing into barbarism

So basically he reckoned the Americans were in a unique position to pursue commerce and piggy-back on European progress?

 

[The_Tyrant]

Defeated the Germans and saved Europe....twice
Put a man on the moon
Defeated Communism
Maintains the best military in the world, that even today is defeating terrorism and extreme Islam

Yes America is has a long list of achievements, and is unmatched by any other nation.

 

[Shekwan]

Defeated the Germans and saved Europe....twice
Put a man on the moon
Defeated Communism
Maintains the best military in the world, that even today is defeating terrorism and extreme Islam

Yes America is has a long list of achievements, and is unmatched by any other nation.

Britain.

Defeated the French and saved Europe... three times
Colonised over a third of the planet.
Invented Democracy
Maintained the best military in the world for two centuries, and defeated colonial terrorism and extreme fascism

 

[RedRalph]

1. America played a relatively small part in defeating the Germans both times.
2. So what? You can't even get into space anymore
3. I think Brezhnev helped out a bit with that
4. So what? At different points in history someone has always had the best military in the world. Does that means every one of those countries was exceptional?

 

[rugbyLEAGUEfan]

You can live in the most exceptional country in the world , but if you don't actually DO anything exceptional , it counts for nought .

 

[Ahovking]

Defeated the Germans and saved Europe....twice
Put a man on the moon
Defeated Communism
Maintains the best military in the world, that even today is defeating terrorism and extreme Islam

Yes America is has a long list of achievements, and is unmatched by any other nation.

-sigh-

USA joined world war 1 and world war 2 late in the war where it was easy for it to tip the balance of war

Put a man on the moon must give you that one

Defeated Communism i dont think so the use might of been one of the impotent factors but in fact it was the massive over spending and the wars that led to nowhere and the united western front (U.S.A, canada, Europe, Australia) and not just the Usa that one was a joint project

defeating terrorism and extreme Islam once again a joint program with the western nations leadership of the war is often shared with Great Britain and Australia

 

[Ahovking]

1. America played a relatively small part in defeating the Germans both times.
2. So what? You can't even get into space anymore
3. I think Brezhnev helped out a bit with that
4. So what? At different points in history someone has always had the best military in the world. Does that means every one of those countries was exceptional?

lol couldnt said it better myself

 

[ZeletDude]

Britain.

Defeated the French and saved Europe... three times
Colonised over a third of the planet.
Invented Democracy
Maintained the best military in the world for two centuries, and defeated colonial terrorism and extreme fascism

I was going to post this almost exactly.

Defeated the Germans and saved Europe....twice
Put a man on the moon
Defeated Communism
Maintains the best military in the world, that even today is defeating terrorism and extreme Islam

Yes America is has a long list of achievements, and is unmatched by any other nation.

WW1 err no, WW2, gotta say yes there..

Moon, Yeah..

Err no.

Err, I guess.....

 

[Lord of Elves]

American exceptionalism is nonsense. Rule Britannia was written as a commemoration for the victory of the free, upwardly-mobile, hard-working, liberty-loving Protestant society of England over Papist tyranny in Rome (ergo, "... Never, never, never, never shall be slaves"), in large part the "Founding Fathers" that actually were involved of the post-independence politics hated each other, the United States' track record with Native American groups makes it just as guilty of colonial/racial atrocity as any European power, American military pre-eminence is a new phenomenon, the First World War does not qualify for the epic struggle of "good and evil" that people invoke in the Second, and the importance of American participation is exaggerated in both.

USA #1

 

[Leoreth]

Defeated the Germans and saved Europe....twice
Put a man on the moon
Defeated Communism
Maintains the best military in the world, that even today is defeating terrorism and extreme Islam

Yes America is has a long list of achievements, and is unmatched by any other nation.

There once was a time were I would've given you all of that.*

But that's not the USA of today, and its nationalism is increasingly relying on the glorification of past achievements instead of current ones just like any other nation's nationalism.

*except the last part, that's almost ridiculous.

 

[bombshoo]

Every nation has certain things that make them exceptional, the USA might even have more than most, but since we are a relatively young nation, whether any of them will matter waits to be seen. Though of course this depends on your definition on what matters, which as far as I can see, is strictly based opinion.

 

[The_Tyrant]

There once was a time were I would've given you all of that.

But that's not the USA of today, and its nationalism is increasingly relying on the glorification of past achievements instead of current ones just like any other nation's nationalism.

I would have to agree with you there. Today's America can not compare to the FDR, Kennedy, Reagan years. Heck, we were even better under Clinton. Nevertheless, we still have the largest and most advanced military around that is promoting democracy in countries that desperately need it.

 

[Ahovking]

I would have to agree with you there. Today's America can not compare to the FDR, Kennedy, Reagan years. Heck, we were even better under Clinton. Nevertheless, we still have the largest and most advanced military around that is promoting democracy in countries that desperately need it.

Congressional Budget Office 2011 LONG-TERM BUDGET OUTLOOK say by 2021 the U.s.a debt will either to most of the annual gross domestic product or to nearly twice the economic power of the U.S., but the U.s does not have the largest millinery in the world because that title belongs the china and most advanced military...... the us has so much debt that modern weapons like the f-35 and so on are often joint project between nations like the USA, Britain, Australia and Canada and for that nations like Australia, Israel and Great Britain has as advanced and modern as the U.s.a and all these nation's (Australia, the U.S.A Canada and great Britain) are also promoting democracy in countries that desperately need it as well ur not the only ones that are in the middle is you know once again a joint project to promote democracy by the western nations

 

[Hitti-Litti]

Put a man on the moon

USSR put a man in space.

Defeated Communism

China?

Maintains the best military in the world, that even today is defeating terrorism and extreme Islam

Defeating terrorism? You realize that Islamist terrorism is only a fraction of the terrorism worldwide? Also you don't seem to be too keen on fighting extreme Islam when it doesn't give you immediate financial benefits: Muammar Gaddafi is your nemesis at the moment, but you're ok with the Muslim Brotherhood taking over Egypt after the revolution earlier this year.

In Strategic implications, there really is no comparison. Stalingrad meant a particular salient was cut back, not strategically important to the Germans (which is why it was a stupid idea in the first place).

Ever heard of the oil in Caucasus, behind Stalingrad?

 

[Atticus]

Moderator Action: Discussion about US's part in defeating Germany in WW2 moved to the World History. LINK.

May I suggest that in this thread we assume that US had part in Germany's defeat, but SU and England did equal, or almost equal part. While this may not be the actual case, American exceptionalism can't lie solely on that thought.

 

[Camikaze]

The definition that is being used in the OP seems to largely focus on the historical uniqueness of the US. And it's fair to say that in some ways America has been quite exceptional. And probably fair to say that perhaps, say, 200 years ago, the US could claim exceptionality in its form. But it's one of many nowadays in that regard. 'American exceptionalism' conjures up a worldview that isn't described in the OP. Whether this is a hijacking of the original intent of the idea or not, I don't know, but it's certainly not an idea that I would think is very accurate to prescribe to.

 

[Ajidica]

WW1 err no, WW2, gotta say yes there..

Not to send the thread too far into OT, but American involvement in WWI was quite important. After the Russians pulled out of the war, it was highly likely the Germans could have at least gotten a peace treaty in their favor. American involvement made that impossible. Germany could have taken on the French/British troops, but not the new American troops.