Glen Contrarian
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Trump's slogan is "Make America Great Again", so the obvious inference is that America is not great now, but once was greater than she is now. So when was America greater than she is now, and why?
This should have been multiple choice so we could select several ranges.
Of course, one needs to say, what "great" is to mean in the context, but it is hard to think of a time, when the US was more powerful or wealthier than today, was more alert to equal rights or had a population with so much buying power. The other side of the coin is that our population is hysterical and the Constitution is loosing the level of protection it should afford citizens from government interference.
No, our population is not hysterical - but a certain portion of it is. And despite the Patriot Act and all the other "attacks on our freedoms", when was there a time when the American people - ALL the American people (and not just white males) were more free than today?
Trump's slogan is "Make America Great Again", so the obvious inference is that America is not great now, but once was greater than she is now. So when was America greater than she is now, and why?
What ranges were when America was greater than today?
As an outsider, I would say that it would be the early 50s to the middle 60s. That was the US glory days.. dragging it self and the world out of a ditch, but then it went slowly the wrong way. Before WW2 the US was nothing, and since Nixon it has been in steady decline politically and economically. The real decline started with Reagan and excelerated with Bush 2. It fits the pattern of all empires, just in a much smaller time frame.
As an outsider, I would say that it would be the early 50s to the middle 60s. That was the US glory days.. dragging it self and the world out of a ditch, but then it went slowly the wrong way. Before WW2 the US was nothing, and since Nixon it has been in steady decline politically and economically. The real decline started with Reagan and excelerated with Bush 2. It fits the pattern of all empires, just in a much smaller time frame.
Ah, you were doing so well. I think the first half of your post is exactly right--the 40's, the 50's and the early 60's would strike me as the most nostalgic period of modern American history. The decline, of course, started with Johnson (whom you liberals always conveniently forget to mention). Vietnam was his war, and the turmoil that war caused is what started the decline.
Yes and no. The decline came because of the loss in Vietnam and the mental blockage that happened after this. Reagan got the US out of the mental blockage, but created an economic policy that has lead to massive debt and economic decline for the majority of the American population.
I think we are as great as we have ever been. We have had the only major developed economy on earth with consistent growth since the Financial Crisis. We are still the world's only superpower and spend more on defense than the next several nations combined. Our crime rates are much lower than they have been in the past, our quality of life is still one of the best in the world. Some people would bitch if they were hung with a new rope..
What ranges were when America was greater than today?
We are the only developed country lacking universal health care with over 35 million uninsured. We have had little economic growth for most people for more than 10 years, perhaps 35 years. Our inequality grows annually. Crime, after years of dropping, is on the increase. Racial tensions and general social alienation is at the highest point since the 60s. We have been engaged in numerous wars overseas for 13 years, without a stop. Families are falling apart. Our quality of life, compared to the rest of the world, has been dropping.
Interesting take.
The US played a rather significant role to bring an end to WW1.
By 1915, the US produced almost 1/3rd of the worlds industrial output.
Yet you claim the US was nothing prior to WWII.
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