Dinner Table Debate: Is This a Great Contry or What?

Here’s another family debate that should get them talking and thinking.    You can start things along by throwing out words that others have used to describe Americans ---some good and some not so good:

Freedom-loving     Materialistic
Idealistic                   Arrogant
Hard-working          Aggressive
Independent            Unsophisticated
Traditional               Rebellious

Which words do they think best describe us?   If they could only describe America with three words, what would they be?
You can also ask them during this discussion:
• Do they think America is still a special place?
• Do immigrants have more or less opportunities than they once had?

Many of our enemies abroad say America is a force for evil in the world. And some here at home, seem to agree.
• But then why are millions of people still trying so hard to come here?
• Isn’t this a contradiction? What do they think? 

Comments

[John Dayner]

Since we're all so proud of our country, it would be nice if you had the word country spelled correctly in the headline for this article...

[C Radtke]

The phrase "is this a great country or what?" gets used a lot at our house. I like talking to my 10 yr old son about current events and comparing the way Americans do things to they way other countries operate. We always end up agreeing that it's better to live here than "there" then we'll say our line..."is this a great country or what!"

It's a fun way for him to keep up with the world around him, learn about other countries, and a great way to establish communication habits between us.

[James Thaler]

Dear Mr. Russert,
We had never heard Bernard Goldberg speak before seeing him on your CNBC program, but now that we have, we're recommending his book to our book club. He addresses the very issues that are of utmost concern to so many Americans.

We wonder when it became OK for the airwaves to be saturated with vile language which demeans all of humanity. Evidently it IS OK in the eyes of the media, as increasingly more mainstream programs are incorporating objectionable content. NBC is even allowing it to creep into The Today Show, with journalist David Gregory enthusiastically joining in on lowering the standards.

Mr. Goldberg verified what is getting to be quite obvious...that the media elite consider the coarsening of the culture to be no big deal. One has to wonder about their ability to simply connect the dots and see the real world ramifications of what they're calling entertainment. Are they any better than drug dealers who profit from putting others at risk? Their programming normalizes....even glamorizes having babies without the benefit of marriage or the presence of a father.

Statistics show that this is the path to poverty and all of the accompanying problems. Bernard Goldberg's observation is quite astute...government didn't create this and can't fix it. The media DID create it and though they could fix it, they prefer to continue to profit from this sad state of affairs.

The media portrays families as fractured units and parents as sex crazed single individuals who are disrespected by their children. Unmarried mothers are characterized as the norm. The music industry features women as mere "bitches" and "hos". Mr. Goldberg is like the child who is not afraid to say that the Emperor Wears No Clothes. He appears to be the only media person not wearing rose colored glasses.

With 80% of the media voting for Democrats, the charge of media bias is indeed plausible. Liberals seem to feel that crossing boundaries is synonymous with progress. Rather than considering why the boundary is there, they charge into that which they call "edgy". The edge of what....the breakdown of the family as the foundation of society? Kudos to Mr. Goldberg!