CDZ Why do Conservatives believe that America is no longer great?

[Syriusly]

Donald Trump's major talking point is that America is no longer great- so why do Conservatives believe America is no longer great?

When do Conservatives believe America stopped being great?

 

[Tank]

Liberals have never thought America has been great

 

[Steven_R]

When I could no longer buy lawn darts or a gas can that works. Seriously, when it became clear that every single aspect of my life in now over-regulated by some bureaucrats. Throw in agendas and agencies with unending power like the EPA.

 

[D Truth]

The 60's I guess. I wasn't around then but apparently "they" decided that America was bad. Coincidentally, the men who would have kicked the shit out of them were busy in a meat grinder called vietnam at the time. Commies are just that type of cockroach I guess. And yeah, must agree with the so called "liberal view" pointed out by first post... apparently the "liberal" side had a particular hatred for Americans since the 60's.

First post best post.

 

[baileyn45]

Donald Trump's major talking point is that America is no longer great- so why do Conservatives believe America is no longer great?

When do Conservatives believe America stopped being great?

How about when we stopped being able to pay the bills without other countries sending us money? Or maybe when it became impossible to start a business without 3 lawyers and 4 ex-govt officials? Maybe when some genius decided it was a schools job to teaching morality and ethics instead of critical thinking? I could go on.

 

[C_Clayton_Jones]

Donald Trump's major talking point is that America is no longer great- so why do Conservatives believe America is no longer great?

When do Conservatives believe America stopped being great?

It's part of the conservative gloom 'n' doom misery offensive; they believe – incorrectly – that if they repeat the lie that American is no longer great often enough some Americans will come to believe it, that such a lie will reflect poorly on the president and democratic candidates, resulting in voters rejecting democratic candidates this November.

It's further evidence of the fact that republicans have nothing of value or merit to offer the American people, just lies, personal attacks, and the politics of fear – such as the lie that America is 'no longer great.'

 

[Slyhunter]

importing more than we export.
People aren't scared of us anymore. If they feared our military they would be easier to deal with.
Poor education standards.
If you worked hard you had a chance to buy a home before. Now your lucky to afford a bed and breakfast.
It used to be special to be an American. Now we are letting everyone in and destroying our country doing so.

 

[Mac1958]

It's not exactly news that the party out of Presidential power rattles off the negatives of the country. Come on, folks, this is silly.

And all you get from Sanders' stump speech is negatives that he wants to fix. This, with a Democrat in the White House.

And speaking of today's Democrats, why would someone want so much to "fundamentally change" something they love? They wouldn't.

Partisans are funny.
.

 

[Syriusly]

Liberals have never thought America has been great

This is the clean debate zone- do you have any actual response to the topic?

As a proud liberal, I have always thought America to be a great country- it was when I was born- it still is.

Do you think America is great- and if not- why?

Have you always thought America is not great?

If you at one time thought America was great- when and why did you change your mind?

 

[Syriusly]

Donald Trump's major talking point is that America is no longer great- so why do Conservatives believe America is no longer great?

When do Conservatives believe America stopped being great?

How about when we stopped being able to pay the bills without other countries sending us money? Or maybe when it became impossible to start a business without 3 lawyers and 4 ex-govt officials? Maybe when some genius decided it was a schools job to teaching morality and ethics instead of critical thinking? I could go on.

Please do- when exactly did the scales tip so you now no longer think of the United States as a great country?

 

[Syriusly]

importing more than we export.
People aren't scared of us anymore. If they feared our military they would be easier to deal with.
Poor education standards.
If you worked hard you had a chance to buy a home before. Now your lucky to afford a bed and breakfast.
It used to be special to be an American. Now we are letting everyone in and destroying our country doing so.

Okay- you gave us something concrete to go by.

• "Importing more than we export"- we have been importing more than we export since 1976 United States Balance of Trade | 1950-2016 | Data | Chart | Calendar
• "People aren't scared of us anymore"- that change happened after Vietnam. Perhaps it changed when it appeared to the world that the United States invaded Iraq simply to depose Sadam Hussein- but really the change happened after Vietnam. Perhaps even further back- since both China and the Soviet Union were not scared to support the invasion of South Korea- you may have to go back to the end of WW2
• "Poor education standards"- that is largely a state by state issue- and I believe that the usual Conservative mantra is that the United States should stay out of education and leave that to the states. It is interesting to see what countries perform better than the United States- and some of the factors why Global grade: How do U.S. students compare? | GreatKids
• "If you worked hard you had a chance to buy a home before"- this is the issue I agree with you the most on- the rising cost of housing- in many parts of the United States- I would pinpoint the optimal era for owning a home with a single income was in the 1960's.
  
• "it used to be special to be an American"- have you traveled outside the United States? It is still special to be an American- showing an American passport is amazingly powerful in much of the world. Being an American is still to be very special- which is why so many people want to be Americans.

How do you think our country is being 'destroyed'?

• importing more than we export.

 

[320 Years of History]

When I could no longer buy lawn darts or a gas can that works. Seriously, when it became clear that every single aspect of my life in now over-regulated by some bureaucrats. Throw in agendas and agencies with unending power like the EPA.

Dude! Who the heck are you? Where do you live? What in God's name are you trying to do? Sure from time to time I encounter a government regulation that is an irritant, but is "every single aspect of my life in now over-regulated?" Not even close. How could I not think America is a great place? I've:

• Paid my taxes and have money left to enjoy life.
• Raised three kids who've never wanted for thing.
• Been educated in some of the best schools and universities on the planet.
• Enjoy a rewarding and interesting career, one that is entirely of my choosing.
• Bought/built homes in four states.
• Have access to among the best health care to be had.
• Travel the country and the globe weekly.
• Eat a variety of foods from burgers and fries to delicacies from around the world, all in the U.S.
• Party like it's 1999 and 1979 at will.
• Walk America's streets in fear of nobody and nothing.
• Bitch and moan about nearly every injustice I see, and neither I nor my family suffer legally, socially or politically for it. (other than headaches and sadness from the BS I see on this site)
• Have never been wrongfully accused of a crime.
• Not once had to worry about the horrors of war, pestilence or famine happening in my backyard.

I think some folks just sit around looking for stuff to gripe about and upon finding it infer that the whole nation has gone to hell in a handbasket. Nothing could be farther from the truth. The U.S. has its problems, that's for sure, but not great, not by a long shot!!

 

[PredFan]

America is still the greatest country. However, it has fallen from its previous stature.

Why isn't it as great as it was?

We lose wars, we are too dependant on government, our politicians lie to us and spend too much money. We betray our allies and kiss our enemies asses. We hardly manufacture anything ourselvee anymore, we stopped going into space on our own, our president runs around apologizing to other countries. Our borders are porous and our laws are ignored. Our education system is in ruins and our children are getting less and less educated. More and more people are out of work, our debt is so high it may never get repaid. All of the progress we made in race relations has been wiped out.

And a large portion of the population are so ignorant, so lacking in education and critical thinking that they are actually concidering a socialist for president.

 

[sartre play]

There are no conservatives.We don't vote in great numbers starting at the local level. we pick a side not looking at both sides of an issue. we let big money choice for us. we run on our fears, not our intelligence. look at the world and compare, we are doing & have more than most.

 

[SingleVoyce]

America is still the greatest country. However, it has fallen from its previous stature.

Why isn't it as great as it was?

We lose wars, we are too dependant on government, our politicians lie to us and spend too much money. We betray our allies and kiss our enemies asses. We hardly manufacture anything ourselvee anymore, we stopped going into space on our own, our president runs around apologizing to other countries. Our borders are porous and our laws are ignored. Our education system is in ruins and our children are getting less and less educated. More and more people are out of work, our debt is so high it may never get repaid. All of the progress we made in race relations has been wiped out.

And a large portion of the population are so ignorant, so lacking in education and critical thinking that they are actually concidering a socialist for president.

I would say that the people who are most lacking in critical thinking capability are those who are voting for a bombastic carnival barker who has no real ideas for solving problems but is claiming he will make America "great again". Do you believe that there is a country in the world that is currently "greater" than the USA? If so, what standards do you apply to make that determination?

 

[PredFan]

America is still the greatest country. However, it has fallen from its previous stature.

Why isn't it as great as it was?

We lose wars, we are too dependant on government, our politicians lie to us and spend too much money. We betray our allies and kiss our enemies asses. We hardly manufacture anything ourselvee anymore, we stopped going into space on our own, our president runs around apologizing to other countries. Our borders are porous and our laws are ignored. Our education system is in ruins and our children are getting less and less educated. More and more people are out of work, our debt is so high it may never get repaid. All of the progress we made in race relations has been wiped out.

And a large portion of the population are so ignorant, so lacking in education and critical thinking that they are actually concidering a socialist for president.

I would say that the people who are most lacking in critical thinking capability are those who are voting for a bombastic carnival barker who has no real ideas for solving problems but is claiming he will make America "great again". Do you believe that there is a country in the world that is currently "greater" than the USA? If so, what standards do you apply to make that determination?

If you had bothered to read my post, you would have already seen where I stated that we were the greatest country in the world. I just pointed out that we once were greater.

I might agree that Trump supporters need to put forth a little critical thinking.

 

[SingleVoyce]

America is still the greatest country. However, it has fallen from its previous stature.

Why isn't it as great as it was?

We lose wars, we are too dependant on government, our politicians lie to us and spend too much money. We betray our allies and kiss our enemies asses. We hardly manufacture anything ourselvee anymore, we stopped going into space on our own, our president runs around apologizing to other countries. Our borders are porous and our laws are ignored. Our education system is in ruins and our children are getting less and less educated. More and more people are out of work, our debt is so high it may never get repaid. All of the progress we made in race relations has been wiped out.

And a large portion of the population are so ignorant, so lacking in education and critical thinking that they are actually concidering a socialist for president.

I would say that the people who are most lacking in critical thinking capability are those who are voting for a bombastic carnival barker who has no real ideas for solving problems but is claiming he will make America "great again". Do you believe that there is a country in the world that is currently "greater" than the USA? If so, what standards do you apply to make that determination?

If you had bothered to read my post, you would have already seen where I stated that we were the greatest country in the world. I just pointed out that we once were greater.

I might agree that Trump supporters need to put forth a little critical thinking.

Do you have any specific metrics that would show that America is less great than it was?

 

[Nosmo King]

The target voter among Conservatives is older, whiter, poorer and less educated. To such people, the fear that they are losing political power, demographic power and social power is very real. The easiest way to pander to them is to tell them that America is no longer a great place to live and work. They believe that because they are living that.

But it's a charade of the first order. Sure, the demographic power of the older, whiter poorer citizen is shifting. But that does not reflect America in the larger sense.

The calls set forth by demagogues like Trump and Cruz and talk radio "pundits" reinforce the fears some folks hold. Divide and conquer is the grander strategy. Make "others" exactly that; others. Not like us, different and therefore inferior. Not the noblest of campaign rhetoric, but who said Trump and Cruz wer noble souls?

It's a time tested way to campaign. It just resonates louder in today's multi-media landscape.

 

[PredFan]

America is still the greatest country. However, it has fallen from its previous stature.

Why isn't it as great as it was?

We lose wars, we are too dependant on government, our politicians lie to us and spend too much money. We betray our allies and kiss our enemies asses. We hardly manufacture anything ourselvee anymore, we stopped going into space on our own, our president runs around apologizing to other countries. Our borders are porous and our laws are ignored. Our education system is in ruins and our children are getting less and less educated. More and more people are out of work, our debt is so high it may never get repaid. All of the progress we made in race relations has been wiped out.

And a large portion of the population are so ignorant, so lacking in education and critical thinking that they are actually concidering a socialist for president.

I would say that the people who are most lacking in critical thinking capability are those who are voting for a bombastic carnival barker who has no real ideas for solving problems but is claiming he will make America "great again". Do you believe that there is a country in the world that is currently "greater" than the USA? If so, what standards do you apply to make that determination?

If you had bothered to read my post, you would have already seen where I stated that we were the greatest country in the world. I just pointed out that we once were greater.

I might agree that Trump supporters need to put forth a little critical thinking.

Do you have any specific metrics that would show that America is less great than it was?

I listed them. Did you not read my post AT ALL?

 

[Correll]

The target voter among Conservatives is older, whiter, poorer and less educated. To such people, the fear that they are losing political power, demographic power and social power is very real. The easiest way to pander to them is to tell them that America is no longer a great place to live and work. They believe that because they are living that.

But it's a charade of the first order. Sure, the demographic power of the older, whiter poorer citizen is shifting. But that does not reflect America in the larger sense.

The calls set forth by demagogues like Trump and Cruz and talk radio "pundits" reinforce the fears some folks hold. Divide and conquer is the grander strategy. Make "others" exactly that; others. Not like us, different and therefore inferior. Not the noblest of campaign rhetoric, but who said Trump and Cruz wer noble souls?

It's a time tested way to campaign. It just resonates louder in today's multi-media landscape.

The interests of the White Working Class has NOT been effective represented in Washington for quite some time.

Even Reagan was more of a Free Trade Ideology than a Nationalist when it came to those interests.

The "charade" is that these concerns are not well founded.

A large and ill served demographic? Any sensible politician would target them.