CDZ We're Americans, we deserve it

[Wyatt earp]

Thanks for starting this, like I pointed out in the other thread, I would rather pay $200 bucks for a high quality American made pair of jeans in White oaks, NC then a low quality one for $60 bucks made in Thailand.

Some Americans don't get that they are part of the reason why jobs moved offshore, big company's gave you what you wanted....cheap stuff.

With income equality so bad, lots of people have trouble coming up with 16 bucks for a cheap pair of walmart jeans. You gonna blame them for jobs being moved off shore because they can't afford 200 dollar jeans?

I have been asking this question for years on these political forums...

What came first?
Floyd the barber shop, Sam the butcher with high wages

Or

Big box stores with low wages?

I remember thinking as a kid driving by the dodge plant in Illinois and seeing so many foreign cars in the employee parking lot, I thought to myself if you workers don't by dodge why should we?

 

[midcan5]

"Something is profoundly wrong with the way we live today. For thirty years we have made a virtue out of the pursuit of material self-interest: indeed, this very pursuit now constitutes whatever remains of our sense of collective purpose. We know what things cost but have no idea what they are worth. We no longer ask of a judicial ruling or a legislative act: is it good? Is it fair? Is it just? Is it right? Will it help bring about a better society or a better world? Those used to be the political questions, even if they invited no easy answers. We must learn once again to pose them." Tony Judt 'Ill Fares the Land'

 

[BULLDOG]

Fulfillment and cherished moments are important just as soon as you make sure your kids have shoes and a full belly and a warm bed to sleep in, but with the fall of the middle class, fewer and fewer people have that luxury, and if they still do, it's getting harder to maintain it. It's easy to look at one section of society and judge all America's problems by that one, but there is no one simple answer. Narcissism is certainly a problem with one of the groups in this country, but it is hardly the biggest problem or the biggest group.

 

[PK1]

Also, this media / consumerist driven FULL ON MARKETING, YEA!! culture, versus a culture more focused on art & empathy, raising a family and focusing on ENJOYING life?.....................Hardcore Capitalism baby. Capitalism or die, whose montra is that, what are we going with..... the left? Millenials?

I don't think so.

And now milennials are born into Pepsi McDonalds world and take part in it while subconsciously feeling dirty about it.....and they take active steps to ENJOY LIFE better...............................and that comes off as lazy?

Who are the real narcissists?

What pamphlet says that being human means becoming a slave to the machine, the 60-hour work week no family time? The baby boomer conservatives' pamphlet says that.

Time for humans to use their brains and get fulfillment out of life, cherish their moments, instead of this odd appeal to feeding the machine that they were born into.

---
Actually, US America is not the only corporate culture that encourages 60-hr work weeks (with 2-3 weeks/yr vacation, maybe); those schedules are common in Asia and Latin America.
However, many USA workers are encouraged to make additional money to buy bigger houses, cars, and toys over their personal/family's overall health development in a "humane" social environment.
Many workers in other countries have to work hard just to get by.

As far as intellectual/personal "fulfillment" is concerned, I believe international travel is even better education than academia, if one does not stay in fancy hotels, but explores common urban areas and nature beyond human environments.

 

[Flopper]

I may be in the minority on this, but I think that most (and I do mean most) of our problems are cultural at their root. And to go deeper into that, it seems to me that we are becoming more and more narcissistic and self-obsessed and entitled - the Selfie Generation (I coined that phrase, incidentally, and expect royalties).

And that doesn't just mean entitled to "government handouts". It holds true on the other side of the spectrum, too. Just because we were lucky enough to be born here, we act like we're entitled to bigger cars, bigger homes, bigger televisions, the newest and best phones, more stuff, on and on.

So I googled "narcissistic entitled American culture" and found some pretty interesting stuff, links below.

Do you feel entitled to more goodies? And here's what I'd really like to know: Isn't happiness and quality of life the goal, rather than the accumulation of stuff? And what kind of children are we raising as a result?

Narcissism Epidemic Why There Are So Many Narcissists Now - US News
America the Narcissist The Common Vision
Me me me America s Narcissism Epidemic - TODAY.com
Narcissism On the Rise in America Dr. Jim Taylor

.

When parents spend their every hour of the day toward attainment of goodies, the child learns by example that this should be their goal in life.

 

[Mac1958]

I may be in the minority on this, but I think that most (and I do mean most) of our problems are cultural at their root. And to go deeper into that, it seems to me that we are becoming more and more narcissistic and self-obsessed and entitled - the Selfie Generation (I coined that phrase, incidentally, and expect royalties).

And that doesn't just mean entitled to "government handouts". It holds true on the other side of the spectrum, too. Just because we were lucky enough to be born here, we act like we're entitled to bigger cars, bigger homes, bigger televisions, the newest and best phones, more stuff, on and on.

So I googled "narcissistic entitled American culture" and found some pretty interesting stuff, links below.

Do you feel entitled to more goodies? And here's what I'd really like to know: Isn't happiness and quality of life the goal, rather than the accumulation of stuff? And what kind of children are we raising as a result?

Narcissism Epidemic Why There Are So Many Narcissists Now - US News
America the Narcissist The Common Vision
Me me me America s Narcissism Epidemic - TODAY.com
Narcissism On the Rise in America Dr. Jim Taylor

.

When parents spend their every hour of the day toward attainment of goodies, the child learns by example that this should be their goal in life.

Yes, the ways children are raised now no doubt contribute in many ways, and that's one of the reasons that this is a cultural issue.

.

 

[PK1]

I may be in the minority on this, but I think that most (and I do mean most) of our problems are cultural at their root. And to go deeper into that, it seems to me that we are becoming more and more narcissistic and self-obsessed and entitled - the Selfie Generation (I coined that phrase, incidentally, and expect royalties).

And that doesn't just mean entitled to "government handouts". It holds true on the other side of the spectrum, too. Just because we were lucky enough to be born here, we act like we're entitled to bigger cars, bigger homes, bigger televisions, the newest and best phones, more stuff, on and on.

So I googled "narcissistic entitled American culture" and found some pretty interesting stuff, links below.

Do you feel entitled to more goodies? And here's what I'd really like to know: Isn't happiness and quality of life the goal, rather than the accumulation of stuff? And what kind of children are we raising as a result?

Narcissism Epidemic Why There Are So Many Narcissists Now - US News
America the Narcissist The Common Vision
Me me me America s Narcissism Epidemic - TODAY.com
Narcissism On the Rise in America Dr. Jim Taylor

.

When parents spend their every hour of the day toward attainment of goodies, the child learns by example that this should be their goal in life.

---
Not always, but a parent's lifestyle definitely has influence as a model.
Nowadays, families seem to have less influence than peers and business marketing & internet, which may be even worse.

The antidote?
Comprehensive education with emphasis on independent critical thinking skills and personal experience ... including international travel.

 

[quorthon]

** takes 50 selfie **
* deletes 49 *
** stares at one selfie until it gets ugly **
* deletes that one too *

 

[Flopper]

I may be in the minority on this, but I think that most (and I do mean most) of our problems are cultural at their root. And to go deeper into that, it seems to me that we are becoming more and more narcissistic and self-obsessed and entitled - the Selfie Generation (I coined that phrase, incidentally, and expect royalties).

And that doesn't just mean entitled to "government handouts". It holds true on the other side of the spectrum, too. Just because we were lucky enough to be born here, we act like we're entitled to bigger cars, bigger homes, bigger televisions, the newest and best phones, more stuff, on and on.

So I googled "narcissistic entitled American culture" and found some pretty interesting stuff, links below.

Do you feel entitled to more goodies? And here's what I'd really like to know: Isn't happiness and quality of life the goal, rather than the accumulation of stuff? And what kind of children are we raising as a result?

Narcissism Epidemic Why There Are So Many Narcissists Now - US News
America the Narcissist The Common Vision
Me me me America s Narcissism Epidemic - TODAY.com
Narcissism On the Rise in America Dr. Jim Taylor

.

When parents spend their every hour of the day toward attainment of goodies, the child learns by example that this should be their goal in life.

---
Not always, but a parent's lifestyle definitely has influence as a model.
Nowadays, families seem to have less influence than peers and business marketing & internet, which may be even worse.

The antidote?
Comprehensive education with emphasis on independent critical thinking skills and personal experience ... including international travel.

Teaching kids to think for themselves and evaluate the reasons given by others is not an easy task for most teachers. I think the Socratic method is a wonderful tool when used properly.