If you could sum up all that is wrong with contemporary America into one phrase what would it be?

[Locut0s]

As a Canadian I am not qualified to answer this question but I'll give my answer anyway.

"Lack of exposure, on a grand scale."

I want to say education but the more I think about it the more that doesn't quite fit. True I believe education is one of the keystones to the solution. But more than anything it's about taking those mental blinders off and EXPOSING ones self to the world. Now education can indeed help but it's about more, or perhaps I should say less, than that. When I was 2 years old my parents took me to like in the far east. From the time I was 2 to the time I was 6 I lived all over China, Malaysia, and Taiwan. As far as education goes ALL of my formal education occurred in the years after this living here in Vancouver Canada. Let me tell you those 4 years were easily more instrumental in the formation of my political leanings and sense of compassion than anything that followed in succeeding 20+ years. I don't even have any really solid memories of my time there. Only, and this is the KEY, a vastly expanded emotional baseline for what we like to call "normal". It's one thing to be taught about different modes of thought and analysis, foreign cultures and their practises, different political structures etc... it's another thing to live it.

I am NOT saying here that one needs to have lived abroad to be politically open minded. What I'm saying is that I feel that having done so I'm at one end of the spectrum and being here I can see clearly the people at the other end. Education is VITAL but what good does it do someone who has never developed at least some form of emotional structure on which to incorporate this knowledge. What good does learning world history do you when your own "world history" going back to your birth encompass nothing more than the 10 blocks surrounding your suburban home, the local mall, church, and a smattering of family hangouts around town. Does learning about black history or Latin American history REALLY help that much when your only experience with other cultures is 'Juan' who comes to cut your lawn at 3 bucks and hour?

What these people need is a serious eye opener. It may not be legal but sometimes I feel the best thing they could do for these people would be one year of forced "integration". One year uprooted from small town Red State America spent living in New York, Beijing, Paris, Rome et al. This is fantasy I know but seriously I think the fundamental problem is one of a lack of exposure.

[hobbit709]

1. The stupid-it burns.

[Locut0s]

3. Short an succinct. But seriously my point isn't these people are stupid, it's thatt hey are ignorant

[hobbit709]

32. Willful ignorance is stupid.

Ignorance just lacks knowledge but willful ignorance is just stupid and then some.

[salguine]

40. No, I've given a lot of thought to it, and can only conclude that this country has

a staggering number of stupid people in it. Ignorant people can be taught, but stupid is forever. Anyone who wants to "keep the government out of Medicare" is too fucking stupid to live. You could argue that it's ignorance—i.e., "this person doesn't realize that Medicare IS a government program, and only needs to be informed of that fact", but that's powerfully ignorant, and I think once ignorance becomes deep enough, it crosses into stupid.

[Locut0s]

43. Ok right they are stupid but my point is....

They weren't raised properly. That's what I think needs to change. These people need to grow up in a different environment. When it's possible for a large percentage of the population to believe the earth is 5000 years old, that angels are real entities, that god speaks to their president and he is going his bidding, well then you have a bigger problem than just being stupid. You have a structural problem with your society.

[Stinky The Clown]

2. The overt celebration of willfull ignorance

[Matariki]

4. The American Media

[Locut0s]

6. Good one. That's easil neck and neck with what I posted.

[politicat]

5. Cultivated ignorance as virtue.

Exposure to the rest of the world does no good if being ignorant is something to be proud of.

[1Hippiechick]

7. IGNORANCE and APATHY (although one doesn't have to be ignorant to be apathetic) n/t

[MrModerate]

8. Fanaticism yoked to greed. It's not often reduced to that, but . . .

If you look at the rightwing leaders and followers over the last few years -- and in particular since Obama's inauguration -- it's obvious that they've abandoned any sort of sensible opposition to policies they don't agree with and descended into fundamentalist extremism. Most of America just wants to keep on keeping on, and hopefully see some of societies problems resolved or mitigated. But for the wingers everything is a call to the barricades and an assault on their dearest principles.

Of course it's not. But that's how it's played.

And meanwhile, in the background, the uber-rich continue the transfer of wealth from the middle class to themselves that's been the dominant feature of the world economy over the past couple of decades and continues to accelerate. Sometimes institutionalized social looting blows up in the faces of the looters and they're forced to turn to the rest of us to pay for tidying things up. But nothing interrupts their rapacious accumulation of wealth to a degree that would make Marcos blush.

And we're all vulnerable to increasingly crazy social policies that are the West's version of Sharia law creeping into our jurisprudence, while our pockets are picked and our bank accounts sucked dry by those who pull the strings on our political puppets.

[SammyWinstonJack]

45. +1 nt

[coyotespaw]

9. Style over substance...

and not much style at that.

[depakid]

10. Culture of lies

Dishonesty has become not only acceptable in the states, but people are routinely rewarded for it.

[Eric68601]

11. Republicans

[KG]

12. two-party political system.

[atreides1]

13. One phrase

"A cluster fuck"

How's that?

[RagAss]

14. 85 is the new 100 IQ

[Champion Jack]

15. AMERICA: The Arrogant Dumb

[gmacg]

16. Educationism and Organized religion nt

[Homer Wells]

17. FEAR!!!!!!!!

Pretty much says it all.

[glowing]

18. I've said that as well. I think it should be required as part of a h.s diploma,

to live in another country for just a month... or even just a city if you live in the country or country if you live in the city. People don't understand what to demand for if they don't know what things are better. Anyone who travels to Europe will come back and look at their car and cry that they now have to drive to the store or to the bar or what not.. the transportation is amazing in Europe. I feel badly when young people come to America and its not a major metro area they chose.. and they think they will be able to use public transportation to get them around to see America. They are surprised at how shitty this aspect is and cannot understand why we don't have the best in the richest country. Its eye opening in all countries. More people need to travel and experience different to gain some respect and empathy for other people and things.

[mwb970]

19. Conservatives. /nt

[Bobbieo]

21. Our penchant for believing the worst in everyone!

[Hannah Bell]

20. Because 10% don't have jobs. and half of those who do make less than $15/hr.

maybe they'd behave more like the upper classes if you paid them upper-class money.

[ejpoeta]

22. willful ignorance. that is what's wrong.

[NashVegas]

23. Moral Decay

When it comes to the qualities of honesty, integrity, and looking out for your fellow (wo/)man.

Not only do we, as a whole, value these qualities in ourselves, but when we see them in another we go on the attack.

[mod mom]

24. materialism

[RKP5637]

25. Ignorance has become a virtue worn as a badge of honor.

[ThomWV]

26. Hubris

[KillCapitalism]

27. One word...

CAPITALISM

[pampango]

28. Not understanding that "we're all in this together".

It applies to hyper-individualists (and hyper-nationalists) who believe that an individual prospers or fails regardless of the health of the society around them (or that the US prospers or fails regardless of the health of the world around it). Hyper-individualists see each person as an island to succeed or fail on their own. Hyper-nationalists see the US as an island (at least, economically) to succeed or fail on its own.

The US is so big and a history of being geographically, and often politically, isolated from events in the rest of the world, our culture is different from Europeans, as an example, who have learned the hard way that politics and prosperity/poverty in one country can affect you in another country even though you have a wall (physical or legal) to keep out foreigners and their stuff. Since WWII Europe has reacted by toning down hyper-individualism with national health care, strong social safety nets, and effective market regulation. They have also toned down hyper-nationalism by creating and expanding the European Union with its open borders and free trade among European countries.

If you live in a small country or surrounded by many other countries, you realize that the rest of the world affects the quality of your life, so it is is wise to get to know how the rest of the world thinks and acts. Americans have never really had to learn that lesson, at least not until the last 30 or 40 years when the rest of the world recovered from WWII and could produce and export their stuff to us. Most of us disdain the concept of "American exceptionalism", but when presented with how progressive in other countries have handled issues of peace and prosperity, we respond with "but the US is different".

[sixstrings75]

29. one word - selfish. n/t

[Vogon_Glory]

30. Living and Acting in the Stupid Ages

I'd say America--Living and Acting in the Stupid Ages. I know that "Stupid Ages" is a steal from Futurama, but it seems all too appropriate for describing most of the political behavior we see on display.

[aikoaiko]

31. " Hello, my name is Boxxy"

I keeed.

[Locut0s]

49. Jesus Christ what have you introduced me to!

[aikoaiko]

50. Yes, you are infected now....

Here is a decent explanation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16JutKkzXLU

[teamster633]

33. 2 words: corporate personhood n/t

[scheming daemons]

36. Ding ding ding! We have the winner....

...

[watercolors]

34. MSM, TV and Internet!

Too much information filled with lies and propaganda

[DireStrike]

35. We are a zombie nation

Nobody is in charge, except our endless hunger for more. We will sacrifice our entire future for one more meal.

[TransitJohn]

37. Willfull Ignorance n/t

n/t

[Loki]

38. Ignorant and proud.

Should be the GOP campaign slogan until they disappear.

[newportdadde]

39. I'd go with lack of big picture understanding.

I have a coworker who if we discuss universal healthcare etc always gets hung up on her losers in her family who abuse 'the system'. She is willing to flush 99 good people down the drain if it prevents one loser from getting any kind of help.

She is very boot straps oriented and I will be honest her personal story is very much a bootstrap story, I admire her on that level.

Time and again I've tried to explain to her that the 'welfare' she hates so much is virtually nothing when considering the entire budget of the US, especially when compared to the bloated military/Pentagon budgets.

She just doesn't get the larger picture.

[coyote]

41. It's broke. N/T

[DFW]

42. Obama already said it: "Proud of their ignorance"

And now they even have their own media outlets to reinforce that ignorance and give the pride to feel
good about it. Fox makes these people complacent in their pride in their ignorance by flying the flag
and letting Beck, O'Reilly etc. rant on with zero reality checks. If ignorance could somehow be made in
the public consciousness to be shameful, then Fox would shrivel up and fade away. But we would need a
progressive counter to Frank Luntz for that, and Luntz, who is a true mercenary, goes where the big
money is, and THAT is on the other side.

By the way, a big "second that!" on living abroad during school. I did (Spain), ended up married to a
European (German) and made sure our children grew up bilingually and with dual citizenship. The younger
one is 24 and has already worked with the United Nations war crimes tribunal in Sierra Leone. All
Americans (and other nationalities as well!) need to get out and see the world as it is, and not how
Fox says it is.

[niceypoo]

44. Jerry Springer political system

[sufrommich]

46. Teabaggers and Freepers. nt

[WilliamPitt]

47. We are prisoners of our mythology.

Expose a lie to an American and they will thank you. Expose one of the myths Americans hold dear and you'll have an enemy for life.

It's not the lies that are killing us, but the myths. Can anyone name a few?

[Locut0s]

48. I would say a big one would be the whole concept of "the American dream"...

A grand sounding and very suductive myth indeed. One that has probably ended in dispare debt and suicide far more often than not because the entire American culture is built around "the dream" and nothing else.

[Kaleko]

57. The line between myths and lies gets blurred when used by the media for constant indoctrination.

I'd say the most obviously lethal myth is the lie of American exceptionalism.

[Canuckistanian]

59. The biggest myth is that so many think they'll be rich one day

So they go along with the attitude that "taxing the rich" is a direct attack on themselves or their future prosperity.

In the mean time, they're shooting themselves in the foot.

[Adsos Letter]

61. What? You don't think God held this continent in reserve until...

it could be "discovered by good, God-fearing, Western European, capitalist types (who could disabuse the savages of any strange notions of equity, since they weren't "doing anything" with the land to begin with)?! No American Exceptionalism for you?!!

Heretic...

Seriously, have you read Robert Bellah's Habits of the Heart?

He does a great job of exposing the origins of some of our favorite myths; especially the really destructive ones. I don't agree with all of his solutions, but it is an interesting, if somewhat dated, work.

[rucky]

51. Idiocracy. n/t

[omega minimo]

52. Reaganism. Every answer given here will be summed up within Reaganism.

[Tim01]

53. Corporations. nt

[BOG PERSON]

54. Decadence. n/t

[LostInAnomie]

55. We worship money.

It's just as simple as that.

[alfredo]

56. Television, and air conditioning destroyed our sense of community,

making us a nation of strangers.

[Adsos Letter]

58. The fundamental refusal/inability to pursue equitable solutions to the nations problems

within the framework of secular governance, that retains a respect for religious liberty, individual liberty, and the broadest recognition of inherent human rights.

And, lack of warm-water bidets as a standard plumbing fixture in all homes...

[Odin2005]

60. "Whoever dies with the most toys wins"

Consumerism is killing our souls. Not that I'm some technophobic luddite nut, I'm a Transhumanist techno-utopian that HATES luddites, especially luddites posing as "environmentalists". But seriously, people buy too much useless junk just to "keep up with the Joneses", its pathetic.

[bridgit]

62. OMG like fully what-Eh~ver

[ThoughtCriminal]

63. George W Bush was President - twice

That this EVER happened, even if it only happened in one out of an infinite number of parallel universes, is a stunning indictment of a country that was stuck on the celebration of stupid.

[BOG PERSON]

64. The same thing that has always been wrong with it:

RACISM