Britons tire of cruel, vulgar US: poll

[minsue]

There have been several studies done on the lack of social mobility in the U.S. Although certainly there are some people who do move upwards, it's rarer than in other parts of the West. Most of the movement for the last generation has been downward.

Yup, Gen X gets to be the lucky generation to be the first in US history to be less well off than their parents as a whole instead of more. Yay. Not that I'm bitter or anything.

I'll disagree about the last sentence. The oil and strategic location were simply nice bonuses. The real reason for the invasion of Iraq was to tell the rest of the world, "We're not playing by the rules anymore. And this is what happens to people that defy us."

I always saw it as more of a way to show up his father. "You couldn't get Saddam, Dad, but I did."

 

[neonlyte]

I'll disagree about the last sentence. The oil and strategic location were simply nice bonuses. The real reason for the invasion of Iraq was to tell the rest of the world, "We're not playing by the rules anymore. And this is what happens to people that defy us."

It's a good point, Rob, more than a grain of truth in that. I'll play the heretic for a moment. It wasn't a particularly good lesson, more like a swipe at a playful puppy who is going to continue chewing the socks until the he/she grows out of the habit. Compare with the ending of the Pacific War in WWII - no messing about there.

I'm not advocating nuking the Middle East - what I am suggesting is the type of punishment delivered wholly failed to resolve the situation. It was neither strong enough, nor resolute enough and many of the perpetrators who triggered the IWII remained at large with some 50,000 Iraqi's and allied servicemen dying since IWII began. It didn't put the 'fear of God' into anyone, so the attacks continue and the US is exposed as weaker than it actually is because there is no measurable reduction in threat or the loss of lives.

I think that is where the oil element of the argument comes into play.

The US cannot use irresistable force in the Middle East without conceeding world access to oil or being prepared to occupy the Middle East on a permanent basis - well permanent until the next super-power comes along. It is caught between the proverbial devil and the deep blue sea and the choice is hegemony or appeasement. No one is in the mood for appeasement (which in my book is what should be taking place) and the US lacks the stomach for hegemony leaving itself and its allies open to continuing attack. I'm left wondering if the situation may have turned out different if Islam fundamentalists came from say, Somalia, a country no one particularly cares about and with nothing of value to any one outside of its indigenous peoples. Take out Somalia - save the free world?

Before anyone gets up in arms - do please note I'm deliberately taking a radical viewpoint, a 'what if' scenario.

 

[3113]

I suspect that 83% of Americans don't know the rest of the world exists, let alone where it is.

And those of us in L.A. don't know the rest of America exits either. Which is why we're so shallow and happy.

 

[minsue]

Threadjack!

And those of us in L.A. don't know the rest of America exits either. Which is why we're so shallow and happy.

'Midwest' Discovered Between East And West Coasts

July 6, 2005 | Issue 41•27

NEW YORK—A U.S. Geological Survey expeditionary force announced Tuesday that it has discovered a previously unknown and unexplored land mass between the New York and California coasts known as the "Midwest."

http://www.theonion.com/content/files/images/onion_news3270.article.jpg

The Geological Survey team discovered the vast region while searching for the fabled Midwest Passage, the mythical overland route passing through the uncharted area between Ithaca, NY, and Bakersfield, CA.

"I long suspected something was there," said Franklin Eldred, a Manhattan native and leader of the 200-man exploratory force. "I'd flown between New York and L.A. on business many times, and the unusually long duration of my flights seemed to indicate that some sort of large area was being traversed, an area of unknown composition."

The Geological Survey explorers left the East Coast three weeks ago, embarking on a perilous journey to the unknown. Not long after crossing the Adirondack Mountains, Eldred and his team were blazing trails through strange new regions, wild lands full of corn and wheat.

"Thus far we have discovered places known as Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin," said Randall Zachary, chief navigator for the expedition. "When translated from the local dialect into English, these words seem to mean 'summer camp.'"

Eldred and the others were surprised to learn that the Midwest, whose inhospitable environment was long believed to be incapable of supporting human life, is indeed populated, albeit sparsely.

"The Midwestern Aborigines are ruddy, generally heavy-set folk, clad in plain, non-designer costumery," Eldred said. "They tend to live in simple, one-story dwellings whose interiors are decorated with Hummels and 'Bless This House' needlepoint wall-hangings. And though coarse and unattractive, these simple people were rather friendly, offering us quaint native fare such as 'hotdish' and 'casserole.'"

Though the Midwest territory is still largely unexplored, early reports describe a region as backwards as it is vast. "Many of the basic aspects of a civilized culture appear to be entirely absent," said Gina Strauch, a Los Angeles-based anthropologist. "There is no theater to speak of, and their knowledge of posh restaurants is sketchy at best. Further, their agricentric lives seem to prevent them from pursuing high fashion to any degree, and, as a result, their mode of dress is largely restricted to sweatpants and sweatshirts, the women's being adorned with hearts and teddy bears and the men's with college-football insignias."

Despite the Midwesterners' considerable cultural backwardness, some say the establishment of relations with them is possible.

"Believe it or not, this region may have things to offer us," said Jonathan Ogleby, a San Francisco-area marketing expert. "We could construct an airport there, a place where New Yorkers could switch planes on their way to California. We could stage revivals of old Broadway musicals there. Perhaps we could even one day conduct trade with the Midwesterners, offering them electronic devices in exchange for meats and agriculture."

Others, however, are not so optimistic about future relations. "We must remember that these people are not at all like us," Conde Nast publisher and Manhattan socialite Lucille Randolph Snowdon said. "They are crude and provincial, bewildered by our tall buildings and our art galleries, our books and our coffee shops. For an L.A. resident to attempt to interact with one of them as he or she would with, say, a Bostonian is ludicrous. It appears unlikely that we will ever be able to conduct a genuine exchange of ideas with them about anything, save perhaps television or 'the big game.'"

© Copyright 2006, Onion, Inc. All rights reserved.


We now return you to your regularly scheduled thread.

 

[3113]

'Midwest' Discovered Between East And West Coasts

July 6, 2005 | Issue 41•27

NEW YORK—A U.S. Geological Survey expeditionary force announced Tuesday that it has discovered a previously unknown and unexplored land mass between the New York and California coasts known as the "Midwest."

ROFLMAO!

Thank you! That just put a whole new spin on my July 4th Holiday!

 

[BlackShanglan]

Deleted.

 

[BlackShanglan]

Oh, never mind.

 

[Huckleman2000]

Oh, never mind.

Don't you hate when that happens?