What makes a Country Great?
Over the holidays I have had the opportunity to spend evenings well into the early morning hours speaking with friends from all walks of life. Democrats, Republicans and Moderates all frequented my dinner table. Democrats are exuberant about the possibility to punish the evil Mr. Bush, Republicans are despondent about a new era of taxes and the separation of church and state, and Moderates are disillusioned with the political class doing what they want instead of following the will of the people.A few days ago Mr. Edwards announced that he is running for President. Many commentators are criticizing Mr. Edwards for his populous stance. I do not like Mr. Edwards; somehow his image concerns me but his critics make me ask,
“Why would anyone be criticized for following the will of the electorate?”
Has it become so accepted that Joe Citizen does not count?
Is Corporate America the only constituent that our politicians need to appease?
As I consider the thoughts and opinions of my friends I believe their ideas about what is important is not significantly different. Somehow they have been polarized over the years to believe that one party or another will be better at leading the country to a better future while the moderates have primarily given up. A good friend, whose opinion I respect greatly stated, “Trying to change politicians is wasted time, I have found other, more efficient, ways to utilize my energies in creating a better world for my children.”
I will explore over the next days the things that are important to me. The things I think make a country great. Perhaps from these thoughts, WE THE PEOPLE, can find common ground and take our country back so that we can be involved in creating a truly great country.
Your thoughts and comments are welcome!
Tags: Politics Corporate America Corrupt Politicians Government Data War on the Middle Class Border Security Port Security Stop Pork Spending Illegal Immigration
Labels: Class Warfare, Great Nation, Representation
posted by Small Business USA at 9:59 AM
5 Comments:
I did not comment on this initially because I am not US. But just to start discussion, David, one of the difficulties is just what do we mean by a great country?
From an outsider's viewpoint, the US can be classified as a great country because it - more precisely its people - has made so many positive contributions in so many areas.
But, and again from an outsider's perspective, it arguably fails the great country test because (among other things) it has not fully dealt with problems of property and deprivation among its own people.
So what do the words great country mean in your mind?
Jim As usual you know exactly where I am going with this series of articles.
If we think about a nation, 10 people will have 10 different opinions of what makes a country great but if we ask what things are important to the individual, most will have 10 primary values that are most important to them.
We make the mistake of thinking about a country as a person or an entity that would exist without its parts. In reality a government is empployed by the people; it has no reason to exist if there are no citizens; it is supposed to represent the interest of the electorate.
Instead our government, as do many governments, have a life of its own with objectives representing only the few and not the general electorate.
Therefore I hope to write about and discuss what is important to the reader, only when a government does this can it be great. Everything else is an expression of "the guy who buys expensive toys, not for passion but, because he is compensating for something else missing in his life."
Many countries have had big guns, but it is the people who can create a better way of life who have a great, prosperous and long lasting country.
I guess we're not talking about military strength (greatness), or British Empire (greatness) are we? I think I know what you are referring to but I can't find an adjective that is appropriate for this purpose. The connotation of "great" can be misleading. I am forced to use the word "democracy". We can talk about which country most meets the ideals of "democracy". A country that is governed by the people and for the people. An "effective democracy" as opposed to say a "malignant democracy". We could set up a set of criteria by which we could measure an "effective democracy". How representative of it's constituency is the government? How benevolent is the democracy towards its constituents? How oppressive and stifling is/isn't the democracy? How intrinsically stable is the democracy? (Instability would signal unrest and dissatisfaction with the system). As a reference point, the first democracy in ancient Greece coincided with the most brilliant culture of learning/science/philosophy/art/medicine
that the western world has ever seen.Of course,they did have slaves to do the manual work.
Lexcen Again, fantastic insight. I am thinking about great in terms of progression to a better future for our unborn generations. I am thinking about quality of life for the electorate. Finally I am thinking about the way a "country's greatness" can influence other countries. The things you mention are all necessary parts of greatness. How can a country be great if it does not represent its citizens?
Can a country be great if some of its people starve? Or looking at it from a simplier viewpoint, how can a father eat if his son is starving?
David, I too thought that that was a great comment by Lexcen.
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