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When Was America Great and What Made It Great?

What Would Jesus Do?

What Would Jesus Do?

HB King
Nov 28, 2010
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Judging from all the calls to make America great again, apparently we used to be great but aren't any more.

So . . . what time period do we want to turn the clock back to? When were we greatest?

And what changes are we looking for?

I suspect we're going to have to pick and choose across time, but I just thought I'd ask.

I think we were probably greatest when George McGovern was president, but that was an alternate reality, so never mind.

To state the obvious, we are probably the greatest right now in terms of toys (tech advances), aggregate wealth, political inclusion (who's allowed to vote and such). But not so great on peace, income equality and various other things.

What time period would you want to go back to or what policies from the past would you return to to make America great again?
 
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It was great when we were the only country to have the bomb. Should have taken Moscow out while we had the chance.
 
You are wasting your time trying to analyse empty political catch phrases.

America is great any time your particular political party is in power. When your particular political party is out of power then America needs to be made great again by returning your particular political party to power.

A similar phrase to "take back our country"
 
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The Tradition said:
It was great when we were the only country to have the bomb. Should have taken Moscow out while we had the chance.
Click to expand...
Is it your honest opinion that we should have killed millions of civilians in a nation we were allied with to prevent what? The cold war glares? I could probably forgive someone like Patton for thinking similarly to this back at the time. But with hindsight you still want to murder all those people even though nothing important ever came of the red scare?

To answer the OP's question I usually get the feeling that when people wax wistfully for America's great past, its the 50's they mean. That time with 90% tax rates, CEO's making just a few times more than their workers, union families pulling down enough with one income to earn a living wage and investment in education such that one need not be saddled with debt to go to college. I think those are the good times people yearn for.
 
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What Would Jesus Do? said:
Judging from all the calls to make America great again, apparently we used to be great but aren't any more.

So . . . what time period do we want to turn the clock back to? When were we greatest?

And what changes are we looking for?

I suspect we're going to have to pick and choose across time, but I just thought I'd ask.

I think we were probably greatest when George McGovern was president, but that was an alternate reality, so never mind.

To state the obvious, we are probably the greatest right now in terms of toys (tech advances), aggregate wealth, political inclusion (who's allowed to vote and such). But not so great on peace, income equality and various other things.

What time period would you want to go back to or what policies from the past would you return to to make America great again?
Click to expand...

I'd settle for American cars and some great soul music again. This country rises and falls with Detroit.
 
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naturalmwa said:
I usually get the feeling that when people wax wistfully for America's great past, its the 50's they mean. That time with 90% tax rates, CEO's making just a few times more than their workers, union families pulling down enough with one income to earn a living wage and investment in education such that one need not be saddled with debt to go to college. I think those are the good times people yearn for.
Click to expand...
It's a good starting point. Imagine all those things with today's civil rights, women's rights, gay rights, health and tech advances and so on. Not to mention a national debt well under $1 trillion, and America being the world's greatest creditor nation.

Pretty great.

And yet we were just winding down the Korean War and only a few years from the Vietnam war. Plus we were supporting dictators or engineering regime change to insert dictators all over our hemisphere and other parts of the world.
 
Tom Brokaw coined the phrase, "The Greatest Generation"
and applied it to the American men and women who fought
in WWII. That may have been our nation's finest hour as we
helped to turn back Nazi Germany and Imperialist Japan.
 
LuteHawk said:
Tom Brokaw coined the phrase, "The Greatest Generation"
and applied it to the American men and women who fought
in WWII. That may have been our nation's finest hour as we
helped to turn back Nazi Germany and Imperialist Japan.
Click to expand...

True, unless you were black or Japanese-American, or female, or basically anyone who wasn't a white male. Not saying that wasn't an amazing point in US history, and one worthy of applause, but to say that things were better then is all a matter of perspective.
 
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It's still great.

You can be as successful as far as your talents, abilities and desires will take you.
 
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What Would Jesus Do? said:
Judging from all the calls to make America great again, apparently we used to be great but aren't any more.

So . . . what time period do we want to turn the clock back to? When were we greatest?

And what changes are we looking for?

I suspect we're going to have to pick and choose across time, but I just thought I'd ask.

I think we were probably greatest when George McGovern was president, but that was an alternate reality, so never mind.

To state the obvious, we are probably the greatest right now in terms of toys (tech advances), aggregate wealth, political inclusion (who's allowed to vote and such). But not so great on peace, income equality and various other things.

What time period would you want to go back to or what policies from the past would you return to to make America great again?
Click to expand...



It was great before all the welfare programs. Capitalism made this country great.

The ghettocrats who destroy schools and neighborhoods are socialists.

Notice how the successful Dem and the successful Rs are capitalists? You won't find public housing or diversity in the affluent liberal neighborhoods.
 
zwick99 said:
It was great before all the welfare programs. Capitalism made this country great.

The ghettocrats who destroy schools and neighborhoods are socialists.

Notice how the successful Dem and the successful Rs are capitalists? You won't find public housing or diversity in the affluent liberal neighborhoods.
Click to expand...

The first real welfare programs came about because of the Great Depression. You don't know what you're talking about.
 
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Back in the day we had good schools, jobs, affordable housing, affordable healthcare, modern infrastructure and the Dems demanded change.

Dems hate children, education, infrastructure and the environment.

Rs built the bridges, tunnels and subways and the Dems can't even afford to paint them. Dems spend the tax dollars on sports stadiums for billionaires, welfare for criminals and Obama's illegal wars.
 
IACub said:
The first real welfare programs came about because of the Great Depression. You don't know what you're talking about.
Click to expand...


It was all downhill from there.


Pick an era when America was great and we will adopt those policies. ARe you willing to give up your welfare?
 
What Would Jesus Do? said:
Judging from all the calls to make America great again, apparently we used to be great but aren't any more.

So . . . what time period do we want to turn the clock back to? When were we greatest?

And what changes are we looking for?

I suspect we're going to have to pick and choose across time, but I just thought I'd ask.

I think we were probably greatest when George McGovern was president, but that was an alternate reality, so never mind.

To state the obvious, we are probably the greatest right now in terms of toys (tech advances), aggregate wealth, political inclusion (who's allowed to vote and such). But not so great on peace, income equality and various other things.

What time period would you want to go back to or what policies from the past would you return to to make America great again?
Click to expand...
What made us great was the freedom we had and the power and protection of the people given to them by our constitution. In this country people could come, be free to create some thing, fail and start over until they achieved success. When they get that success they were protected with property rights, etc to profit from they hard work. They also had all the other rights our constitution guaranteed them. More freedom per capita is what made the country great. We are slowly losing that freedom
 
zwick99 said:
Back in the day we had good schools, jobs, affordable housing, affordable healthcare, modern infrastructure and the Dems demanded change.

Dems hate children, education, infrastructure and the environment.

Rs built the bridges, tunnels and subways and the Dems can't even afford to paint them. Dems spend the tax dollars on sports stadiums for billionaires, welfare for criminals and Obama's illegal wars.
Click to expand...

Sorry, I didn't realize you were a moron. Carry on, I'm done here.
 
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IACub said:
Sorry, I didn't realize you were a moron. Carry on, I'm done here.
Click to expand...


Just keeping it real my brotha.

. Tell me what year we were great and we will copy the policies of that era. Just remember you will probably end up paying LESS in taxes, losing welfare, lower education spending, less public housing, no free breakfasts, no affirmative action and so on. What era were we great?
 
aflachawk said:
What made us great was the freedom we had and the power and protection of the people given to them by our constitution. In this country people could come, be free to create some thing, fail and start over until they achieved success. When they get that success they were protected with property rights, etc to profit from they hard work. They also had all the other rights our constitution guaranteed them. More freedom per capita is what made the country great. We are slowly losing that freedom
Click to expand...


Today's Dems think freedom means everything should be free.
 
zwick99 said:
Just keeping it real my brotha.

. Tell me what year we were great and we will copy the policies of that era. Just remember you will probably end up paying LESS in taxes, losing welfare, lower education spending, less public housing, no free breakfasts, no affirmative action and so on. What era were we great?
Click to expand...

I SAID GOOD DAY SIR!
 
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It was great in 1944, because the Germans and Japanese pissed us off enough to not care about the how, just the what. It was great in 1946-64 because everyone still relied on our stuff until they could make it better and cheaper.

Other than that, I got nothin.
 
It was great during WWII when our young men were fighting for their lives for a cause. Now our young men are protesting because their feelings are hurt. Times have changed meaning people and values have changed. We are a soft lazy country.
 
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aflachawk said:
What made us great was the freedom we had and the power and protection of the people given to them by our constitution. In this country people could come, be free to create some thing, fail and start over until they achieved success. When they get that success they were protected with property rights, etc to profit from they hard work. They also had all the other rights our constitution guaranteed them. More freedom per capita is what made the country great. We are slowly losing that freedom
Click to expand...
Are we? I think the freedoms you mention have increased. Your property rights to created goods are at a peak, far beyond what the founders planned. And those freedoms are open to far more people than the founders deemed worthy too. I think you make a good case for today being our golden age. Good job.
 
Capital1Hawk said:
It was great during WWII when our young men were fighting for their lives for a cause. Now our young men are protesting because their feelings are hurt. Times have changed meaning people and values have changed. We are a soft lazy country.
Click to expand...
Is this more humor? Is there a real dark comedy vibe going here? Because being seriously wistful about a time where men were dying is deranged.
 
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The event that changed us forever has to be WW2. The generation emerging from that conflict did more than any other to change the trajectory of the nation and its economy. Post WW2, the to programs that significantly affected mankind were the Marshall Plan and then domestically, the GI BIll of Rights. College education, a boom to the professional ranks and the resultant housing boom quickly lifted the US from a wartime economy to a boom time economy.
 
LuckyNed said:
Most assuredly during the Reagan era. This country had never been more powerful, more loved throughout the world as during Reagans Presidency.
Click to expand...
It tickles me that our stoic practical cons are so worried about being liked by strangers. What a jr. High girl outlook.
 
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