Comment on Is it better to leave a country, or stay behind to fight for it? And what about the ethics of fleeing instead of staying behind?

TheAlbatross@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago

• SuperNovaStar@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago

  I think it is. Not in a nationalistic sense - we’ve done a lot of harms in the world. Maybe more harm than good, even. But there’s still a lot worth saving here. (USA)

  If you just walk around and talk to people on the street, we’re still one of the most progressive people around, despite everything. The US is a melting pot, a country of immigrants, and therefore a fierce battleground for ideas and ideologies. Right now the fascists are in power, but that doesn’t make them the majority.

  I really do think that if we get past this, we’ve got the “bones” to create something really great.

  And that doesn’t even include American culture. Sure, there’s things I don’t like, but there are some really good parts, too.

  We’re loud. Gregarious. We’ll strike up conversations with complete strangers. Most Americans are culturally curious, too - we like to try foods from other places, we’re fond of foreign movies and media, and we have a weird fascination with people who speak other languages (even though most of us only speak English).

  Many of us see ourselves as citizens of the world, not just our own country. We like the idea of the US being a “global superhero” standing up for democracy and human rights. I know that’s mostly propaganda, and the real history of US intervention is more about maintaining global capitalism. But it doesn’t have to be that way. We could actually help the UN, defend Ukraine, defend Palestine, push for peace. The cultural groundwork is already there, we just need a more democratic system so that the will of the people is actually followed.

  If you look at US history, you’ll see a lot of bad. That’s the nature of the two party system. But we have had some really good times, too. We have had leaders like John Quincy Adams, Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, FDR, and Jimmy Carter who have done a lot of good. And that’s just presidents, we’ve also had activists and leaders fighting for what’s right throughout our whole history.

  They didn’t spring up from nowhere. Those people have always been here, and they’re just as “American” as the bad ones. In a sense there are two "America"s. There always have been. And, as in every generation, it’s worth fighting for.

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  • SubArcticTundra@lemmy.ml ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago

    I’m not American but I totally agree with you. You guys might be at a low point right now but yours is still a country to be proud of. Heck, I’m proud of your country for some things.

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    • SuperNovaStar@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago

      Thanks!

      I also feel like I might as well fight. I’m single and I don’t have a family (or not really - they’re on the other side and pretty fanatical about it). And I have more to lose than others do. More reason to be angry.

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  • rayyy@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago

    “My country, right or wrong; if right, to be kept right; and if wrong, to be set right.” - Carl Schurz:

    It’s our civic duty to make our country better.

    Some people may need to move because because they aren’t safe here right now.

    Some people need to be removed, one way or another.

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  • QuarterSwede@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago

    I’m actually inspired. We need more of this!

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  • Wahots@pawb.social ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago

    Well said!

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• Num10ck@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago

  a place worth dying for would he nice

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