Xenocentrism

Master Baiter · Nov 16, 2008

langal said:

I agree with you. A lot of Americans have this view of Europe as some sort of progressive paradise. Racism there is far worse than it is here. You think they have ramps for wheelchairs there? France's clean energy comes from nuclear power. I think in general the US is wealthier. But that comes at a cost too. We generally have to work harder for it.
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Racism definitely exists in Europe but it is completely different than here. In my opinion it has more to do with nationality than color.

SamFisher · Nov 16, 2008

So if you don't hiss or boo like a moron whenever somebody mentions France or French - you are infatuated with Europe and are always trying to emulate them and think it is "paradise".

Nice theory kids. When you are done, there's some more straw out behind the shed and a fire extinguisher in case things get too fiery.

Lakecharles · Nov 16, 2008

Interesting story, MB. GOD is an illusion America needs another 50---100 years to realize this.

Why is Jesus a white, since majority of the humanity are not?
Why are there so many divorces and broken families in America, which is totally against God's will, but not in the oriental societies where "God" gains the least influence ?
Why is "if you listen to GOD, you go to heaven, but if you rebel, you go to hell". Isn't that too selfish of GOD and the living beings he created?
Whatever evil you did in your life, as long as you confess to God and ask for forgiveness, you'll just do fine. Isn't that too ridiculous and hypocritical?
Does God encourage you to do good deeds instead of just worship him?
What the hell is "Heaven" and what the hell is "hell"? Does that even matter?

Follow your heart and trust yourself, MB. You are on the right track

Deckard · Nov 16, 2008

With all due respect to whoever might be offended, I think it is just as stupid to "bash Europe" as it is to "bash America." And racism? Interesting how Black American musicians, dancers, and others in show business could live and work in France between the wars and be celebrated for it, when they couldn't do **** here in the States, unless it was at a "Black venue." And yes, they are so backward that I can have breakfast in Amsterdam, get on a train, sit back and relax in comfort, and have dinner high in the Swiss Alps.

They're just stupid over there. We are superior in every way.

Right.

Lynus302 · Nov 17, 2008

Master Baiter said:

I'm definitely one of the people that the OP is talking about. I think that JV sums it up nicely that Europe is an example in certain areas where some of the more liberal ideas are in practice and are successful in some way or the other.

I guess this is where I am coming from. I grew up in a family that fit many of the American stereotypes. My grandfather was a baptist preacher for 60 years. A lot of my family served in the military. We were white and middle class.

I had no choice but to believe in God and Country. I was indoctrinated from the moment I popped out. I believed in God and never for a second did I ever think that there was a possibility that it wasn't true. I believed that America was the greatest country in the world and pretty much thought that everywhere else was second class, beneath us. I definitely believed these things without question.

Even at an early age, pre adolescent, I constantly had this nagging feeling in my mind that something just was not right. I could never put my finger on it and most of the time I just chalked it up to God testing me.

After I graduated high school, I joined the Navy. I didn't join because I felt obligated, I joined because I wanted too. My dad was actually very against the idea of my joining the military as he wanted me to go to college. I passed up several full ride scholarships to several very good schools.

I guess the reason for me joining was several fold. I wanted to serve my country first and foremost. I was a very proud Texan and American. That is not to say that I am not proud now, I just feel different now than I did then. Anyway, I also wanted to get away from home. I knew that I needed to get out from underneath my parents and out of the situation from which I lived. My dad was a drunk, my mom was supportive but never very close and with her own issues, and I knew that my family, as a whole, was severely dysfunctional. I knew that I didn't want to be in that environment anymore. I felt that joining the military would be a way of serving my country, severing the ties with idiot family, and also a way of learning a trade and making money.

This was my first time outside of my comfort zone of family and church. I know I just got through dogging my family but they were also a comfort zone. I never felt that I was unloved, I knew they loved me. It was a comfort zone mostly because I didn't know anything different.

Once I was on my own, I remained faithful to the Christian church for a long time, probably 10 years. I definitely began to question things more and I was more vocal about my questions. A lot of things just didn't make sense to me. I think the nagging suspicions that I had since a young kid were the inherent double standards that I had seen growing up. My family would act one way on Sunday and Wednesday nights but the rest of the time they were intolerant and racist. I saw how many of the elders and leaders in the churches that we were a part of were the same. I saw how everything was all about perception. No one ever mentioned my dad's alcoholism and made excuses for his behavior while at the same time condemning others with similar struggles.

I also met people from other countries and I began to learn about different cultures and ways of life. The fact that other people in our world do just fine actually shocked me. Much more so than the idea of God being ridiculous. I think that was the case because it was much more immediate. My journey to being agnostic was long and painful. My journey to seeing America in a different light was much quicker and easier because it had no afterlife implications and there was a lot more tangible evidence.

I'm also sure that everyone knows, as I am quick to point out sometimes, that I'm now married to a European. When we met, my conversion to being a full out agnostic was not complete. The more I learned about Europe, Sweden in particular, and their thoughts and ideas on all kinds of topics, especially religion, the more things just made sense to me. It took me a long time to be comfortable with the idea that I do not believe in God. It didn't take me quite so long to believe that there is a lot to learn from other people, their countries, cultures, and governments,

I like the idea of people taking care of people. I like how tolerant they are in certain respects such as equal rights for gays. I like how they want to take care of the environment. I like how religion is personal and not taken so literal or serious. I think that it is flat out arrogant to think that America cannot learn from these people. I also know how good a lot of these people are and how they do not understand Americans and our government because of our arrogance. We aren't better than them and they do not feel that they are better than us. Hell, my wife's grandfather was skeptical of me because I am an American from Texas. He thought that we were all nuts because of Bush. Honestly, I didn't blame him one bit.
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Bravo. Great story, man. Mine has it's similarities, but I won't go into all those.

Things I love about Europe:
-The emphasis on simply living, and thus enjoying, your own life. Europe overall has a much more laid-back atmosphere, in my opinion. I've traveled a lot, all over the world and all over the US, so I have some basis for comparison. And this is not to say that I'd travel from the hustle and bustle of big-city Houston to some quaint European country-side escape (though I've been to those as well). Big cities and small towns all over the world. Been to a lot of 'em.
-Relating to point #1, they are a LOT more socially liberal than we are. Everything from gay rights to drug policies and prostitution laws. Given my general "leave-me-the-hell-alone" political philosophy, this suits me just fine.
-Drive for a few hours, and I'm in another country with a different culture and a different language. Do that here, and unless I go any direction except south to Mexico and....I'm still in America.

God Bless America. I truly love my country. But as has been mentioned many times in this thread alone, we could learn an awful lot from the other nations of the world.

There are some things that make me fearful for the survival of the various European cultures, but this thread isn't about that.

JuanValdez · Nov 17, 2008

Deckard said:

And racism? Interesting how Black American musicians, dancers, and others in show business could live and work in France between the wars and be celebrated for it, when they couldn't do **** here in the States, unless it was at a "Black venue."
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You're living in the past, man.

okierock · Nov 17, 2008

Germany has great beer but I hate their basketball players.

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