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Joo Rip Gwa Rhhee
Joined: 25 May 2003
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 Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 10:59 pm Post subject: Korea Times Opinion "Ashamed to Be American" |
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http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/opinon/2008/06/198_25097.html
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By Rick Ruffin
Doug Soderstrom is ashamed to be an American. In a piece published on the Internet (and hopefully other places as well), Soderstrom argues that shame is the natural result of knowing when one has done something wrong.
What the Ph. D. psychologist doesn't understand, however, are those who lack the capacity to feel any shame. He's talking about George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, and their supporters.
Fortunately, Soderstrom is not alone. There are millions of Americans who feel a great sense of shame for what their country has become. This is what they have to say.
Following a May, 2008, New York Times article on Iraqi prisoner abuse written by documentary filmmaker Errol Morris, someone identified as 'Jorge I' posted on the NYT Internet site: ``When society and the armed forces owe allegiance to a party, or person, instead of the U.S. Constitution, they become the enablers of tyranny. These (sic) flagrant violations of international and domestic law will live in infamy in the annals of the history of this country."
Another person named 'Mark' added: ``If the people of the United States don't demand that their leaders be held accountable for this and the other crimes they have committed, the United States of America, as a country and an idea, is over."
`Josh,' of Adelaide, Australia, spoke for most of the world when he posted: ``Bush is all that the world expected of him. The Yanks do not care that he is a fool, they only care that he does not diddle the help. Bush is still a better leader than the U.S. deserves."
`Phil', closer to home in Madison, New Jersey, wrote: ``Every person in the U.S.A. who voted for G. W. Bush should be slapped with a lifetime `idiot tax' to help this lost nation find its soul and purpose in this world."
In an ominous sign of the times Larry posted: ``Hopefully the country will self-correct like it did to some extent following Nixon, but I'm not all that convinced that will happen this time. There has (sic), after all, been no impeachment proceedings."
As if to mirror the previous sentiment, a reader by the name of Charles posted: ``The Bush administration is fading into obscurity as we speak, but they will never be held legally responsible for their criminal acts against humanity. I can only hope that our own soldiers who become POW's in future wars are treated better than we have treated these POW's and `persons of interest' in Iraq."
And finally, still discussing the Errol Morris NYT piece, `Timothy Bal' adds: ``I was no fan of Bill Clinton, yet he was impeached for lying about sexual activity. Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld are responsible for the torture, murder and killing of thousands of innocent people, yet Bush will finish out his term in office. What a travesty!"
I would like to point out that the Errol Morris piece drew hundreds of reader responses, overwhelmingly critical of White House leadership and Bush's war on terror.
After former presidential contender George McGovern published a piece advocating presidential impeachment in the Washington Post on January 6, a reader posted on the Washington Post Web site: ``This article should be running on the front page of every newspaper in the country.''
``Never have we had such a brazen, vile gang of crooks in or near the White House � Bush & Cheney should be impeached, removed from office & prosecuted for the crimes they have committed.
``All their ill gotten assets should be seized to offset some of the damage they have done and they should sit in a prison for the rest of their lives with no possibility of parole."
An article regarding legal protection for the polar bear was recently published in the Washington Post. An Internet reader wrote: ``The Bush administration doesn't give a damn about anything in the world other than making money for its friends. Absolutely nothing. Polar bears, of course, don't make money. Long live the animals God created. May the neocons disappear into history and never return.''
Even the editors of the New York Times used the ``S" word in a recent editorial, deeming the U.S. prison system ― the biggest on Earth and home to one in 10 African Americans ― ``shameful."
These are just the tip of the iceberg. There are millions more posts just like these, buried in the annals of cyberspace.
They prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that there are still many of us who retain that essential humanity capacity, the decency, if you will, to distinguish right from wrong. The American leadership has lost that ability.
Rick Ruffin is widely published and has lived all over the world. He currently resides in South Korea, where the people can't decide whether they want to be more, or less, like America. He can be reached at [email protected]. |
What a F***ing moonbat.
Last edited by Joo Rip Gwa Rhhee on Sun Jun 01, 2008 11:07 pm; edited 3 times in total |
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Joo Rip Gwa Rhhee
Joined: 25 May 2003
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Ya-ta Boy
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
Location: Established in 1994
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| Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2008 12:57 am Post subject: |
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| A good editor would have sent the article back and asked for a thesis statement. That thing is exceptionally poorly written. |
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bacasper
Joined: 26 Mar 2007
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| Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2008 6:55 am Post subject: |
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| Ya-ta Boy wrote: |
| A good editor would have sent the article back and asked for a thesis statement. That thing is exceptionally poorly written. |
Can't refute the argument, so attack the writer?
Well-written or not, a lot of people apparently agree with Ruffin. |
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ontheway
Joined: 24 Aug 2005
Location: Somewhere under the rainbow...
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| Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2008 7:56 am Post subject: |
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"Even the editors of the New York Times used the ``S" word in a recent editorial, deeming the U.S. prison system ― the biggest on Earth and home to one in 10 African Americans ―"
Sorry, either the NY Times or the writer got this completely wrong. Without looking up the actual number, it is obvious that this stat is 4 or 5 times too high. |
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Nowhere Man
Joined: 08 Feb 2004
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| Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2008 8:19 am Post subject: ... |
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| About 10.4% of all black males in the United States between the ages of 25 and 29 were sentenced and in prison, |
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prisons_in_the_United_States
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| Can't refute the argument, so attack the writer? |
Well, it is exceedingly poorly written. Given that he's also flubbing the facts badly (see above), any sympathy I might have for his position is gone because he's dumbing things down.
First it was that Scherzer guy, now this. Who at these newspapers is choosing who gets to air their views? |
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spliff
Joined: 19 Jan 2004
Location: Khon Kaen, Thailand
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| Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2008 1:48 pm Post subject: |
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| I'm proud of what the US has achieved. |
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Ya-ta Boy
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
Location: Established in 1994
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| Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2008 2:03 pm Post subject: |
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Can't refute the argument, so attack the writer?
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Why not? What 'argument' are you talking about? I dare you to quote it. What was the point of the article?
It isn't news to anyone that a lot of Americans disagree with their government and are quite angry about it. Why was this particular article written? Just to list a random group of disconnected quotes? It reads like a cut and paste job, poorly done. |
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Hoklanie
Joined: 22 May 2008
Location: South Korea
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| Posted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 3:35 pm Post subject: |
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Proud to be Ashamed? Somewhere in that article I lost the point of it all. Man, you just can't string a bunch of quotes together and then call it an article..............well, for that newspaper I guess you can.
But, I have found the proper response here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKjxFJfcrcA |
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Bigfeet
Joined: 29 May 2008
Location: Grrrrr.....
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| Posted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 4:01 pm Post subject: |
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| I haven't been able to bring up The Korean Times all day. It says it's taking too long. Is anyone else having this problem? |
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Hoklanie
Joined: 22 May 2008
Location: South Korea
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| Posted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 4:06 pm Post subject: |
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| Yeah, it was working fine last night....but I keep timing out this morning. |
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happeningthang
Joined: 26 Apr 2003
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| Posted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 5:34 pm Post subject: |
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| Rick still kicks. Entertaining as always. |
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Adventurer
Joined: 28 Jan 2006
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| Posted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 6:18 pm Post subject: |
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Well, I would say Bush and company did embarass the United States. They did a lot of damage to the credibility of the country and its standing in the world, and the next president needs to deal with that problem. People are ashamed, naturally, of bad behavior in their family. This is basically an example of this for many people. The US is a great country in many ways, but I would like to see some major changes with the next president, like some more mass transit, less reliance on foreign oil, more alternative fuels, subsidies for building environmentally homes, urban renewal, paying off the deficit.... I hope and pray for that...
God Bless America.... May it be blessed with a good president. |
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RJjr
Joined: 17 Aug 2006
Location: Turning on a Lamp
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| Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 12:29 am Post subject: |
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| Adventurer wrote: |
Well, I would say Bush and company did embarass the United States. They did a lot of damage to the credibility of the country and its standing in the world, and the next president needs to deal with that problem. People are ashamed, naturally, of bad behavior in their family. This is basically an example of this for many people. The US is a great country in many ways, but I would like to see some major changes with the next president, like some more mass transit, less reliance on foreign oil, more alternative fuels, subsidies for building environmentally homes, urban renewal, paying off the deficit.... I hope and pray for that...
God Bless America.... May it be blessed with a good president. |
You're exactly right. America is great, but Bush and company are like the idiot relatives who have brought shame upon the family. All I can do is be vocally opposed to Bush, work hard to be financially and physically fit, and try to project "the real America." |
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Joo Rip Gwa Rhhee
Joined: 25 May 2003
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| Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 3:46 am Post subject: |
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The US doesn't behave badly in war, the US didn' t behave worse than it did in other wars during the war on terror . The US is one of the most free and tolerant nations in the world.
More greatest shame here is moonbats like Rick Ruffin are from the US. |
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