# American Exceptionalism: Fair and Balanced. **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [April 24, 2015, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420 "2015-04-24T05:51:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2015, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/41 "2015-04-25T04:10:47Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > … patriotically correct … What a creepy concept, thanks, I will try to remember that. > [@Shodan](#): > > America is the most powerful country in the world … **culturally** … > [@The\_Joker\_and\_the\_Thief](#): > > Well, there is the fact that the US isn’t merely exceptional right now in a variety of categories but is actually the best the world has ever seen … **culturally** … Damn, I need a new roll of paper towels for the mess all ROFLing over this has caused. ---
**Author:** ![Flyer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/flyer/32/7298_2.png) [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2015, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/42 "2015-04-25T05:47:42Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > There’s nothing particularly exceptional or non-exceptional about Americans. Except for one thing–most Americans are the descendants of people who quite literally risked their lives in order to get here. ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2015, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/43 "2015-04-25T05:56:00Z")
> [@Flyer](#): > > Except for one thing–most Americans are the descendants of people who quite literally risked their lives in order to get here. So? not a rare feat. The Polynesians sailed and settle all over the pacific. I’m sure there was a lot of risk when people migrated to Australia or the people who came over the Bering strait. Merchants putting themself at risk on the Silk Road. Our way way way back ancestors who climbed down out of the trees and had to avoid getting eaten by Lions. All of our ancestors took risks. ---
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2015, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/44 "2015-04-25T06:12:21Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > You Americans think you’re so special - I’ll have you know that \*every \*country has its own version of “exceptionalism”. Everyone believes, to one degree or another, that the same rules that apply to the rest of the world, don’t apply _here_. It’s just the way people are. Well, few countries have as good a reason to feel as special as Israel. The Jews are God’s Chosen People, whether you take that script as fact or fiction. You just can’t take that away from the Jews, though it has earned them plenty of animus over the years. A nation of God’s Chosen People? Exceptional! I’m not being ironic. Look at the shit Israel has gone through and come out on top. Not the typical “humans form society, society descends into chaos” scenario you see so often. Americans may not be God’s Chosen People, but there has been a fair bit of religious fervor/inspiration going on. The Manifest Destiny is my cite. I view this as a sort of common experienced miracle to the people of the time. I think when religious conservatives want to go back to a time in America’s history, it is this mood they want to recreate. The American miracle was palpable at that moment. There _was_ a destiny for America, and it was being realized in the present! But we’re talking 1789- 1867 or so. Pretty old history. But the railroads got built here first, on a grand scale, and that set the stage economically for America’s advancement and enhancement. This is, I think, the trend that crescendoed at the climax of WWII, a move that put America in the highest catbird seat there ever has been, if you wanna look at it in those terms. America could get knocked out of that catbird seat, but so far it hasn’t happened. So there is an argument for American exceptionalism. I guess I’ll take a stab at the con position in 12-48hrs. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2015, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/45 "2015-04-25T07:02:02Z")
> [@ITR\_champion](#): > > Easily. The USA:[ul] > [li]has invented more new technologies than any other country.[/li][li]donates more money to charity than any other country.[/li][li]produces more food than any other country, and give more food away when famine threatens.[/li][li]provides the most international disaster relief.[/li][li]has the world’s greatest universities.[/li][li]provides stronger guarantees of freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and freedom of the press than almost any other country.[/li][li]is home to more companies of worldwide importance than any other country.[/li][/ul] Most of this superiority in quantity is due to one simple fact-namely that the United States is the most populous of any developed liberal democracy on the planet and twice that of its nearest competitor, Japan as well as triple that of its third closest rival Germany. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Joker\_and\_the\_Thief](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e79b87/32.png) [@The\_Joker\_and\_the\_Thief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Joker_and_the_Thief)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2015, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/46 "2015-04-25T14:23:12Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > Most of this superiority in quantity is due to one simple fact-namely that the United States is the most populous of any developed liberal democracy on the planet and twice that of its nearest competitor, Japan as well as triple that of its third closest rival Germany. But not all of this can be reduce to population or technology. US per capita charity, for example, is widely considered an outlier compared to all of our peers. And the US overwhelmingly dominates lists of the world’s top universities. There’s likewise no reason why US guarantees of religious freedom and free speech should be dependent on our population. > [@eschereal](#): > > Damn, I need a new roll of paper towels for the mess all ROFLing over this has caused. I’m actually glad you brought this up, because its one of the stronger points in favor of American exceptionalism. People all over the world watch Hollywood films, listen to American pop music, eat fast food and dress like Americans. The fact that from the every corner of the globe people are striving to be like Americans is a pretty strong point in favor of an exceptional culture. I don’t even know what country comes in second in terms of cultural influence: perhaps China, or maybe Britain or France. Or maybe you’re one of those snarky Europeans who believe “America has no culture.” Either way, you’re wrong. Also, your use of the acronym “ROFL” dates you as 5-6 years out of date. The kids nowadays are semi-ironically using “kek” or “lel”, while “lol” remains as always a timeless and sensible option. Abbreviations should be avoided in formal writing. And if you need to clean spilled liquid (?) off your floor, I suspect you either misunderstand what ROFL means or live very differently than most people. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2015, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/47 "2015-04-25T14:35:29Z")
[QUOTE=The Joker and the Thief] Also, your use of the acronym “ROFL” dates you as 5-6 years out of date. The kids nowadays are semi-ironically using “kek” or “lel”, while “lol” remains as always a timeless and sensible option. Abbreviations should be avoided in formal writing. And if you need to clean spilled liquid (?) off your floor, I suspect you either misunderstand what ROFL means or live very differently than most people. [/QUOTE] Or when eschereal rolls on the floor and laughs they should be wearing Depends to ensure less mess. :o [QUOTE=eschereal] Damn, I need a new roll of paper towels for the mess all ROFLing over this has caused. [/QUOTE] Well, here, have a Coke for your troubles. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2015, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/48 "2015-04-25T14:43:29Z")
> [@The\_Joker\_and\_the\_Thief](#): > > We have somehow morphed onto the issue of economics. I would like to prove this point using before and after war GDPs by country, but reliable GDP/GNP estimates don’t really exist before 1960. I just have a general feeling that if some other country really were better, seven decades is more than enough time to catch up. The US became a nation unto itself in 1776, but let’s be fair and count it from the end of the revolutionary war, so 1783. Seven decades on from that is 1853. To use your argument, if the US really was better, we should expect the US to have been the pre-eminent world power by that point. Was it? > [@](#): > > Furthermore, most of the war-affected countries (excluding Germany) seem to have had very strong growth after the war ended. I just can’t really buy that a few years of economic hegemony and some of the competitors doing harmed are the cause of the US’s economic lead 70 years later. Sure, it could be a factor, but I don’t think its a cause. You can stipulate that, though I tend to disagree. But if we’re saying that actually the war powers weren’t greatly crushed by the lingering effects of the war - then it seems fair to stipulate that **Stringbean** ’s suggestion that the US could simply go out there and conquer is wrong, too. > [@](#): > > The US does have lots of natural resources, but so do lots of poor countries. The Democratic Republic of the Congo, for instance, is spectacularly wealthy in all kinds of resources but extremely poor in terms of per capita GDP. There must be some intrinsic factor that enables the US to make good use of our natural resources, along with allowing us to make better use of technology than competing countries. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has had years of war, political instability, and all the fun of European colonialism to deal with. If you want to compare, sure, but it seems like the most similar period of time to compare with would be Civil War and Reconstruction-era America - though even a comparison like that is fraught with problems. ---
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2015, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/49 "2015-04-25T17:19:56Z")
> [@The\_Joker\_and\_the\_Thief](#): > > I’m actually glad you brought this up, because its one of the stronger points in favor of American exceptionalism. People all over the world watch Hollywood films, Let’s look at the [list of the top-grossing films](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_highest-grossing_films); 1 Avatar 2 Titanic 3 The Avengers 4 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 5 Frozen 6 Furious 7 (wow, that’s doing well for itself) 7 Iron Man 3 8 Transformers: Dark Side of the Moon 9 The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King 10 Skyfall I make that 7 American films, 2 British films, and one New Zealand. Certainly a win for America. But as for your overall point that this shows “people want to be like Americans” - I think you fall down. None of those films showcase American life to be emulated. > [@](#): > > listen to American pop music, [Top selling musicians;](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_music_artists) 1 The Beatles 2 Elvis 3 Michael Jackson 4 Madonna 5 Elton John 6 Led Zeppelin (huh, wouldn’t have expected them) 7 Pink Floyd 8 Mariah Carey 9 Celine Dion 10 Whitney Houston That’s 5 American acts, 4 British, and a Canadian. Not a particularly exceptional record. > [@](#): > > eat fast food Not uniquely American. > [@](#): > > and dress like Americans. What articles of clothing are popular that are particularly American? I mean, right now I’m wearing a t-shirt and jeans. I’m sure there’s lots of Americans wearing something like that right now. But likewise, lots of Brits, and I’m sure plenty of Canadians, French, German… etc. How is it you can say that people around the world dress like Americans, and not dress like… well, all the various people who dress like that too? > [@](#): > > The fact that from the every corner of the globe people are striving to be like Americans is a pretty strong point in favor of an exceptional culture. I don’t even know what country comes in second in terms of cultural influence: perhaps China, or maybe Britain or France. I think you’re taking correlation as causation. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2015, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/50 "2015-04-25T17:21:24Z")
> [@The\_Joker\_and\_the\_Thief](#): > > I’m actually glad you brought this up, because its one of the stronger points in favor of American exceptionalism. People all over the world watch Hollywood films, listen to American pop music, eat fast food and dress like Americans. The fact that from the every corner of the globe people are striving to be like Americans is a pretty strong point in favor of an exceptional culture. I think you are grossly overstating the reach and penetration of American culture. People in other countries do not _strive to be like Americans_, from what I can tell, the opposite is mostly true. Americans as a people are not particularly highly respected worldwide, and when the people of other countries encounter Americans, those people often find the average American rather off-putting and not worthy of emulation. Perhaps amongst the elite, there is measured adoption of American culture, but really then only in order to gain standing or a business advantage. American culture is simply not superior to any other culture in the world, everyone else in the world is aware of that, all cultures contribute to the general global culture mix. Now excuse me while I have a nice lunch at the Maharaja Indian restaurant down the street from here. ---
**Author:** ![Stringbean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Stringbean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stringbean)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2015, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/51 "2015-04-25T18:42:29Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > I think you are grossly overstating the reach and penetration of American culture. People in other countries do not _strive to be like Americans_, from what I can tell, the opposite is mostly true. Americans as a people are not particularly highly respected worldwide, and when the people of other countries encounter Americans, those people often find the average American rather off-putting and not worthy of emulation. > > Perhaps amongst the elite, there is measured adoption of American culture, but really then only in order to gain standing or a business advantage. American culture is simply not superior to any other culture in the world, everyone else in the world is aware of that, all cultures contribute to the general global culture mix. > > Now excuse me while I have a nice lunch at the Maharaja Indian restaurant down the street from here. Funny you bring this up. One of my co-workers emigrated from India about 10 years ago. When she goes back home, she tells me, everyone watches the American television shows. The only person who watches the Indian is herself–in America. I think you vastly underestimate the prevalence of American culture and media in other nations. ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2015, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/52 "2015-04-26T02:49:34Z")
The [Wikipedia article](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_exceptionalism) on American Exceptionalism contains some illuminating history: > [@](#): > > American exceptionalism is the theory that the United States is qualitatively different from other nations. > > The theory of the exceptionalism of the U.S. can be traced to Alexis de Tocqueville, the first writer to describe the country as “exceptional” in 1831 and 1840. [This early view of American exceptionalism is tied, in the American mind, to the concepts of Manifest Destiny and the City Upon a Hill - **Nametag**] > > The exact term “American exceptionalism” has been in use since at least the 1920s and saw more common use after Soviet leader Joseph Stalin allegedly chastised members of the Jay Lovestone-led faction of the American Communist Party for their belief that America was independent of the Marxist laws of history “thanks to its natural resources, industrial capacity, and absence of rigid class distinctions.” Other arguments for American exceptionalism point to the absence of a feudal history, the influence of Puritanism, the deliberate and conscious establishment of a government based on ideals of liberal democracy and republicanism, and the role of the American frontier. Taken together, these elements do appear to compose a national ethos that is different from that of nations that weren’t so “ready-made,” as it were. ---
**Author:** ![Ken001](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/43a26b/32.png) [@Ken001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ken001)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2015, 8:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/53 "2015-04-26T08:40:37Z")
I entered this thread earlier because I thought it was a joke question. But now…hmm. Is this really a recognisable phrase - “American Exceptionalism”? Would people in the USA know what it refers to? Never heard of it myself. ---
**Author:** ![parkona\_driveway](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d26b3c/32.png) [@parkona\_driveway](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/parkona_driveway)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2015, 10:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/54 "2015-04-26T10:15:34Z")
Continuing from the Wikipedia article: > [@](#): > > Although the term does not necessarily imply superiority, many neoconservative and other American conservative writers have promoted its use in that sense. Colonial powers always adopt a superior attitude to justify their aggression. So is there anything new here? ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2015, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/55 "2015-04-26T12:58:14Z")
> [@Ken001](#): > > I entered this thread earlier because I thought it was a joke question. > > But now…hmm. > > Is this really a recognisable phrase - “American Exceptionalism”? Would people in the USA know what it refers to? Never heard of it myself. I’m an American, and the only people I ever hear use the phrase are American Political Conservatives. They use it as a means to express the idea that Americans (ie. They) are inherently “better” than someone else. Even if, I suppose, this implies that they were born that way. Perhaps it has other historical connotations, but today it is used as a political weapon, like lapel pins, or the lack thereof, which I’m sure also sounds like a joke to someone not from Amarica. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2015, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/56 "2015-04-26T13:15:31Z")
Strike that “born that way” line. ---
**Author:** ![parkona\_driveway](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d26b3c/32.png) [@parkona\_driveway](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/parkona_driveway)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2015, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/57 "2015-04-26T14:23:42Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > I’m an American, and the only people I ever hear use the phrase are American Political Conservatives. Could you be more specific? In my observation, the concept is favored specifically by NEOconservatives, defined as advocates of interventionist foreign policy. I suspect this concept throughout history has generally been a way of expressing the idea that you deserve to be dominated because you picked the wrong religion. The underlying motivations are always power and resources, but religious appeal is the veneer that ensures steadfast support from the home population. ---
**Author:** ![Ken001](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/43a26b/32.png) [@Ken001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ken001)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2015, 9:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/58 "2015-04-27T09:53:24Z")
The concept begs the question: what other nations are exceptional? Japan must be one immediate answer. When Admiral Perry arrived in 1856, Japan was an isolated inwardly focused feudal (as in 12thC European) society with little technology. By 1895 they had cowed the giant China and in 1904 set about sorting out the Russian Empire in the far East. Then they joined the Triple Entente on the side of the French and British in the First World War, gaining more territory in the process. Then in 1931 they invaded Manchuria (arguably the actual beginning of WWII) and carried on until August 1945. Surviving two atomic bombs, Japan has risen to be the third most powerful economy in the world today. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2015, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/59 "2015-04-27T11:52:49Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > I’m an American, and the only people I ever hear use the phrase are American Political Conservatives. They use it as a means to express the idea that Americans (ie. They) are inherently “better” than someone else. Even if, I suppose, this implies that they were born that way. > Perhaps it has other historical connotations, but today it is used as a political weapon, like lapel pins, or the lack thereof, which I’m sure also sounds like a joke to someone not from Amarica. I believe Mr. Obama has used the phrase, which doesn’t stop right-wingers from saying “OH MY GOD! OBAMA DOESN’T BELIEVE IN AMERICAN EXCEPTIONALISM!” It’s just as stupid and pointless as lapel pins and the pledge of allegiance. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2015, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420/60 "2015-04-27T16:50:45Z")
[QUOTE=Revenant Threshold] Top selling musicians; 1 The Beatles 2 Elvis 3 Michael Jackson 4 Madonna 5 Elton John 6 Led Zeppelin (huh, wouldn’t have expected them) 7 Pink Floyd 8 Mariah Carey 9 Celine Dion 10 Whitney Houston That’s 5 American acts, 4 British, and a Canadian. Not a particularly exceptional record. [/QUOTE] Do you mean that the artists aren’t exceptional? Because, seriously, if you don’t think it’s exceptional that two countries that make up less than 8% of the total worlds population have 9 of the 10 top selling musicians in them aren’t exceptional I don’t really know what to say. It boggles the mind. > [@](#): > > Not uniquely American. Nope, but it’s associated with the US, and may of the fast food franchises throughout the world are US or originally US flagged companies. You can find, say, a McDonald’s in most modern countries on the planet…same goes for KFC or even Taco Bell. Oh, there are plenty of home grown fast food places in many, many countries, and many of them do better than the US versions in those countries…but not many of them are well known outside of those individual countries, and certainly nothing like the iconic US fast food places that are. This is changing, but right now it’s the US that has more of it’s iconic fast food places in more countries throughout the world than anyone else. And this doesn’t even count iconic US products like Coke and Pepsi. > [@](#): > > What articles of clothing are popular that are particularly American? I mean, right now I’m wearing a t-shirt and jeans. I’m sure there’s lots of Americans wearing something like that right now. But likewise, lots of Brits, and I’m sure plenty of Canadians, French, German… etc. How is it you can say that people around the world dress like Americans, and not dress like… well, all the various people who dress like that too? Well, jeans and tee shirts weren’t invented in the US, but they became iconic American clothes (riveted blue jeans were, IIRC, invented by a German immigrant in the US in the late 1800’s and have become rather associated with the US). However, I’d say that my own take on this is more clothing with US iconic product placement, bands or the like on them. Where this really hit me was years ago when I was traveling to a remove village in South America and I saw a bunch of the kids there wearing tee shirts with Coke on them. I asked them if they even knew what a Coke was, and sure enough, they did (and asked me if I had any…sadly, I didn’t). > [@](#): > > I think you’re taking correlation as causation. Yeah, I agree…I don’t think everyone everywhere wants to be an American or act like an American. Quite the opposite. However, it’s hard to deny the impact the US has had on the world, especially for the last 50 years. This global impact, IMHO, makes the US one of the very few exceptional nations in history. As with the others I listed earlier (not an exhaustive list), this is transitory, and I’m sure there will be other contenders as the US global influence wanes (though this hasn’t really happened…yet), but I’m confident that the US will be remembered in a similar way to the other great nations in the past. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-exceptionalism-fair-and-balanced/718420.md?page=4)