# Has this Board Changed? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [August 31, 2014, 9:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035 "2014-08-31T09:33:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![camille](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/22d042/32.png) [@camille](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/camille)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2014, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/81 "2014-09-02T20:58:45Z")
> [@Pjen](#): > > You cannot deny the extreme defensive patriotism of American culture- God’s Own Country, self-assessment as the best country in the whole world in all things; other countries also have petty nationalism but few take it to the absolute extreme taken by many Americans. This might surprise you: [A new Pew Research Center poll shows that the number of Americans who think the United States “stands above all other countries” has declined from 38 percent three years ago to 28 percent today. A strong majority of Americans (58 percent) say the U.S. is merely “one of the greatest countries.” Just 12 percent say other countries are clearly better.](http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2014/07/03/the-u-s-soccer-team-is-not-no-1-and-neither-is-the-united-states-according-to-americans/) Although I have to agree with **carnivorousplant** that the pile on is (mostly) undeserved, you do really need to have tighter arguments if you want to debate on these boards from a minority position. Especially on the topics you seem to dwell on. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2014, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/82 "2014-09-02T21:05:04Z")
> [@Pjen](#): > > You cannot deny the extreme defensive patriotism of American culture- God’s Own Country, self-assessment as the best country in the whole world in all things; other countries also have petty nationalism but few take it to the absolute extreme taken by many Americans. I certainly can, but this thread has veered far enough from ATMB territory already that I won’t. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2014, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/83 "2014-09-02T21:38:11Z")
> [@Pjen](#): > > I do have a fascination with differences between cultures (How do so many countries have social Democrat governments yet thrive against the majoritarian political view in the US, How non US countries survive without the second amendment, why have most advanced countries disposed of the death penalty, why do most other countries manage to survive without imprisoning such a massive percentage of their populatio and so on. I think you have the mistaken belief that America is a homogeneous culture. We do not. We never have. While there are a number of over-riding themes that resonate across the country, America is not so much a melting pot as it’s a salad bowl. You can taste the regional and cultural differences from all over the country, yet somehow the nationwide “taste” is all that most “outsiders” ever experience. Add to it the media lost (if it ever had) it’s somewhat “objective” view of the world; every news outlet has a bias these days. I daily read online news from across the political spectrum even though my views tend to support part of that spectrum. While this Board has a historic left lean, it does not turn away those who do not support that view. I think the Board makes a determined (but unconscious) effort to appeal across the spectrum. We play hard here so if you lack the fortitude, are afraid of getting bruised, for examples, you might find this place not so friendly. Yes, the Board has changed. It’s life. What really matters is whether you want to pull down your pants and slide on the ice as Major Sidney Freeman suggests. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2014, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/84 "2014-09-02T21:52:46Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > . What really matters is whether you want to pull down your pants and slide on the ice as Major Sidney Freeman suggests. Say what? ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2014, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/85 "2014-09-02T22:03:01Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Say what? Must be one of those regional American things. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2014, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/86 "2014-09-02T22:35:19Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > Yes, the Board has changed. It’s life. What really matters is whether you want to pull down your pants and slide on the ice as Major Sidney Freeman suggests. [M.A.S.H.](http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0009467/quotes) ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2014, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/87 "2014-09-02T23:18:31Z")
I don’t understand this idea that there is a “pile on” here. The OP asked why people respond to her posts the way they do, and people are telling her. The fact that many people agree on certain reasons is not a “pile on”-- it’s telling the OP something she probably needs to hear. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2014, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/88 "2014-09-03T00:11:31Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > I don’t understand this idea that there is a “pile on” here. The OP asked why people respond to her posts the way they do, and people are telling her. The fact that many people agree on certain reasons is not a “pile on”-- it’s telling the OP something she probably needs to hear. I concur, and I’m pretty sensitive to pile ons. I also have no opinion on **Pjen** ’s posting habits as I don’t read those thread subjects, and my opinion of the Dope is that it’s gotten nicer since I started. For instance, the current Pit is puppies and kittens compared to the 2009 one. (And, yes, I mean even after the “incident.”) There’s even a recent thread where the Pittee was trading jokes with the Pitters. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2014, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/89 "2014-09-03T00:30:36Z")
> [@Pjen](#): > > Your last comment is a cause but not an excuse for US lack of understanding the rest of the world. My last “comment” was a line from a Chuck Berry song. You need to know about Chuck Berry if you wish to understand the culture of the U.S. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2014, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/90 "2014-09-03T00:34:38Z")
> [@Pjen](#): > > As I mentioned above, I am very pro-American in many ways becasue of where I grew up- to Brits I am certainly pro-American and seen as being the result of an American education. I piss them off talking about things that are different and possibly better in US culture. > > Your last comment is a cause but not an excuse for US lack of understanding the rest of the world. Likewise, you seem to have an lack of understanding of U.S. culture, tending to lump everyone into one big group, or stereotype. For example: > [@Pjen](#): > > You cannot deny the extreme defensive patriotism of American culture- God’s Own Country, self-assessment as the best country in the whole world in all things; other countries also have petty nationalism but few take it to the absolute extreme taken by many Americans. Not everyone in the U.S. thinks this way and assuming that everyone does is insulting. It’s a big and very diverse nation. And finally, perhaps people tend to get defensive, not because we live in “God’s Own Country”, but we don’t like big told our that our home is basically a shithole? I mean, you’ve pretty much implied that we’re basically a bunch of racist, uneducated, sadistic barbarians. No, maybe Americans don’t travel outside their country as much. You know why? It’s fucking expensive. There are only two other continents here: Canada and Mexico. Europe, on the other hand, is much denser, and has many more countries packed together. Many of us would love to go overseas and tour Europe, but it’s simply not feasible. I don’t think my country’s perfect – far from it. But I don’t like it when people come in and tell me that somehow, they know better than me, and I’m so unenlightened, because of where I live, blah blah blah. It’s very condescending and people tend to get very defensive. And many of your so-called observations are simply incorrect. I don’t know which parts you visited, but trust me, you came away with a very narrow view of this country. (However, the next time you visit the U.S., I do urge you to stop by Pittsburgh. We’re very friendly folks, we were voted “Most Livable City” in the U.S., and the city itself is very diverse and quite beautiful.) ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2014, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/91 "2014-09-03T01:25:53Z")
> [@Pjen](#): > > You cannot deny the extreme defensive patriotism of American culture- God’s Own Country, self-assessment as the best country in the whole world in all things; other countries also have petty nationalism but few take it to the absolute extreme taken by many Americans. Well, yes, I can, and I do deny it, actually, when ascribed to the country as a whole as you do. Sure, there are some Americans who have that view: but ascribing it to American culture as a whole, and to all Americans, is simply a caricature, meant to establish your debating position by assumption, rather than by evidence. I thought that with the departure of **Aldebaran** , we’d moved past “My post is my cite.” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2014, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/92 "2014-09-03T02:04:04Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > And finally, perhaps people tend to get defensive, not because we live in “God’s Own Country”, but we don’t like big told our that our home is basically a shithole? I mean, you’ve pretty much implied that we’re basically a bunch of racist, uneducated, sadistic barbarians. Hell, some Northern Dopers tell me that about the South a couple of times a week. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2014, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/93 "2014-09-03T02:34:13Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Pjen, I disagree with you much of the time, but many posters are as opinionated as you, and you do not deserve being piled up on here. 🙂 I disagree with the “pile on” description but I do agree this is getting further and further out from ATMB territory. Think what has happened is that people have tried to answer to the issue posted here and then it’s gone on to defend positions … that’s not how it’s supposed to be here but it’s natural that the argument would go there. Still, not appropriate. If you got a problem with Pjen (or any other poster), take it to The Pit. Continue in this vein and this thread will be closed. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2014, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/94 "2014-09-03T14:11:32Z")
I’ve been here just a little over a decade, and don’t think it’s changed all that much. The snark and amity here ebb and flow, day by day. In ten years on the SDMB I’ve made good friends, discussed things I would never have thought about otherwise, had questions answered that otherwise would have remained mysteries, and been, by turns, delighted, aggravated, amused, pissed off, entertained, intrigued and sustained. For me, fighting ignorance was never such fun. This is a great place. Individual Dopers come and go, of course, but the Dope abides. I wouldn’t have it any other way. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2014, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/95 "2014-09-03T16:00:09Z")
Love you Guin, but… > [@Guinastasia](#): > > There are only two other \*\*continents \*\*here: Canada and Mexico. (bolding mine) Really? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2014, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/96 "2014-09-03T17:40:13Z")
> [@Cinnamon\_Imp](#): > > Love you Guin, but… > > (bolding mine) > > Really? 😉 Imp, do you go to the zoo and poke at the bears with a stick? :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2014, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/97 "2014-09-03T19:07:02Z")
> [@Cinnamon\_Imp](#): > > Love you Guin, but… > > (bolding mine) > > Really? 😉 Fuck. :smack: [sub]Yes, I knew that[/sub] :o ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2014, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/98 "2014-09-03T19:11:05Z")
I knew you knew that. And unlike \*some \*others, I’d never call you a bear 😉 ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2014, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/99 "2014-09-03T19:17:56Z")
> [@Cinnamon\_Imp](#): > > I knew you knew that. And unlike \*some \*others, I’d never call you a bear 😉 Yeah, try and wriggle out. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2014, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035/100 "2014-09-03T19:20:42Z")
You appear to be mistaking me for a Sept14’er. You are mistaken. If you have anything further to say about me, I’d suggest you take it to the Pit. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-board-changed/697035.md?page=6)