# What is the most wonderful thing the USA has done for the world? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 1, 2014, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440 "2014-05-01T14:51:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/21 "2014-05-01T18:03:09Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > We didn’t invent democracy. I didn’t say we invented it. We have the first successful installation that qualifies for what people would call democracy these days. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/22 "2014-05-01T18:22:08Z")
> [@Shakester](#): > > Raising clueless self-importance to an art form? Ah, the SD. We can always count on at least one contrarian. Are you arguing that the USA did not “do” everything in the list? Didn’t do them by “ourselves”? Are you arguing that they are not important contributions (including the light bulb and remote-control TV)? If so, list some non-USA contributions to the world of equal wonderfulness. Or are you just being snarky? ---
**Author:** ![mandala](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mandala/32/95_2.png) [@mandala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mandala)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/23 "2014-05-01T18:31:34Z")
To clarify, an invention or effort does not have to be 100% made-in-USA. A highly significant contribution qualifies. Such as climate science. It’s not made in the USA, but a lot of the science is driven by the US in one way or the other. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/24 "2014-05-01T18:37:10Z")
McDonald’s and Coca-Cola. ---
**Author:** ![nicole1912](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/9de0a6/32.png) [@nicole1912](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nicole1912)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/25 "2014-05-01T19:09:13Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > I didn’t say we invented it. We have the first successful installation that qualifies for what people would call democracy these days. How are you defining “successful installation of democracy”? Because I can think of at least a couple of countries that have had Parliaments longer than the US - the UK, for a start. Or Iceland. Or the Isle of Man. There might be others, but maybe that’s not what you meant? ETA: to actually answer the question, I think of the options listed in the poll, supporting the tech and IT industry in the way that the US has done has been one of its most positive contributions to the world. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/26 "2014-05-01T19:14:02Z")
> [@nicole1912](#): > > How are you defining “successful installation of democracy”? Because I can think of at least a couple of countries that have had Parliaments longer than the US - the UK, for a start. Or Iceland. Or the Isle of Man. There might be others, but maybe that’s not what you meant? The US didn’t think the British parliamentory system was democratic when we started. Someplace, Corsica maybe, took a stab at it, but it didn’t work too well, much like our Articles of Confederation prior to the Constitition. I don’t know about Iceland or the Isle of Man, so those might prove me wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/27 "2014-05-01T19:20:33Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > McDonald’s and Coca-Cola. As direct contributors to diabetes, heart attacks, arteriosclerosis, obesity, tooth decay, and myriad other health and dental maladies, could these really be considered wonderful things? ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/28 "2014-05-01T19:21:27Z")
Ok, after quite a bit of thought, I’m going to go with freedom of speech. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/29 "2014-05-01T19:24:46Z")
> [@Superhal](#): > > > [@Broomstick](#): > > > > BBQ was invented by natives in the Caribbean and Rome had indoor plumbing, so out of that list jazz is the only American invention. > > Actually, jazz and blues have roots from African slave music. Correct, but it originated in African-descended slaves and later their freed descendants _in the United States_, which would make it a genuinely American music form. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/30 "2014-05-01T19:26:34Z")
I would think that we have been a global stabilizig influence. We have had to flex out muscle now and then but overall I think we have been very responsible with our power. ---
**Author:** ![Sr\_Siete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6de8d8/32.png) [@Sr\_Siete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sr_Siete)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/31 "2014-05-01T19:30:28Z")
First Constitutional Democracy. Now that was a game changer that makes even WWII and the fall of communism look like just random 20th century events in comparison. ---
**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:** [May 1, 2014, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/32 "2014-05-01T19:45:40Z")
Winning World War Two. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/33 "2014-05-01T19:47:28Z")
I’d say that one of the unsung, but greatest things we’ve done is to fund research in all sorts of fields with great gusto. As a result, our universities are world leaders in almost every field and produce things like the Green Revolution that don’t necessarily benefit the US in any way, but that are world-changing. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/34 "2014-05-01T19:47:29Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > The US didn’t think the British parliamentory system was democratic when we started. … and yet we copied it wholesale. If you don’t count 18th-century Britain as a democracy then you can hardly count the US. I mean, I’m pretty sure the slaves didn’t get to vote or anything. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/35 "2014-05-01T19:58:10Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > … and yet we copied it wholesale. If you don’t count 18th-century Britain as a democracy then you can hardly count the US. I mean, I’m pretty sure the slaves didn’t get to vote or anything. I’ll go with Sr Siete’s answer, a Constitutional Democracy. The Brits still don’t have that. ---
**Author:** ![Octarine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/22d042/32.png) [@Octarine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octarine)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/36 "2014-05-01T20:11:04Z")
Although the endless glurge based around “the melting pot” is irritating, there _is_ a lot of truth in the whole “give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free” idea. To be sure, there were many, many times in history when this was not true, and even during the immigration “boom” periods immigrants lived in horrifying conditions, but the safe haven the US provided - freedom from religious persecution, freedom of speech, a say in your government - is probably the most valuable thing the US has done. Plus, a huge number of inventions and achievements can be traced back to descendants of immigrants. ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/37 "2014-05-01T20:21:46Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Correct, but it originated in African-descended slaves and later their freed descendants _in the United States_, which would make it a genuinely American music form. Jazz had roots in African, Spanish and Cuban/Caribbean music (which is why it came about in New Orleans, the cultural crossroads of these places), but as you said, nobody could argue that it wasn’t an American invention, just like blues and rock and roll. All art is inspired by earlier forms, but in these cases the elements were merged to form something completely new. Nobody in any country was playing jazz or blues songs before America. I agree our music is one of our greatest contributions to the world. ---
**Author:** ![mandala](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mandala/32/95_2.png) [@mandala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mandala)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/38 "2014-05-01T20:33:30Z")
> [@Sr\_Siete](#): > > First Constitutional Democracy. Now that was a game changer that makes even WWII and the fall of communism look like just random 20th century events in comparison. American ‘Constitutional democracy’ and freedom of speech are truly admirable but how did they directly benefit the world? America’s industrial prowess is not directly related to CD and freedom of speech. The Russians had/have great tech, too, and they never tasted constitutional freedoms, ever. India is a robust constitutional democracy and its present contribution to the world is peanuts. Never heard of a game-changing contribution from fellow CD Canada, either. ---
**Author:** ![Sr\_Siete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6de8d8/32.png) [@Sr\_Siete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sr_Siete)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/39 "2014-05-01T20:35:57Z")
> [@mandala](#): > > American ‘Constitutional democracy’ and freedom of speech are awesome but how did they directly benefit the world? America’s industrial prowess is not directly related to CD and freedom of speech. The Russians had great tech, too, and they never tasted constitutional freedoms, ever. India is a robust constitutional democracy and its present contribution to the world is peanuts. Never heard of a game-changing contribution from fellow CD Canada, either. Am I supposed to argue the benefits of widespread democracy here? I wouldn’t even know where to start. ---
**Author:** ![mandala](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mandala/32/95_2.png) [@mandala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mandala)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2014, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440/40 "2014-05-01T20:38:30Z")
> [@Sr\_Siete](#): > > Am I supposed to argue the benefits of widespread democracy here? I wouldn’t even know where to start. No - I am merely pointing out that democracy in a suitable form exists all around the world. Democracy is/has been an enabler to America’s rise, but no other democratic country has anything comparable to America’s influence in the world. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-wonderful-thing-the-usa-has-done-for-the-world/687440.md?page=3)