Americans

S

striker3

New member
I was reading longhair's post about immigrants being able to speak English and it made me want to unload about what the American people in general have become.
It seems to me that we have very few Americans in this country. There is an abundance of African-Americans, Mexican-Americans, Native-Americans and all the rest of those hyphens, but very few people who proudly label themselves AMERICANS. I am not saying that Americans should ever forget their heritage, because America is a land of immigrants, those roots are very important to the formation of this country and should never be forgotten. But, I think that it is wrong to put forth your immigrant heritage before your American. Your past heritage is what brought you into the present, yet what most people forget is that it is your American heritage is what will lead you into the future. I myself am half hispanic and half English/Irish. I am damn proud of my families heritage, yet I am even more proud to be able to call myself an American. My family has fought in every American war from the Revolution on down to the Persian Gulf to insure that I will always be able to stand tall, face the flag, and know that first and foremost I am an American, who holds upon his shoulders the burden of fighting to keep on the traditons of ideals that have so soon grown "quaint". I hold in contempt all those that put a hyphen in their title. It shows me who the true enemies of this country are. I know that someone who doesn't even love America enough to be called an American, is someone who I can never trust to ensure that my rights are always guaranteed.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>"A hyphenated American is not an American at all. This is just as true of the man who puts 'Native' before the hyphen as of the man who puts German or Irish or French
before the hyphen. Americanism is a matter of the spirit and of the soul. Our allegiance
must be purely to the United States. We must unsparingly condemn any man who holds any other allegiance."
Theodore Roosevelt, 12 October 1915 [/quote]
 
Striker3, you're hittin' the ten ring.

I've been fed up with the hyphenated crowd for a long time. I went and checked my Webster's Wordbook, and sure enough: I'm a Native American, because I was born here.

Well, technically, it's native American...Little-n native.

Gettin' off-thread a bit, you can make use of this to confuse the enemy. Every time you "must" give info to some snoopy corporation, goof-up by one number in your SS or DL. Or house number. Or misspell your street. Same for Zip Code. If you were born here, you're a native American one time, a Latin American another time. And there's the good old "Other".

What does this do? It loads snoopy's computer database with 10 or 20 or 30 Striker3s. Think of their cost of junk mail!

If it's a Gummint agency and they bitch at you, give them the trout look: Drop your jaw, go all glaze-eyed and go "Duh..." Their egos get a boost, and they calm down.

Like Arlo in "Alice's Restaurant", we can start a movement! Overload the hard-drives of the world! They've already got Garbage Out; we'll give'em Garbage In!

I need a beer.
 
Many years ago after my release from Military Service I took a job with the Federal Government in a social service agency. (OK, I needed the job at the time).

One day while interviewing an elderly lady she asked me what my heritage was. I replied that I am an American. This answer did not satisfy her and she pressed me for what she thought should be a proper answer ( EX German- American). After she asked the same question several times and became quite annoyed I gave her the following answer:

Ma'am, I was born here in the US, went to school in the US, served in the US Army for seven years. My Father did the same, I am an AMERICAN dammit and dont call me anything else.

Of course she complained to my supervisor, a real bureaucrat with a spanish surname who milked same to his advantage. When he "counseled" me about my performance I gave him the same answer I gave her. Needless to say I did not last long in Government service.

As far as I am concerned, if you want to hyphenate your heritage you must be really ashamed of the fact that you were born in this country, I'm not.

The US has a distinctive culture, different from any other culture. And despite the fact that many in power would like to abolish our culture it is still here and will be here for a long time to come.

If I have offended anyone, well this is the United States and I am entitled to my opinion, until the government passes a law against it.

As an Army buddy once replied to a British customs agent when asked what country he was subject to, "I am an American Citizen, not anybodys subject"

Geoff Ross
 
All this self-hyphenation amounts to nothing less than the Balkanization of America. Instead of the "melting pot" immigrants to this country once aspired to, we are now encouraged to cling to our unique ethnic "differences".
We need look no further than the "former" Yugoslavia to see were this kind of thinking can ultimately lead.
I am proud of my ethnic heritage, but like Geoff, when asked "what" I am, my response is American. That is all I'll say, no matter how many different ways they ask that question.
My ancestors came to this country to be Americans. Otherwise, they would have stayed where they were.
 
Here's a thought:

Ban Hyphens

"...for the children"

Seriously

People who segment themselves from the rest of us help only to further the "Us vs. Them" mentality that breeds the hate that is choking OUR COUNTRY!
 
There was a high ranking official during the fall of the Han Dynasty (202 BC to 220 A.D) who said to a disloyal minister the following: "You've been eating the bread of Han and benefiting from its prosperity, and yet, you're ready to commit treachery and bring this Dynasty assunder!" My point to all immigrants out there: All of us immigrants (including myself)have been benefiting from America's prosperity, thus we have to love this country and be loyal to her. Now that we're here, we must try our best to be good citizens, adopt the values set forth by the founding fathers of this country. If you don't want to be Americans, nobody's stopping you from leaving this country. And if you did leave, please don't come back, we don't need unloyal creeps like you!

Once having said the above, I must say that most immigrants comming to this country do appreciate. love, and loyal to this great country of ours. As usual, I am blaming the liberals for all of this mess. You see, the liberals keep telling the immigrants that the majority of Americans are racists that will kick our butts for being immigrants/nonwhites or whatever. The result is this: lots of non-whites first generation immigrants are affraid of interacting with White Americans because they've been brainwashed by the libs that they're not wanted and they'll get their teeth knocked out by these racists white bullies. What I don't understand is that why the hell do the libs want to spread all of those lies? Don't they know that by doing so, they will hurt America? What's up with that?

Johannes
 
If it's of any consolation, this is not a phenomenon that's confined to the USA.

We now have the situation of a division into Aboriginal Australian and non-Aboriginal Australian.

I was born here, why should I be a "non"-anything? I'm an Aussie, mate -- and still bloody proud of it, too :)

These "tags" create real divisions, not just nomenclature divisions. In my opinion, this is just what we don't need.

B
 
What really gets me is that area on various forms (surveys, govt. forms, etc) that want your racial backround. I get tired of seeing: "Spanish/Mexican-American, African-American, Native-American, Asian-American, and then White or Caucasian."

If we want to get real nit-picky here, why not subdivide all "white" races? Let's see, there are Anglo, Saxon, Celtic, French, German, Italian, Slavic, blah blah blah...

I have yet to see a space on there for "American." As for me, I'm such a blend of races, I usually put "other" just to mess up their numbers.

It's a sad state of affairs these days, ain't it?

I too, am proud of my heritage (if it isn't Scottish, it's CRAP!) but first and foremost, I am just a plain ol' Amurican, no mas, no menos...


------------------
"...What will you do without freedom? Will you fight?... Fight, and you may die, run and you'll live, at least a while. And dying, many years from now, would you be willing to trade all the days from this day to that, for just one chance, to tell our enemies, that they may take our lives, but they'll never take our FREEDOM!!!"
 
Darthmaum...

Ya forgot "Pacific Islander" ;)

Ya'll know what its for don't you? The never ending accumulation of data for any kind of statistics and quotas they want to do.

Actually its pretty insidious....a couple years ago myself and 2 others started a business. My 2 partners were (rightly or wrongly) looking for more start-up capital and since I was a partner they thought about maybe getting some Fed. grant for a woman owned business. My oh my the strings attached would have been amazing: quotas for female and other minority employees and more hiring future quotas.
I quashed it...they were pissed but, I always get my way :)

------------------
"Quis custodiet ipsos custodes"
 
DOH! (how dare I commit such a glaring omission??)

Okay, I confess, I did it on purpose, just to deny the PI's their individuality and to oppress them :)

Man, I could go on and on and on and on.....
:) :) :) :) :D :D
 
Okay I held my breath long enough....

I happen to be someone who wasn't born here. I came here when I was two years old. I still speak my native tongue around family, But other than my physical looks, I'm pretty much your typical all American with good old fashioned American values. But you know what?
I LOVE that I'm from a different background, and am very proud of it. I do not use it as a crutch, but I feel that I have every right to enjoy my heritage and use it for my own gain. That's the basis of pseudo-capitalism. I am an American, a citizen, but I also "hyphenate."

I don't see anything wrong with that. Nothing. Unless it's used to exploit and enviegle something for nothing. What pisses me off are those who have been here for generations, look completely homogenized and still call themselves "Native-American." What gives them the right? Because their great-great-great grandpa had a fling with a squaw? But when you are truly a first or second generation American, I feel you have every right to hyphenate. It's not the title, but the ideology that matters. I'm damned proud to be an American, and can think of no other place on earth I'd want to live.

All of the confusion and resent continues to be propogated by liberal idiots who I feel WANT a racial war to start, to justify some pathetic existence.
 
You guys are dead on. Time to stop glorifying in diversity and start glorifying in what we share in common. I read statements like "We recognize the value of diversity." Well, what is the value? In parts of the world with stark contrasts between ethnic groups you usually see them trying to eliminate eachother. Yes, even in the good ole USA. So much for the value of diversity. So much for focusing on our differences. Back to the "Melting Pot" for me.

Koski
 
Somebody said the "S" word. The Injuns gonna come and gitcha. Squaw is an Algonquin (sp) word for the female private parts. Native-Americans ( the originals) get upset when it is used. Gads! I'm being politically correct.
For those of you who have not read it, look at my thread in the Legal and Political forum entitled RULES FOR REVOLUTION. I realize that when I posted it, that the disarmament of the people was emphasized, but that was copied from the source verbatim. What I am saying is that none of the emphasis was mine.
Study every nuance of what that article said. Someboby posted that that was not the way to a revolution. Who says a revolution need be violent, if they can do it in a subtle manner? They have the media. TV. The great brainwasher to do their dirty work for them. Note that Congress was afraid to make rules on the sex and violence that they considered censorship.
Political correctness is an oxymoron, promulgated by morons. Divide the people with trivial matters. Read the rules people. It's all there.
Paul B.

[This message has been edited by Paul B. (edited June 30, 1999).]
 
Spleenanideal....

Completely understandable...I play up my Sicilian ethnicity to the hilt.

The problem is "official forms" or "interest group" versus a casual conversation "Whats your heritage/ethnicity?".

I love playing the psycho guido, but I am very suspicious if the gov't wants to know my ethnicity. 1) You can tell by my name so either they are too stupid or lazy for those high paying jobs they have to figure it out and I am sick unto death of paying dead weight freight.
2) Why is it important to them? At that point, we are all equal so its of no importance.

Personally, I do sincerely believe that it is a tool "they" have figured out to segregate and divide us all in order to play us off.
Relax and enjoy your heritage, no one here will deny you....Capische?

A very dear friend once told me....the best in all the world came here.



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"Quis custodiet ipsos custodes"
 
Paul B,
Does your explanation of the "S" word explain the origin of the word "squawk"?

((Grump deftly slips inside his ankle-length helmet...))
 
spleenandideal,
I never said that you should not be proud of your heritage. I am half hispanic of Mecian descent. I am damn proud of that fact too. I am also of English/Irish descent, also damn proud of that. But that is all in the past. I did nothing but be born into those heritages, it was dumb luck. I make myself an American. The choices that I make, the things that I chose to do and not to do. Those choices affect my country, those choices affect myself and those around me. Therefore I believe that people should be judged as an American first and foremost, on their heritage, not at all. So I say be proud as hell of the heritage that you were born into, but you should be even prouder of holding the title of American.

[This message has been edited by striker3 (edited July 01, 1999).]
 
i have no problem with honoring your ancestral heritage. if asked, i don't mind saying i'm dutch from my father's side and scotch- irish from my mother's .BUT, I AM AMERICAN, of the above lineage, if asked, no hyphen needed.
i feel that we should be americans first, then whatever other ethnic group .
almost all of the different people who came here were oppressed before coming, and most after they came also. america used to be a melting pot , where traditions were blended and joined . now it seems as if everyone wants to close out those not of their immediate "family group", and see just how divided we can be. i'm sorry to see it, for i love the diversity of the people and backgrounds that i have encountered. i have been to homes and churches, farms and small businesses, and some not so small. big cities and little towns that were hardly a wide spot in the road. and made welcome in them all. some places, it's still that way. others, i don't care to go back.
i just wish i could find that old "let's all pull together "spirit that used to be so common. i've gotten tired of "i got mine, who cares about you". end of diatribe, i'm going to bed. cmore
 
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