I think that most of the population of my country sees the USA as
the Leader of the Free World, the City on the Hill as it were. This is a
common delusion among my people, spurred-on by 1950's war movies in
which we saved the world from the rampaging hordes of despotism and
tyranny, and the idea that individually we are intrinsically better and
more important to the world than everyone else.
A typical symptom of this brand of psychosis is the belief that at one time America was "great" (it never was) and that we need to get back to that fictional level of societal perfection and prominence in the world.
The only known cure is travel. Seeing the rest of the world, exploring the myriad variety of cultures and perspectives, seems to be the only way to break this American mental illness. Unfortunately the average citizen gets their input instead from Hollywood and cable channels, whose products just enhance the myth of "American Exceptionalism"
Maybe someday we WILL break free of this fantasy and join the rest of the world as equals, but that won't happen as long as we insist on being "America First".
A typical symptom of this brand of psychosis is the belief that at one time America was "great" (it never was) and that we need to get back to that fictional level of societal perfection and prominence in the world.
The only known cure is travel. Seeing the rest of the world, exploring the myriad variety of cultures and perspectives, seems to be the only way to break this American mental illness. Unfortunately the average citizen gets their input instead from Hollywood and cable channels, whose products just enhance the myth of "American Exceptionalism"
Maybe someday we WILL break free of this fantasy and join the rest of the world as equals, but that won't happen as long as we insist on being "America First".
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