2000-11-27 Greg, I don't know. I guess if the propaganda machine constantly pumps out the "we are better than everyone else" slogan, you believe it right or wrong. The masses are like sheep following the shepherd without question. The shepherd being the perpetrators of the propaganda. Or you can associate it to a religious belief. America is a God, to be worshipped and adored. The old time religions are fading away. They don't hold the power they once did. So, people replace the old god with a new one. America is the new god. John -----Original Message----- From: Gregory Peterson [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Monday, 2000-11-27 13:23 To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: [USMA:9330] RE: The 2001 Almanac for Farmers and CityFolk, pp.115-116 Hi John, What do you think is the source of this feeling in the United States? Is it the fact that the country forcibly removed itself from the British Empire? Could it be that it is because the US is both a military and an economic power? Might it have to do with the fact that the US is quite isolated from the rest of the world, having to share a terrestrial border only with Canada and Mexico: both quite similar to the US in many respects, but no where near as influential on the world stage? Pierre Trudeau had a good analogy of the Canada/US relationship. Living so close to the US is like sleeping with an elephant. No matter how friendly the elephant is, you still worry about the elephant rolling over in it's sleep. When the US rolled over on metric, I'm quite suprised that Canada's metrication efforts went as far as they did. After all we are each other's largest trading partners. greg >>> "kilopascal" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 2000-11-24 13:24:48 >>> 2000-11-24 Well Bill, it isn't a matter of reading minds. In this case, we all know how Americans in general feel about themselves as a nation and the how they fit in with the rest of the world. There is a strong feeling of arrogance and superiority in this country. You know it as well as I do. If you don't, then you are either very isolated or have chosen to block or filter it out. I have not met one fellow countryman who does not feel to some degree that the US is above everyone else, and the world should be following the US and the US the world. I do travel a lot on business, and have been all over the country, and the beliefs are basically the same no matter what the region. So, when I say everyone, American and other, on this list knows I right, I mean it. Unless I am shown differently by many experiences that this has changed, I will not change how I feel on this subject. John -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]On Behalf Of Bill Potts Sent: Friday, 2000-11-24 13:21 To: U.S. Metric Association Subject: [USMA:9329] RE: The 2001 Almanac for Farmers and City Folk, pp.115-116 John Schweisthal wrote: > The truth is everyone on this list knows I'm right and are afraid to admit it, even to > themselves. Gee, John, I'm so impressed that you can read everyone's mind. Bill Potts, CMS San Jose, CA http://metric1.org [SI Navigator]
