Why do so many Americans think the USA is the only country on Earth?

Question

As an American, I am concerned about the fact that many of my fellow Americans believe we should eschew membership to international organizations or assisting other countries in need. If we can invade other countries can't we help them also? A major event in one country will inevitably affect America as well! Everything is linked, my friends. Think AIDS, think WWII, think the growth of extremism in the middle east and many others. Don't get me wrong, I like my country. There are many things it needs to work on, but I think overall it is a good country. A huge mistake, however, would be to assume that the USA is an island unto itself on this Earth.

Answer 1

It isn't?

Answer 2

It is because USA is one of the super powers on Earth. They also have the biggest 'defense' system. Not only counting these facts but it also wants to keep its guard up and not repeat the Pax Romana. Culture/ethnics plays a role in it too if one starts looking.

Answer 3

I think the guy above misses the point.  It's not about how much money America gives other countries (which is great, btw, go USA), but it's about how the average American sees the rest of the world.  Americans can't even name countries in Europe.  Europe!  They are ignorant about the rest of the world and don't care what happens there.  I grew up in another country and every night on the news I saw what was happening in the US, in Europe, in Asia and Africa.  I got the latest UN news, updates on not just disasters, but sporting events etc. from around the world.  On the nightly news, on a crappy TV station.  Here the best journalists in the country spend more time on mesotherapy (fat injection) coverage than they do on world news.  The "world in a minute" approach in laughable.  Why are Americans this way?  I personally think it's because the country is so big and so homogeneous.  It's hard to care about what's happening in Thailand when it's smaller than your own state, not to mention your whole country.  But I do think schools and the media could do a better job of keeping ordinary people more plugged into the global information stream.

Answer 4

I have traveled a fair bit around the world from Europe to the Caribbean, to Central and South America,  to the South Pacific and other than the people of Tahiti, I have found one over riding desire among the people. To move to America.  When you are on top everyone will always criticize you and make huge demands upon you.  Go to a small town in America and ask the biggest business how often they are criticized and how often they are asked for donations.  It is just human nature and America is the global leader in making lives better around the world.  Russia funded Cuba and look at Cuba now.  I don't say we couldn't do a better job but at what cost to our own economy and the standard of living we enjoy.  What other country has the capacity to do the things America does for the world?  We do some harm but for the last hundred years America has done an outstanding job in the overall global picture.

Answer 5

maybe they(those who think that america is the  only country on earth) want the whole world to be americanized....

Answer 6

Simple only 17% of Americans hold passports. They are feed by the media about other nations. I have notice anti French comments on this, and yet they have never set foot on French soil. These are typical views express on this by Americans: That all nations outside the USA are either Communist or socialist and sad thing is they can't tell the difference between the two. Oops forgot we supose to be jelous of the USA. They love this word "Freedom" no other nation beside them have this. The excuse they use to invade is "We brought you Democracy and Freedom" The word Democracy is from the Greek word "Demokratia" so sorry to disapoint them they didn't invent it.

Answer 7

I don't think the U.S.A. is an island, I just think that our government should work on fixing problems here first, and then worry about everyone else. They aren't putting their problems second to ours.

Answer 8

We don't think that way. Please don't let your guilt-wracked liberal emotions project onto everyone else. As a Nation and a people, Americans provide more worldwide assistance and aid than the rest of the world combined!

Answer 9

You're painting with a very broad brush, and creating fresh opportunity for anti-Americans who love these types of questions.

Unless you've taken a poll, don't try to speak for the rest of us. I feel that I should qualify my answer by including that I do NOT think that we are the only country on Earth. I'm sure other Americans who respond to your question will appreciate having to defend themselves in similar fashion.

If this is your attempt to get an appreciative pat on the back from non-Americans on Y!A, I deeply resent it.

Answer 10

The biggest organization that alot of people think we should eschew membership in is the United Nations.

I think the reason for that is because it has become a hypocritical den of corrupt third world despots, who use their political power to insult at every turn the very country that helped found that organization. Furthermore, we provide the housing and maintain the building, as well as pay more annual dues than any other country. Many of those 'diplomats' use their diplomatic immunity to get away with crimes that would put an American citizen into prison for years.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan agreed on June 13, 2002 to hand over $20 million to build an Iraqi Olympic arena, part of Uday Hussein's (Saddam's son) absurd bid for the 2012 Olympics. A renowned rapist, Uday used to torture Iraqi athletes if they failed to win international competitions.

That was just one of the tiny off-shoots of the horribly corrupt 'oil-for-food' program.

By the way, that was the same Kofi-Annan that won the Nobel Peace Prize in tandem with the United Nations in 2001.

Add into that all the human rights and sexual abuse violations by it's supposed 'peace-keepers'.

I could spend all day listing the problems with CAIR (Council on American-Islamic Relations.) Another international group that supports terrorism behind closed doors, while touting it's peacekeeping mission of understanding.

We have allies, but these type of groups aren't on that list.