Dear Americans. We are sick & tired of you telling us you are the greatest country in the world. What does that mean exactly? Is it like Madeleine Albright said? That you are the "worlds indespensible nation?", as in, everyone except you is just a parasite? Why do you ask this question? Do us all a favour. Stop ramming it down our throats. YOU'RE BANKRUPT! No-one outside of the US believes it anyway. It just creates a contempt for you. It's OK to be proud, but its not OK to look down on others.
Do Americans go and yell to you that we are better than you because we were born in the US?Do we broadcast into your country that we are better than you? Your statement/rant sounds more like a irational grudge than anything thought out beyond a automatic reflex to bash America. By the way most Americans do not look down on others, by the way you yourself says that your "gloating" creates contempt for us its as if you are the one who looks down on us.
@BasilFawlty4444 I'm sorry but seriously who's telling you this? I just don't imagine Americans going overseas to say this it just doesn't make sense. Besides if you think everyone everywhere has the right to proclaim their prospective countries as the best in the world why are you complaining when Americans do this. To me this just seems like a need for you to insult America because you resent or are at least frustrated for some percieved slight against you ot your culture?
@lololololol47 It's everywhere! Your movies, your politicians, your television, your news.
I have nothing against the US, don't confuse me with the average European troll, sneering down their noses. It's a nice place with really nice people. But in some cases, the cramming down throat bit is evident.
I said I believe that everyone has the right to believe that. So when I look at our history, our contribution to mankind, that's my reason. But I won't cram that down others' throats.
Of course theres going to be stuff like that in our media and politics. I don't like the concept of a greatest country, its too broad but you cannot deny the US is currently the most influential and powerful country on the planet so it is common for Americans to say this is the greatest country on earth. However don't think that people just accept this as truth here because many don't. Its something to be proved not affirmed.
@lololololol47 I can agree with that sentiment. It is because there is no real measure of a nation's greatness that people can have their own reasons to believe their nation is the best.
But surely you must admit that there is much arrogance in the US because of it's present status?
Hitchens is right; the US will soon find itself as one among many powers, but in terms of superpower status, it won't be gone any time soon. I can't see the US media changing in the face of this.
There is arrogance I won't deny that. It is perhaps a natural human response to having power and influence, its obvious that many powers like Brazil, China and India are on the rise also. I doubt they will be on par with America it terms of sheer economic and political power in the near future but they will be there and there will be media outlets and average americans themselves that resist this out of fear and other reasons both unjustified and not.
But i think it is unfair to say that Americans are just in favor of the status quo. I for one am in favor of seeing the growth of third world countries and although I am concerned about countries like China i would hope that the people themselves finally having opportunities and wealth in their lives.
@BasilFawlty4444 Fucking Americans bombing you poor, defenseless, Europeans with our culture... You act like you're made to listen to anything we Americans have to say. Don't like our Movies? TV? Don't watch them. Fact is, our culture is demanded and we supply it.
@MrDookieBootie Well, where would you be without our culture?
Devoid of liberty, lacking good law, probably living on an isolated farm without electricity, believing that God created the world in 5 days and with a significantly shorter life expectancy.
You wanna play the culture game? Britain has contributed more to this world than any other nation on earth.
@BasilFawlty4444 It's just a shame alot of it was delivered via imperialist policy. I'm not being glib; I genuinely mean it is a shame that alot of people suffered at the hands of the empire. Not that it should detract from the achievements of those who improved the lives of the people where colonies were established.
@195ashes I completely agree, but we must remember not to apply modern values when considering history like this.
Compared to the regimes that the British Empire replaced and left behind after decolonisation (with some notable exceptions of course), Britain can be considered as a somewhat "nice" Empire, especially in comparison to other European empires.
Notably as well was that in it's early years (say ~1600-1700), Britain did not go looking to pinch land, it just sort of happened.
@BasilFawlty4444 Can you really call it "your" culture when England has been conquered and influenced by most of the countries around them? Saying Britain contributed more to the world than any other nation is silly and you know it. Greece, Rome, and The Vikings shaped your future. Where would you be without the Greeks? London was built by the Romans FFS. Now if you want to say that Britain oppressed and enslaved more nations than any other other nation on earth then I can agree.
@MrDookieBootie Of course Britain has been influenced by other cultures - the same goes even more for the USA (as a melting pot society). But ultimately I maintain that Britain has shaped the world more than any other country.
English Law and the Westminster system are still used all around the world. Lockean concepts of individual liberty form the basis of the US Declaration of Independence, Darwin has probably changed the world more than anyone else, the industrial revolution!
@BasilFawlty4444 You would have to come up with a list FAR bigger than that to make your case. This sort of argument will never be resolved. But this video is about the present. Which country presently is the Greatest Country in the World. America makes a strong case for it self, Britain wouldn't even make the top 5. The EU would have a chance at top 5, but it's not a country :)
Britain EASILY makes the top five of any imbecile's list. Of course I am biased (and that last comment only proves you are too) but BECAUSE of it's history, Britain, to me, is the best country in the world.
Judging by the EU comment, you're measuring upon size in some area - population, economy or military. The latter two, Britain continues to punch above it's weight in.
@BasilFawlty4444 I think I've made the point that Britains culture is hardly all it's own. A point you agreed with. So what would you call Greatest? Ever been to the Moon? Plan on going to Mars? Can your military destroy the world many times over? Philanthropy? Can Britain even come close to the amount of support and aid we give other countries? Production? Can't come close to out producing us in almost any industry. Google greatest and you'll see that the definition is in line with my thinking.
@MrDookieBootie You got to the moon using the expertise of Nazi scientists like Werner Von Braun, ABDUCTED AND TAKEN TO AMERICA in operation Paper Clip.
We're not trying to get to Mars, but I have high hopes for ESA in the future.
Thanks for supporting your only ally's military. It's one of the best; Britain has never won a war with numbers.
America's economy is BIG because of the nation's SIZE. Proportionally, we're about the same size.
@MrDookieBootie Yes, actually. The amount of aid Britain provides every year is about 50% of that which America does (with an economy 4-5x smaller). But putting this aside, this is a substantial amount of our nation's wealth that we're giving away. The least America could do would be to match this as a proportion.
And you know full well that the term "greatest" when applied in this instance means best. After all, China is better at everything if size and quantity is the standard.
@BasilFawlty4444 Would love to see where you pull these numbers from :)
Really? Everything again? China's not even a place I would want to vacation.
I didn't know America existed to rebuild other countries economies. All the ammunition, supplies and Tanks we sent you showed how "tight-fisted" we were. Right?
"I didn't know America existed to rebuild other countries economies." - Well excuse us for crippling ourselves to preserve freedom and democracy for the world (sarcasm). And after the war, America turned their back on us.
WATCH THIS CLIP:
youtube.com/watch?v=6PBvCvIFrgI
^^Just so you understand, the "new Jerusalem" was the Labour Party's vision of the rebuilt Britain after the war.
@MrDookieBootie Did you not watch the video I posted? Of course I acknowledge that America helped us out, but after the war, you abandoned us.
We did not get our "asses kicked." Never heard of the Battle of Britain? El Alamein? Burma Campaign?
You shouldn't give yourself too much credit for winning the war. After all, it was the Soviets who did most of the work, and you didn't join until you were actually attacked. Commonwealth nations stood solidly with us throughout the war.
@BasilFawlty4444 Britain would have been a part of West Germany without our aid. Russia also was given aid. Food and Ammo that allowed both countries to survive. Why are we obligated to hold your hand after the war? Did we "cripple" your country?
I get into a fight. I'm crippled at the end of the fight. I got my ass kicked. I may have put up a great fight but that doesn't change the fact that I'm "crippled".
Never said the US won the war. It wasn't our war until we were attacked.
@BasilFawlty4444 exactly... little old canada who most americans think doesnt even have a army, declared war on the nazis over 2 years before the united states... but this doesnt make america look good, or brave, so most of them dont bother to learn it
@101andrewj Most Americans think that Canada doesn't have an Army? How can you say dumb shit like that and expect to be taken seriously. Besides, declaring war is a lot different then actually going to war. The first Canadian ground troops to see action were AFTER Pearl Harbor was attacked. How many Canadians fought in the Pacific anyway?
the last allied troop killed in the pacific before the ceasefire was a canadian pilot, canada had defensive lines set up south of london by early 1940, if there was a german invasion of UK, canada was the only foreign nation with men there at that time, many canadian built planes, pilots and anti air crews saw combat in the battle of britian, the canadian navy kept the atlantic open in the early years, and dieppe proved op sledgehammer wouldnt work, canada did alot early
@MrDookieBootie Tell that to all the Canadian soldiers that were Prisoners of War after Hong Kong was attacked by the Japanese Imperial Army.My Uncle was a Pilot in Burma (not the Pacific I know) but Canadian Soldiers were everywhere in WWII
@MrDookieBootie While I concur with what you said, I think you missed the point: that's one of a plethora of jokes we make about Canada. We have an entire movie on it: Canadian Bacon (its pretty funny I have to say, and certainly apt to watch if you're curious as to why Americans jokingly say Canadians have no military (because, virtually in comparison to the US, you don't; though granted that's kinda true of the entire planet combined vs. the US now... spooky how much we spend on it...)).
And as I said, the Second World War crippled the UK - we began a space programme on the Isle of Wight, but ran out of money. And America's tight-fistedness towards it's ally when it came to rebuilding our flattened economy after 1945 didn't help either, but I digress.
Don't get me wrong, I want NASA to land on Mars. That will be a great day for all humanity. Equally, however, I believe that the exploration of space should be an international effort.
@MrDookieBootie Speaking as someone who lives in non-English speaking europe, American culture is demanded in as much as hollywood is demanded, because it has money. But people here genuinely don't know anything or care about American culture, any more than Americans care about the rest of the world.
if it lived up to the principles on which it was built... potentially. However, many aspects have beeen twisted, and as such america has not, i thnik, lived up to its potential. Also, letting every tom dick and harry own a gun is ridiculous. Bill Hicks had some interesting viewpoints on this.
@girfu7 still beats places like Mexico, where only thugs (criminals and police) own them. at any rate, it is definitely not true that 'anyone can own a gun.' there are over 13,000 gun laws on the books, and places where citizens are essentially barred from owning them.
I think people hate America like they hate the police. You hate them until you have to call them because you've been appeasing the criminals and now they're knocking on your front door. As for the boxer analogy, it's more like he came in on the third round right before the referee announced a TKO and waved off the German guy that hadn't broken a sweat.
I agree with Hitchens 100 percent. If you take away all the dumb redneck conservatives of this country and look past its faults, we still have the greatest system of government in the world. If you look past things like the civil war or Vietnam, its our constitution and our freedom that makes our country great.
I'd say I'm more in love with the ideas America was founded on than what America is today, though.
"that all men are created equal" (slaveholder wrote that, so, a lie)
"The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations" ( Person who wrote that KNEW that the Sovereign was a figurehead without power, and all so called " injuries and usurpations " were the work of the British Parliament,so, a lie)
I do not know why Hitchens answers trifling questions about his personal life. I hate shows that do this, if you are having a commentator on stick to the fucking subject.
Technologically, militarily, and economically, the United States is the best in the world. We, as Hitchens stated, have a better tradition of equality, secularism, and limited government. As for how these ideas have been carried out in some parts of our history is a different matter though. As for our foreign policy and education as of late, don't get me started.
I'd say I'm more in love with the ideas America was founded on than what America is today, though.
Technologically, militarily, and economically, the United States is the best in the world. We, as Hitchens stated, have a better tradition of equality, secularism, and limited government. As for how these ideas have been carried out in some parts of our history is a different matter though. As for our foreign policy and education as of late, don't get me started.
I'd say I'm more in love with the ideas America was founded on than what America is today, though.
Every sewer or septic tank has a silver lining. Even dirt under our feet occasionally sees the light of day once a foot is removed. It just happens that many humanoids have too much space between the eyes. Only fools will attack Hitchens. For sure. this man does not suffer from what is termed, " THE PERSONALITY SUPPRESSION COMPLEX SYNDROME. " Fools rush in where angels fear to tread. " Oh, fool hath mother nature missed her charge? " Rungston.
The glory of God is intelligence. God hates ingnorance.. Intelligence fills the immensity of space. Hitchens does not question, as to there being a Creator. His point is well made. Man must search out his earthly existence, in that their minds are entirely displaced from the falcehoods of lackeys of whom use the pulpits, in order to lie, cheat and rob inarticulate mobs. Hitchens claims be an atheist, but he has an unseen creator watching over him. " A life not examined is not worth living. Soc!
Friend, do you have a job? An idle mind is Satan's playground. Apparently, you fit in with Civilization and its Discontents. Someone has stepped upon you when a child. You have been conned into the higher education of
What an eloquent, wise yet down to earth man Hitchens is. This world would surely be a better place if we all strive for a more intelligent and graceful approach to life.
America is of course a very significant nation both today and in history. However America is in decline. The US is currently going through a period of economic decline. Like my own country this will be followed by a period of political decline. It is not so much that America will fall that far but that other nations (BRIC) are catching up. The US will not end up like Britain. However it's status as the sole global superpower with all that entails will end before the middle of this century.
America seems like a very extreme country, very revolutionary. They have had many influences around the world, both in good and bad ways. For me, I can't say America's the greatest. It is quite an exceptional country though. btw I say "they" because I'm Canadian. All and all, I don't think any country is the "greatest". I do have favourites though.
@callumlfc69 I think "greatest" is a title given relative to the individual's own opinion. There can be a majority opinion, but not really an absolute opinion, unless every single person thought the same.
I think history is a great place of learning… and what it teaches me is that, every great nation or prominent civilisation that has rose to power will eventually be reduced rubble…
I agree with Hitchens completely. America has had it's ups and downs but our constitution and our bill of rights definitely give us a strong leg up and make us one of the greatest and without a doubt, THE freest country in the world.
fuck all, dis Hitchens is a poimpous arragont arsehole ey I say hay hay, fuck all den, God is good and all u satanic fucks can suck me wank off den!!!!!!!!!!!!
Even if you are just trolling, I hope that you never have a position of power over anybody else and I hope that you either never have children or that they are out of contact with you and anybody else with a similar personality. You appear, from your comment, to be ignorant, arrogant, inconsiderate, illiterate and it seems that any kind of thought in your head is trespassing.
@Inzolity America is the best country in the world because that is what Americans who have never actually left the country is told by other people who have never left the country.
@totallymargeaux The fact that Americans leave their country less than other nations is a testament to why America is the best country in the world. People tend to leave their countries when they are shit holes. Me on the other hand, have been all around the world minus Australia, and can tell you first hand : Nothing beats the USA.
@colouredbills I think people generally consider the country they come from the best in the world, largely because they are the product of the culture. I come from England, and although I don't necessarily think that objectively it is the 'best' country in the world, it's the only place I'd want to live :o)
@cptmuska I am black, and all the talk of America being the greatest country in the world brings to my mind the fact that it was one of 3 nations that in the 20th century indulged in ethnic terrorism against its own citizens. The others were Nazi Germany and Stalin's Russia. I would love to see a white person who's mother was raped and talk about how nice a gent the rapist was.
@REASONINFUSION yes, you are correct. but you can argue that the civil war was the turning event in us history, because shortly after that they became the most powerful nation in the world. It did leave residual racism which is sad and somewhat unknown to me...
@cptmuska After the civil war the KKK was born and JIm Crow laws came about. The result was so many lynchings and burnings of blacks the year 1952 was the first year at least one lynching was not reported! They then continued until 1968! After the civil war a crowd of 15,000 whites fought over the best seats to see a black man burned alive! According to the AP "crisp ears went for a $1 and the heart for $20". That was after the civil war. 20 years after the holocaust blacks were lynched.
@REASONINFUSION well, only 500 000 people died in the holocaust. thats a separate point. I was saying racism is unknown to me, I do not doubt that Red necks can do some crazy things.
@cptmuska If you live on earth "racism" is known to you!!!! As for rednecks doing crazy things, America was founded on white supremacy! The american supreme court ruled that no "black man had any rights that a white need respect"! virtually every american president has been known to be a racist! "some red necks" would not be powerful enough to impact the lives of millions of blacks! That is the myth of white racism, the idea that it was "red necks". It was america's majority.
@colouredbills actually I am a Canadian but I am humble enough, unlike you, to realise that without America, we wouldn't be able to have this interaction. There would be no YouTube, there would be no internet, and there would be no personal computers. I could go on and on about the things that wouldnt exist if it weren't for Americans.
@colouredbills The retards are Americans who seem to think America is the best country in the world when they've never left their backwards state, No one is jealous of Americans. Americans like to think that to make themselves feel better. The only retard here is you.
@totallymargeaux face it you stupid bitch, personal computers were invented by americans, the lightbulb was invented by an american, the telephone was invented by an american, television was invented by an american and Youtube was created by an American. For you to sit there and tell me that someone else would have invented these things if it werent for americans is PURELY ridiculous. America is the greatest and most influential country of all time. Sorry to make you look like a complete idiot.
Americans have stretched the bounds of the possible. The first transatlantic flight, putting a man on the moon, breaking the speed of sound, constructing the Hoover Dam, and building the Panama Canal serve as testimony to American courage and ingenuity. It wasn't Danes or Bolivians or Iranians or Koreans who achieved these feats. It was Americans. This is significant.
Well without Newton's laws of physics and the scientists of Europe none of those feats would have been possible. Flight, jet engines, combustion engines, Electricity etc it wasn't Americans who discovered these things, somehow this is significant.
@colouredbills Many many countries have had such significant discoveries. The first (secret) computer in England 1942 WW2. The first engine, the Chinese have had very significant inventions throughout history. What you say about the USA is actually INsignificant in the history of inventions in the world
@Xiolablu3 Yet you can't name one. Chinese inventions cannot compare to the wealth of contributions the USA is responsible for, including the Television, Computer, telephone, modern cooking appliances etc. You Fail
@colouredbills Quote - "China has been the source of many significant inventions, including the Four Great Inventions of ancient China: papermaking, the compass, gunpowder, and printing" Big big fail from you. You only had to google 'chinese inventions', didnt take great brainpower to find out, before making a massive fool of yourself..(lol)
@Xiolablu3 The mainstream scholarly consensus is that gunpowder was invented in China, spread through the Middle East, and then into Europe, although there is a dispute over how much the Chinese discovery influenced later advancements in the Middle East and Europe.A major problem for academic study is ready access to original sources.
@colouredbills And England invented the computer Quote - "For many years the honor of being the world’s first electronic computer was given to the American ENIAC. In recent years, however, both the UK and US governments have declassified and released papers giving more information about Colossus. In the light of this historians have been forced to reconsider and most now agree that Colossus was in fact the world’s first electronic computer." Colossus was used to decrypt German codes in WW2
Will Nigerian doctors make the blind see? Will Cambodians cure AIDS? Will Pakistanis eradicate cancer? The answer is probably not. Why? The reason is that non-Westerners have had no discernable impact on modern medicine. This year, like 45 of the last 60, an American won a share of the Nobel Prize in the field of medicine. Americans cured polio and tuberculosis, developed vaccines for hepatitis B and yellow fever, pioneered modern chemotherapy, and produced the CAT scan and MRI.
@colouredbills Yes, but everything from the internet, to atomic energy, hell to operation paperclip are due to war and its ever stupendous amount of research. Canadian to canadian trudeau said it best, basically we sleep beside an elephant.
@fenderkid6 Wrong. There are a total of 17 "Fathers of the Internet", out of which 13 are American, only 2 are british, 1 belgian and 1 polish. the 'World Wide Web' is only one small aspect of the internet. As for PERSONAL computers, Hewlett Packard, an AMERICAN corporation, was the first to successfully build a PERSONAL computer with a small screen and printer that could fit on the average consumer's desk. The UK had nothing to do with the first personal computer.
@fenderkid6 and guess what they all have in common, America and Britain and every other nation in the world....we are HUMAN....so the World wide web and the first Computer the A-Bomb, cars, phones, Televisions are all HUMAN inventions...so what? Am I wrong in any of my statements?
Question, Why are all the comments in "big words"? Why can't you guys just say "America has got it wrong with this this and this because (sum it up in a few words here)" Wouldn't it be so much easier to type and make a hell of a lot more sense to the average person who doesn't have the brain capacity of an alien :U.
@jackstarblaze Think about this way: If I intentionally "dumb down" my words in the (probably misguided) belief that you will not have the capacity to understand them, isn't that pretty presumptuous? Why should I assume that you won't be able to understand them, or at least be able to look them up in a dictionary? Don't misunderstand me- I believe in never using a larger (or abstruse) word when a simpler one will do, but often times those larger, more concise words better convey what I want.
Christopher has an amazing outlook of the world. Free thought delivered in a very precise non-irritating fashion. I'm gonna buy this guy a beer if I'm ever lucky enough to meet him.
@angels77100 - lol.. Non-irritating? Hitchens revels in his ability to aggravate those who disagree with him. Thats' half of what makes him fascinating to listen to - his acerbic wit and the way he turns a phrase and twists the knife in when he does it. Love it. lol
Even though I don't agree with ALL of his stances on politics, we find ourselves very much in agreement on matters of religion.
I can't help but laugh out loud everytime Hitch gives a nudge to the host to plug a book of his... were it from a lesser man I would probably think what rubbish, but from him - with the ironic glimmer in his eye - it's awesome!
@nickochosiete "america is gods country" does that include Los Vegas and the American porn industries? Cuz God loves that, doesnt he? Also, didnt Jesus loved rich people?
@themightyjoseph@themightyjoseph who says las vegas is bad? who says porn is bad? who says being rich is bad? i see your sarcasm, there's a reason not even one country in the uk can come close to america's gdp!
@nickochosiete God says its bad. In the Bible, you kow, that book American "Christians" worship?
The thing is, in your school years you were probably told that USA is the greatest country in EVERYTHING and any one who says otherwise is jealous, right? Well the truth is FAR from it1 THE WORLD IS NOT JEALOUS OF USA! THE WORLD IS SICK OF USA AND ITS BOASTING!
Your healthcare is crap, your education is crap, your economy is on the verge of collapse and your dollar is worthless.
@themightyjoseph : Agreed. The USA is one of the least healthy advanced countries. Health care is weirdly expensive, but can be very good for difficult cases. The average education is not very good, but a lucky few get an outstanding education. The long run prospects of the American economy are dim; read the new book by Dambisa Moyo. American rates of STDs and violent crimes are the worst of any western society. But American intellectuals remain among the world's best.
@themightyjoseph the debt of the usa played on to much! it isn't even 100% of gdp which a lot of other countries have it higher which is japan! in turn we have the most debt because we have the most money...
@themightyjoseph : the cost of the USA's import bill has exceeded its export revenues nearly every year over the past 50 years. The USA pays for trade deficit by selling bits of the family silver, and by borrowing from foreigners (China is now a huge creditor). The American lifestyle (including sprawling cities and people living far from their jobs) assumed cheap oil. Expensive oil requires a major belt tightening the USA is unwilling to undergo.
Best society...sweden/norway...technological coutry....Japan...combine both and you get a pretty damnn good country. Best landscape, well I personally have a special relationship to northern nature. You know where grizzly bears, wolves and eagles lives. So I'll say Northern sweden/Norway. Best countries in the world, Sweden, Norway, New Zeeland, Japan. This is pretty much a fact!
@Hermoor I have not been to Norway, looks amazing, but I will certainly nominate, with plenty of confidence, the western 1/3rd of the USA as the finest landscape on the planet. Honorable mentions, specifically, to Northern California and Southern Utah/N. Arizona- 2 of the most amazing places on this rock we call earth.
Having said that, I am a fierce critic of US culture, which I find intellectually insulting, and dangerously myopic.
@themightyjoseph Norway yes, Iceland no. Iceland hasn't got much of a society. But you know, sweden and norway are 95 % exaclty the same. If you say Norway you are saying Sweden also, you don't even know it. Sweden has got more deep thick forests, while norway has got mountains and coasts. ONly real difference, the people within are very similar. To the point of them understanding eachothers languages. Even though they are very different.
@spiromilhouse Mybe you are confused by the language barrier or something. I am one who resents Americans for laying claim to the name. And therefore now, I don't want to be called American. North America is a great continent. But I don't think it is as complicated as you say. It simply is becuase they are called The United States Of America that they are called Americans. We wouldn't them United Statesians.
@spiromilhouse Maybe you need to read all of my comment before you spew this garbage back at me. I said i DON'T like to be called American. How did you take the exact opposite from that. But sadly we ARE all Just as American as you.
Rock 'n 'Roll was mostly an invention of American-born blacks who played African-based music on the available instruments- with the added boon of adopting dominant 7th chords, Tonic, sub-dominant and dominant progressions and melismatic playfulness with the the flat 5. Much of the value of this music is African-inspired.
Early 20th century blacks were hardly considered "True Americans" by the whites of the time. They developed their music isolated.
You know what pisses me off? The fact that AMERICA consists of North America, South America, and Central America with many countries but the USA is the only country that can be called America. As a Canadian I get frustrated when I am called American because the rest of the world generally hates them.
You know what pisses me off? The fact that AMERICA consists of North America, South America, and Central America with many countries but the USA is the only country that can be called America. As a Canadian I get frustrated when I am called American because the rest of the world generally hates them.
@whiskeygoggles : Canadians are liked everywhere because they don't have much of a military. Canada cannot threaten anyone. I live in another nation that speaks English but cannot assert itself: New Zealand.
@alnot01 Canada is not a war mongering country. We prefer peace but at the same time we are forced to follow the Americans into war in order to keep a good relationship with them. Our military is better than you may think and I'm quite sure we could threaten New Zealand. hahaha That would never happen though but don't mistake a peaceful nation for a weak one.
I dunno what I'd consider the greatest nation in the world, but it wouldn't be the US.
I think something like Norway would stand a good chance for that title. Or maybe France, because those people actually fight for their rights, whereas Americans seem to think that's unpatriotic or something. But not the US.
Sure, there's lots of countries much worse then the US, it's not a BAD country per se. But the US isn't even the best North American country to me. I'd say that's Canada.
How did he get the "War on Terror" so wrong?
bsimpson505 3 weeks ago
@FFreeThinker2 I thank you sir, for uploading these clips
Byron10301 4 weeks ago
Comment removed
MrDookieBootie 4 weeks ago
SWEDEN IS THE GREATEST COUNTRY IN THE WORLD!!!!!!!! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
Sniiigel 1 month ago
Enormously eloquent intellect, will be sadly missed.
NeoLeaver 1 month ago
Rather than jumping into the fray here I'm just going to say that, as usual, Hitchens gives an insightful and well-reasoned response.
etherbingedotorg 2 months ago
Dear Americans. We are sick & tired of you telling us you are the greatest country in the world. What does that mean exactly? Is it like Madeleine Albright said? That you are the "worlds indespensible nation?", as in, everyone except you is just a parasite? Why do you ask this question? Do us all a favour. Stop ramming it down our throats. YOU'RE BANKRUPT! No-one outside of the US believes it anyway. It just creates a contempt for you. It's OK to be proud, but its not OK to look down on others.
AntipodeanStar 2 months ago
@AntipodeanStar
Do Americans go and yell to you that we are better than you because we were born in the US?Do we broadcast into your country that we are better than you? Your statement/rant sounds more like a irational grudge than anything thought out beyond a automatic reflex to bash America. By the way most Americans do not look down on others, by the way you yourself says that your "gloating" creates contempt for us its as if you are the one who looks down on us.
lololololol47 1 month ago
@lololololol47 Yes, all the time we are told that America is the greatest nation on Earth.
In reality, I would say it comes close 2nd after Britain.
But that's just my opinion. I believe that everyone has the right to believe that their nation is the greatest on Earth.
BasilFawlty4444 1 month ago
@BasilFawlty4444 I'm sorry but seriously who's telling you this? I just don't imagine Americans going overseas to say this it just doesn't make sense. Besides if you think everyone everywhere has the right to proclaim their prospective countries as the best in the world why are you complaining when Americans do this. To me this just seems like a need for you to insult America because you resent or are at least frustrated for some percieved slight against you ot your culture?
lololololol47 1 month ago
@lololololol47 It's everywhere! Your movies, your politicians, your television, your news.
I have nothing against the US, don't confuse me with the average European troll, sneering down their noses. It's a nice place with really nice people. But in some cases, the cramming down throat bit is evident.
I said I believe that everyone has the right to believe that. So when I look at our history, our contribution to mankind, that's my reason. But I won't cram that down others' throats.
BasilFawlty4444 1 month ago
@BasilFawlty4444
Of course theres going to be stuff like that in our media and politics. I don't like the concept of a greatest country, its too broad but you cannot deny the US is currently the most influential and powerful country on the planet so it is common for Americans to say this is the greatest country on earth. However don't think that people just accept this as truth here because many don't. Its something to be proved not affirmed.
lololololol47 1 month ago
@lololololol47 I can agree with that sentiment. It is because there is no real measure of a nation's greatness that people can have their own reasons to believe their nation is the best.
But surely you must admit that there is much arrogance in the US because of it's present status?
Hitchens is right; the US will soon find itself as one among many powers, but in terms of superpower status, it won't be gone any time soon. I can't see the US media changing in the face of this.
BasilFawlty4444 1 month ago
@BasilFawlty4444
There is arrogance I won't deny that. It is perhaps a natural human response to having power and influence, its obvious that many powers like Brazil, China and India are on the rise also. I doubt they will be on par with America it terms of sheer economic and political power in the near future but they will be there and there will be media outlets and average americans themselves that resist this out of fear and other reasons both unjustified and not.
lololololol47 1 month ago
@lololololol47
But i think it is unfair to say that Americans are just in favor of the status quo. I for one am in favor of seeing the growth of third world countries and although I am concerned about countries like China i would hope that the people themselves finally having opportunities and wealth in their lives.
lololololol47 1 month ago
@BasilFawlty4444 Fucking Americans bombing you poor, defenseless, Europeans with our culture... You act like you're made to listen to anything we Americans have to say. Don't like our Movies? TV? Don't watch them. Fact is, our culture is demanded and we supply it.
MrDookieBootie 1 month ago
@MrDookieBootie Well, where would you be without our culture?
Devoid of liberty, lacking good law, probably living on an isolated farm without electricity, believing that God created the world in 5 days and with a significantly shorter life expectancy.
You wanna play the culture game? Britain has contributed more to this world than any other nation on earth.
BasilFawlty4444 1 month ago 20
@BasilFawlty4444 It's just a shame alot of it was delivered via imperialist policy. I'm not being glib; I genuinely mean it is a shame that alot of people suffered at the hands of the empire. Not that it should detract from the achievements of those who improved the lives of the people where colonies were established.
195ashes 1 month ago
@195ashes I completely agree, but we must remember not to apply modern values when considering history like this.
Compared to the regimes that the British Empire replaced and left behind after decolonisation (with some notable exceptions of course), Britain can be considered as a somewhat "nice" Empire, especially in comparison to other European empires.
Notably as well was that in it's early years (say ~1600-1700), Britain did not go looking to pinch land, it just sort of happened.
BasilFawlty4444 1 month ago
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GoodManBadSerf 1 month ago
@BasilFawlty4444 Can you really call it "your" culture when England has been conquered and influenced by most of the countries around them? Saying Britain contributed more to the world than any other nation is silly and you know it. Greece, Rome, and The Vikings shaped your future. Where would you be without the Greeks? London was built by the Romans FFS. Now if you want to say that Britain oppressed and enslaved more nations than any other other nation on earth then I can agree.
MrDookieBootie 1 month ago
@MrDookieBootie Of course Britain has been influenced by other cultures - the same goes even more for the USA (as a melting pot society). But ultimately I maintain that Britain has shaped the world more than any other country.
English Law and the Westminster system are still used all around the world. Lockean concepts of individual liberty form the basis of the US Declaration of Independence, Darwin has probably changed the world more than anyone else, the industrial revolution!
BasilFawlty4444 1 month ago
@BasilFawlty4444 You would have to come up with a list FAR bigger than that to make your case. This sort of argument will never be resolved. But this video is about the present. Which country presently is the Greatest Country in the World. America makes a strong case for it self, Britain wouldn't even make the top 5. The EU would have a chance at top 5, but it's not a country :)
MrDookieBootie 1 month ago
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BasilFawlty4444 1 month ago
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@MrDookieBootie Whoa, what world are you living in?
Britain EASILY makes the top five of any imbecile's list. Of course I am biased (and that last comment only proves you are too) but BECAUSE of it's history, Britain, to me, is the best country in the world.
Judging by the EU comment, you're measuring upon size in some area - population, economy or military. The latter two, Britain continues to punch above it's weight in.
BasilFawlty4444 1 month ago
@BasilFawlty4444 I think I've made the point that Britains culture is hardly all it's own. A point you agreed with. So what would you call Greatest? Ever been to the Moon? Plan on going to Mars? Can your military destroy the world many times over? Philanthropy? Can Britain even come close to the amount of support and aid we give other countries? Production? Can't come close to out producing us in almost any industry. Google greatest and you'll see that the definition is in line with my thinking.
MrDookieBootie 1 month ago
@MrDookieBootie Our culture is a lot more native than you might think. We haven't been conquered for 1000 years. I think the US is way below us here.
German scientists took America to the moon - and money. Something that Britain was very short of after WWII.
Our military is one of the best, but I don't believe military power should morally determine a nation's place.
London is the centre of the world economy.
And America always falls short of it's targets in aid.
BasilFawlty4444 1 month ago
@BasilFawlty4444 Europe over the last 1000 years didn't exist in a bubble and was influenced by the entire western world.
We got to the moon first and we'll get to Mars first. German American is still American.
Your military is adequate at best. Compared with USA, China and North Korea it's quite small.
Nuke England and America tomorrow. Which would have the most affect on the world economy?
We ALWAYS fall short? You say we fall short but can England even compete?
Again Google "Greatest".
MrDookieBootie 1 month ago
@MrDookieBootie You got to the moon using the expertise of Nazi scientists like Werner Von Braun, ABDUCTED AND TAKEN TO AMERICA in operation Paper Clip.
We're not trying to get to Mars, but I have high hopes for ESA in the future.
Thanks for supporting your only ally's military. It's one of the best; Britain has never won a war with numbers.
America's economy is BIG because of the nation's SIZE. Proportionally, we're about the same size.
I'll send you a link to aid shortfalls.
BasilFawlty4444 1 month ago
@BasilFawlty4444 He was an American citizen. The money used to fund the space program was American.
We're going to Mars. High hope be damned, we will get to Mars first.
Didn't say I didn't support the UK army. Don't put words in my mouth.
Again you fail to grasp the definition of "Greatest" Google it a third time. Or bust out your dictionary.
Did we fall short EVERY time like you say, no. Can Britain even compare to the amount of aid we provide the world, hell no.
MrDookieBootie 1 month ago
@MrDookieBootie Yes, actually. The amount of aid Britain provides every year is about 50% of that which America does (with an economy 4-5x smaller). But putting this aside, this is a substantial amount of our nation's wealth that we're giving away. The least America could do would be to match this as a proportion.
And you know full well that the term "greatest" when applied in this instance means best. After all, China is better at everything if size and quantity is the standard.
BasilFawlty4444 1 month ago
@BasilFawlty4444 Would love to see where you pull these numbers from :)
Really? Everything again? China's not even a place I would want to vacation.
I didn't know America existed to rebuild other countries economies. All the ammunition, supplies and Tanks we sent you showed how "tight-fisted" we were. Right?
MrDookieBootie 1 month ago
@MrDookieBootie
"I didn't know America existed to rebuild other countries economies." - Well excuse us for crippling ourselves to preserve freedom and democracy for the world (sarcasm). And after the war, America turned their back on us.
WATCH THIS CLIP:
youtube.com/watch?v=6PBvCvIFrgI
^^Just so you understand, the "new Jerusalem" was the Labour Party's vision of the rebuilt Britain after the war.
BasilFawlty4444 1 month ago
@BasilFawlty4444 Crippled yourself? You got your asses kicked. I love how you ignore the Ammo, Tanks and Supplies we sent you.
MrDookieBootie 4 weeks ago
@MrDookieBootie Did you not watch the video I posted? Of course I acknowledge that America helped us out, but after the war, you abandoned us.
We did not get our "asses kicked." Never heard of the Battle of Britain? El Alamein? Burma Campaign?
You shouldn't give yourself too much credit for winning the war. After all, it was the Soviets who did most of the work, and you didn't join until you were actually attacked. Commonwealth nations stood solidly with us throughout the war.
BasilFawlty4444 4 weeks ago
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@BasilFawlty4444 Britain would have been a part of West Germany without our aid. Russia also was given aid. Food and Ammo that allowed both countries to survive. Why are we obligated to hold your hand after the war? Did we "cripple" your country?
I get into a fight. I'm crippled at the end of the fight. I got my ass kicked. I may have put up a great fight but that doesn't change the fact that I'm "crippled".
Never said the US won the war. It wasn't our war until we were attacked.
MrDookieBootie 4 weeks ago
@BasilFawlty4444 exactly... little old canada who most americans think doesnt even have a army, declared war on the nazis over 2 years before the united states... but this doesnt make america look good, or brave, so most of them dont bother to learn it
101andrewj 1 week ago
@101andrewj Most Americans think that Canada doesn't have an Army? How can you say dumb shit like that and expect to be taken seriously. Besides, declaring war is a lot different then actually going to war. The first Canadian ground troops to see action were AFTER Pearl Harbor was attacked. How many Canadians fought in the Pacific anyway?
MrDookieBootie 1 week ago
the last allied troop killed in the pacific before the ceasefire was a canadian pilot, canada had defensive lines set up south of london by early 1940, if there was a german invasion of UK, canada was the only foreign nation with men there at that time, many canadian built planes, pilots and anti air crews saw combat in the battle of britian, the canadian navy kept the atlantic open in the early years, and dieppe proved op sledgehammer wouldnt work, canada did alot early
101andrewj 1 week ago
@MrDookieBootie Tell that to all the Canadian soldiers that were Prisoners of War after Hong Kong was attacked by the Japanese Imperial Army.My Uncle was a Pilot in Burma (not the Pacific I know) but Canadian Soldiers were everywhere in WWII
IamVerilance 1 week ago
@IamVerilance Hmmm? Tell what to them? I asked a simple question. "How many Canadians fought in the Pacific". Who exactly are you responding to here?
MrDookieBootie 6 days ago
@MrDookieBootie While I concur with what you said, I think you missed the point: that's one of a plethora of jokes we make about Canada. We have an entire movie on it: Canadian Bacon (its pretty funny I have to say, and certainly apt to watch if you're curious as to why Americans jokingly say Canadians have no military (because, virtually in comparison to the US, you don't; though granted that's kinda true of the entire planet combined vs. the US now... spooky how much we spend on it...)).
Truthiness231 1 day ago
@Truthiness231 I've seen Canadian Bacon and I'm an American.
MrDookieBootie 1 day ago
@MrDookieBootie (continued)
And as I said, the Second World War crippled the UK - we began a space programme on the Isle of Wight, but ran out of money. And America's tight-fistedness towards it's ally when it came to rebuilding our flattened economy after 1945 didn't help either, but I digress.
Don't get me wrong, I want NASA to land on Mars. That will be a great day for all humanity. Equally, however, I believe that the exploration of space should be an international effort.
BasilFawlty4444 1 month ago
@MrDookieBootie Did you get the message I sent about aid shortfalls?
BasilFawlty4444 1 month ago
@BasilFawlty4444 i agree, the english language alone probably wins it for them
101andrewj 1 week ago
@BasilFawlty4444 the culture game is just stupid. Cultures have always influenced each other.
xxalestarxx 1 week ago
@MrDookieBootie Speaking as someone who lives in non-English speaking europe, American culture is demanded in as much as hollywood is demanded, because it has money. But people here genuinely don't know anything or care about American culture, any more than Americans care about the rest of the world.
ChristopherDone 1 month ago
What a man. What an inspiration. Christopher Hitchens cracks open your mind and lets the lights in like no other.
AntipodeanStar 2 months ago
if it lived up to the principles on which it was built... potentially. However, many aspects have beeen twisted, and as such america has not, i thnik, lived up to its potential. Also, letting every tom dick and harry own a gun is ridiculous. Bill Hicks had some interesting viewpoints on this.
girfu7 2 months ago
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schwarzblatt 2 months ago
@girfu7 still beats places like Mexico, where only thugs (criminals and police) own them. at any rate, it is definitely not true that 'anyone can own a gun.' there are over 13,000 gun laws on the books, and places where citizens are essentially barred from owning them.
schwarzblatt 2 months ago
Killar.. you keep telling yourself that
JMKRATOCHVIL 2 months ago
it's a solid no from me - too much religion - too many guns - too many in prison...
jeffersinsky 2 months ago
The USA should be better than it is. It has the basis in its constitution to be the best.
It does not, alas, always live up to the hype.
flankspeed 2 months ago
I think people hate America like they hate the police. You hate them until you have to call them because you've been appeasing the criminals and now they're knocking on your front door. As for the boxer analogy, it's more like he came in on the third round right before the referee announced a TKO and waved off the German guy that hadn't broken a sweat.
angar2370 2 months ago
@angar2370 *facepalm*
callumlfc69 2 months ago
I agree with Hitchens 100 percent. If you take away all the dumb redneck conservatives of this country and look past its faults, we still have the greatest system of government in the world. If you look past things like the civil war or Vietnam, its our constitution and our freedom that makes our country great.
A2thedouble 3 months ago
@A2thedouble As a Brit I agree. America is the most revolutionary country.
callumlfc69 2 months ago
@mysteryskatin
I'd say I'm more in love with the ideas America was founded on than what America is today, though.
"that all men are created equal" (slaveholder wrote that, so, a lie)
"The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations" ( Person who wrote that KNEW that the Sovereign was a figurehead without power, and all so called " injuries and usurpations " were the work of the British Parliament,so, a lie)
The documents are full of lies.
uncletigger 3 months ago
I do not know why Hitchens answers trifling questions about his personal life. I hate shows that do this, if you are having a commentator on stick to the fucking subject.
fenderkid6 4 months ago
Technologically, militarily, and economically, the United States is the best in the world. We, as Hitchens stated, have a better tradition of equality, secularism, and limited government. As for how these ideas have been carried out in some parts of our history is a different matter though. As for our foreign policy and education as of late, don't get me started.
I'd say I'm more in love with the ideas America was founded on than what America is today, though.
Mysteryskatin 4 months ago
Technologically, militarily, and economically, the United States is the best in the world. We, as Hitchens stated, have a better tradition of equality, secularism, and limited government. As for how these ideas have been carried out in some parts of our history is a different matter though. As for our foreign policy and education as of late, don't get me started.
I'd say I'm more in love with the ideas America was founded on than what America is today, though.
Mysteryskatin 4 months ago
Every sewer or septic tank has a silver lining. Even dirt under our feet occasionally sees the light of day once a foot is removed. It just happens that many humanoids have too much space between the eyes. Only fools will attack Hitchens. For sure. this man does not suffer from what is termed, " THE PERSONALITY SUPPRESSION COMPLEX SYNDROME. " Fools rush in where angels fear to tread. " Oh, fool hath mother nature missed her charge? " Rungston.
Hogorina 4 months ago
Hitchens denies God, but does not deny a CREATOR. Most people never think, that God is a creator. Hitchens tries to make people think.
Hogorina 4 months ago
The glory of God is intelligence. God hates ingnorance.. Intelligence fills the immensity of space. Hitchens does not question, as to there being a Creator. His point is well made. Man must search out his earthly existence, in that their minds are entirely displaced from the falcehoods of lackeys of whom use the pulpits, in order to lie, cheat and rob inarticulate mobs. Hitchens claims be an atheist, but he has an unseen creator watching over him. " A life not examined is not worth living. Soc!
Hogorina 5 months ago
@Hogorina bla bla bla bla.... same old bs.
donbrimstedt 5 months ago
Friend, do you have a job? An idle mind is Satan's playground. Apparently, you fit in with Civilization and its Discontents. Someone has stepped upon you when a child. You have been conned into the higher education of
poisoning minds.
Hogorina 3 months ago
@Hogorina Clearly religion does poison everything, including your mind.
callumlfc69 2 months ago
What an eloquent, wise yet down to earth man Hitchens is. This world would surely be a better place if we all strive for a more intelligent and graceful approach to life.
WhenToWatch 5 months ago
America is of course a very significant nation both today and in history. However America is in decline. The US is currently going through a period of economic decline. Like my own country this will be followed by a period of political decline. It is not so much that America will fall that far but that other nations (BRIC) are catching up. The US will not end up like Britain. However it's status as the sole global superpower with all that entails will end before the middle of this century.
densaner77 5 months ago
America seems like a very extreme country, very revolutionary. They have had many influences around the world, both in good and bad ways. For me, I can't say America's the greatest. It is quite an exceptional country though. btw I say "they" because I'm Canadian. All and all, I don't think any country is the "greatest". I do have favourites though.
Netugi 5 months ago
@Netugi If your to give one particular country the title of "The greatest". One must take into account the countries history.
callumlfc69 2 months ago
@callumlfc69 I think "greatest" is a title given relative to the individual's own opinion. There can be a majority opinion, but not really an absolute opinion, unless every single person thought the same.
Netugi 2 months ago
Lol - nationalism...
Callirgos1 5 months ago
fuck.... he has my respect
sheyhanabeysinghe 6 months ago
The Netherlands are the best country in the world. They got me!
Defhrone 6 months ago
I think history is a great place of learning… and what it teaches me is that, every great nation or prominent civilisation that has rose to power will eventually be reduced rubble…
camdonsquire 6 months ago
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Great Britain is the greatest nation on the planet.
wank0r 6 months ago
I agree with Hitchens completely. America has had it's ups and downs but our constitution and our bill of rights definitely give us a strong leg up and make us one of the greatest and without a doubt, THE freest country in the world.
A2thedouble 7 months ago
fuck all, dis Hitchens is a poimpous arragont arsehole ey I say hay hay, fuck all den, God is good and all u satanic fucks can suck me wank off den!!!!!!!!!!!!
NuttingJuice 8 months ago
@NuttingJuice God is good? Yeah I see from your words that you are truly a holy man, made in God's image.
Me, I don't have imaginary friends, but I can still be civil.
johanneswiberg 7 months ago
@NuttingJuice
Even if you are just trolling, I hope that you never have a position of power over anybody else and I hope that you either never have children or that they are out of contact with you and anybody else with a similar personality. You appear, from your comment, to be ignorant, arrogant, inconsiderate, illiterate and it seems that any kind of thought in your head is trespassing.
slapurmum 7 months ago
@NuttingJuice
You must be pissed at his superior grammatical skill....
papermermaid 7 months ago
6:00 "separate the executive, the judicial... the political branch" rare slip
kaviraj 8 months ago
This arguing is so stupid; the "greatest" country in the world is SO subjective, DUH.
I have traveled around the world but I still prefer the US- you know why? Because it's my home.
pnkrk1039 8 months ago
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@pnkrk1039 That is like preferring to be lied to, simply because you have been lied to your entire life.
Revolution2pointO 8 months ago
Sarah Palin thinks that the United States is the greatest nation in the world. Nuff said.
PluralOfEverything 8 months ago
Hitchens - I may not always agree with him but I always appreciate the guy. What a class act.
Oilisdeathtomany 9 months ago
Saying that America is the greatest country in the world is a rather arrogant statement to be honest.
Inzolity 9 months ago
@Inzolity Not at all.
colouredbills 9 months ago
@colouredbills And so i take it you're an American. Right, so America is the best country because? I'd love to hear a valid reason.
Inzolity 9 months ago
@Inzolity America is the best country in the world because that is what Americans who have never actually left the country is told by other people who have never left the country.
totallymargeaux 9 months ago 60
@totallymargeaux true that.
Inzolity 9 months ago
@totallymargeaux The fact that Americans leave their country less than other nations is a testament to why America is the best country in the world. People tend to leave their countries when they are shit holes. Me on the other hand, have been all around the world minus Australia, and can tell you first hand : Nothing beats the USA.
colouredbills 9 months ago
@colouredbills I think people generally consider the country they come from the best in the world, largely because they are the product of the culture. I come from England, and although I don't necessarily think that objectively it is the 'best' country in the world, it's the only place I'd want to live :o)
danielbeasley 8 months ago
@totallymargeaux Circular reasoning
Lifeisironicreject 6 months ago
@totallymargeaux its not the best... its ranked 14 or something lol
cptmuska 5 months ago
@cptmuska I am black, and all the talk of America being the greatest country in the world brings to my mind the fact that it was one of 3 nations that in the 20th century indulged in ethnic terrorism against its own citizens. The others were Nazi Germany and Stalin's Russia. I would love to see a white person who's mother was raped and talk about how nice a gent the rapist was.
REASONINFUSION 5 months ago
@REASONINFUSION yes, you are correct. but you can argue that the civil war was the turning event in us history, because shortly after that they became the most powerful nation in the world. It did leave residual racism which is sad and somewhat unknown to me...
cptmuska 5 months ago
@cptmuska After the civil war the KKK was born and JIm Crow laws came about. The result was so many lynchings and burnings of blacks the year 1952 was the first year at least one lynching was not reported! They then continued until 1968! After the civil war a crowd of 15,000 whites fought over the best seats to see a black man burned alive! According to the AP "crisp ears went for a $1 and the heart for $20". That was after the civil war. 20 years after the holocaust blacks were lynched.
REASONINFUSION 5 months ago
@REASONINFUSION well, only 500 000 people died in the holocaust. thats a separate point. I was saying racism is unknown to me, I do not doubt that Red necks can do some crazy things.
cptmuska 5 months ago
@cptmuska If you live on earth "racism" is known to you!!!! As for rednecks doing crazy things, America was founded on white supremacy! The american supreme court ruled that no "black man had any rights that a white need respect"! virtually every american president has been known to be a racist! "some red necks" would not be powerful enough to impact the lives of millions of blacks! That is the myth of white racism, the idea that it was "red necks". It was america's majority.
REASONINFUSION 5 months ago
@cptmuska ONLY 500,000 people died in the holocaust???? I am black and that sounds fucked up to ME.
REASONINFUSION 5 months ago
@colouredbills actually I am a Canadian but I am humble enough, unlike you, to realise that without America, we wouldn't be able to have this interaction. There would be no YouTube, there would be no internet, and there would be no personal computers. I could go on and on about the things that wouldnt exist if it weren't for Americans.
colouredbills 9 months ago 3
@colouredbills The internet was invented in CERN in Geneva. The other things would have been invented somewhere else in an alternate timeline.
totallymargeaux 9 months ago
@totallymargeaux Assumptions. It's sad to see retards discredit Americans for their contributions simply out of hate and jealousy.
colouredbills 9 months ago 3
@colouredbills The retards are Americans who seem to think America is the best country in the world when they've never left their backwards state, No one is jealous of Americans. Americans like to think that to make themselves feel better. The only retard here is you.
totallymargeaux 9 months ago
@totallymargeaux face it you stupid bitch, personal computers were invented by americans, the lightbulb was invented by an american, the telephone was invented by an american, television was invented by an american and Youtube was created by an American. For you to sit there and tell me that someone else would have invented these things if it werent for americans is PURELY ridiculous. America is the greatest and most influential country of all time. Sorry to make you look like a complete idiot.
colouredbills 9 months ago
@colouredbills Wow you really told me. Now go finish fucking your cow.
totallymargeaux 9 months ago
Americans have stretched the bounds of the possible. The first transatlantic flight, putting a man on the moon, breaking the speed of sound, constructing the Hoover Dam, and building the Panama Canal serve as testimony to American courage and ingenuity. It wasn't Danes or Bolivians or Iranians or Koreans who achieved these feats. It was Americans. This is significant.
colouredbills 9 months ago
@colouredbills
Well without Newton's laws of physics and the scientists of Europe none of those feats would have been possible. Flight, jet engines, combustion engines, Electricity etc it wasn't Americans who discovered these things, somehow this is significant.
Chinomareno 9 months ago
@colouredbills Many many countries have had such significant discoveries. The first (secret) computer in England 1942 WW2. The first engine, the Chinese have had very significant inventions throughout history. What you say about the USA is actually INsignificant in the history of inventions in the world
Xiolablu3 8 months ago
@Xiolablu3 Yet you can't name one. Chinese inventions cannot compare to the wealth of contributions the USA is responsible for, including the Television, Computer, telephone, modern cooking appliances etc. You Fail
colouredbills 8 months ago
@colouredbills Quote - "China has been the source of many significant inventions, including the Four Great Inventions of ancient China: papermaking, the compass, gunpowder, and printing" Big big fail from you. You only had to google 'chinese inventions', didnt take great brainpower to find out, before making a massive fool of yourself..(lol)
Xiolablu3 8 months ago
@Xiolablu3 The mainstream scholarly consensus is that gunpowder was invented in China, spread through the Middle East, and then into Europe, although there is a dispute over how much the Chinese discovery influenced later advancements in the Middle East and Europe.A major problem for academic study is ready access to original sources.
colouredbills 8 months ago
@Xiolablu3 These petty contributions are nothing compared to the invention of the computer alone.
colouredbills 8 months ago
@colouredbills And England invented the computer Quote - "For many years the honor of being the world’s first electronic computer was given to the American ENIAC. In recent years, however, both the UK and US governments have declassified and released papers giving more information about Colossus. In the light of this historians have been forced to reconsider and most now agree that Colossus was in fact the world’s first electronic computer." Colossus was used to decrypt German codes in WW2
Xiolablu3 8 months ago
Will Nigerian doctors make the blind see? Will Cambodians cure AIDS? Will Pakistanis eradicate cancer? The answer is probably not. Why? The reason is that non-Westerners have had no discernable impact on modern medicine. This year, like 45 of the last 60, an American won a share of the Nobel Prize in the field of medicine. Americans cured polio and tuberculosis, developed vaccines for hepatitis B and yellow fever, pioneered modern chemotherapy, and produced the CAT scan and MRI.
colouredbills 9 months ago
@colouredbills Yes, but everything from the internet, to atomic energy, hell to operation paperclip are due to war and its ever stupendous amount of research. Canadian to canadian trudeau said it best, basically we sleep beside an elephant.
skydome29 5 months ago
@colouredbills but don't you think that if america didn't do it that someone else would?
randomperson2538 5 months ago
@colouredbills computers and the world wide web are british inventions.
fenderkid6 4 months ago
@fenderkid6 Wrong. There are a total of 17 "Fathers of the Internet", out of which 13 are American, only 2 are british, 1 belgian and 1 polish. the 'World Wide Web' is only one small aspect of the internet. As for PERSONAL computers, Hewlett Packard, an AMERICAN corporation, was the first to successfully build a PERSONAL computer with a small screen and printer that could fit on the average consumer's desk. The UK had nothing to do with the first personal computer.
colouredbills 4 months ago
@colouredbills Whoah calm down mate. I SAID THE WORLD WIDE WEB. I DID NOT SAY THE INTERNET.
I can use block capitals too sweet cheeks.
By the way, why does your channel say that you're from bagladesh?
fenderkid6 4 months ago
@colouredbills Whoah calm down mate. I SAID THE WORLD WIDE WEB. I DID NOT SAY THE INTERNET.
I can use block capitals too sweet cheeks.
By the way, why does your channel say that you're from bagladesh?
fenderkid6 4 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@colouredbills Whoah calm down mate. I SAID THE WORLD WIDE WEB. I DID NOT SAY THE INTERNET.
I can use block capitals too sweet cheeks.
By the way, why does your channel say that you're from bagladesh?
fenderkid6 4 months ago
@colouredbills And uhh, was I wrong in either of my statements? I think you'll find I wasn't.
fenderkid6 4 months ago
@fenderkid6 and guess what they all have in common, America and Britain and every other nation in the world....we are HUMAN....so the World wide web and the first Computer the A-Bomb, cars, phones, Televisions are all HUMAN inventions...so what? Am I wrong in any of my statements?
JuanOfaKind88 3 months ago
@colouredbills What a ridiculous thing to say.
truckerfromreno 4 months ago
i wouldn´t say "best country"
the most popular countries are imo:
Germany
France
Canada
UK
Japan
Mewhacker 11 months ago
@Mewhacker good choices, but you left out Holland great ideals, fine people. Sweden is nice aswell :)
lanceawatt 10 months ago
@lanceawatt Yeah I agree with that although you should really say Netherlands instead of Holland.
grobo11 10 months ago
@grobo11 Yeah sorry ;)
lanceawatt 10 months ago
England - The Greatest Country In The World
MyMerlin1 11 months ago
@MyMerlin1 I think its both England and the USA
marcN19 11 months ago
The English don't have a state either :(
NormanAngle 11 months ago
Question, Why are all the comments in "big words"? Why can't you guys just say "America has got it wrong with this this and this because (sum it up in a few words here)" Wouldn't it be so much easier to type and make a hell of a lot more sense to the average person who doesn't have the brain capacity of an alien :U.
jackstarblaze 11 months ago
@jackstarblaze Think about this way: If I intentionally "dumb down" my words in the (probably misguided) belief that you will not have the capacity to understand them, isn't that pretty presumptuous? Why should I assume that you won't be able to understand them, or at least be able to look them up in a dictionary? Don't misunderstand me- I believe in never using a larger (or abstruse) word when a simpler one will do, but often times those larger, more concise words better convey what I want.
writersblock26 11 months ago
Christopher has an amazing outlook of the world. Free thought delivered in a very precise non-irritating fashion. I'm gonna buy this guy a beer if I'm ever lucky enough to meet him.
angels77100 1 year ago
@angels77100 - lol.. Non-irritating? Hitchens revels in his ability to aggravate those who disagree with him. Thats' half of what makes him fascinating to listen to - his acerbic wit and the way he turns a phrase and twists the knife in when he does it. Love it. lol
Even though I don't agree with ALL of his stances on politics, we find ourselves very much in agreement on matters of religion.
morpheusxnyc 10 months ago
Rate & comment...
Thumbs up & now the comment: FFreethinker2 you are a significant force for good, for enlightenment, here on YouTube.
Cheers to you.
atrumira 1 year ago
I can't help but laugh out loud everytime Hitch gives a nudge to the host to plug a book of his... were it from a lesser man I would probably think what rubbish, but from him - with the ironic glimmer in his eye - it's awesome!
Relbl 1 year ago
yes america is the greatest country on earth! fuck the japs, fuck the pussy ass euros with their speedos, america is gods country!
nickochosiete 1 year ago
@nickochosiete "america is gods country" does that include Los Vegas and the American porn industries? Cuz God loves that, doesnt he? Also, didnt Jesus loved rich people?
themightyjoseph 1 year ago
@themightyjoseph @themightyjoseph who says las vegas is bad? who says porn is bad? who says being rich is bad? i see your sarcasm, there's a reason not even one country in the uk can come close to america's gdp!
nickochosiete 1 year ago
@nickochosiete God says its bad. In the Bible, you kow, that book American "Christians" worship?
The thing is, in your school years you were probably told that USA is the greatest country in EVERYTHING and any one who says otherwise is jealous, right? Well the truth is FAR from it1 THE WORLD IS NOT JEALOUS OF USA! THE WORLD IS SICK OF USA AND ITS BOASTING!
Your healthcare is crap, your education is crap, your economy is on the verge of collapse and your dollar is worthless.
themightyjoseph 1 year ago
@themightyjoseph : Agreed. The USA is one of the least healthy advanced countries. Health care is weirdly expensive, but can be very good for difficult cases. The average education is not very good, but a lucky few get an outstanding education. The long run prospects of the American economy are dim; read the new book by Dambisa Moyo. American rates of STDs and violent crimes are the worst of any western society. But American intellectuals remain among the world's best.
alnot01 11 months ago
@nickochosiete GDP of USA = 14.5 trillion (Nominal and PPP). The external debt of USA = 13.5 trillion.
themightyjoseph 1 year ago
@themightyjoseph the debt of the usa played on to much! it isn't even 100% of gdp which a lot of other countries have it higher which is japan! in turn we have the most debt because we have the most money...
nickochosiete 1 year ago
@themightyjoseph : the cost of the USA's import bill has exceeded its export revenues nearly every year over the past 50 years. The USA pays for trade deficit by selling bits of the family silver, and by borrowing from foreigners (China is now a huge creditor). The American lifestyle (including sprawling cities and people living far from their jobs) assumed cheap oil. Expensive oil requires a major belt tightening the USA is unwilling to undergo.
alnot01 11 months ago
Best society...sweden/norway...technological coutry....Japan...combine both and you get a pretty damnn good country. Best landscape, well I personally have a special relationship to northern nature. You know where grizzly bears, wolves and eagles lives. So I'll say Northern sweden/Norway. Best countries in the world, Sweden, Norway, New Zeeland, Japan. This is pretty much a fact!
Hermoor 1 year ago
@Hermoor I have not been to Norway, looks amazing, but I will certainly nominate, with plenty of confidence, the western 1/3rd of the USA as the finest landscape on the planet. Honorable mentions, specifically, to Northern California and Southern Utah/N. Arizona- 2 of the most amazing places on this rock we call earth.
Having said that, I am a fierce critic of US culture, which I find intellectually insulting, and dangerously myopic.
tristramshandy3 1 year ago
@Hermoor Sweden? That's a laugh. Norway on the other hand is pretty damn good. I would say Iceland and Norway are the best societies.
themightyjoseph 1 year ago
@themightyjoseph Norway yes, Iceland no. Iceland hasn't got much of a society. But you know, sweden and norway are 95 % exaclty the same. If you say Norway you are saying Sweden also, you don't even know it. Sweden has got more deep thick forests, while norway has got mountains and coasts. ONly real difference, the people within are very similar. To the point of them understanding eachothers languages. Even though they are very different.
Hermoor 1 year ago
@spiromilhouse Mybe you are confused by the language barrier or something. I am one who resents Americans for laying claim to the name. And therefore now, I don't want to be called American. North America is a great continent. But I don't think it is as complicated as you say. It simply is becuase they are called The United States Of America that they are called Americans. We wouldn't them United Statesians.
whiskeygoggles 1 year ago
@spiromilhouse Maybe you need to read all of my comment before you spew this garbage back at me. I said i DON'T like to be called American. How did you take the exact opposite from that. But sadly we ARE all Just as American as you.
whiskeygoggles 1 year ago
@spiromilhouse I don't understand your point.
Rock 'n 'Roll was mostly an invention of American-born blacks who played African-based music on the available instruments- with the added boon of adopting dominant 7th chords, Tonic, sub-dominant and dominant progressions and melismatic playfulness with the the flat 5. Much of the value of this music is African-inspired.
Early 20th century blacks were hardly considered "True Americans" by the whites of the time. They developed their music isolated.
coco7010 1 year ago
You know what pisses me off? The fact that AMERICA consists of North America, South America, and Central America with many countries but the USA is the only country that can be called America. As a Canadian I get frustrated when I am called American because the rest of the world generally hates them.
whiskeygoggles 1 year ago
You know what pisses me off? The fact that AMERICA consists of North America, South America, and Central America with many countries but the USA is the only country that can be called America. As a Canadian I get frustrated when I am called American because the rest of the world generally hates them.
whiskeygoggles 1 year ago
@whiskeygoggles : Canadians are liked everywhere because they don't have much of a military. Canada cannot threaten anyone. I live in another nation that speaks English but cannot assert itself: New Zealand.
alnot01 11 months ago
@alnot01 Canada is not a war mongering country. We prefer peace but at the same time we are forced to follow the Americans into war in order to keep a good relationship with them. Our military is better than you may think and I'm quite sure we could threaten New Zealand. hahaha That would never happen though but don't mistake a peaceful nation for a weak one.
whiskeygoggles 11 months ago
England is The Greatest Country In The World,
MyMerlin1 1 year ago
@MyMerlin1 I agree
RunWhilstYouCan 1 year ago
I dunno what I'd consider the greatest nation in the world, but it wouldn't be the US.
I think something like Norway would stand a good chance for that title. Or maybe France, because those people actually fight for their rights, whereas Americans seem to think that's unpatriotic or something. But not the US.
Sure, there's lots of countries much worse then the US, it's not a BAD country per se. But the US isn't even the best North American country to me. I'd say that's Canada.