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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_exceptionalism lists out lots of the historical reasons. Essentially: successful propaganda.
In some ways, several places in the US probably are the best in the world. And some are probably the worst. It's a large place in many ways.
I live in the US. Half this country is completely delusional. The other half feels that doing anything to improve the situation is socialism™ or communism™. So we better not improve anything.
It's the most lobotomized society in the world. As a Cuban soldier (close to Fidel) once told us:
It is a country with all kinds of technological development, comparable to other first world nations, but take away the high technology, especially weapons and you will notice that its social and political system is only comparable to those of third world nations.
The elites apply the most brutal chauvinism on their own population, to justify all kinds of crimes within their borders and in the world.
There are only a couple hundred countries, and only one can be "the greatest". You'll get different answers based on which metric you pick, but clearly the right metric is "quality of US-style BBQ restaurants". And that's why the United States is the greatest country in the world.
I actually heard the South Korea's got a pretty good one. 🤣
Very true, and to judge, one would therefore also need to have a fairly good overview perspective and context of all those countries...
You’ll get different answers based on which metric you pick, but clearly the right metric is “quality of US-style BBQ restaurants”.
If only it were true. I suspect that while we'd still win, that would be a narrow victory over the koreans or possibly the south americans. Argentina and Chile both apparently have a really strong bbq culture.
No, the true contest would be for deep-fried novelty foods. There, it's just down to us and Scotland, and they're not even their own country yet.
because we have the most well-funded propaganda apparatus in the history of forever
We are taught that from school and in our families. People like my father think that America is number one, and that all other countries have no freedom and that everyone is trying to escape to the US. It's just (attempted) to be passed down to the children.
We learn barely anything about other countries history in school except for the bad. A lot of our history taught, while accurate (hopefully), leaves out a lot to understand other countries and commonly portrays us to be the "good guy".
Because they are told so starting in school. And it's an easy lie to believe.
I 100% agree with you, and I think education, heavily so when you are young, but during your whole life, is a really strong part of your personal construction. I am really horrified by how much patriotism is a strong part of how america raise its citizen...
Because most of them think the entire world is America.
It's a disgusting mindset but it's not entirely their fault considering their educational system.
The education system is worse than that mindset.
And I can bet that to some extent is responsible for people thinking that (literally any country aside of the USA) is a "communist™" non free regime.
Nope, America is a continent ;-)
same reason the best sports teams just happen to be where I live.
Stage 1: Denial.
Though some of them have moved on to Stage 2, Anger.
Yep, Winning a competition of 1 participants.
I get that the states are big and have a lot of their own drama, but I gotta say it comes accros as fairly up-ones-self for adults to be so ignorant of the rest of the world.
I really love when I heard someone saying that Mexico and Spain are the same, or something around those lines.
Fair enough, they do pretty much border each other /s
Because some people in the US don't even leave their county, let alone their state, and therefore never experience any culture outside their own.
I don't think there's too many that do anymore. The sense that I have is that everyone feels a sense of pessimism and decline. Hell, the whole MAGA movement, make America great again, is based on the sentiment that America is not what it used to be, and it won in 2016, against "America is already great," the slogan of elite liberals. And things have gotten more pessimistic since with COVID, inflation, political violence. There are some people who believe in anything but I can't say I know anyone who could say America is the best in the world without a tinge of self doubt. Personally, I see myself as a pessimist in the short term, optimist in the long term.
Years of internet social media has disabused many of that idea, whether orchestrated by an outside entity, or simply via intermingling with other peoples. The backlash is the rampant nationalism that is sure to take over next go around.
Patriotism
Super patriotism
I think that you can be patriotic without being a complete ignorant or/and a jerk. Like you can love your home, your culture & whatever. But the "patriotism" that we see nowdays coming from extremists and really closeminded ppl is just toxic and repulsive.
I mean sure, but that goes far beyond nutomic's question.
It obviously isn't the greatest for standard of living. But it certainly is in soft and hard power towards the world (closely followed by china). Honestly though, as a german, I would much rather be controlled and spied on by the United States than China.
Ignorance is bliss. It’s that simple. There are a lot of Americans people no lack the emotional intelligence and maturity to admit when they are wrong. Add to that a lifelong indoctrination (in-school pledge of allegiance, national anthem at sporting events, Hollywood, and country music), and the social stigma of going against the patriotic grain, and you’ve got a recipe for America is the best. It also doesn’t help that schools are mandated to teach a one-sided history that makes America look good.