Interview with Americans! 1/23/19

[MasterWalks]

Interesting thread. I probably think of more questions later.

1: Do Amercans in general believe that USA is the best country in the world and that everyone else secretly wants to move there?
2: So what do you think about the gun laws, are they reasonable? If not what changes would you do?
3: What is your take on Communism? In my experience people in USA don't understand what it actually is. I've seen people being interviewed call Obama a communist as an example.
4: Whats do you think about the climate change and your part in it? United states has a really high carbon dioxide usage per person.
5: Do you think USA is ready for a president who is an atheist officially? what is the fear with that? I can't think of any European country where a religious belief is mandatory for president hood.

1: Many do. I don't. But any patriotic person no matter the country believes their country is best. I think my country is great at some things and terrible a others. I still love my country and wouldn't really want to move to a different one.
2:The only thing i would change is the process of buying one. Right now it is crazy easy to get one. At 18y/o it took me 30 min to buy a shotgun. I dont want peoples guns to be taken away or anything, just a better buying process.
3: Communism is... different. A Marxist Communist by the book would be a utopia, but it never really works out perfectly. The communism you see in China is not okay to me. The Communism in Russia is kinda better but not really. I dont know much beyond that.
4: Personally I think Climate Change need to be fixed ASAP. I recycle, try to save on power by turning all the lights off and what not, and if i had property i would totally compost as i used to when i lived with my parents. I bought a long board in plans to use that instead of driving but a month into owning it, i broke my knee riding it and havent been able to since. Our problem is Climate Change deniers which to my understanding isnt just a US thing.
5: Are we ready for one? Yes. Would one be voted in? Yea maybe if people under 55yo would vote. Majority of people who vote are elderly and they care about religion greatly. The younger generation is shockingly not religious. 50 Years ago if you walked into a public school and asked them if they believe in God, 99% would say yes. If you did that today, it would be more like 65% yes, and probably lower if their parents are not present. Separation of Church and State is quite a real statement from both Dems and Reps, sometimes they just forget and still weasel it in to their polices. The fear for it would be that they "dont have a moral compass" which is BS but still believed. Just look at Steve Harvey.

Just an FYI, a couple of those points are very polarizing here so you may hear completely different opinions on it.

[moehrpi]

In my experience people in USA don't understand what it actually is.

The communism you see in China is not okay to me. The Communism in Russia is kinda better but not really.

Their economic system has nothing to do with communism. Maybe bar some people thinking it does.

[dragonsdemesne]

I'm not American, but just referring to the religion of the president, there's no religious requirement, but from reading history books, there was some opposition to JFK because he was the (so far) only Catholic US president.  There were fears that he might 'take orders' from the Pope or allow church policies to influence his decisions as president.  As far as I know they never did.  A similar objection was raised by some people when Mitt Romney unsuccessfully ran for president because he is Mormon.

[ddevans96]

Interesting thread. I probably think of more questions later.

1: Do Amercans in general believe that USA is the best country in the world and that everyone else secretly wants to move there?
2: So what do you think about the gun laws, are they reasonable? If not what changes would you do?
3: What is your take on Communism? In my experience people in USA hasn't read up what communism actually is. I've seen people being interviewed call Obama a communist as an example.
4: Whats do you think about the climate change and your part in it? United states has a really high carbon dioxide usage per person.
5: Do you think USA is ready for a president who is an atheist officially? what is the fear with that? I can't think of any European country where a religious belief is mandatory for president hood.

1) Most educated and/or young Americans are aware of the country's flaws and that other countries are superior in different ways. The idea that the US is the most free country and that most people worldwide would move here if given the slightest chance is mostly relegated to older generations. On the other hand, many of us were raised with a strong sense of national pride, even if we know we are not the gold standard in every way.
2) Gun laws vary from state to state. Many people think barriers to gun ownership should be considered at the federal level.
3) We are taught about communism as teenagers. As with my of these issues, the lack of understanding about communism is really only prevalent among older Americans, as a result of the political maneuvering and fear created during the Cold War.
4) Many areas of the country have made large steps towards renewable and environmentally friendly energy.
5) Religious belief is not a requirement to become President - currently around 75% of Americans identify as Christian, a number that's been reducing slowly over the years, but still high enough that it makes sense that all* Presidents so far have been Christians. I think a non-Christian President will hold office at least once in the current or subsequent generation.
*many of the Founding Fathers were Deistic Christians - believing in the teachings, but not the divinity, of Jesus. While this a diverse spectrum, of the Founding Fathers who would become President, James Monroe is the farthest from traditional forms of Christianity.

[MasterWalks]

I have a question for people who are in American highschool.

How big of a problem is vaping/Juuls in your school?

[InsignificantWeeaboo]

I have a question for people who are in American highschool.

How big of a problem is vaping/Juuls in your school?

Never heard of it around my school, but that's because I don't usually get into the gossip around the school. Though apparently it's enough for the faculty to put up posters against it...

[Submachine]

I just remembered that the "This Is America" song got really popular last year, but I never really understood the video's message.

(For reference, here is a link to the video.)

When you watched that video, did you recognize a satire of America in it? I don't get which part of the video counts to be America, but what did you think about it?
I imagine something with guns might come up again, but we already talked about gun ownership, so if your opinion ties back to a previous reply, you can just refer to it.

[ddevans96]

I just remembered that the "This Is America" song got really popular last year, but I never really understood the video's message.

(For reference, here is a link to the video.)

When you watched that video, did you recognize a satire of America in it? I don't get which part of the video counts to be America, but what did you think about it?
I imagine something with guns might come up again, but we already talked about gun ownership, so if your opinion ties back to a previous reply, you can just refer to it.

It's not really best described as satire. The Genius page for this song is going to explain it significantly better than I could.

If you have more specific questions after reading that, I can probably be of more help then.

[Submachine]

It's not really best described as satire. The Genius page for this song is going to explain it significantly better than I could.

If you have more specific questions after reading that, I can probably be of more help then.

Thanks for the link, though I am mostly curious about what thoughts did the video provoke before looking up explanations about it.

If I was american, as someone who sees a popular video for the first time, seemingly about my country, would I start thinking about its meaning, would I laugh at the concept, would I agree with the message, would I let it go over my head while only caring about the meme factor, would I get offended, etc? As for myself, I didn't believe any minute of it, so I only cared about the spectacle. (I mean, come on, it cannot be that bad.)

What were your impressions of it before searching for explanations?

Also another question that came to my mind. A decade ago, I often heard that America is the country of opportunities. How true is that a foreign man with barely any belongings can become rich with the right knowledge in America?

[ddevans96]

I mean, come on, it cannot be that bad.

In some areas, racism and violence are as bad as the video and song imply.

If I was american, as someone who sees a popular video for the first time, seemingly about my country, would I start thinking about its meaning, would I laugh at the concept, would I agree with the message, would I let it go over my head while only caring about the meme factor, would I get offended, etc?

It successfully provoked discussion among the target audience. Many Americans were already aware of the continued presence of racial inequality, but this (along with many other events) helped to draw increased focus to the issue.

[Linkcat]

Interesting thread. I probably think of more questions later.

1: Do Amercans in general believe that USA is the best country in the world and that everyone else secretly wants to move there?
2: So what do you think about the gun laws, are they reasonable? If not what changes would you do?
3: What is your take on Communism? In my experience people in USA hasn't read up what communism actually is. I've seen people being interviewed call Obama a communist as an example.
4: Whats do you think about the climate change and your part in it? United states has a really high carbon dioxide usage per person.
5: Do you think USA is ready for a president who is an atheist officially? what is the fear with that? I can't think of any European country where a religious belief is mandatory for president hood.

1. Older people: Yes. Younger people: Lol.
2: Universal background checks and some form of gun control are no-brainers, but too many people make money off of keeping the laws the same, and the second amendment has been heavily politicized. Here's a great pair of videos that talk about guns and what kinds of control would or wouldn't work. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxvxbZGjlv4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNtxtuQxUz8 It's a complicated issue.
3: The idea isn't bad, but a group of people that could make Communism work as intended would not need Communism.
4: We're fucked, and too many people make too much money off of keeping us that way. Relevant xkcd: https://xkcd.com/1732/
5: I doubt every President has been super religious, but it's kind of obligatory to be Christian or you'll lose a ton of votes.

I have a question for people who are in American highschool.

How big of a problem is vaping/Juuls in your school?

I graduated when Zanz was still around, but I have no doubt it's a problem.

Also another question that came to my mind. A decade ago, I often heard that America is the country of opportunities. How true is that a foreign man with barely any belongings can become rich with the right knowledge in America?

It's just as possible as it is in any capitalist country. We became known for it because we're a nation of immigrants and the whole American Dream thing. My favorite person who did this is Arnold Schwarzenegger.

[Wyand]

How accurate is this? (I know, it must be exaggerated, but still...)

Spoiler for Hidden: