Sex at Dawn

Jesus, the PT bloggers are beating this story into the ground. However, C. Pickhardt said "We bloggers for Psychology Today were asked to write a something in the wake of the Ft. Hood shootings..." so I guess it's not all you guys jumping on the bandwagon. I just hate seeing 10+ stories on the same thing in my RSS feed.

Especially when they're on the same theme, although this goes a bit more in depth, someone already made this point: http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-big-questions/200911/fort-hood-t...

America is ethnocentric - surprise, surprise. (sigh)

Like the slogan "Bombing for peace is like fucking for virginity," American culture has a hypocritical approach to issues of war and peace. We claim we're a generous and peace loving society and yet we spend nearly as much on weapons of war than the rest of the world combined. The very people who bow their heads most often to the prince of peace (and make this country the most religious of the industrialized world) are the same ones who are most supportive of our imperial wars of aggression in Iraq and Afghanistan. The longer we engage in political violence the more often we'll see atrocious events like the shooting at Fort Hood. As Malcolm X famously said, it's the chickens coming home to roost.

Great article. I hope you continue to use your analytical skills to critique American power in the future.

I love your thoughts. They are so true.

I read this blog because every once and awhile there is a neatly written, well thought out, unbiased piece of actual psychology that I take joy in sitting down and digesting.

I usually skip your posts, but today is an exception because this is a topic that I feel is actually killing our country.

I'll try to take it point by point, but, as I have many responsibilities in my life and am not getting paid by the word, I may miss a few things. I'll do my best, though.

The premise of your post, boiled down, is pretty clear. You start out with an outrageous headline and then run as fast as you can, off the cliff, laughing all the way down. You set out to be abrasive, and didn't for one moment think to a) collect your sources, b) look at the other side of your clearly biased opinion or c) reflect for a moment on what your words would do, other than cause outrage or bobble head nodding by those who can't think for themselves, either.

In the era of mass propaganda and Big Media control, it's not really surprising that people fall into the trap of not being able to see the forest for the trees, so to speak, but it's disappointing, or even, maddening, that the so called 'intellectual leaders' follow into the same rut as the lock and step line and drool the same drivel they are fed, instead of using a little critical thinking and trying to figure out what's ~really~ going on. I don't assume to have all the answers, but those that I think I do have, I'll give you here. At the very LEAST, an alternative view point and a few questions that hopefully generates a modicum of thought in the rusted cogs caused by prolonged exposure to intense propaganda and hand wringing.

"Anyone who commits a massacre is criminally insane, or just a criminal."

You deftly sidestep the real question here, and you don't even attempt the challenge the statement on more than a surface level. The statement itself is completely invalid in our current state of society where the definition of "is" can be changed or even debated depending on who is being talked to.

What is a massacre? What is insane? What is technically a criminal? What does criminally insane mean, and, besides the fact, who gets to decide? Is anyone really insane? Can only insane people commit a massacre? Can massacres really be committed, or do they happen? What constitutes a massacre and how exactly does it get labelled as such?

I want to focus on a single point, though, that you come up with in your... diatribe. You assume that a) all massacres are created equally (on purpose), b) that people don't care about the loss of life in Iraq and c) that Americans are the only ones on the PLANET causing loss of life.

That's what I get from your response, but maybe I'm just getting caught up in all of your vile, venomous hatred of the one country on the planet that allows you to spout such stuff. Not saying we don't have problems...

I do agree with you on one part, but for vastly and varying reasons. You asked how long NBC focused on the "colossal loss of life" of the 33 people who were accidentally killed at a wedding a year ago. You never answer your question... I assume actual research and facts are not the point of your articles, but you do raise a thought worthy point. I want to ask the same question, only with a different angle.

How much news has Iraq gotten at all in the past year?

Why is that important? Maybe it shows the fickleness of the American people and the pure bias of Big Media. Purely a side-note, here, but isn't a wonder how we got a brand spanking new president and all of a sudden Iraq wasn't a problem any more? Hmm. No more vicious attacks in the news for how he's handling it...

Your point about America being pathological is pretty well summed up in our new President - he doesn't want to look bad, so Big Media panders to him until he looks good.

I would submit that Americans are not all worried about self image, btw. President Bush obviously didn't give a flip about what the world thought, and I don't think anyone would argue that. He did what he thought was right... it's odd... something called conviction...

"We see ourselves as a freedom-loving nation, but no country on Earth has more of its people behind bars than we do."

We haven't been a freedom loving nation since our 'leadership' sold us to the Federal Reserve in the 1920s, but that's beside the point. The recent health care bill passing the House and everyone clamoring to have their rights taken away to be given security and comfort proves that the only thing Americans want is the freedom to be fat and comfortable. Freedom itself is a foreign concept that... well, isn't really practiced on this planet.

The note in your article, I feel, is a complete aside thrust in merely to jab one more finger in the eye of a country that you seem to hate, but if we actually tackle the question, you'll see that no one really wants the solution.

How many people are in jail because of drugs and non violent crimes? How many people are in jail simply for defying the government? I took a few moments to look up the stats, but couldn't find a reliable source (and my Sunday is already dwindling away...), but I challenge you, the author of this piece, to do the work and figure it out. On this point, we may agree: there are too many people in jail for things they shouldn't be in jail for. The Constitution in this country is toilet paper; so long as a politician gets a quorum (and in the case of many of the Amendments, not even) a law is passed and by golly, it's LAW. Forget freedom, forget our actual RIGHTS. Government comes first.

"no country is more war-like than we are."

This, I think, is where we'll diverge most of all.

First of all, you link a YouTube video that talks about expenditures. I'm not real sure when YouTube became a new source, but even the video itself spits on it's own credibility by using violence to make it's point. (and then they go on complaining about an embassy that will create jobs and income for Iraqis... ??)

How many people were dying a month in the Congo during their wars in 2006? 38,000. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4586832.stm

How many people died, or whose lives were affected when Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait? How about when he committed near genocide on the Kurds?

http://history1900s.about.com/od/saddamhussein/a/husseincrimes.htm

How many people did Hitler kill? Kim Jong Il? Any of Russia's last few leaders?

How many people died because of non action around the world?

I could go on, but you don't want to compare and contrast, you want to blame and hate your own country. Your point is not to provoke thought, but to lambaste and sneer in your own direction.

Being the richest country in the world, America has had the ability to spend lots of money on military. There's lots of reasons to do so, but the one I'll bring up (other than defense and protecting those who can't protect themselves - the governments of the countries America invades have a voice, their PEOPLE DO NOT. Ask the people who fell victim to Saddam's death squads or illegal jailing by Kim Jong Il or enemies of the state in Middle East) is the fact that most of the sanctioned U.N. occupations and 'peace bringing missions' are backed up and enforced by the U.S.

This is what I don't get. When our country is following someone else's orders, no problem. Carte blanche freedom to do whatever, because the UN is infallible. As soon as our military decides to do something, they are held under the light of scrutiny that has NEVER been shined on our current PRESIDENT. Seriously. Why the double standards?

Americans are not the only warlike people on this planet. Everyone is warlike, and your communist friends overseas will remind you of that shortly. (I don't like football, either, and I don't get it, but there are FAR more violent sports that have been huge outside US like Rugby, MMA and some pretty vicious martial arts. Football is a very EXPENSIVE game to play... maybe that has something to do with it. Maybe it's the pads, the injuries... who knows. Don't bother thinking of the alternatives, though, just jump straight to the fact that we're the MOST VIOLENT. Side thought - how many death inducing riots were caused at an American Football game? Hmm? Not a lot. Futbol? http://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1GGLS_enUS332US333&sourceid=chrome&ie...)

Last thing on the football: your article on the Phillip kid... I don't understand one bit. You are saying that not quitting is bad, and pretty much that this kid should have quit immediately. It's bad that he didn't want to give up. Give in, Phillip, fail. Good thing Fedor didn't give up last night when Brett Rogers broke his nose... Fedor won.

You seem to jump from baseless accusation to baseless accusation without the thought or facts to back it up. I'm guessing you wouldn't have an article if you gave each point a fair looking over, so to hell with facts and logic, let's PUBLISH THIS THING!

One more thing on soccer... ever see the movie Green Street Hooligans? Just a thought. You linked YouTube, so a movie can't be all that far off ~your~ track for news sources....

I don't think you have an article here more than a collection of gripes against a country and no real knowledge why you are angry. You are like an angry child pitching a fit on the living room floor because mommy won't let you stand on the table and swing a knife around - you don't get any of it, but you don't care, because you either lack the ability of critical thought or the reasoning that requires it. I don't know which.

This is a damn good country with damn good people. We are among the most accepting people on the planet (racism? please. Asian culture is pretty clear on hating 'blacks' and anyone who's not Muslim is 'an infidel who must die'. On the flip side, we don't even kick out people who come here ILLEGALLY and DON'T PAY TAXES.) and it continues to show in the way we treat the rest of the world, as well, giving out more charity to the rest of the world that we'll EVER see here from them.

And healthcare? Please. Canada and the UK can't even afford their healthcare. Those of you who think it's a good solution are putting your heads in the sand. DE-regulate and see what happens. Government screws up everything, and you say so in half your article (military, jails, international relations, media), so why do you think Government Health Care is going to be different?! I don't get it...

I know the overall liberal attitude is to be scared of everything and back down from confrontation, but that's not who Americans are. You know what? Freedom is right, and is the only way to live on this planet.

We don't have that here in our country, and our corrupt government surely isn't spreading that around the globe, but an intelligent and fair journalist will separate the American people from the US Government. I KNOW that if you took out each single person in this country and asked them about the founding and guiding principles of our country, that, to a fault, almost each and every one of them would agree with AT LEAST these.

Freedom is the only way a human should live.

Help those who ask for it righteously.

Treat others as you wish to be treated.

Do no harm.

I really do believe that the majority of the people in this country believe in that. We are not warlike, we are not egotists and we are not ignorant. We know what is right and we choose to fight for it. Our government has failed us for the last 100 years, and I think it's time for a real change (not what we just got, but an actual change).

Americans are good people, no matter what you say.

Honestly, it's the government that has caused all those atrocities you listed above, and I really think you need to make the distinction. Most of your baseless accusations can be tossed out merely at a glance, but the fact that you don't even ATTEMPT to define the difference between an honest, GOOD people and their horrible, corrupt government shows your extreme bias, or at least extremely paltry, lacking journalistic (or even researchers) aptitude.

Your editor should be shamed.

(sorry in advance for typos, digression and loss of point. I don't have high paid editors to not critique my work, and I actually CARE about this topic, unlike the OP)

Compared to other industrialized nations, the US really does seem more violent to me (I'm Canadian). What's more, the more I learn about US culture, the more I go into culture shock. I find it frightening that so many Americans don't know how violent their culture looks to others. I really don't understand how things got this way, when every other country in the industrialized world has been backing off on violence since WWII. So it's a relief when Americans blog about it. Thank you.

I'm betting that this discussion has fallen flat now. I thought I would simply put in a couple of extra thoughts for all of you.

1. American culture is not warlike, but it is about the challenges that the people rise above. Like when a single mother beats breast cancer so she can stay alive to take care of her 2 kids. Sure we call it the fight against cancer and to many it may sound barbaric. However, it is a fight. Sure you can call it a challenge against cancer, but what is the end result if you fail the challenge?

2. Perception from many angles is how one should view the world. Mr. Skinner made many interesting points in regards to a sport that I like very much. Soccer... His major concept is the many soccer riots that have spurred and I can very much agree with him. However, I think the context of what Christopher was referring to with football was in the means the game is played. In comparison, there is a night and day factor between the 2 sports. However, the violence of soccer does exist, but not so much in the sport but in the fans. In the game, I have played for a couple years as well, there really is not much contact. However, with the previous World Cup of 2006, the final game had an incident that was immediately scrutinized by many countries and poor sportsmanship. If you all remember, a French play headbutted a player on the opposing team. Now back to the violence of the fans. I don't remember the exact World Cup year, but I do remember that Columbia had a great shot at the finals. The game came down to a single penalty shot on the Columbia's goal. When the goalie missed the shot the game was lost. The team went back to their country and when they got off the plane, a crazed fan made his way to the goalie and shot him dead. My major point is yes we Americans may have some violent sports, but you don't see everyone getting completely bent out of shape over their team's loss. I mean, my team, the Phillies, just lost to the Yankees, but I would never fathom killing Chase Utley or anyone over it.

3. We are a society that has a mixture of beautiful qualities and some bad ones as well. Our country for the most part does believe in community. However, because our laws have instilled a fear among people to either comply or go to jail, America has lost a large portion of the community feeling that it once held. Just this past weekend, my neighborhood held a block party because we strive for community. There was music, food, games, and even the local fire company came out and showed off the truck to the kids. Simple point of fact, don't judge us all by the few rotten apples. ;-)

Dr. Ryan,
Unlike Mr. Skinner, I understood the intention from the first couple of sentences. At any rate, you hit the proverbial nail on the head. While the majority of the American people are peace loving, the majority prefer to be lead around by the nose based on an "us vs them" orientation. Rather than dealing with the reality that we have our hands bloody with the innocent blood of Palestinian Christians by turning our heads the other way while Israel uses our weapons to eliminate them, we (as a CHRISTIAN nation) just waive our bibles in the air while hooping and praising God. We must ask ourselves, since we don't really produce anything of any consequence in a civilian commercial sense, what DO we produce? Easy, WEAPONS...we provide the "Made in America" on each missile, bomb, bullet and rocket that kills an innocent civilian. I suppose what is sad is, like a family living in continuous conflict, we view war and killing as a "normal" part of life. I realize this is a very broad stroke of the brush;however, until the outcry is loud enough, I will continue to think as I do.

Your insights are very refreshing. Write on!

The number of people in jail is not, by itself, a valid measure of the amount of freedom we have. It depends entirely on why they are in jail. If for some reason we have more violent criminals than other nations, we are more free when they are in jail (being murdered is a pretty big affront to one's freedom). On the other hand, if we have more nonviolent drug users or political prisoners in jail, that is definitely a sign of less freedom.

A higher number of violent criminals may in turn be related to other factors such as economic troubles, or perhaps simply having more freedoms (such as lacking the street cameras that the UK has). But simply having people in jail is not enough evidence to substantiate a comment about freedom.