Check Out the Scumbag Dem's In WI

[finnbow]

Originally Posted by piece-itpete

...we are indeed generous.

At least in our own minds.

As a percentage of GDP, we are the least generous of all developed nations.

http://salt.claretianpubs.org/stats/...1/sh0501a.html

[merrylander]

Originally Posted by piece-itpete

The land in the east was stolen from indians too.

Pete

And the strange part was that the Iriquios had a system of government that makes our's look medieval.

[piece-itpete]

That chart is extremely misleading - it did not include private contributions.

And don't forget, we also keep the 'highways' safe, at great expense. And things like the US military in the wake of that great tidal wave.

Pete

[piece-itpete]

Agreed in some ways Rob, but they did have starvation problems in the winter, while we only did till we were up and running.

Pete

[finnbow]

Originally Posted by piece-itpete

That chart is extremely misleading - it did not include private contributions.

And don't forget, we also keep the 'highways' safe, at great expense. And things like the US military in the wake of that great tidal wave.

Pete

It didn't include private contributions from the northern European countries either. There's nothing misleading about it. It's comparing apples to apples.

As for protecting ocean lanes, we aren't exactly alone. Take a look at who is involved in this effort:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piracy_...s_in_operation

[piece-itpete]

What about the rest of the world?

And charity involves charitable contributions, although I know you lefties think the government is the whole nation

Pete

[finnbow]

Gimme some data.

[merrylander]

Originally Posted by piece-itpete

Agreed in some ways Rob, but they did have starvation problems in the winter, while we only did till we were up and running.

Pete

Jamestown #1?

[merrylander]

Originally Posted by piece-itpete

Well, we are the owner of one very exceptional thing, we have done virtuous things (and unvirtuous ones too), and we are indeed generous.

And a man could make something for himself. Although the only folks who still believe it are foreigners now.

Pete

I will agree that I did allright here, but I could have done the same thing back in Canada, in fact I might have been even better off - no expensive health insurance.

[finnbow]

This article provides a little insight IMO to the ongoing discussion here. I guess it explains the reason I rankle when I hear the "we're number 1" or "we're the best" rhetoric when hard data shows otherwise.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/11/op...brooks.html?hp

"Americans are similarly endowed with self-esteem. When pollsters ask people around the world to rate themselves on a variety of traits, they find that people in Serbia, Chile, Israel and the United States generally supply the most positive views of themselves. People in South Korea, Switzerland, Japan, Taiwan and Morocco are on the humble side of the rankings. Yet even from this high base, there is some evidence to suggest that Americans have taken self-approval up a notch over the past few decades."

And to think, this article is from a conservative (though not a dark red one).

Have you ever noticed that a person who is willing to brag that he's the smartest person in the room rarely is?