On October 27 2011 22:30 Mobius_1 wrote: Well, if it weren't for America this forum wouldn't exist.
... or another country would have invented the internet and Starcraft.
Saying "Without country xyz thing abc wouldn't exist" is... well, not very logical. Without europe, no settlers would have travelled west and indians would still roam the lands and hunt buffalos... or maybe they would have invented gunpowder and invaded china, who knows...
Well, my previous statement was full of falacies and uncertainties. What does it mean for "America to not exist"? What would "this forum" be? Am I referring to TeamLiquid in its current form? With its current name and mods and theme and posts? Or am I referring to a wider idea of TeamLiquid as a Starcraft community? But "without America", will Starcraft exist? Would its uptake by Koreans still happen? When would it happen as America is very much instrumental to innovation in the tech world? "Without America", will Taiwan still remain independent? Would its takeover by the Commies lead to a less developed tech world due to the lack of OEMs and semiconductor fabs and innovators like Jen-Hsun Huang? Would the ideas behind Starcraft remain the same? Where would potential developers take their inspiration from, if America didn't exist, and with it, the space race did not occur? And where would Star Wars, Star Trek be? Would Warhammer still exist to inspire the Marine etc, if America did not save the United Kingdom in WWI and II? If America did not exist, and Fascism took over the world, would gaming be invented? Would Starcraft be allowed? Would a Starcraft without the cowboy figure of Jim Raynor still be Starcraft? What even is a cowboy? In space? If it weren't for the gold ole USA?
BTW China apparently invented gunpowder, according to all my education (in China). Sadly, Chinese people were too crap at imagining uses for it (killing people and taking stuff) so it took the Mongols conquering half of Europe for its true potential to be realised (killing people and taking stuff).
BUT if you were right, and China was invaded, would I still be born? Would I still be who I am? Would a me but with a different culture upbringing still be having this conversation on this non-existent thread on this non-existent forum for a non-existent game made by a non-existent country?
On October 27 2011 22:45 DyEnasTy wrote: I think what some people who never been to America or have only been to a couple places, is that this country is so big/diverse you sometimes feel like your going to a different country (in a small sense) when you visit a different state.
For instance Im from California, a few years ago some friends and I went to Idaho. I was actually getting harassed by the "locals" for being from California. This actually happens more than I ever expected, apparently a lot of people dont like Californians.
Ive been to New York once and the way people talk and interact I felt very out of place and had a hard time keeping up in the conversation (with born and raised New Yorkers).
edit: I have no idea why I wrote this because it has little to do with what you guys are talking about lol
not at all, it's all part of what makes the United States of America (thanks, fabiano!) super-fantastic!
And the landscapes! I must have watched a hundred television programmes set in Los Angeles and I recognise the round skyscraper and assumed the place was surrounded by beaches and desert given the way it's portrayed... and then gasped out loud the first time I saw this particular view:
seriously, do you have ANY IDEA how fucking exceptionally beautiful a cityscape that is? I'd work it into every show and every film if I were in charge.
On October 27 2011 22:00 fabiano wrote: I know ok I apologize.
The Americas = North, Central and South though
Well that's silly, because Central (America) is part of North America, by definition. It's a general location (a sub-continent), but not even it's own country.
So by your own definition, it's perfectly fine to generalize "America" to anything that uses America in it, as long as it's clear what's being talked about. So the OP is perfectly justified in using "America" to talk about "The United States of America".
(And just in case you weren't aware that Cental America is part of North America: "It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast.[3][4]" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_America)
That's what you get for being inconsistent The OP means America to be the country. It's fine.
On October 27 2011 22:00 fabiano wrote: I know ok I apologize.
The Americas = North, Central and South though
Well that's silly, because Central (America) is part of North America, by definition. It's a general location (a sub-continent), but not even it's own country.
So by your own definition, it's perfectly fine to generalize "America" to anything that uses America in it, as long as it's clear what's being talked about. So the OP is perfectly justified in using "America" to talk about "The United States of America".
(And just in case you weren't aware that Cental America is part of North America: "It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast.[3][4]" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_America)
That's what you get for being inconsistent The OP means America to be the country. It's fine.
"Central America" may mean different things to various people in the world based upon different contexts:
In English speaking countries, Central America is considered a region of the North American continent.[17] Geopolitically, it usually comprises seven countries – Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama.[18] Mexico, in whole or in part, is sometimes included.[19] Some geographers include the five states of Campeche, Chiapas, Tabasco, Quintana Roo, and Yucatán,[18] together representing 12.1% of the country's total area.
In Latin America, Iberia, and some other parts of Europe, the Americas are considered to be a single continent, and Central America is considered a region of this continent. In Ibero-America, the region is defined as seven nations – Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama – and may occasionally include Mexico's southernmost region.[20] Geopolitically, Mexico is considered part of North America.[21]
Occasionally, the term Central America is used synonymously with Middle America.[22] Among some German geographers, Mittelamerika may be used to refer to the territories on the Central American isthmus.[22]
In German, Zentralamerika may be used to refer to the territories on the Central American isthmus.[citation needed]
The UN geoscheme defines the region as all states of mainland North America south of the United States; conversely, the European Union excludes Belize and Mexico from its definition of the region.[23][24]
On October 27 2011 22:00 fabiano wrote: I know ok I apologize.
The Americas = North, Central and South though
Well that's silly, because Central (America) is part of North America, by definition. It's a general location (a sub-continent), but not even it's own country.
So by your own definition, it's perfectly fine to generalize "America" to anything that uses America in it, as long as it's clear what's being talked about. So the OP is perfectly justified in using "America" to talk about "The United States of America".
(And just in case you weren't aware that Cental America is part of North America: "It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast.[3][4]" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_America)
That's what you get for being inconsistent The OP means America to be the country. It's fine.
"Central America" may mean different things to various people in the world based upon different contexts:
In English speaking countries, Central America is considered a region of the North American continent.[17] Geopolitically, it usually comprises seven countries – Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama.[18] Mexico, in whole or in part, is sometimes included.[19] Some geographers include the five states of Campeche, Chiapas, Tabasco, Quintana Roo, and Yucatán,[18] together representing 12.1% of the country's total area.
In Latin America, Iberia, and some other parts of Europe, the Americas are considered to be a single continent, and Central America is considered a region of this continent. In Ibero-America, the region is defined as seven nations – Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama – and may occasionally include Mexico's southernmost region.[20] Geopolitically, Mexico is considered part of North America.[21]
Occasionally, the term Central America is used synonymously with Middle America.[22] Among some German geographers, Mittelamerika may be used to refer to the territories on the Central American isthmus.[22]
In German, Zentralamerika may be used to refer to the territories on the Central American isthmus.[citation needed]
The UN geoscheme defines the region as all states of mainland North America south of the United States; conversely, the European Union excludes Belize and Mexico from its definition of the region.[23][24]
As you can see from even what you just quoted, Central America is still part of the continent, just like how the country (the United States of) America is. The point is that anyone can make the same argument you did, if they wanted to be super-literal and overlook the fact that the OP even referred to the country of America, so it wasn't an ambiguous statement on his part. He wasn't referring to the continents of North or South America, the sub-continent of Central America, or even the song "America the Beautiful". He was talking about the country, The United States of America, because he clearly said so.
Anyways, I'm done with this particular dialogue, because I feel it derails the topic. Enjoy your day ^^
When Nazgul comes here he just complains about how everything in America sucks, he hates basically all of it (but mostly the banks, the water, the tipping customs, and the cost of school).
I've lived in the Netherlands for a little over two months now. I have a bit of a sense of what it is like to live outside of the states. If you look at the US and think it is really cool... you would probably enjoy living there. You may hear horror stories about republican politicians and cultural problems, but it really has little impact on the daily lives of most people. It is a beautiful place still full of opportunity, and you will find many like minded people no matter what your beliefs are. Also the concept of convenience is much more highly developed there than in the NL, that's for sure. I'm a little homesick
America didn't have the benefit of 19th century chauvinistic nationalism that most European nations did. I guess when you think being French/German/Czech/Hungarian makes you better than everyone else not letting your fellow countrymen die from preventable diseases or hunger is a natural progression.
Not saying that's how people still think but the kind of solidarity and social cohesion that we are so proud of, and sometimes the US seems to lack, has some very ugly roots.
On October 27 2011 19:14 flamewheel wrote: I came into this blog to post "AMERICA!" and then leave, but you made me think for a bit
about how fuckin' awesome it is, right???
Look how beautiful that is. Find me a person from another country who loves his native land so much that he's craft such a beautiful song to an 80s montage of awesomeness
But seriously, it's a pretty good place. It's just that the whiners are louder.
This.
Yeah America really is great in theory. The founding fathers made an enormous mistake however when they didn't put sufficient protection of property rights in the constitution. Once a democratic society realizes they can legally vote themselves other people's money, the system quickly falls apart. The people become competing parasites, and the politicians and bureaucrats become whores for corporate lobbyists or labor special interests. The government becomes about money and power and control instead of about restraint and protecting individual liberties.
As more and more citizens are raised with an attitude of entitlement to anything and everything, and take the liberty and opportunities they have for granted instead of cherishing them as the rare gift in the world that they are, they whore away more and more of the theory that once made this nation so great in exchange for notions of "fairness" or the moral indignation of self-created martyrs who whine that they have to pay back a student loan.
I guess my point is, one man's paradise is another man's hell. We all agree there are terrible things wrong with the country, but we don't agree on what those things are. What most of you would consider "progress" is what makes me most fearful about the future.
On October 27 2011 22:45 DyEnasTy wrote: I think what some people who never been to America or have only been to a couple places, is that this country is so big/diverse you sometimes feel like your going to a different country (in a small sense) when you visit a different state.
For instance Im from California, a few years ago some friends and I went to Idaho. I was actually getting harassed by the "locals" for being from California. This actually happens more than I ever expected, apparently a lot of people dont like Californians.
Ive been to New York once and the way people talk and interact I felt very out of place and had a hard time keeping up in the conversation (with born and raised New Yorkers).
edit: I have no idea why I wrote this because it has little to do with what you guys are talking about lol
not at all, it's all part of what makes the United States of America (thanks, fabiano!) super-fantastic!
And the landscapes! I must have watched a hundred television programmes set in Los Angeles and I recognise the round skyscraper and assumed the place was surrounded by beaches and desert given the way it's portrayed... and then gasped out loud the first time I saw this particular view:
seriously, do you have ANY IDEA how fucking exceptionally beautiful a cityscape that is? I'd work it into every show and every film if I were in charge.
Well I live in Northern California, which is a very different place than SoCal.
On October 27 2011 22:45 DyEnasTy wrote: I think what some people who never been to America or have only been to a couple places, is that this country is so big/diverse you sometimes feel like your going to a different country (in a small sense) when you visit a different state.
For instance Im from California, a few years ago some friends and I went to Idaho. I was actually getting harassed by the "locals" for being from California. This actually happens more than I ever expected, apparently a lot of people dont like Californians.
Ive been to New York once and the way people talk and interact I felt very out of place and had a hard time keeping up in the conversation (with born and raised New Yorkers).
edit: I have no idea why I wrote this because it has little to do with what you guys are talking about lol
not at all, it's all part of what makes the United States of America (thanks, fabiano!) super-fantastic!
And the landscapes! I must have watched a hundred television programmes set in Los Angeles and I recognise the round skyscraper and assumed the place was surrounded by beaches and desert given the way it's portrayed... and then gasped out loud the first time I saw this particular view:
seriously, do you have ANY IDEA how fucking exceptionally beautiful a cityscape that is? I'd work it into every show and every film if I were in charge.
Well I live in Northern California, which is a very different place than SoCal.
On October 27 2011 22:45 DyEnasTy wrote: I think what some people who never been to America or have only been to a couple places, is that this country is so big/diverse you sometimes feel like your going to a different country (in a small sense) when you visit a different state.
For instance Im from California, a few years ago some friends and I went to Idaho. I was actually getting harassed by the "locals" for being from California. This actually happens more than I ever expected, apparently a lot of people dont like Californians.
Ive been to New York once and the way people talk and interact I felt very out of place and had a hard time keeping up in the conversation (with born and raised New Yorkers).
edit: I have no idea why I wrote this because it has little to do with what you guys are talking about lol
not at all, it's all part of what makes the United States of America (thanks, fabiano!) super-fantastic!
And the landscapes! I must have watched a hundred television programmes set in Los Angeles and I recognise the round skyscraper and assumed the place was surrounded by beaches and desert given the way it's portrayed... and then gasped out loud the first time I saw this particular view:
seriously, do you have ANY IDEA how fucking exceptionally beautiful a cityscape that is? I'd work it into every show and every film if I were in charge.
Well I live in Northern California, which is a very different place than SoCal.
Who the fuck lives in NC
LOL, I dont even know how to answer. Ummmmm I do, as well as a ton of old people who grew up in SoCal and retired in NorCal.
I was pleasantly surprised to find a short yet thought provoking OP here
On October 27 2011 20:48 marttorn wrote: The text books we have in Norway unfortunately do not talk about america (or any other country for that matter) much, preferring to put an unnatural amount of weight into the small achievements of Norwegians in the given field.
I'm always somewhat disgusted when I read about a tsunami disaster, and the news station/textbook chooses to add "...several norwegian tourists have also lost their life" as if it's supposed to make us care that much more about the disaster that has taken place.
Basically the case anywhere in the world. American textbooks play down what the country did to the natives, and Japanese textbooks famously play down (or rephrase) their Wartime atrocities. =\
On October 28 2011 00:59 ymir233 wrote: AMERICA
FUCK YEAH
But seriously, it's a pretty good place. It's just that the whiners are louder.
On October 27 2011 22:45 DyEnasTy wrote: I think what some people who never been to America or have only been to a couple places, is that this country is so big/diverse you sometimes feel like your going to a different country (in a small sense) when you visit a different state.
For instance Im from California, a few years ago some friends and I went to Idaho. I was actually getting harassed by the "locals" for being from California. This actually happens more than I ever expected, apparently a lot of people dont like Californians.
Ive been to New York once and the way people talk and interact I felt very out of place and had a hard time keeping up in the conversation (with born and raised New Yorkers).
edit: I have no idea why I wrote this because it has little to do with what you guys are talking about lol
not at all, it's all part of what makes the United States of America (thanks, fabiano!) super-fantastic!
And the landscapes! I must have watched a hundred television programmes set in Los Angeles and I recognise the round skyscraper and assumed the place was surrounded by beaches and desert given the way it's portrayed... and then gasped out loud the first time I saw this particular view:
seriously, do you have ANY IDEA how fucking exceptionally beautiful a cityscape that is? I'd work it into every show and every film if I were in charge.
Well I live in Northern California, which is a very different place than SoCal.
On October 27 2011 19:14 flamewheel wrote: I came into this blog to post "AMERICA!" and then leave, but you made me think for a bit :|
This country is silly and feels like it's held together with tape right now, but then again the world in general doesn't seem much better.
I came into this blog to read flamewheel's post on AMERICA! but then I read both your posts and thought for a bit.
It's hard to remember America in the way you described it ...it certainly does put it in a different light. A better, softer light than the one it's been exposed to in recent years.
On October 27 2011 20:48 marttorn wrote: The text books we have in Norway unfortunately do not talk about america (or any other country for that matter) much, preferring to put an unnatural amount of weight into the small achievements of Norwegians in the given field.
I'm always somewhat disgusted when I read about a tsunami disaster, and the news station/textbook chooses to add "...several norwegian tourists have also lost their life" as if it's supposed to make us care that much more about the disaster that has taken place.
Basically the case anywhere in the world. American textbooks play down what the country did to the natives, and Japanese textbooks famously play down (or rephrase) their Wartime atrocities. =\
On October 27 2011 22:45 DyEnasTy wrote: I think what some people who never been to America or have only been to a couple places, is that this country is so big/diverse you sometimes feel like your going to a different country (in a small sense) when you visit a different state.
For instance Im from California, a few years ago some friends and I went to Idaho. I was actually getting harassed by the "locals" for being from California. This actually happens more than I ever expected, apparently a lot of people dont like Californians.
Ive been to New York once and the way people talk and interact I felt very out of place and had a hard time keeping up in the conversation (with born and raised New Yorkers).
edit: I have no idea why I wrote this because it has little to do with what you guys are talking about lol
not at all, it's all part of what makes the United States of America (thanks, fabiano!) super-fantastic!
And the landscapes! I must have watched a hundred television programmes set in Los Angeles and I recognise the round skyscraper and assumed the place was surrounded by beaches and desert given the way it's portrayed... and then gasped out loud the first time I saw this particular view:
seriously, do you have ANY IDEA how fucking exceptionally beautiful a cityscape that is? I'd work it into every show and every film if I were in charge.
Well I live in Northern California, which is a very different place than SoCal.
We need to make California two states imo
You agree with me then ha? I think its almost like 2 different states. Ive been to SoCal twice. A little too fast paced for me lol. It feels like 2 different states.
Change is all around us(US) right now. Even globally almost all sides(ideologically) are at a fever pitch. Some sides are doing better than others, but all of them see the fight.
The mechanisms for true accountability of this side of the world have been skewed to the point, that reguardless of what you believe, or who you support, justice is miles away, or million of dollars.
Taking the case to the internet seems the best leverage the little guy has this day. Even this sliver of accountability to the people is being encroached upon, even as I type this.
Who would Scott Olsen be without youtube and alternative media to force the big boys to play fair? I love what this country was meant to be, sadly that seems to be a missing limb syndrome for me as I remember the past, and though it is gone, it still pains me.
EPT![[image loading]](http://www.bugbog.com/images/main/usa/los-angeles-photos/Los-Angeles-Mountains.jpg)
The OP means America to be the country. It's fine. 
