No Stupid Questions

Let me tell you the good news: we've always been fascist, racist, bullies. This admin is just not covering it up at all. Glad you're awake now my guy.

Nationalism tells you your nation is what to be proud of, but that's dangerous and manipulative.

Instead, focus on the people. You can be proud of the people who are protesting, people who are running secret grocery runs for people hiding from ICE, people promoting progressive or scientific thought in threatened educational spaces, and so on.

There are still plenty of us left in the US, some against our will, and you can still be proud of them for still trying when so many others have given up.

There are several websites about current good news, some of which is happening in this country right now.

Here's a simple one:

In October 2025, following pressure from United States Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, Texas Governor Greg Abbott ordered cities across the state to remove LGBTQ+ Pride crosswalks and other road markings that “advance political agendas” and “ideologies.”

Abbott cited safety concerns and violation of state and federal guidelines as reasons to invoke the measure, which required cities to comply within 30 days or risk losing transportation funding.

...

But, in the meantime, the new, colorful sidewalks do not violate any local regulations, and Kaur and McKee-Rodriguez hope they signal an ongoing commitment to LGBTQ+ Pride in San Antonio.

Some people love their country like a child loves their parent. Uncritical. They can do no wrong and are the best ever. Don't be like that.

Some people love their like like a peer loves a peer. You see their flaws and want them to be the best they can be. Be like that, even when it's uncomfortable and difficult.

MLK jr and the civil rights movement are just as much a part of America as Jim Crow and slavery. ICE is America but so is every protester fighting it. Lincoln is America. The KKK is America. Trump is America. Luigi is America.

The thing about people is we like to make things simple and put things in a box, and not have exceptions. But that's almost never true, and the US is a land of contradictions. We're very good people, and we're very bad people.

So yeah, it's going down the drain, but it's always been going down the drain. It's also going to get better, and it always has, little by little. Hopefully we can weather this storm and rebuild.

I think it's easier to find success stories if you ask this question about your town than your country.

A few weeks ago I took my kid to a parking lot by a park so he could practice biking, and when we got there there were nearly a dozen kids biking, and a band was playing etherial middle eastern music next to us to a crowd as the full moon hung over a lake draped in light of the setting sun.

It was gorgeous, and free, both financially and in spirit. It was a beautiful appreciation of people and art from across the world. I thought for a moment that it was a picture of what I'd like America to one day be, then realized that I was in America, and it was already a picture of what America IS. It's unfortunate that America is also many terrible other things. But America is also this. And that spirit is what brought these musicians or their parents to America, and eventually to that parking lot by the lake under the full moon.

Hell yeah! America is now the number one exporter in highly qualified workers!

It's promoting Europe and the rest of the world to come closer together with new treaties and trade. It's a positive move in the next phase of global relations.

I would probably say your movie and tv show industry, im not going to comment on the the actual conditions for writers, actors, people who work in the industry (out of my expertise), the output is pretty amazing. No other country has produces the sheer content and quality of media you do.

The protests in Oregon and Minnesota show that we are still America despite the MAGA separatists attempt to destroy us. And although this current chapter sucks hardcore, we now see our neighbors and "friends" for what they really are.

The separatists really thought they could just steamroll us. But, it didn't go according to plan. We also scare the whole cabinet enough that they are living on military bases because they literally fear for their lives.

MAGA is eating itself alive which is the only outcome of a movement based entirely on hatred and destruction. So, we are showing our resolve. That's the undercurrent that shows we still have some good left in us.

It's very easy to disparage a nation state due to the actions of their government and forget that there are good people everywhere that are well intentioned and trying to do the right thing. The No Kings protest movement is a good example of that. Building solidarity movements with humane values is the way we change society for the better.

You should be proud to be human.

Not to be born within some imaginary line drawn on a map, in an area that later got "cleaned" as much as possible of everyone else not speaking the same language or worshipping the same god.

The US consistently ranks among the most charitable countries in the world, being #1 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2019.

I'm German and I don't think that it's particularly healthy to be proud of the country you're from. It's basically the belief that your own traditions, language and land are better than that of others. Like I get calling a place home, but so many places in Germany are as foreign to me as places in other countries. Maybe more familiar, but familiarity isn't the same as something being good.

Government might be corrupt as hell but at least culture of Mental Health acceptance is much better than Chinese culture.

I'm originally from Guangzhou, China, am naturalized and I overall like the US... at least more than China...

I just hate the corrupt politicians.

Also, so much entertainment stuff... movies, tv, are made in the US. Chinese entertainment is boring as hell (IMO)

Also: Usually those in the Entertainment industry lean relatively more left.

I still think Americans are generally good, if they actually knew the truth and not just far-right propaganda. (I mean that's just humans in general... people are easily manipulated by the evil few)

The problem is low voter turnout, first past the post, winner take all electoral college, gerrymandering, most important of all, the PROPAGANDA.

Americans in red jurisdictions... rural areas... those who never met a non-white person... have a problem with a distorted worldview...

Primary turnout is atrocious...

Right now my parents and their culture are smothering me to death... they hate the idea of medications and depression is not a serious problem in their eyes.

the lgbtq+ rights in your country seems amazing compared to my own

the drain has been clogged for decades, now its just BACKING up, which we are facing the consequences of clogging it in the first place. before we could use the plumber to unclog, but now its so big(trump) its just overflowing.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is legitimately the best in the world and other countries wish they treated disabled people as well as America

I don't know. You (as an American) are in a better place to judge that than I.

What I do know is this: people are people. And for every rotten son of a bitch, there's someone else, quietly, moving heaven and earth to do good - both in big ways and small. If we're going to tilt at windmills, we may as well tilt at windmills together.

Is America fundamentally different today than in the past? Like others have pointed out, it's not like we've got no skeletons in our collective past. Ask any indigenous person, a large percentage of black folk, or anyone who's ever been considered "a foreigner." The only major difference is that the same people who have always been assholes are feeling like they can operate out in the open.

But at the same time, the good that has always been true is still here. We're a beautiful country, with so many ecosystems and climates, two beautiful oceans, amazing natural resources, and we've been pretty safe from wars due to our geography and having two pretty good neighbors.

Those being selfishly rich or power hungry have very loud voices these days instead of doing the same things while acting like so-called gentlemen, but they're still a minority. Most people are just keeping their heads down and earning an honest living. Many are still doing great things like working on medicine, trying to repair our environment, raising and teaching our children, helping those in need, whatever you can name.

Maybe those that want to do evil in America want honest people to feel hopeless and to abandon holding on to what we have. That will leave it all to them after all. But I still love my home and my friends. I love our mountains, beaches, and wildlife. I love my America as much as ever, since I want this country to be the best it can be. But those who go around doing wrong in the name of this country, I want them to see justice more than ever too. We've survived the tyrants of America's past for over 400 years, and one way or another, we can only move forward and hopefully learn from our mistakes.

We can be embarrassed or angry for how our country is being represented and managed, but barring a literal apocalypse, there's still a ton of good left to find here between the land and the actual people who live here and cash this place home.

now that the DOJ doesn't prosecute for it anymore, we're way better at corruption. the rich take so much more of our taxes.

No we're at the end of an empire and the dawn of a new world. Our bases across the middle east will be abandoned. More will be emptied or destroyed. Our influence across the world will shrink more than it is now.

The states we have may stay. Alaska might try to break off and join Canada in 50 years. Hawaii might join Australia and New Zealand as well.

Unless we get a political party that will advocate for taxing the fuck out of the rich to invest in america via trains, healthcare and R&D.

Don't get your hopes up.

There is this video about some American traveling and complaining that everywhere he goes people look at him with disgust and disdain. So there is that.

The US has some amazing musicians

Anyone who was proud of america before was just drinking the coolaid. There are things america did that were worth being proud of individually, but soo many more not to. It's the same idea as idolizing a person. The vast majority of the time they are really a bad person overall. Instead focus on the event or achievement and not the person.

You're getting a lot of the same comments in here, and I don't feel like I need to add to the cacophony of voices decrying just how bad things have gotten (or, if you prefer, how bad they have always been and how they have only just now become more visible to us) so I thought I would chime in with one that still holds true today.

The United States has some of the best national parks in the world. If you are someone who enjoys nature and being in the great outdoors, whether that's hiking, hunting, fishing, birdwatching, climbing, caving, exploring, etc. the experience you can get here really can't be matched anywhere else in the world. We have the most diverse range of biomes anywhere on the planet - deserts, mountains, valleys, forests, badlands, swamps - you name it, we've got it and it's probably contained in one of our many national parks scattered across the countryside - and the best part is that access is free for everybody.

Now, the big caveat, and one that kind of deflates this selling point quite a bit recently, is that a lot of the national park land and nature reserves are under threat right now by the Trump administration - there have been big moves by the executive to reclassify lots of federally protected land in order to expand oil drilling/fracking operations, as well as a push to force non-resident visitors to pay for entry, both of which are being fought tooth and nail by conservationists and environmental activists.

So, there's something. We can debate on whether or not it's a good thing to have national pride over things that we have little to no control over, but at the very least we can say we enjoy what we have now and take pride in the fact that our forebearers had the wisdom to use the law to protect the land and it's precious resources and that we continue that effort into the modern era.

Being "proud of your country" is the root cause for all this shit.

Be proud of your family, your city, your friends, your self. even your company if they do good by you and others.

Never your country.

There are worse places to live.

Don't get me wrong, there are loads of better places to live, but there are definitely worse places.

America makes great animated series. It makes great movies sometimes too. Admittedly both of these things are usually actually made overseas, but you guys write them.

You also have a nice flag. Although you do kind of ruin it by being super weird about them.

You have really cheap petrol / gas. That's definitely something you beat most of the world at. I think that's the winner - cheap gas.

what did you use to be proud of?

Everywhere there are good people doing good things with the best of intentions - people doing art for the love of the art, actually taking care of natural areas for the love of nature, helping others because they don't want others to suffer rather than as some "charity" grift to make money or make others think they're good people, and so on.

They're just not in power in the US and, IMHO, don't add up to anywhere close to being the majority of people.

loads

protect your democracy and vote dem in november

good luck!

Many of my friends are organizing everything from mutual aid, protection of the targeted, and have expressed a willingness to die for the best values we were taught, if it comes to that. People like that are one good thing about America. Each of us can contribute in our own way, and many are quietly doing so. I don’t have a crystal ball to predict the future but good people fearlessly doing what is right feeds my soul.

All hope is false, unless engineered, built action by action. You want hope? Build it.