We lost our identity as a Nation when we.

**SW-Shooter** · 01-11-10, 21:59

Put Asian, Arab, African in front of AMERICAN. This is a country of many nationalities but it has always been AMERICA. LAND of the FREE, HOME of the BRAVE.

That is all, had a pisser of a day and thought I'd vent.

**Ak44** · 01-11-10, 22:06

Did an Asian, Arab, or African piss you off today?

**SW-Shooter** · 01-11-10, 22:38

Actually YES. I overheard a conversation where two aforementioned pre-text Americans were stating the underwear bomber is a scapegoat and how we are oppressing Africans and Muslims across the globe now, they felt doubly offended because they were both "African and Muslim Americans".

It's enough to sour anyone's stomach.

ETA: When I was in uniform it was about the green. The individual was less than the sum of the team. We have regressed IMO.

**Tallteeth** · 01-11-10, 22:47

"There is no room in this country for hyphenated Americanism. When I refer to hyphenated Americans, I do not refer to naturalized Americans. Some of the very best Americans I have ever known were naturalized Americans, Americans born abroad. But a hyphenated American is not an American at all.
This is just as true of the man who puts “native” before the hyphen as of the man who puts German or Irish or English or French before the hyphen. Americanism is a matter of the spirit and of the soul. Our allegiance must be purely to the United States. We must unsparingly condemn any man who holds any other allegiance. But if he is heartily and singly loyal to this Republic, then no matter where he was born, he is just as good an American as any one else. The one absolutely certain way of bringing this nation to ruin, of preventing all possibility of its continuing to be a nation at all, would be to permit it to become a tangle of squabbling nationalities, an intricate knot of German-Americans, Irish-Americans, English- Americans, French-Americans, Scandinavian- Americans, or Italian-Americans, each preserving its separate nationality, each at heart feeling more sympathy with Europeans of that nationality than with the other citizens of the American Republic. The men who do not become Americans and nothing else are hyphenated Americans; and there ought to be no room for them in this country. The man who calls himself an American citizen and who yet shows by his actions that he is primarily the citizen of a foreign land, plays a thoroughly mischievous part in the life of our body politic. He has no place here; and the sooner he returns to the land to which he feels his real heart-allegiance, the better it will be for every good American."

Theodore Roosevelt, circa 1915

**dmancornell** · 01-11-10, 22:51

^

Fat chance of that these days. At my citizenship ceremony in 2006 we were flat out told to "honor our native heritage", whatever the hell that means.

I did so by purchasing multiple firearms.

**khc3** · 01-11-10, 23:04

It's amusing to meet hyphenated Americans in whose "homeland" you've spent far more time than they have.

**Ak44** · 01-11-10, 23:17

What really gives me a chuckle is people who shout out that I'm a foreigner and I should go back to my country. Even though I was born here and can speak better english than the ones calling me a foreigner.

**Hoss356** · 01-12-10, 01:10

This actually ties into a subject I'm working on for my speech class in college on how celebrating diversity is actually degrading the american way of life and is a threat to the country. I'm still putting together my arguments but the idea was sparked by book I read on deployment called "It's your ship" by Captain D. Michael Abrashoff former CO of the USS Benfold. The premise is celebrating diversity promotes self-segregation, celebrating unity through common beliefs, goals or desires brings people together into a community where people work together with greater efficiency and morale while increasing the success of the community as a whole.

This is a good book if you have the time, I need to buy it and read it again since it's been 5 years and someone stole my last copy.
http://www.amazon.com/Its-Your-Ship-.../dp/1594831963

**Spade** · 01-12-10, 02:06

Originally Posted by Hoss356

This actually ties into a subject I'm working on for my speech class in college on how celebrating diversity is actually degrading the american way of life and is a threat to the country. I'm still putting together my arguments but the idea was sparked by book I read on deployment called "It's your ship" by Captain D. Michael Abrashoff former CO of the USS Benfold. The premise is celebrating diversity promotes self-segregation, celebrating unity through common beliefs, goals or desires brings people together into a community where people work together with greater efficiency and morale while increasing the success of the community as a whole.

That is all well in good so long as it is your goals & beliefs that are being recognized. What if they are not? We also seem to assume that our beliefs & goals are the right ones & we should be in the majority. But things are quite different when that is not the case. For instance if you were an avid gun lover but lived in California. Even though the majority it seems is anti gun & you are not, you are still held to their standards. However being prior military I can see the obvious benefit of uniting for a common purpose. So where do you draw the line?

While I believe that hyphenated Americans & dual citizenship is a bad thing for this nation what about the issue of states & states rights? Different states in this union have different goals & ambitions. So if a certain state does not agree with the majority of the states in the union should we force them to submit? Furthermore what of calling ourselves by our states name & taking pride in our state? Does that mean that we wish to overthrow the larger nation as a whole?

We must be careful when we look to curtail a certain thing with out realizing how it may impact something else. Hyphenated Americans when used as a descriptive may have some dangers. However we as people love to group things & have names for those groups. So we will always have to find a way to describe ourselves whether by race or country of origin or any other. But when as a hyphenated American you are using that as a way to directly show your defiance for a nation you live in the concern should be much larger. In my opinion they pretend to be our friends by using America in their name, but first half of their name shows their true intentions & alliances.