Althouse: American arrogance.

February 21, 2010

American arrogance.

Should we rein it in — a little humility perhaps — so the world doesn't hate us?

75 comments:

Anonymous said...: This idea that the world hates us to begin with, Ann, is a bunch of crap.

And I don't appreciate for one second you fostering this notion. Or suggesting for one minute that our athletes shouldn't do their level best in competition against other of the world's athletes.

I've traveled the world - clearly a lot wider a circle than you have. And I found everywhere I went a burning ambition in everyone I met to one day come to the United States.

The people who hate the United States the most are living at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. The first lady, for example, even said she was never proud of America until it put her in that house.

They and their cohorts have sold you on the idea that the world hates us.

Well the world does not hate us. I've been there, and I've asked them, and they told me so.; 2/21/10, 10:46 AM
lucid said...: Well, at the very least I think we should apologize. Obama could do that for us.; 2/21/10, 10:49 AM
Jason said...: USA! USA! USA! USA!!!; 2/21/10, 10:52 AM
Dark Eden said...: Hate is perhaps a strong word but the world has pretty been in strong antipathy towards us since they've been aware of us. Go back and read what Europeans thought of us in 1800 and its virtually identical to the tropes of today other than they thought they could safely ignore us as backwater hicks.

The era where Europe loved us is pretty much mythical. And really getting the world to love you is a fool's game. Better to be feared than loved.; 2/21/10, 10:54 AM
Hagar said...: To read about what the world thinks of us, is to seek that information from the same segment of societies abroad that does not like us in this country.; 2/21/10, 11:03 AM
Beta Rube said...: I thought the world stopped hating us roughly a year ago. I remember being told:

"This was the moment when the rise of the oceans began to slow, and our planet began to heal, and assholes everywhere started really really liking us again."; 2/21/10, 11:03 AM
Anonymous said...: "The era where Europe loved us is pretty much mythical."

Hogwash.

On August 25, 1945, Europe loved the fuck out of us. Was World War II a myth? The French were throwing flowers at our feet.

Here, watch this documentary footage and feel the love:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixc5mxJy1Qc

The problem we have in this country is that the Barack Obama's and the rest of the America-haters are running our fucking school systems.

They're our law professors and our history professors. They hate America and everything it stands for.

They're molding this absurd revisionist philosophy into our children's educations.

J.O.B. 1 for conservatives should be unemploying every last fucking one of them.; 2/21/10, 11:07 AM
Anonymous said...: Humility is for those who can't.

Syn. lowliness, meekness, submissiveness.

No thanks.; 2/21/10, 11:09 AM
Rialby said...: The world doesn't hate us. The world's Left hates us. They just happen to have the biggest megaphones. Get in a cab in any major American city and ask your driver why they came to the US from Nigeria, Pakistan, Bangladesh, etc. to get a different perspective than you'd get on the BBC.; 2/21/10, 11:14 AM
The Drill SGT said...: Should we rein it in — little humility perhaps — so the world doesn't hate us?

If you group the EU together they have more people and more medals.

If you factor the population of Canada and their number of medals, they have more per person.

Your point is?; 2/21/10, 11:15 AM
mRed said...: It's been a good Olympics for us. We should be proud and happy and share those feelings with the world so they can witness our success. Yeah, I know. Today's losers are those that think there are winners.; 2/21/10, 11:17 AM
Anonymous said...: "Your point is?"

Yea, Ann, what's you're point exactly? I realize this is one of those throwaway posts but if you've got a point then I say "Out with it."

Is is that you think the rest of the world wants us to pull up at the last minute in that race?

I've spent some time around Olympians from different parts of the world when I was younger and to a man, I found each of them to be highly competitive and they all wanted your best game. Win or lose.

The best way to get someone to really hate you is to let them win. To pull up. To show so much disrespect for their abilities that you won't give them your best.

They'll hate you forever even as the laurel is placed on their heads.

But I suspect this post doesn't have anything to do with the Olympic Spirit.

I think it's only purpose is to advance the Big Lie that America is hated around the world.

But that's only in the media. And only when it serves to unseat Republicans. And it's only in the academy, where hating America is the only way to get tenure.

Are you up for tenure, Ann? Is this post to demonstrate your bona fides to your colleagues?

Is that the point?; 2/21/10, 11:24 AM
Fred4Pres said...: Who is being so arrogant? I naturally root for my country, but if you go by population the real champs are Norway, Sweden and Canada (Australia too given these are winter games, Australia is even smaller population wise than Canada, and Australia only has a limited ski-cold climate).

In the end, I am impressed by Torah Bright kicking ass on the half pipe and mildly amused by how Hannah Teter looks stoned all the time. Do you notice many these athletes seem to live in Utah and Colorado, regardless of what country they are from? That is probably to be around each other and raise the level of their competition.; 2/21/10, 11:34 AM
Jim said...: The US is arrogant? Really?

Compared to who?

All the citizens of all the other countries of the world who think they know best what foreign policies the US should pursue, what rights our citizens should have, what immigration we should allow, what foods we should eat, what shows and movies we should produce, whether our government should cover health care....Should I go on?

It's hilarious that the very same people who are proposing to tell Americans how they should conduct themselves don't recognize the inherent arrogance in their oh so very helpful advice.

How about this? You try getting through the day that the US actually decides to TRULY mind its own business and you're forced to go it alone amidst the world's bullies like Iran, China, Russia and North Korea. Or maybe you can start figuring out how to feed, clothe and care for your own populations when we stop coming to your aid because you have proven completely incapable of governing yourselves. Or maybe you can figure out a way to define what values you actually stand for rather than just reflexively opposing everything Americans do.

Like it or not, this planet would tumble into a state of advanced chaos if not for the "arrogance" of the United States. And if that means they have to deal with a little celebration from our athletes that hurts their poor wittle feelings, then that's really just too effing bad for them.

Grow up and stop defining yourselves in terms of how you stack up against Americans and try truly standing on your own feet for a change. Maybe then a little thing like a little post-game celebration wouldn't hurt so badly.; 2/21/10, 11:45 AM
Michael said...: First, the world doesn't hate us anymore because we elected Obama. Ask him. No reason then to "reign it in." I would like to see us win every Olympic medal, using performance enhancement tools if necessary, if it would get everyone everywhere to shut up about the U.S. having a little humility. I am in the no humility as a nation camp. Let the Congo and Sudan have humility if its so liberating. Think their tourism numbers will spike as a consequence.; 2/21/10, 11:51 AM
The Drill SGT said...: Is is that you think the rest of the world wants us to pull up at the last minute in that race?

Or have an Affirmative Action Olympics where we pass out the medas proportionately to population? Give Chna 20% of the winter medaals and Indonesia 3%, with us at 5%?

I know when it got to the Summer games those Turkish wrestlers, Jamaican sprinters and those Ethiopan runners won't be happy giving up their medals in events they rule the world in order to make sure everybody feels good.

Why? Because they are the BEST!

That is what the Olympics are all about. Not Kumbaya feel good everybody wins stuff; 2/21/10, 11:58 AM
The Crack Emcee said...: I'm with Florida:

The world hates us because we've lost our mojo, AKA The Macho Response, because nobody fucks with us - or dislikes us - when we "know who we are". But, now, we've practically allowed it by so harshly (and wrongly) dissing the last president to defend us - and then following that up by putting our own haters in power (those folks, like Obama, who had to "find themselves") - which you did, Ann. Sorry, but you lose on this one - and have been/still are part of the problem.

And, as I've said before, you should always apologize when you're wrong, but don't expect America will apologize to anyone, for anything, when we're right.; 2/21/10, 11:58 AM
Anonymous said...: What's there to be arrogant about? The white Aryans of Northern Europe are getting more medals per-capita than we are; especially Norway.

Besides, a country cannot be arrogant. Its people can, or its political leaders can, but a country as a whole has no feeling or emotion.; 2/21/10, 12:07 PM
Fred4Pres said...: Winning the Olympics is far less about nationalism now (as opposed to the cold war era) than it is about winning on the individual level. And no one needs to apologize for that. While it is nice to see your countrymembers do well, am I a better (or worse) person because American has more medals than China (or any other country)? Not really. The acheivements go to those who earn them. The athletes are their own community which transcends nationalism. We watch because they are competing at a high level.

And if we are talking arrogant, is Plushenko a spokesman for all of Russia or just for himself? Here is a guy who is 27, who is upset he missed gold, and who is probably at the end of his competitive skating career. I am mildly amused by the drama, but in the end it is rather human isn't?; 2/21/10, 12:10 PM
William said...: I was briefly watching the women's curling event. Some of the women were good looking, but they were wearing bowling shirts. If they wore red, white, and blue spandex with gold sequins on the tits I'm sure that this sport would gain the recognition it deserves. And in a virtuous cycle more young women would be encouraged to take up this demanding sport. America, for all its hubris, has never dominated in this sport.; 2/21/10, 12:22 PM
Lem Vibe Bandit said...: “This is an impressive crowd: the Have's and Have-more's. Some people call you the elites. I call you my base.” G W Bush.

Commensurate with our power, as vices go, its a good thing we are "arrogant".. and not something else ;)

Parable of the talents or minas as told by an (arrogantly? - Who do they say I'am?) smart Jesus.

Envy made the list of the deadly sins.. arrogance must be innovatively new.; 2/21/10, 12:25 PM
Tim said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 2/21/10, 12:25 PM
Tim said...: The Olympics lost their mojo when the Soviets became Russians once more. So who really cares anymore?

PS: I'd trade away 100 gold medals for one carrier group. Just saying.; 2/21/10, 12:27 PM
Unknown said...: Gee, I can remember when the Russkies cheated all over the place, won tons of medals, and nobody hated them (except us, of course, and they didn't care about that).

Florida said...

"The era where Europe loved us is pretty much mythical."

Hogwash.

On August 25, 1945, Europe loved the fuck out of us. Was World War II a myth? The French were throwing flowers at our feet.

Even then, it was a little ambivalent. The Provenceaux were a lot happier to see the Americans than the Normans and their cousins in the Northern part of the country, since liberation blew to Hell the comfy commercial relations a lot of people had with those dastardly Nazis.

There's a story that Chicken Charlie DeGaulle (whom Mark Clark dubbed YBSOB) absolutely seethed at the thought of "Les Anglo-Saxons" liberating Paree and dedicated his postwar foreign policy to frustrating the Americans at every turn.

The Crack Emcee said...

I'm with Florida:

The world hates us because we've lost our mojo

The Hell we have. While we may have a pack of small c communists in the White House and running Congress, the people seem to have a different take on things than our would-be rulers. America's mojo is no more lost than when Jimmy Carter was whining about malaise.; 2/21/10, 12:31 PM
Ger said...: Isn't this all a bit premature? There are still a few dozen medals to be awarded. Will the USA finish with the most medals?

Most importantly - who gives a fig?

I guess I'm just not a good American jingo cuz as I am watching it live right now I'm rooting for the Canadian women to beat the USA in curling and to win the gold with a perfect record (same for the Canadian men!).; 2/21/10, 12:40 PM
tamsf said...: While everyone is commenting on how much the elites at the BBC hate us (I don't think the hatred by the rest of the world is all that deep), I want to comment on how cool the presentation of that data is. Isn't it great?; 2/21/10, 12:43 PM
Anonymous said...: "I'm rooting for the Canadian women ..."

Freaking hosers.

This place is lousy with 'em.; 2/21/10, 12:44 PM
Jeff Vaca said...: I haven't read the other comments so I apologize if I'm being repetitive, but as a fan of the Olympics (and an avid sports fan generally), I don't see this as being arrogant at all - I see it as a fascinating slice of history that prompts discussion and consideration about how and why the fortunes of Olympic nations have changed over the years.; 2/21/10, 12:44 PM
Anonymous said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 2/21/10, 12:46 PM
Anonymous said...: "I want to comment on how cool the presentation of that data is. Isn't it great?"

United States 6 7 10 23
Germany 4 6 4 14

65 years later we're still kicking their asses.

I guess if I was an "Alpine" country (so-called) and I got my ass handed to me this bad in a winter sporting event, I might be a hater too.; 2/21/10, 12:49 PM
I Callahan said...: Does anyone here really think the Professor thinks US Olympic athletes should tone it down? Or is she being sarcastic?

Most of you are regular posters - it's quite a stretch to believe that Ann believes this.

If I'm wrong, I'll take it back.; 2/21/10, 12:52 PM
Bender said...: I have far less national pride today in the Olympics (like, zero), than I did before all the Americans were professional athletes.

Back when we had self-funded amateurs going up against the heavily state-financed professionals from the Communist countries, then that was a time for national pride.

Now, we are no better than the Soviets or East Germans. Who the hell wants to cheer for that?; 2/21/10, 1:15 PM
Tibore said...: I'm sorry, but I'm at a loss as far as understanding the original post. Accomplishment is not arrogance. Arrogance would be taking that accomplishment and being relentlessly overbearing and superior about it, browbeating the competition with it, and/or using the accomplishment to impose one's image and opinions regarding the Games on everyone else. I see the page illustrates the accomplishment, but I don't see how arrogance can be concluded from that.; 2/21/10, 1:17 PM
Jim said...: Tony/Cindy -

I think it's actually a bit of American triumphalism on the part of our hostess. I imagine she had quite the smirky grin on her face as she posted this.

I also think that, for the most part, the comments here aren't actually directed at Ann but at those who would look at such a ludicrous post like this and simply nod approvingly rather than laugh at the suggestion.; 2/21/10, 1:17 PM
Jim said...: flexo -

"Now, we are no better than the Soviets or East Germans. Who the hell wants to cheer for that?"

I can tell you the difference: those Soviet and East German athletes were expressions of their system, and our athletes still are.

Our athletes may have corporate sponsors like much of the world, but the fact is that those are private enterprises who freely choose which athletes or sports to endorse. Our athletes are not hand-picked by our government, they choose their own paths to success.

How much better of an expression of what America means and how much different from many of our competitors - even today - who are government-funded and teams are government-run is there than this?

That Americans continue to excel is proof that "the system worked."; 2/21/10, 1:22 PM
David said...: The world is so racist.; 2/21/10, 1:30 PM
Bender said...: There's no American government interference/involvement in the Olympics??

Tell that to Jimmy Carter.
Tell that to Barack Obama.

And BFD that it is some "private" corporation that backs them -- they are still professionals. That taints and distorts the entire system. No longer is it about the purity of sport and competition, no longer is it purely about personal achievement, as it was in the amateur days -- now it is about $$$, as well as the ability of these high-financed professionals to beat up on the poorly financed.

Yeah, it is a real source of pride for America to kick the crap out of some poor country -- "in your face Paraguay!"; 2/21/10, 1:34 PM
Greg Hlatky said...: Anti-Americanism is the herpes of the Tranzi intellectual class. It never goes away, it's only more or less virulent.

For them if the US does badly, it's an indication of our national incompetence. If the US does well, it's an indication of our national arrogance and hegemony.; 2/21/10, 1:41 PM
Bender said...: Professionalism in the Olympics is the monetary equivilent of doping.; 2/21/10, 1:45 PM
jimbino said...: I'd like to see a table of the medals won divided by population. By that fair measure, Norway is the clear winner, and Estonia moves way up.; 2/21/10, 1:54 PM
Anonymous said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 2/21/10, 2:03 PM
Chennaul said...: Can we talk about Plushenko-or however the hell you spell it?

That guy has he ever seen his routine on video?

Gawd-it's like his choreographer is an old Russian stripper with a broken hip.

When he tried to suck his middle finger and skate at the same time-well....

I almost lost my lunch.; 2/21/10, 2:04 PM
Anonymous said...: "Does anyone here really think the Professor thinks US Olympic athletes should tone it down? Or is she being sarcastic?"

Seeing as how she tagged it "redirection" and is generally intelligent, I kinda doubt she's serious.

She does work for an American university, however. And it's no joke: To be successful at an American college or university today you must vocally forcefully say that you hate America and prove that in your writings and scholarship.

Or else you won't succeed.

It's a shame, really, that a woman like Ann can't see her way clear to quitting a job which demands that of her.; 2/21/10, 2:07 PM
SteveR said...: Not to worry in a few years China will get the vast majority of medals in both Olympics. Dr.engele would be proud.; 2/21/10, 2:44 PM
Ann Althouse said...: "I'd like to see a table of the medals won divided by population"

China has 5 medals at this point. We have 23. Russia has 6.

But you're right about Norway. Still, it's galling, isn't it, for us to kick the world's ass in the sports that were invented in Scandinavia?; 2/21/10, 3:21 PM
paul a'barge said...: I don't care if they do hate us.

We hate them.

And with good reason.; 2/21/10, 3:25 PM
traditionalguy said...: The USA has claimed the leadership of the Free World for 62 years. The guy at the top has natural enemies that he either 1)defeats as they challenge the King of the Hill, or he can 2)negotiate and bring the natural enemies over here to join up with us. The sad thing is that option #2 will destroy all defenses from within. We can always try changing our name to "The Peaceful and Weak States of America Who Hope They Are Not Offending Anyone".; 2/21/10, 4:17 PM
Anton said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 2/21/10, 5:42 PM
Anton said...: I'd love nothing more than to see US athletes throw contests so that lesser-gifted Olympians from other countries could get the Gold.

That would be a history-making show of American-style humility!; 2/21/10, 5:44 PM
Synova said...: "But you're right about Norway. Still, it's galling, isn't it, for us to kick the world's ass in the sports that were invented in Scandinavia?"

Some of us are Scandinavian. ;-)

Canada looks like they're doing well, population-ratio wise.

And I think that smaller countries or developing ones generally don't measure themselves against the behemoths anyhow, as far as being excited for their teams goes.

As for the post... I wasn't even thinking Olympics (somehow I haven't gotten around to watching any) but of that song by Men At Work. Someone had linked to and I followed through last week to a discussion of "Land Down Under".

And I was listening to it again, and remembering how great that song was when it came out. And I was looking closer at the lyrics and thought that a huge part of what was so great about it was the unapologetic message that there simply was no better country on Earth than Australia, and no better place to be from than Australia. And yes, people do seem to like Aussies when they travel but the bigger point is this... If you don't like yourself, why should anyone else bother to like you?

And that's what I thought of. Not the Olympics.

No one puts much effort into *liking* someone who doesn't have a little self-respect and self-love going on. Why should they? Negativity is not attractive. Not ever. Putting yourself down either pulls everyone else into that spiral of negativity or else makes them feel like they have to try to pull you out of it, which is just rude to ask anyone to do. It ends up being manipulative and self-indulgent.

I have no idea where this *pathology* springs from; this entirely dysfunctional idea that people don't like it if you are proud or patriotic. A person didn't listen to Land Down Under and get all annoyed at the arrogance in it. People in countries all over the world were buoyed by the "aren't we awesome!" message of that song. It didn't matter that it wasn't their country.; 2/21/10, 6:20 PM
Cedarford said...: Olympics is not just about individual athletes, but NATIONAL PROGRAMS. The US, awash in artificial wealth, had the disposable dollars to create a very good one. The Chinese, Germans, S Koreans using real wealth created by export surpluses - have created hugely successful programs.
Olympics do reflect on nations, in those sports that take considerable training, coaching.
(Not, it appears, though, in sports that are simple and where unique genes are the determinant factor - Jamaican sprinters, Ethiopian long distance runners. Or certain other sports where it seems a general racial edge exists, where training and resources determine which nation stocked with those "body types" prevails...)

Good post:

Dark Eden said...
Hate is perhaps a strong word but the world has pretty been in strong antipathy towards us since they've been aware of us. Go back and read what Europeans thought of us in 1800 and its virtually identical to the tropes of today other than they thought they could safely ignore us as backwater hicks.

The era where Europe loved us is pretty much mythical. And really getting the world to love you is a fool's game. Better to be feared than loved.

If we are honest, getting past PC, Americans also have our honest expression of other nation's shortcomings, and of American Exceptionalism. The Left, though, with it's underlying anti-American sentiment or belief that we should be generally ashamed of our nation and it's "awful past" that we need to apologize and improve from - does see other nations as morally superior. Oddly, the Left alternately worships "noble brown victim peoples, noble native Americans, or sparsely populated Northern European nations stocked with Aryans. Go figure!; 2/21/10, 6:29 PM
Anonymous said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 2/21/10, 6:33 PM
Anonymous said...: @traditionalguy- As much as I'd like to forge ahead with you as your brother in Romanness, and will echo your distrust of allowing Barbarian hordes to settle inside the frontiers, I think you might be pushing the comparison a little too far here. The EU is just as much a leader in the "free world" now as we are; we just advertise it more.

Germany, especially, should be considered to have sat in the corner facing the wall for sufficiently long now. She can have her eagle back.

You might think that the EU has more in-fighting than we do. But now, with Obama failing and Palin interviewing candidates for the shadow-Master-of-the-Horse position, we might soon have enough in-fighting ourselves to make our Euro friends blush.; 2/21/10, 6:35 PM
Anonymous said...: @Synova-

Here are some more country-critical Aussies. Note their clothing.

From an artistic standpoint, this has more bite to it than Men at Work.; 2/21/10, 6:44 PM
Automatic_Wing said...: What was Peter Garrett apologizing for?

Being a big, carbon-burning douchebag?; 2/21/10, 6:57 PM
Synova said...: That's not the point.

Something could be artistically brilliant and never get the exposure, fame, etc., because it just wasn't very fun after all.

Land Down Under is a silly song. It was written as a silly song and was never presented as anything other than a silly song. It made the top of the charts all over the world, and I think it did so on more than a catchy tune.; 2/21/10, 6:57 PM
Synova said...: Ugh...

Should have listened to it before I just assumed it wasn't a complete pile of doggie doo doo... artistically.

I like listening to foreign music in languages I don't understand, just for the sound.

That wouldn't even save it. It's got no soul and no life and nothing musically to recommend it.

Sorry.

(Pun intended); 2/21/10, 7:01 PM
Peter V. Bella said...: The only people who claim the world hates us are the progressives. Of course France hates us, but they hate everyone who isn't French, so they don't count anyway.

There is no humility in sports. There is no reining in. There are only winners and losers.

But, since we have this progressive president, I full expect another International apology tour. One gold medal for Team USA was to much.; 2/21/10, 7:06 PM
kjbe said...: As I can't see the map b/c I'm on my iTouch & can't see Flash, from the comments (and being a cartographer, by trade) it sound likes epic piss poor mapping. If you want to look strictly at numbers, use a chart, please.

I'm definitly a homer and love we're doing well, total medal-wise. Even more so with the Wisconsin connections. Also, quite happy with USA leading Canada, with 2 minutes left in the first period, 2-1!; 2/21/10, 7:17 PM
Cedarford said...: In the end, I am impressed by Torah Bright kicking ass on the half pipe and mildly amused by how Hannah Teter looks stoned all the time. Do you notice many these athletes seem to live in Utah and Colorado, regardless of what country they are from?

Teter, Shaun White and others have to abstain from pot for at least 2 months prior to the Olympics because they test there...So Hanna was not stoned. And you have to credit their sacrificing the bomg for a few months..as just another sacrifice they had to make for the sport and their Olympic chance.

Torah Bright? There are a lot of great-looking athletes at the Olympics with interesting backgrounds and "overcoming injury and adversity" stories. Charisma and willpower galore. A glowing personality.
It is rare when it all gets combined in a dominant athlete in their sport, and when that athlete is "better than just good-looking, with an outstanding charm" - Then you get into Alberto Tomba, Katarina Witt territory.
Torah Bright may be another in that rarified group.
Amusingly, she is the straight arrow devout Mormon antipode in a stoner sport - that her stoner "mates" and fans have embraced. She'll be marrying an American in Salt Lake City, so we get to keep the Sheila on at least a part-time basis. A good deal for the USA..
And she has an older sister who was an Olympian, and a younger one almost as good-looking who will be a likely Aussie contender in snowboard chase or aerials in the Russian Winter Olympics.

Neat story.

Hope Bright can get some endorsements out of this, as long as she doesn't hog in on the "real Amurrican" female athlete's limited opportunities to get a nice check from somebody, for their Olympics performance endorsing pizza or vitamin water or what not..

Snowboarding is an ascendent sport. Bright is a self-made star in it. Not a Shaun White type...he is the Ur-snowboarder. But a true star in the firmament of snowboarding. It's a dangerous sport when it is at the competive edge that Bright, Teter, Kelly Clark (another adorable one), Shaun White, Ligo exist in - so hope for their health and avoidance of permanent injury, even death.
If posters have the time some day, and the interest - they should check out a halfpipe. It is impressive on TV, but "absolutely insane" watching it from 40 feet away and seeing what even 3rd tier competitive snowboarders like my nephew (an instructor at Vail) can do.; 2/21/10, 7:29 PM
Big Mike said...: I beg everybody's pardon, but why on earth do we care what anybody thinks of us?

They want our navy to assure the safety of the high seas, they want our army and our nuclear arsenal to assure their safety, and, BTW, they want us to grind our faces in the dirt in shame and humiliation.

I can't be bothered with them.; 2/21/10, 8:34 PM
David said...: What was Althouse's point?

Damned if I know. You either, Florida.

Plus what do we have to be arrogant about on this subject? That pissant Norway keeps throbbing across the graphs, even they have about 2% of our population. Plus that European cluster is way bigger than ours in North America.

What's wrong with America, people? How can we not dominate these effete pinko fools from Europe.

Sarah Palin's from Alaska. It's cold there. Put her in charge.; 2/21/10, 8:34 PM
David said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 2/21/10, 8:37 PM
David said...: Here's another way to dampen the arrogance.

USA has lead the medal count in the Winter Olympics exactly once--1932 for the Lake Placid games, in our back yard with all the other countries either diminished or kept home by the Depression.

We now lead in medal count in 2010, but the fat lady has not sung yet.

Not exactly domination, folks.; 2/21/10, 8:42 PM
Bruce Hayden said...: Do you notice many these athletes seem to live in Utah and Colorado, regardless of what country they are from?

Not really that new. I can remember almost 40 years ago buying skis off of guys who were on the Norwegian ski team. It turns out that the rest of the time they were on skiing scholarship at either U of Denver or Colorado (which is one reason those two schools have more NCAA skiing championships than any other schools). They would sell race stock skis, which were noticeably superior to what you could buy in the stores, at very good prices.

I should note that we also have some of them here around Tahoe.

But why would a top skier move to somewhere like CO, UT, or CA/NV (Tahoe) to train, instead of staying back at, for example, Buck Hill in MN? (I believe there is at least one Olympian this year who started there). Maybe 2,000+ vertical drops (helps in speed events). Maybe 8-9 month ski seasons. Maybe better coaching. More competition. Overall just a better environment for training.; 2/21/10, 9:22 PM
traditionalguy said...: JRH ... Norway was the home of Knute Rockne. We need to import some Norwegians like Knute ( no, not the Gingrich who is German). The trouble is that divided loyalties in top leadership always make for bad outcomes. Today the closest that we can get to the Norwegians that are also Natural Born and therefore suffer no divided loyalties come from where? Alaska, of course.; 2/21/10, 9:25 PM
Anonymous said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 2/21/10, 9:50 PM
Revenant said...: Should we rein it in — a little humility perhaps — so the world doesn't hate us?

No.; 2/22/10, 12:29 AM
LoafingOaf said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 2/22/10, 3:11 AM
LoafingOaf said...: I don't think America was arrogant going into the games. It's not like we were bragging about how we'd "own the podium". You'd have to be a real jerk country to talk smack like that. And you'd look real dumb if you talked like that and didn't back it up.

You'd look even dumber if you pulled stunts like not allowing other teams enough practice on the bobsled/luge track and then your own medal-hopeful bobsled team crashed in the actual event.

Oh Canada?

Wanna see how arrogant Canada is about these Games?

The five-year program funnelled $117 million towards Canadian athletes with the lofty goal of having Canada rack up more medals than any other country competing in the 2010 Olympics.

“The U.S. is making it very tough to achieve the goal we set out for ourselves, but that’s still our goal to be first in the medal count,” Canadian Olympic Committee president Michael Chambers said.

“This may have been the U.S. week. The week coming up will be Canada’s week. You’ll see that.”

So he said a couple hours before the USA beat Canada in hockey. LOL; 2/22/10, 3:13 AM
LoafingOaf said...: Althouse: China has 5 medals at this point. We have 23. Russia has 6.

Yeah, although China won 15 more gold medals than the USA in the last summer games. Are we supposed to combine the two? (Or, since China had home country edge in 2006, maybe I'll wait to combine 2010's count with 2012's.)

I hope America wins the most GOLDS in these games, and not just overall medals. It's not surprising that America can rack up a lot of silvers and bronzes, but can we produce the most CHAMPIONS?

But you're right about Norway. Still, it's galling, isn't it, for us to kick the world's ass in the sports that were invented in Scandinavia?

Sweden's men's hockey team is undefeated so far, and has a great chance to win the gold. Wouldn't it be galling if tiny lil Sweden kicked the humongous continent of North America's ass in the sport North America invented?; 2/22/10, 3:51 AM
LoafingOaf said...: Oops, I meant in 2008, the Beijing Games, above.

BTW, someone who went to my high school (though not when I was there) is on our 4-man bobsled team. Jamie Moriarty. He was gonna try to play in the NFL but an injury stopped that dream. So he switched to bobsledding and it only took him 4 years to get to the Olympics.

Which I mention because bobsledding is a good sport for football players (Herschel Walker noticed this, too). We should recruit more people like that and expand our success to another sport.; 2/22/10, 3:57 AM
LoafingOaf said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 2/22/10, 4:07 AM
LoafingOaf said...: Oh, man, I so fell in love with Hannah Teter 4 years ago. Check her out on Letterman from back then.

BTW, how come the Europeans always kick our asses in the Biathlon? Even France! Yet the sport involved carrying around rifles and shooting.

Is it because most of our gun nuts think the Olympics are a socialist plot?; 2/22/10, 4:09 AM
Floridan said...: This may have been commented on already, but before we get too cocky about "kicking ass," we might want to reflect on how many Winter Olympics the USA has "won" so far.

If the USA takes home the most medals this year, it will make two (out of 21).; 2/22/10, 3:05 PM