Why Do People Hate America?

I think 90% of people worldwide don't give a damn about the US. Only Americans think they are the center of the universe.

Most people have bigger problems than spending their time either hating or loving America.

They hate Americans NOW because WE let our President and his administration INVADE a nation without provocation.

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I'm a dual (American/Canadian) citizen living in Toronto, one of the most multi-cultural cities in the world, and this question has interested me for a long time. People hatred of America right now is pretty obvious. Most of the rest of the world sees America as potentially the next great evil empire. The longer this administration has been allowed its steady march away from all of the principals that America once stood for, without punishment or even any great movement to stop that forward march, the more angry and disillusioned the rest of the world has become.

Of course, hatred and anger towards America didn't start with the Bush Administration. As the world superpower, the United States is a logical focus for jealousy, but that can only truly be a small factor in the opinions of many. Canadians dislike the lopsided power-balance between our two countries, the antipathy and ignorance of our country by most Americans, and most importantly, have watched closely as America has emerged as a country which seems to follow very different principals than our own (nat all fair criticisms, but we are talking about emotional justifications here).

South America has had a long history of America, it's government and corporate interests, having a sincerely negative influence on their countries. From the School of the Americas, and the installing of brutal dictatorships, to the economic reape of their countries by the world bank, it's hard to see what steps could be taken to truly change the opinions of many in South America. This can be said for many countries that have enjoyed Americas unique brand of imperialism. (South Korea, Iran, Iraq, etc.). The United states has installed and supported countless brutal regimes in their quest to maintain dominance (not exactly something new for any imperial power). Much of the industrialized world enjoys a much more objective media system, so many of us have watched the Administrations actions over the last six years with a fear that most Americans (due to a lack of information) can't necessarily appreciate. Many of the other super-powers have deeply resented the American cultural colonialism (although, given the lack of interest in much of the world for many American cultural products- relatively- that criticism isn't as relevant now).
Personally, I am disturbed and angry at what is happening south of the border, but I do try to remind people of the uphill battle regular Americans have to get unbiased information, and make their voice heard. It saddens me to see the plight of the poor and middle-class (among them many friends and relatives), and saddens me further to see so many of the things that America truly has stood for in the world be eroded.

I'm a pretty informed person, as far as it goes, and I hate what's occuring in the United States right now (especially given the cowardice of the Democratic Congress). When I hear anti-Americanism, which I do often, from either Canadians or Americans, I try to remind people that the vast majority of Americans disagree with what's going on, and that it affects them far more deeply than it does us. I remind people of the sacrifices America made after World War II to keep the industrialized world from falling into abject poverty, and I tell them of all of the the gifts, the great art and technology, that America has given the world.

sorry for the poor spelling and grammar...

extremely-well-put, gloriousb.... ............ i've lived all my life in the USA and my personal view has been that most americans just want to live their lives in peace and health and happiness and fun, just like most of the rest of the human race.......... but the concentrations of power in government hands and the way that power is maintained lets a lot of stupid people who believe that their way is the "right way" go out and make lots of other people's lives miserable, both inside and outside the US.......... and it saddens me greatly.......... yes, our governments have interfered with other countries and many americans feel powerless to prevent that from happening........ we've become much more polarized over the past three or more decades as the media have taken sides and the sides that are taken sensationalize and demonize "the other sides."...................... i'm afraid that battle is not going to be over in my lifetime or yours or your kids'.............. very sad........... we don't want to be hated, either, but it always seems that some group somewhere is demonizing US for misdeeds, like being too rich or too fat or too wealthy...... while those same groups do things to impoverish their own peoples......... so there's hypocrisy all over.......... got any ideas on how to stop that????................ just keep trying to tell the truth and hope that people eventually will listen, hear and see........ i believe the average american has NO interest in the so-called "imperialism" we're accused of, and those who [thanks to OUR freedom of speech] who proclaim the opposite are far from the ideals that america can represent and achieve...........

With the US I think is a love, hate relationship. People either love the US or hate it. Right now I think there are more haters then lovers now because of our administration.

We are the new Roman Empire.

Well thought out, gloriousbastard.

I generally dislike Canadians but you're tolerable...

Yes, American's are not their government. We American-citizens take the brunt of the criticism from the peoples of the world for the actions of our government, and possibly rightfully so in that 51% of any given populous of the USA voted for the politicians presently seated, though few had any inkling of what would transpire in the future.
Please be aware though that no matter how many people voted for or against G.W. Bush, he was elected by the Electoral College and not by the popular vote of the people. Many of us knew he had aspirations to be king, but there was little we could do about it.

This American only wants to be left alone. And my wife and I will retire to a foreign land [unnamed] where another language is spoken. We will expatriate and give up our US citizenships and become citizens of [that country] and speak the language they speak, and generally assimilate.

I don't think people actually hate America.

....I'm pretty sure they just hate Americans.

probably because most of us are ignorant, selfish, arrogant, stubborn, etc. etc.

People outside of the USA don't hate America per se, they hate the USA's foreign policies as carried out since the beginning of the 20th century, and especially since WWII. American citizens in Europe are not attacked or hated, either - they are asked what they think of Bush, and if the answer is that they dislike Bush and all he stands for, they are embraced - literally!

smorrisey, you left out the most important reason why people hate American's: The fact that we like to lump everyone in together!

So tell us ignorant, selfish folks about the times that you changed your mind and/or POV on an issue. Explain to us how unselfish you are when you go grocery shopping and don't buy the most expensive items on the shelf. Do you want the grocer's children to starve? Don't you know that the cheaper national brands are owned by giant corporations and the smaller albeit more expensive brands are owned by working class folks just trying to eke out a living while under the thumb of corporate America?

Tell us ignorant and arrogant common people all about it!

dont-taze... 1) it isn't 51% of us "fellow murkins" as LBJ used to call us, who elect folks..... it's the 51% of the 30% WHO VOTE. ........... 2) and as for my selfishness at the grocery? should i be unselfish to my family and spend more money on groceries for them and less on rent, health care, etc., so the the grocer's children don't starve???? don't go there!!!!! quicksand, Will Robinson!!!!! ....... and there are LOTS of people buying the smaller brands because in this country we've got the blessings of some systems that provide us lots of choices....... ask the folks who don't have those choices at all what they would prefer........ and maybe you'll get some clues as to why the USA isn't exactly going begging for immigrants, eh?........ if something is valued, it is in demand.......... if it's priced too low, there are shortages.........

Well, I asked myself (and our tour guides) that question in the 1980's in the senile Reagan and ex-CIA boss Bush One eras.

It was startling at the time, because I was so naive and had no idea how much our government, government policies, presidents, etc. were absolutely disrespected and also outrighed hated (and NOT because of our non-existent "democracy" as Bush-monger would have us believe)! Continued . . .

Now I will just say this to the question: Why do People Hate America?

As a native American (would never have sought to become a citizen here unless dual for business if foreign-born), I hate the following things about American governtment (not its people):

----No Absolute Freedom of Speech (FOS) in PUBLIC (not in privately-owned buildings)
(remember the Bush pitbulls removing protesters just wearing anti-Bush shirts, etc.?,
or remember Kent State?, or how about the "fatal" language and breast shots shown in recent TV broadcasts from the Super Bowl to the MTV Awards, et. al.--BIG fines followed and are being increased all for Puritains;

----A fascist president who does not give a damn about American torture of other peoples
(or sending them to foreign nations to do the dirty work for them) or illegal domestic wire-tapping, or increasing the costs of military actions by sub-sub-sub contracting war out to killer corporations (I know how some military personnel candidly feel about that!);

----- A corporation-bought scientifically-illiterate president who continues to direct/allow his admin to falsify climate-heating data and public reports;

-----The most damnable incompassionate president in a long while who wants more PUBLIC land allocated/dedicated to special-interest hunters who could give a sh** about the intrinsic value of wildlife other than how it fits on their plates or walls;

-----A pro-HMO corporation, anti-people president whose admin is turning Medicare into an HMO behind the scenes (knowing the media won't do the research), and who signed the recent Medicare "Reform" (translate BENEFIT- CUTTING) Act that requires the almost certain overt dismantling of Traditional Medicare in the year 2010 FOR EVERYONE who could EVER qualify for it;

-----A hypocritical president that gives lip service to supporting Christian rights but does little to nothing for professing Christians as Ralph Reed et. al. have noted;

-----A Hitler-styled president who apparently hates homosexuals and transgendered persons so much that he (and his admin appointed henchmen) will do anything and everything possible to abridge and DENY their civil rights in this now incredibly intolerant nation with Salem witch-hunting Puritain approaches to a multi-diverse national population--OR do you just think he respects them and just enjoys using them as a wedge issue? CONTINUED . . .

------A fearmongering president who couldn't make a sound decision or tell the complete and blatant truths about his own grossly ignorant decisions if his "Christian-professing" life depended on it. He is a master of lies, lies, and more lies . . . Don't believe it? Want to see the videotapes?

------A Christian-professing president who drops the WWJD question and asks instead WWJMAK? (Who Would Jesus Maim and Kill?) and HCIAPDIFH? (How Can I As President Do It For Him?) and DJESAWHDLEIAUSPTHTGTAFGBW? (Did Jesus Ever See A War He Didn't Like Enough If A US President Told Him To Go There And Fight George Bush's War?)

------A non-Christian president who might rely on "Vengeance is mine, saith the Lord" in the Old Testament and ignore Jesus's New Testament teachings completely!

I have writer's cramp and cannot go on except to say my favorite answer as an American who hates American non-Democratic government
(with all those worthless non-"representatives" when we could vote on anything we wanted electronically if they let us) is:

Because our corporation-bought president and Congress (most of it) will still NOT give us a single-payer, single risk-pool Universal Insurance Program for ALL Americans! If they cut the private-profit of the corps out and hard-lined negotiated for our medicines and services (something mostly Republicans and the pres wouldn't allow Medicare to do), we could have a SUPERB health-care system with no need for higher-tiered "choices" of underinsurance.

For all those who would oppose this position, please tell me why we cannot have such a system if you are willing to pay more taxes (and MUCH LESS in private-profits), while diverting unnecessary war expenses (min. proj. $2.4 TRILLION destroying and rebuilding Iraq) to our own American people (IFDPFS) It's For Domestic Purposes First Stupid))?

If you're a third-world US bully and all around non-Christian warmonger, don't respond to me.
I won't even bother to read your chest-beating, self-serving, aggrandizing and screw the underinsured/uninsured nonsense.

However, If you are a reasonable debater, write me at Lapinex@comcast.net and tell me how you feel. I like to hear another side (but don't sell crazy here; have heard enough of Republican insanity for most of the last 20 years)!

mike

Yes Plusaf, I understand your feelings about those of us who do not vote, but there are many good reasons many 'merkin's' don't vote. You are aware I assume that the USA has more people incarcerated than any other nation, aren't you? None of those people can vote, even though they are counted in the census, and except for a tiny minority of states, most felons cannot get back their right to vote after paying their debt to society. Other Americans, while we don't physically go to our polling place, do in fact vote by the very act of staying home. I voted just like that in the last election. There were no candidates who represented me running for any offices, so I voted by not voting. I refuse to vote for or against any political party because 9 out of 10 of those running on any given platform lie just to get elected. I believe that the 'lessor of two evils' is still evil and I won't waste my time/gas to vote that way.

And you misunderstand my grocery analogy. Of course you shop wisely and spend frugally. Anyone who must earn his own living does. But there are some who would call this behavior 'selfish' and you make my point brilliantly! We who work, and that would be all of us who are not being paid not to work (welfare recipients and government) make our purchases of whatever we decide we need or want by weighing those desires against the other things we could buy. We each use our own set of oftentimes very personal criteria to make these decisions. I attacked smorrisey because he's mostly pro-government healthcare, as I assume most folks here are. I don't choose to even have ANY health insurance. I also (along with my wife) didn't choose to make any babies. We decide how we'll budget our earning based upon our own set of wants and needs, and we don't feel we need health insurance. Now comes folks like algore who want to decide for us whether or not we'll participate in some new government scheme to redistribute our earnings to others who may want healthcare but don't believe they should have to pay for it. These folks would rather if I paid for a portion of their expenses. No doubt! But you see, we don't want to. We would rather buy Heinz Catchup rather than the store brand, and we're really sorry about the kids of Mr. Heinz, but oh well...And we'd like to buy new cars every year, but we just can't afford to. Likewise, a medical plan that lets us see a doctor and get our meds for only a buck sounds really sweet, but we know (as apparently most Americans don't) that somehow, some way, that 'free lunch' has to come out of somebodies pocket, that nobody works for free, that someday the cows will come home to roost and when they do we'd have better fortified up their perch's with a good and full savings account, or there'll be milk and cow guts all over our floors. But with rising costs (caused almost exclusively by government caused inflation which has, in reality simply made our currency less valuable) and rising taxes, and this new and improved (they tell us) government program to fund our healthcare, the cows will surely be on their own because we'll have to move into an old folks home in order to afford this free healthcare program you socialists, uh, I mean liberals demand we all want.

http://HaleBobb.com

Well, it might just be a moot point anyway if the gov't gets their way...The US Congress has already signed on to it, and we've only got the Senate and the President left to stop it.

I doubt either will.

Anyone who parrots the lie that American's are self-governed ("Of, For, and By the People") must have his head deep inside his rectum.

http://www.newstarget.com/022308.html

USA, RIP

Hi dont_taze_me_bro!

When you say it might just be a moot point anyway . . . are you referring to Medicare or Universal Health Care? I babbled so much before you that I cannot easily figure it out! :)

Also, agree completely with your remark:
"Anyone who parrots the lie . . . .

Rock on!