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lrandall26

Listed below are comments made by lrandall26 between Wednesday, 10th September 2008 and Wednesday, 10th September 2008.

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Going to the chapel? 6:34pm on 10 Sep 2008 I think this is such a divisive issue because it instantly hits people in the stomach--for the most part, it's a completely emotional rather than a rational first reaction.

In my experience, people on both sides try to come up with rational arguments to support their positions, but it's always to justify what was initially a gut feeling one way or the other.

That's why it's so hard to have clear, calm discourse about gay marriage--it's almost impossible to find a common ground and talk rationally with someone who your heart/stomach is telling you is ABSOLUTELY WRONG. It's even harder to respect that they have the right to hold a different view from yours.

Because they're WRONG.
Magic bus 6:23pm on 10 Sep 2008 Welcome to the USA!

I'm very curious to know your impressions of the different attitudes/cultures you'll find . . . if they tend to follow what you came here expecting, if they're more or less varied than you'd thought, and so on.

I've lived/traveled a good deal throughout the country, mostly on the two coasts with some jaunts to the South and Midwest, and here are some of my thoughts:

1. Most people tend to want others to live the way they do (in terms of values and ethics) . . . because they honestly believe that their way is the fairest and most enlightened view. It takes conscious effort to break away from that way of thinking.

2. As a society, probably the most "American" trait we have is our almost religious worship of individual liberty, however we define it. Meaning, whereas many other countries prioritize the good of the family/community/country over the good of the individual, most Americans do not. You can call this a sense of entitlement, an over-blown ego, or the result of capitalism; whatever it is, I think it explains a good deal of America's history of progress, growth and innovation, as well as our current self-centered, self-serving, and self-congratulating culture.

All in all, I hope you find your trip to be education and exciting. I look forward to following your blog . . .

"Americans: pretty cool, once you get to know us."

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lrandall26