Friday, September 16, 2011

What Is Our Role in the World?


Findings from the 2010 Post-Election American Values Survey

A majority (58%) of Americans believe God has granted America a special role in human history. Members of the Tea Party (76%) and Republicans (75%) are much more likely to believe that God has a granted the U.S. a special role in human history than independents (54%) or Democrats (49%).

Americans who believe God has granted America a special role in history are significantly more likely to say military strength rather than diplomacy is the best way to ensure peace, and to say torture can be justified.

What do you think?

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

What do I think?

I think this is a very interesting survey.

1. Not only does America have a "special role" in human history but I believe every nation and leader on this planet (past & present, good or bad) has been raised up by God for a special purpose.

2. Diplomacy backed up with a strong military.

3. Justified Torture? Not sure?

RHYTHM AND RHYME said...

It's a very interesting theory but as I am not American I better keep my mouth shut,

Have a great week-end.
Yvonne.

John Patrick Donovan said...

one mans torture is another mans inhanced interigation, Please define torture as you see it.

Meghan New said...

I like what T. O. Geezer said. We definitely have a special role but this isn't the Promised Land, and this is a Republican saying it.

I agree with both diplomacy with military strength because you can't negotiate with crazy people.

I don't like the idea of torturing people though I've heard that waterboarding works. I do think people should care more about unborn children being tortured and killed every day.

Petra said...

I agree with Ron!

kc bob said...

Hope I do not sound unpatriotic (I thank God for our country!) but we are citizens of heaven and our allegiance is to His kingdom first. Our national pride has become just that - pride. It is why we feel that we must be the policeman and protector of the world.

Regarding military strength I think that much of the talk is simply hot air. If it were not then many parents would be wanting their own children to fight in wars overseas. I have heard that 1% of Americans have a stake in these wars.

Regarding torture, I wonder why so many want the USA to adopt the methods of despicable people who have tortured our soldiers in the past. The end does not always justify the means even when politicians say they do.

Sorry for the rant Gregg. Hope you are well.

J Curtis said...

I wonder why so many want the USA to adopt the methods of despicable people who have tortured our soldiers in the past

This is news to me. I do not consider 'waterboarding' to be on a par with anything that sick sadists in Iraq/Afghanistan/insert Muslim country/ are committing.

I never see the left subjecting other cultures and countries to the same, hyper-critical level of examination to which they apply to the United States.

kc bob said...

@JD - Not sure what you mean when you say that this was news to you. Waterboarding was used by both the Gestapo and Japanese troops during World War II.

That said, I do understand that many do not see the practice as torture but as a means (albeit a violent one) to get information from an enemy.

John Patrick Donovan said...

War was and is not pleasant, it has only been in the last 100 years that we desided it should be a gentlmans sport. Water bording causes no physical damage to the person. How ever, a dule knife sawing your head off does cause physical damage. If we compare what our enemy does to people they catch, to the stellar conditions a Gitmo I beleive America still walks the moral high ground.

J Curtis said...

Not sure what you mean when you say that this was news to you

Sure, let me expound upon that comment. You said, quote.. "I wonder why so many want the USA to adopt the methods of despicable people who have tortured our soldiers in the past".

I merely stated that I was completely unaware that the US military had adopted such techniques as the ''blowtorch to the skin' and 'eye removal' methods. Link:http://www.thesmokinggun.com/documents/crime/torture-al-qaeda-style

These are the methods utilized by our enemy and I would like to view the relevant evidence that we in the US have adopted the techniques of our enemies.

I really don't think that such methods as, for example, sleep deprivation really stack up against such horrific torture techniques used by Al Qaeda. But by all means, feel free to argue otherwise.

kc bob said...

@JD - I agree that there are many levels of torture and water boarding and sleep deprivation does not compare with those other forms of torture.