What is UnAmerican?

[boulders and sticks]

I was thinking about this today and thought it would make an interesting topic.
I have heard the term UnAmerican many times and was curious to find other opinions on what it means to them. I find it is used to describe somebody who disagrees or dosen't go along with the majority.
What do you think?
John.

 

[cottonzway]

People against this:

http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.overview.html

 

[boulders and sticks]

Is it that strightforward?
Or is it anybody who dosen't go along with the norm of the day? Anybody who stands out and questions the way things are in this country.
John.

 

[CapnG]

If you're an American, it's whatever the guy you don't agree with is doing. Basically it's a weak, backhanded way of invalidating someone else's argument without actually having to work up the courage to legitimately challenge it in an actual discussion.

 

[Jose Collado]

We have the same thing in Australia where situations are labelled UnAustralian. IMO, I think it applies more to countries that are remote from one another or have minimal surrounding cultures. They develop their own unique culture. Opening the doors to multiculturalism will often result in the belief of Un(insert nation here)ism.

You never know, one day we'll all be stating something as UnEarth.

 

[Darkly Brooding]

Please don't flame me if the truth hurts, but,...

Sadly, with the amount of double-speak coming from popular American culture these days, this can now mean pretty much whatever you want it to, to further your own political agenda.

Add to that the rampant divisive politicing, growth of right & left wing, shredding and redefining the spirit of the American Constitution, and I'm sure most Americans are experiencing a little self-doubt and cultural schizophrenia themselves at the moment.

Asking ten Americans what it means to be American might even net you ten different answers, let alone asking them what being un-American means.

Perhaps that is the larger point here; that America is quickly becoming known globally as a nation of double-talking ideologues promoting their own self-interests, and sometimes contrary and self-destructive agendas, with little regard for the opinion of the rest of the world at large, and the loss of certainty the country once had for what it means to be American...that certainly was apparent with the last administration.

When the rest of the world is asked what it means to be un-American, Americans might be surprised to hear a fair number of traits that most Americans consider decent, proper, and their own,...regardless of what is printed on their frequently edited Constitution,...

 

[boulders and sticks]

If you're an American, it's whatever the guy you don't agree with is doing. Basically it's a weak, backhanded way of invalidating someone else's argument without actually having to work up the courage to legitimately challenge it in an actual discussion.

Very well put.
John.

 

[conor]

Listen, America is a very big place, and there are lots of people living in America. That much I'm sure you're aware of. But doesn't that make you stop and think, for just a second?

Think about it. Russia, China, and America. They are the three biggest "countries" in the world where people say to people "I'm Russian", "I'm Chinese", "I'm American". Broadly speaking, I come from Europe, but I'm Irish when anybody asks.

IMO when national identity includes a HUGE amount of people, things get skewered. That's why partisan politics is an easy route to take, because then you can have two clearly defined Americas, and if you don't like one way, campaign against it from the other side.

But here is something I have come to believe (that's right, I used the "B" word). People are people, and it takes all sorts to make up a town, to make up a state (American terminology), to make up a country, to make up a world.

So, to be an UnAmerican American is probably to fit neatly into being a certain type of American. I know it mightn't seem it, but trust me on this one. Not because I'm wise or any bullshit like that, but because, though it may not seem like it on the ground, none of that shit really matters.

 

[Gojira2006]

Well, that's certainly a thought-provoking question . . . I agree that it will probably mean ten different things each to ten different people . . . I don't know if I consider this un-American, but people who take an oath to uphold & defend the Constitution of the United States, & fail to do so out of extreme willfulness, are doing something that disgraces their office/profession & disrepects every citizen of our nation . . .

 

[Kevin Daly]

I am, like most of the world's population.

Get over it.

 

[Roro]

When one American wants to marginalize another American (and what they say or think) they claim the person is UnAmerican. It doesn't mean anything, it's just a tactic.

In the corporate world it's like saying someone else isn't a team player, it marginalizes them and their opinions and puts them on the defensive.

I could state what I would consider UnAmerican but as the opinion of one person it's a rather pointless exercise. There is no American point of view, we are a house divided into infinite parts.

"...we have met the enemy and he is us."
Pogo

To say that someone who isn't an American is UnAmerican is redundant. I'm not a Canadian, I am UnCanadian, that's a fact, but it doesn't say anything about my opinion of Canada.

 

[Randall]

Multiculturalism - A Cult of Ignorance​

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