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Is the United States Exceptional?

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Re: Is the United States Exceptional?

#121

Post by osigurdson »

srvmshr wrote: post #119
osigurdson wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Yet, they choose not to do so and allowed their enemies to develop nuclear weapons on their own The US was the only nuclear power in the world from 1945 to 1949. My argument is, if the US had acted like any of the historical (and much more brutal) great powers such as Mongolians, Romans, Assyrians, Persians, etc, they would have used this to eliminate geopolitical enemies such as the Soviet Union. My argument is th…

The US acted with a lot of contempt for "commies" as they called them. The reason they didn't attack was not because of magnanimity but the very fact that world had exhausted itself with the bloodiest war in mankind over the last 6 years. By 1949, the cat was out of the bag with the RDS-1 with USSR. Until 1952, US didn't have a viable means to fly several heavy thermonuclear devices to a heavily fortified Russia & dr…

It is impossible for me to believe that with 4 years of lead time it could not have been achieved if the US were an authoritarian dictatorship, hellbent on annihilating its enemies.

Re: Is the United States Exceptional?

#122

Post by srvmshr »

osigurdson wrote: post #121
srvmshr wrote: post #119

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The US acted with a lot of contempt for "commies" as they called them. The reason they didn't attack was not because of magnanimity but the very fact that world had exhausted itself with the bloodiest war in mankind over the last 6 years. By 1949, the cat was out of the bag with the RDS-1 with USSR. Until 1952, US didn't have a viable means to fly several heavy thermonuclear devices to a heavily fortified Russia & dr…

It is impossible for me to believe that with 4 years of lead time it could not have been achieved if the US were an authoritarian dictatorship, hellbent on annihilating its enemies.

Suit yourself. You are expressing beliefs & opinions. I am basing on analysis on reasonable data & facts.

Re: Is the United States Exceptional?

#123

Post by osigurdson »

srvmshr wrote: post #122
osigurdson wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is impossible for me to believe that with 4 years of lead time it could not have been achieved if the US were an authoritarian dictatorship, hellbent on annihilating its enemies.

Suit yourself. You are expressing beliefs & opinions. I am basing on analysis on reasonable data & facts.

Your analysis is largely rationalization - it did not occur therefore it could not have.

Re: Is the United States Exceptional?

#124

Post by srvmshr »

osigurdson wrote: post #123
srvmshr wrote: post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Suit yourself. You are expressing beliefs & opinions. I am basing on analysis on reasonable data & facts.

Your analysis is largely rationalization - it did not occur therefore it could not have.

As opposed to your alternate universe theory with a dictatorial US needed for war? Cute

Re: Is the United States Exceptional?

#125

Post by osigurdson »

srvmshr wrote: post #124
osigurdson wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your analysis is largely rationalization - it did not occur therefore it could not have.

As opposed to your alternate universe theory with a dictatorial US needed for war? Cute

Suggesting that the US did everything in its power to annihilate all of its enemies in the period between 1945 - 1949 but could not achieve it is not correct.

Re: Is the United States Exceptional?

#126

Post by palmetieri2000 »

srvmshr wrote: post #109
palmetieri2000 wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Attributing all of this to the US simply because it occurs in the US is wrong and fails to acknowledge the contributions of other countries without which the innovations could not occur. How many top research institutions are staffed from people 100% US educated? My guess is none. How many US innovations occur without the input of other countries through educated individuals, resources or capital? Why isn't their con…

That unfortunately is the nature of credit assignment. US is a melting pot for different demographics & has conducive environment for attracting global talent with resources, opportunity & salaries. Any research funded & operated by them will be claimed by them - human resources aren't staked in claims. Research & capital resources are. A better question to ask is why other countries (e.g. India, China Japan) aren't…

No, the 'better' question is why the logic of the US taking credit for an initiative that isn't (entirely or solely) theirs is considered an acceptable norm.

Re: Is the United States Exceptional?

#127

Post by srvmshr »

osigurdson wrote: post #125
srvmshr wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As opposed to your alternate universe theory with a dictatorial US needed for war? Cute

Suggesting that the US did everything in its power to annihilate all of its enemies in the period between 1945 - 1949 but could not achieve it is not correct.

Thats an oversimplified opinion you are drawing despite the abundance of facts presented earlier over several comments to make you connect the dots. It frankly exhausts me to humor you given your alternate scenario theories.

What makes you think the US jumping into a firepit just after getting out of another is fun purely for possible ideological cleansing? Which may or may not succeed & has high chances of backfire

This is my last reply. Thanks

Re: Is the United States Exceptional?

#128

Post by srvmshr »

palmetieri2000 wrote: post #126
srvmshr wrote: post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That unfortunately is the nature of credit assignment. US is a melting pot for different demographics & has conducive environment for attracting global talent with resources, opportunity & salaries. Any research funded & operated by them will be claimed by them - human resources aren't staked in claims. Research & capital resources are. A better question to ask is why other countries (e.g. India, China Japan) aren't…

No, the 'better' question is why the logic of the US taking credit for an initiative that isn't (entirely or solely) theirs is considered an acceptable norm.

And how do you suppose intellectual credit be assigned? Let me illustrate my question

I did my schooling in India, college in US & doctorate in Japan. Had I made a novel discovery, who should be apportioned the majority credit? The schools which taught me the basics, the college which taught me engineering or the specialization which earned me the hypothetical achievement?

I think the credit assignment based on institution of incidence is the most practical way of recognition since they happen to have an outsized influence on the outcome in terms of labor, capital & collaboration. Economics of technology is known to have little room for moral discourses. I understand the point you make, but there are no better objective and granular ways to understand achievement & progress.

Re: Is the United States Exceptional?

#129

Post by osigurdson »

srvmshr wrote: post #127
osigurdson wrote: post #125

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Suggesting that the US did everything in its power to annihilate all of its enemies in the period between 1945 - 1949 but could not achieve it is not correct.

Thats an oversimplified opinion you are drawing despite the abundance of facts presented earlier over several comments to make you connect the dots. It frankly exhausts me to humor you given your alternate scenario theories. What makes you think the US jumping into a firepit just after getting out of another is fun purely for possible ideological cleansing? Which may or may not succeed & has high chances of backfire…

>> The comparison at the end to the Mongols feels apt, since while their empire was undeniably great

My original comment is related to this parent post. I'm arguing that the US is not like the Mongolian empire (nor any of the exceedingly brutal empires of the past Assyrian, Persian, Roman, etc.).

Re: Is the United States Exceptional?

#130

Post by dang »

usrn wrote: post #40

It was but the progressives destroyed it in the mid 60s.

Ideological flamewar is not what this site is for, and the site guidelines specifically ask you not to do it. You've been doing it repeatedly, unfortunately. If you'd please stop that, we'd appreciate it. It's not what this site is for, and it destroys what it is for.

https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

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