Essay America the Great?

Submitted By nepick0
Words: 1251
Pages: 6

America the Great?
If you ask a majority of the United States population which country is the greatest in the world, their response will without a doubt be the United States of America. American nationalism is so strong in the hearts of its people that it has no equal anywhere else in the world. However, it is because of the American people’s strong sense of nationalism that their judgment is clouded. The greatness of America is affirmed so much in the media and the culture of the country that it is understandable for people to not believe the contrary. That idea of greatness has been drilled into our heads from an early age through popular songs, reciting the pledge of allegiance, and celebrating the fourth of July like it was an epic triumph. The belief that the United States is the world’s greatest country is the largest hegemonic idea still accepted by the nation’s population today.
Now, if someone deems the United States to not be the greatest country in the world anymore, how can they say if they are wrong or not? A skeptic person must simply look at the evident facts to conclude that the United States is not what it once was. Socially, physically, and economically the United States has fallen from its previous elevated status. Yes, there are still areas in which we take the lead but they are not nearly as numerous or as prestigious as in the time when the country was at its peak.
Various factors contribute to making a country great in the eyes of its citizens. Many Americans would say that their right of freedom makes the United States the best country anyone could ever ask for. However, these traits are not unique to the United States. Japan, Canada, and the United Kingdom all share these traits and yet we do not call them the greatest. Freedom is something that has been tied with the United States since it’s founding. Our country gained a lot of international recognition and respect because of this forward thinking and equality. However, at this present day many other countries have caught up, and even surpassed us in that area of social freedom. Nevertheless we still cater to the idea that we are the only people to have this privilege. Examples of this can be depicted in songs like God Bless the USA by Lee Greenwood because of the lyrics that say, “I’m proud to be an American where at least I know I’m free.” These words make it seem as if the concept of freedom continues to be a huge issue. There are 207 sovereign nations in the world and 180 of them have freedom. While these freedoms may differ, the essence of the notion remains the same. Freedom has been globalized and it is not a forerunning social issue anymore.
While Americans persist on having faith in the thought that they lead the world in freedom, there are truer things in which they take first place. One of the significant categories that we dominate is adult obesity. According to a survey conducted by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 37% of adult Americans are obese. Having over a third of a nation’s adults obese has not helped our international reputation. Americans acquired half of its “fat and lazy” reputation from this statistic. When the people don’t care to look after their own personal health, it is hard to expect them to care for the health and well being of their country. The other half of that reputation stems from the current state of the United States workforce.
The power of the United States was founded upon the backs of our hardworking forefathers. They fought for their lifestyle and that lifestyle continued on for many years after. We magnificently constructed things from railroads to skyscrapers. For a long period of time we took pride in the slogan, “built in America.” Now we are struggling to stay ahead of China, Japan, Germany and other superpowers in the world. This is partially due to the fact that we have developed a very sluggish workforce. This shouldn’t come as a big surprise since we have one of