Why do most people, Americans in particular...
 

still blindly trust everything their governments tell them?

Why is it so hard for people to question them? To believe that there could possibly be something dishonest at work? I mean, they're politicians.

Is it just to much of a shot to their pride to possibly accept the fact that they were lied to? That they could possibly have been fooled?

whaaaaaaaa? where are all these Americans who trust what their government tells them?

90% of the posts on GFY by Americans are people who don't trust their government.

It is my experience that most Americans certainly do not believe "everything" the government tells them. I do not know anyone that meets that criteria.

There are still plenty who do... and they'll be in this thread soon to tell me what an idiot I am, I'm sure.
What's Bush's approval rating? 23%? 28%?

What is 28% of 300 million?

Because people are idiots but why do you think i'ts just Americans? Fuck, the French, are worse than us. The whole BS about the French being against the war in Iraq same as the Russians was total fucking Bull Shit.

The only reason they were against the war, because they were making money from Saddam and they knew they wouldn't get a big cut out of the war profiting.

Can we say North Korea? China? Germany? the UK.. ect..ect...
Pretty much any country is the same, most of the population in any country tends to drink the govt koolaid so why act like it's just America?

A small minority...and is not an indication that even they trust the government or believe everything they are told by government. In addition the President is but a single person of a government that has many thousands of people serving.

I'm sorry, but why do you think "why do most people, Americans in particular" means that I think it's JUST Americans?

Start a thread about how anything the government might do could be something under handed and see how many people come in calling you an idiot conspiracy theorist.
You might be surprised.

And what makes you think I'm singling out the president? Where have I mentioned him?

I dunno check the #1 slot on the New York Best Sellers list and tell me that most Americans trust their government :2 cents:

I quote you..."What's Bush's approval rating? 23%? 28%?"

Americans tend to be more patriotic and ethnocentric than other countries but they have a very healthy suspicion of their own government post Watergate.

I think a lot has to do with the two party system and how much it has broken apart the general public. Instead of being against all politicians and questioning them, people now have a "team". They'll bitch about the other party non-stop, but turn their heads toward anything their own party does.

Part of me thinks its stupidity, part of me thinks its just part of our social makeup that wants us to be a part of a group (a cause). I'm not really sure. I'm happy to be independent and believe just about every politician is a crook who couldn't cut it in the private sector.

Ah yes well... that's only because they don't have a "government approval rating".
But when it translates down, people are rating the entire government, not just the guy.

See, now that makes sense (about how it all makes no sense). Thank you. I agree with you too, that it does seem to be that way.

Like this election. People are picking who they dislike least to lead them. What kind of a choice is that? You should be picking the best leader out of a group of potentially great leaders... not the one guy who's not quite as bad as the other.

just a bunch of joiners herd mentality. The key reason Obama is getting 75k at his rallies.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=yi3erdgVVTw

But that's books, and only a small percent of the population is sitting down and reading these days. The large percent is watching Dancing with the Stars and voting for someone because they received a chain mail telling them one of the candidates was secretely Muslim.

Ya I thought of that after. :disgust

That is the problem with our election process. It's two parties, and they choose who gets to play. Anyone who thinks outside the box or goes against the grain can't run be the President.

On top of that, we don't even elect our President per say. We elect delegates in primaries to hopefully vote for the guy we want. There are superdelegates who get as much say as entire districts in our county. Even in the general election, all we do is tell the electors who our state wants as President. They are not bound to vote that way.

Yeah, it's quickly become a "the people pick their best person to represent them" to "the people in power pick other people in power to represent themselves, not the people."

Unfortunately, that's quickly becoming common everywhere, not just the US.

When you have handful of people that control the media it makes it a lot easier to keep fresh ideas out and package the same ideas as different.

I don't think Americans trust politicians. They DO trust radio commentators. So if Glen Beck, Hannity, Rush, Savage or whoever tells them that monkeys fly out their butt, they'll believe it.

They've learned to follow these people through the use of NLP and repetition.

It's actually always been that way here. We've never directly voted for our highest office. Also factor in that blacks, women, non-land owners couldn't vote for a large portion of our nation's history.

Votes also don't matter as we found out in 2000. I have a feeling that Obama is going to win the popular vote by a lot this year but lose the electoral college.

I've always wondered how Canadian sig whores are so much smarter than "most Americans" and yet are less successful than "most Americans"
can someone explain that to me?

Wow, I'm shocked you came into this thread. :1orglaugh

You're so predictable :glugglug

Yet they voted for Bush again despite what went on during the first election?

Well consdiering that 75 million are under 18 and can't vote I'm pretty sure they were part of the 28% that were asked. So the actual number would be 63 million that approve of him. Which is almost exactly the same number of people that voted for him in 2004.

Because it's very typical on this board for people to bash Americans. Tends to be several posts a week bashing Americans for this or that, seems this post would be another one, what point does it serve?

Why does it have to be so specific about Americans? What is the point that you want to prove that can only be proven by talking specifically about Americans? Why not ask the question about people in general and their trust of govts?

i love my american porn brothers...keep up the good work boys

Bush lost the popular vote.. (IE the people's vote) The majority of the people did not vote for him, but unfortunately the electoral college didn't work the way it was supposed to and issues with the recount allowed him to be re-elected.

I did ask people in general. Don't be so defensive.

"Think for yourself, question autorities"

Because they are stupid and gullible.

Historically the American people have been easily fooled plenty of times. This is no news. It doesn't mean other people haven't. The thing with the US is that they have too many militia and their presidents are always looking for a new enemy to test their toys. So the whole world begs Americans are not fooled again. It would be a certain step back if McCain wins the following election, the whole world would see it as if all Americans support the Iraq war. In any case I don't think the situation in Iraq would change much if Obama or Hillary wins either.

where did u get this idea of people trusting governments?

I think you have a good percentage, in my experience mainly from the south, or certain socio-economic classes who believe. Then you have a good majority who are simply apathetic.. So if it doesn't effect their day-to-day lives. They simply do not give a shit.
:2 cents:

Why do most people, Americans in particular...

Some people are just stupid... the rest of us don't trust anyone in politics or on the pulpit...

well most canadians are far more successful than most americans

:) but that has more to do with the economy

Yes, probably it is! However, isn't that suspicion transcends through these 28% number of people and they still don't learned?

aren't you one of them? :upsidedow

agree
 

I totally agree with you man!

Why are you so defensive?

Optimism and positiveness are part of the American character.

It is one of America's main strengths. Self belief.

What is unfortunate is that sometimes with it comes delusion.

The U.S. government would never be manipulated by the executive branch. NEVER! I couldn't imagine a particular President starting a "fake" war based on lies and cherry picked misinformation simply to enrich - BIG OIL, DEFENSE CONTRACTORS and THEMSELVES. NO WAY! Oil prices and "defense" spending just happened to go up with this very important war on terror being fought in Iraq? Terror? What the . . . oh shit, wait a minute . . . $4.00 a gallon and rising? Big oil's record breaking profits? 100's of BILLIONS of dollars spent on this war in Iraq (where no terrorists were before the invasion)? Where is Osama? I'm starting to think we've been lied to. Still not sure.

Yes, in particular... because that's the most well known as the world over gets their news and can blatantly see the lies.
But the question is asked in general of "most people".

You simply choose to focus on the part of the sentence that riles you the most.

Is seems like that the GFY socialists have no problem entrusting healthcare to the goverment, even when the government has done a great job bankrupting medicare/medicaid and social security.

American's don't believe what the Government tells them they believe what the MEDIA tells them and since the MEDIA works with the government.... yah..

Most americans do believe and trust their government and the media. They also believe that when we go to war we are fighting for "freedom" when the real reasons couldn't be further from the truth.

Then the same people are VERY quick to defend the country and say stupid things about how they are the greatest country on earth, when in fact a large majority of those same people have never left the country.

It is an odd country full of strange people. I'm glad I'm outta there.

I am an American and I think it's safe to generalize on this one. While it seems many GFYers do not feel the same way, a very large portion, if not the majority of the country does. That is just the way the system works.

Be thankful you think outside the box. Not a lot of you out there.

When the President was re-elected he won the popular vote...the electoral college worked the way that it was supposed to and there were not issues with a recount. In the first election the electoral vote also worked the way it was supposed to but he did not win the popular vote.