Why is the USA the most terrible police state in the world

[Steve James]

Columbus called the people he met "Indians" because he thought he was in India. He never reached the continent. The Spaniards called it the West Indies. Vespucci went on voyages after Columbus, and made it to both north and south parts of what he realized was a new continent, not part of Asia. So, map makers gave the new continent his name. Though Colombia is named after you know who.

[Trick]

In the US in Seattle for example some areas have been taking over.
Guess what is one of the first things they do.

.

So what is actually happening in Seattle, what mean ‘taken over’? By protesters, armed militia ?? I see noting about seattle on Swedish media..or Chinese media

[Trick]

Columbus called the people he met "Indians" because he thought he was in India. He never reached the continent. The Spaniards called it the West Indies. Vespucci went on voyages after Columbus, and made it to both north and south parts of what he realized was a new continent, not part of Asia. So, map makers gave the new continent his name. Though Colombia is named after you know who.

Yes that is common known that it was Columbus who named the natives “Indians”....Colombia, yes probably after C.C...it means “Dove” so it could have a broader/deeper meaning as “holy spirit” and not directly linked to the person Columbus though

[Steve James]

What does “America” mean, the indigenous people’s was named after an European ?

Yeah, it's "common knowledge" but not everybody, not even all West Indians know it.

No, Colombia wasn't "probably" named after Columbus. Paloma is dove in Spanish, at least in the Spanish I know.

Where do you get these ideas?

Anyway, there are lots of places named for Columbus. People have wondered why the continent wasn't named Columbia. Btw, in fact, if the UK is given physical embodiment, it's called Britannia. (Common knowledge for Brits). However, I'm not sure it's common for an American to know that his country's symbol isn't "America," but Columbia. Check it out.

The Brits gave the name to their 13 colonies, and that's how it happened. Hey, maybe it's why Washington D. CCCCC is our capital.
Meh, there's always wikipedia.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_(name)#:~:text=Columbia%20is%20a%20New%20Latin,%2C%20Gallia%2C%20and%20others).

[Trick]

No, Colombia wasn't "probably" named after Columbus. Paloma is dove in Spanish, at least in the Spanish I know.

Where do you get these ideas?

i neither speak spanish or latin.....i google ........in latin columba/columbia supposedly mean Dove....and back in those Columbus days il guess latin was a thing among the learned ones from europe? .....

[Trick]

What does “America” mean, the indigenous people’s was named after an European ?

Yeah, it's "common knowledge" but not everybody, not even all West Indians know it.

No, Colombia wasn't "probably" named after Columbus. Paloma is dove in Spanish, at least in the Spanish I know.

Where do you get these ideas?

Anyway, there are lots of places named for Columbus. People have wondered why the continent wasn't named Columbia. Btw, in fact, if the UK is given physical embodiment, it's called Britannia. (Common knowledge for Brits). However, I'm not sure it's common for an American to know that his country's symbol isn't "America," but Columbia. Check it out.

The Brits gave the name to their 13 colonies, and that's how it happened. Hey, maybe it's why Washington D. CCCCC is our capital.
Meh, there's always wikipedia.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_(name)#:~:text=Columbia%20is%20a%20New%20Latin,%2C%20Gallia%2C%20and%20others).

ok, we sliding off topice here......Britannia, what does that name mean ? doesnt it come from the french Bretange ? the ancient name for britain was Albion ? meaning white cliff/rock refering to the steep white clifs of britains southern coastline ?.....Symbols, interesting how the EU flag adopted the stars in a circle as was on the flag of the 13 collonies

[Trick]

you live in the big apple.... The name York comes from the norweigan Jor-vik, a place in norway during its viking days, which they then also named one of their new settlement in brittain that later evolved into York....it was kind of the new jorvik.......Jorvik suppoedly mean something as "cattle/livestock bay"

[Steve James]

Look it up.

[grzegorz]

Excellent article from 2015, Chomsky is not afraid to say the truth. Though he is maybe too kind and modest and just give a glimpse of it. Well worth reading.

Chomsky says US is the world's biggest terrorist

Chomsky explains everything anyone ever needs to know about the US.

[grzegorz]

The civil war thing I read about was in one of Sweden’s “main stream” papers

The threat of a civil war is a right wing theme. The Swedish media got it from right wing spokespeople, or the president. Funny that the leader of the "party of Lincoln" talks about civil war. Lincoln was a "union" man. He'd have accepted slavery if the union could be saved. The confederates would only accept that they would be able to maintain slavery, so they split. They also had to attack first.

So, when the president repeats that stuff, some people think there's a chance for it. Then, it ends up on Swedish tv/media. Soon, it's all over the world. Well, ok, there's always been talk of NYS becoming independent (but Texas already considers itself a republic, and Alaska has also had people who talked of leaving). Well, I know that NYC on its own could survive. I'm not so sure about West Virginia or Kentucky. However, there's a simple reason loyal Americans have to be against breaking up. It's called the Pledge of Allegiance. My European friends laughed when I told them what we had to say every day in front of the flag before school.

"I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands: One nation (under God was added later), Indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for All."

It was/is the same as taking an oath that you believed that stuff. It's like "I swear to uphold the Constitution of the US and defend it from all enemies foreign and domestic." My European friends were impressed. We have the greatest words.

Steve nailed it.

I hear some in the Swedish media also praise Trump yet no one here does except his "base" and FOX news which is really more opinion than news.

Not criticizing but in Poland too the media there puts him in a positive light as if he were a serious politician instead of the carny show that he is.

FWIW I realize some may see "some" as obsessed with Trump but I am not. I studied history (and still do) and I always knew that all this would happen and knew that when it ended you would not be able to find a Trump supporter (but a few) which is already happening.

The far right "wanting to leave" just means that they are realizing that the Trump experiment, a candidate without a record of public service, salesmen, draft dodger, reality TV star with zero experience did not work out.

I don't congratulate myself. I just don't see how everyone else couldn't see it.

Still winning I suppose. Most Covid 19 deaths in the world.

Worth mentioning that there are predictions than Trump may swing blue. Not sure if we are there yet but I find that much more likely in the next decade than Texas becoming independent.

Personally I would not mind seeing the US break up. Not a supporter but if it means that states like NY and CA and the blue states who pay most of the country's taxes can finally move into this century I would be fine with that. Like Czech and Slovakia we could both go in different directions and maintain a good relationship. The South would be like the going back 50 years and we would be the future.

[grzegorz]

Btw Steve, I don't watch it much but there's South Park where Cartmen makes a red headed cow (as a prank) and it gets picked up by the international news media and the world starts comes to an end.

I won't give it all away but worth it for the comedic value.

It's silly but also somehow relevant.

Also this week Poland invaded the Czech Republic.

[Steve James]

I know about the red cow, but I haven't seen the episode. There are people seriously trying to breed one. But, it's like the color tekhelet.

Well, I'm a strict Union man. The Union won against the Confederates, the way the Americans won against the Indians.

[grzegorz]

Also, Columbus only became an American hero quite after the fact. We needed a symbol who wasn't British around the tricentennial and suddenly statues went up everywhere. Not really all that dissimilar from all the confederate statues that went up LONG after the defeat of the South. Invented traditions and all of that.

Thanks Ian. I wasn't aware that the legend of lost Columbus "became" legend to create non-English great man theory to base US history on.

People's History does a good job of explaining why Columbus does not deserve statues. I am not really for or against but I am surprised that people are bringing them down.

I have a lot more to learn about Churchill. But perhaps that is the whole point. I would not re-examine Churchill if it were not for the protests. Why wouldn't everyone want a complete picture of history?

[grzegorz]

I know about the red cow, but I haven't seen the episode. There are people seriously trying to breed one. But, it's like the color tekhelet.

Well, I'm a strict Union man. The Union won against the Confederates, the way the Americans won against the Indians.

Yes, I agree with Union is the war against slavery (and against the Confederates state's rights for slavery.)

But how about now? If the hardcore red states wanted to create a Trumpistan and the blue states wanted to be more like Canada, would you disagree?

Of course, none of this will happen.

[Steve James]

But how about now? If the hardcore red states wanted to create a Trumpistan and the blue states wanted to be more like Canada, would you disagree?

Naw. Trumpistan, outside of Texas and Florida, would find it hard to be self-supporting. During the Civil War, the confederacy relied on free labor to support its economy. During the Jim Crow era, labor was cheap, but never equal.

There were talks of NYC seceding from NYS .