Originally Posted by
Agamemnon
Y'know, when people point at the U.S. and say "Culture of Violence" I can't help but experience feelings of amused annoyance (Or annoyed amusement depending on whether I'm on my first or second can of Foster's.:rolleyes: ).After all; when it comes to violence the Europeans have we Americans beat handily. Yes, we have the lone, crazed gunman; the mugger in the alley and the street gang but our brand of violence tends to be more disorganized and individualistic. European violence is more... centralized, more organized and institutionalized and so is capable of greater harm to a greater number of people. Witness two world wars,the Holocaust, the Inquisitions, religious strife between Catholics and Protestants, numerous wars of conquest, etc. The Puritans that set up the first successful colonies in North America couldn't escape their violent roots and so America's "Culture of Violence" is, in reality, Europe's as well. And don't even get me started on Africa! The fact is that every culture has a history of violence whether it's against members of their own society or "others".