Posted by smdmd at 7/3/08 4:16 p.m.

1) The land of second chances-sometimes third chances.

2) The Constitution

3) We argue hard politically but not prone to physical violence to make our points (the vast majority of the time)

4) Disneyland

5) The north rim of the Grand Canyon

6) Chicago

7) The weather in the PNW (most of the time)

8) We give out more than 3 ice cubes per drink

9) Air conditioning

10) We have good teeth (most of the time)

Posted by kitten007 at 7/3/08 11:48 p.m.

10.DITTO..Barbecue 9.Hollywood Directors. 8.Florida, Texas, Washington State 7.Destin, Seattle, Austin, San Francisco, New York, Las Vegas. 6.French, Thai, Indonesian, Bobby Flay 5.American Men 4.Gulf of Mexico, Rocky Mountains, Pacific Northwest 3.The fact that our CEO's are still a work in progress 2.Shopping. 1.The Bill of Rights.

Posted by mikeyb12 at 7/5/08 10:15 p.m.

Freedom to come and go, to speak my mind, to post on the blogs without fear of retribution from those in power. The fact our military answers to a civilian government.

Posted by unregistered user at 7/8/08 7:05 a.m.

The FOURTH of July is my birthday.

Everybody celebraters/

Posted by unregistered user at 7/8/08 3:02 p.m.

I find it fascinating that multitudes of conservatives on this forum immediately attack Horsey as unpatriotic when he challenges their self-righteousness, yet they fall utterly silent when he asks them to join him in listing the many great aspects of America. It would seem that Horsey can articulate REAL REASONS for SHARING his love for America, while some of his opponents are more content to stew in their own sour juices and WHINE!

I love America because we can express ourselves freely and choose our leaders. There's more, of course, but this is a good start!

Posted by techguerrilla at 7/8/08 9:34 p.m.

Hi Everyone --

I'm new to posting here. I'll tell you, though -- I think Horsey's top 10 are wonderful.

The variety of the restaurants. Grocery stores in general. The avocados, cherries, raspberries, potatoes, mushrooms. I tried to find all the ingredients for my meat loaf once in a foreign country. I had to give up.

The ability to find your nitch to make money. Amazing. I'm a private math tutor just north of Chicago (www.mathshack.net). I could never do that anywhere else.

The beauty of the entire east coast. I just traveled the Carolina coast. Unbelievable. Charleston and Savannah. Don't waste too much time before going to see those cities. Also, be sure to visit North Carolina's Outer Banks. "If God didn't love North Carolina, why'd he paint the sky Tar Heel blue?"

Rock and roll!

The Bill of Rights!!! Go to Gettysburg to appreciate them.

/john

Posted by unregistered user at 7/11/08 7:07 a.m.

Re: Number 6
(Where else on earth can you eat like this?)
Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Posted by OldDecie at 7/11/08 12:32 p.m.

1. Sequim, Washington...I'm not a local, but a life long friend moved there; I visited and loved every sight and sound from Port Washington to Sequim bay and everything in between.
2. New England coast especially Bar Harbor, Boothbay harbor, Rockland and Thomaston, Maine
3. New York City, no other place on the planet that I can walk one block and be eating Irish or Italian, walk another block and be ordering Indian or Vietnamese and then run over to Canal street and have Dim Sum.
4. Freedom to go where I want, to say want I want, and the opportunity to be whatever I want to be.
5. Freedom to practice my own spiritual beliefs with the Creator even when they don't fit into any particular church.
6. The Constitution or what's left of it. We've lost a lot of freedom and personal privacy in the last seven years.
7. Weekends and vacations...we need to do some work to catch up with the Europeans in this department, but we Americans do tend to pack a month's worth of fun into one week
8. Good BBQ
9. American fusion and ingenuity - since the birth of the vacuum tube there have been many waves of technology that either started here or were overtaken and capitalized by the US....And we are way overdue for the next wave of green technologies to jump start the new millennium
10. Small town country fairs or that thursday night band concert on the common with folks selling hotdogs and popcorn to raise money for a local charity. It still happens even back East

Posted by Willowywisp at 7/12/08 7:35 p.m.

I am glad that as a woman I do not have to pander to extreme religious laws (yet - hopefully I never will!)

I love that our country was created by people who had a vision for a better way of life than their families had had before them - that our country was created on hope.

That a lot of people are realizing mistakes our country has made and are trying to make amends for them.

That we can complain loudly when there is corruption and most likely won't be put in jail (I'm not sure that applies if you're an Arab immigrant unfortunately though).

That the geographical land itself is so diverse and beautiful.

All the many ethnicities that call our country home. I wish people would remember more often that "Americans" ARE immigrants. That's the beauty of our country. We're all immigrants from one time or another (except the Native American Indians).

That life is so easy for so many of us. I wish we could make things a little less rich/poor divided so it was easier for more people - but even when I was poor in the U.S. it was a lot better than it would've been being poor in many other countries.

Posted by Ellen Hilburn at 7/13/08 5:43 p.m.

Let's see, ten things I love about the U.S. include, but in no particular order (just write them as they pop into my brain):
1) That we only needed to take one algebra to get out of high school (I'd love the USA more, if I never had to take that class, way back when. It still haunts me!)
2) The northeast (New England, NY and, what the heck, NJ) and Midatlantic (Georgetown and parts of Maryland)
3) The northwest and Alaska/Hawaii as well as the southwest (as far as I'm concerned the south, southeast, and midwest can be given to another country hahaha)
4)That we came together, united, no matter what part of the country we lived in after the tragedy of 911.
5) Best Friends Animal Sanctuary and all the great animal charities that help homeless and abandoned furry friends
6)24 hour stores (sometimes)
7)The great variation of physical beauty in our country from the gorgeous New England coastal towns to the breathtaking views of the Grand Canyon to the rich forests of the Northwest
8) Napa Valley
9) The overall decency and kindness of Americans
10) The fact that in America, anything's possible.