AIBU to want Americans to stop using the phrase "leader of the free world"?

[Mittens67]

The term originated during the cold war implying moral and symbolic leadership of democracy.
It has continued in common usage with America viewing itself as the centre of world.
I find this hugely arrogant at the best of times but given the current debacle with an orange megalomaniac in the white house, a person who has no morals at all and is intent on over turning democracy if he possibly can, it is utterly abhorrent.

YANBU, he's not my fucking leader, especially when I never had the opportunity to not vote for him!

"Leader of the free world" always make my skin crawl.

It was also a surprise to the millions of Native Americans - who the same mockumentary explained as being people who God had accidentally put there when He obviously meant the land to be colonised by God-fearing white men.

I think it’s idiotic and I certainly do not view the USA as “leader of the free world” but it’s just words and in this case easy enough to ignore.

Yes - I often make this point to Yanks who crow about them fighting the British to be a “free nation”.

Except for black Americans, of course!

Sigh… yet another thread bashing America and Americans

lets look at one important metric for a ‘leader’ of the free or democratic countries in the world, suppressing the threat of military/nuclear action by countries like Iran, North Korea and China.

The US spent 968 billion dollars on defense in 2024. The next nearest NATO member spent 86 billion dollars (equivalent) and that was Germany.

If the US was not leading in this way, the world would likely be a much unsafer place for everyone, including the UK

It isn't bashing America. American need to raise how they are now being perceived on the world stage. With the exception of the Israelis and the Russians (who are rubbing their hands in glee) more or less everyone else is looking on in horror at a scary situation unfolding with a powerful and wealthy county operating in an unprofessional manner with no care for anyone but themselves.

Let them crack on. The rest of us outside of the US know the truth and are sat laughing at them (laughing a little bit from fear but you get my point).

You dont think this thread is bashing Americans.???..

YABU because it is nothing to do with you what others say. I could just as easily say AIBU to want to stop Brits saying the NHS is the envy of the world, when it really isn't. However, in both instances people are allowed to delude themselves, nothing to do with me.

I completely agree.
I said Ukraine was gone as soon as I knew Trump was elected. It is unbelievably sad. Excluded from talks about their own country whilst Trump and Putin come to a psychopaths agreement. They are cut from the same cloth and are happy to carve the rest of the rest of us up between them if we let them. Even so I wonder if there will come a clash later down the line with their gigantic egos. Nothing will ever be enough for either of them.
Ukraine has been an example to the world with a fearless leader in Zelensky.
I am terrified for us all watching them be swallowed up. It is Poland all over again.
I don’t want to contemplate the spread of war but nothing good ever comes of appeasing bullies.

How is disliking a term and the mindset behind it “America bashing”?

Your post shows the USA as the leader of military spending. Not the leader of the free world.

@SeaToSki whatevs. The US can take its money and piss off - then we’ll see how ‘respected’ the country is.
The US has gone from somewhere respected and even envied to being the world’s bully. We’ll manage.
Some Americans seem to think Europeans as re bunch of wussies, but we’re as hard as fucking nails. We’ve survived a lot more dictators than this latest orange faced drag queen.

You understand thats one poster…

It’s a fair point though, I wouldn’t rule out a USA Civil war, which while awful is better than Trump trying to annexe the rest of us.

YANBU. It's stupid, considering women are not free to get an abortion in many states.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ToKcmnrE5oY

Agreed. Incongruous with 'Make America Great Again' 😂

I agree. It is utterly laughable, especially with the current despotic twat in the White House.

That proportion of the American electorate who voted for Trump have not "Made America Great Again", but have successfully made it into an utter shithole.

I’d be very happy never to hear a word from anyone working in the White House ever again.

I think of it as The Shite House now with all the crap coming out of it

Remind us again, which country has been involved in one war or conflict for pretty much it's entire existence? Which is the only one to have used an nuclear weapon? And which has a absolutely massive military–industrial complex as a key part of it's economy?

America has never been the leader of the free world. They have pursued a violent foreign policy which served them, not the cause of democracy or freedom.

It served both. Be fair, because falsifying history and facts get us nowhere.

The US is big and has enormous resources. So does China, so does Russia. We are small and have few so we needed to group together with other similar cultures to be valid as equals. We needed for that group to be rational and sensible and have a common aim of learning to work and stand together. Instead there were too many squabbles, and the U.K. particularly, insulated from threats to the east, forgot and chose incredible levels of luxury for its upper / middle classes instead of boring and difficult reason and negotiation.

I have been wondering if Brexit would still have been pushed for by some tories in government if they realised that we would need Europe more now?