Yep. Nothing like anime to convey a love of America. 

Hope everyone had a happy Independence Day. CJS spent the weekend the traditional American way by drinking beer out plastic Solo cups, out of bottles, out of cans, and out of a hollowed out plastic yard flamingo. When we were devising Confessional topics, the original question for this week was something to the effect of “How do you spend your 4th?” When we realized everyone would respond with some sort of combination of barbecuing, drinking, and watching things blow up in the sky, we changed it up.

So last week we asked: “What is something you love about America?” hoping we’d get a diverse snapshot of patriotic pride. While we didn’t get what we hoped for, we received a couple. Check those out inside, and be sure to stay tuned for next week’s question. But for now, in the words of the World Police – “America, Fuck Yeah!”

We’re changing up the format this week because we only received two responses to this week’s prompt and both were, to say the least, short and to the point. So Flickerbock and Keithage will take lead this week with the CJS Staff sweeping up the festivities. Take it away, boys!

Flickerbock: ‘Cause everywhere else sucks compared to here.

Keithage: There are numerous reasons why These United States of America are great.  I suppose freedom and opportunity sums up what I like best.  The freedom to do what you want with the opportunity to succeed.  What more do you need to achieve life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness?

***

Thanks, fellas. We’re not sure we agree with Flickerbock’s blanket assertion entirely considering we’ve traveled to some kickass places internationally, but we certainly appreciate his enthusiasm. With that said, we were hoping we’d get some specific responses, and in that hope, we followed suit with our own answers. So here’s what the CJS Staff had to say…

Lee S. Hart: The reason I love living in America, aside from freedom, and not having flies all around while I try to deal with a cleft lip, is beer. I understand we are not the only country to make beer, nor are we the first country to make beer. I do enjoy the occasional Belgium, German and Czech beer. I will get lit off the moonshine Canadians call beer. But when it is all said and done, I will always come back to an American brew.

America has always been a land of innovation and growth, and this is clear in American beer making. It seems there are new microbrews popping up all the time in every corner of the country. I love having so many options for beers. I love having the freedom of choice to choose the beers I drink, and the opportunity to try as many of these different beers as I can.

You never hear of these other countries offering American style beers, but many American beer companies offer Belgian style beers, and German styles, there is even a micro brew in Colorado that offers Mexican style beer. American beer companies will always make American beers, but they’re not afraid to venture out and try other styles as well. The American beer market embraces other cultures and makes attempts at world unity, living up to its moniker of social lubricant. That’s why all the wonderful beers this country has to offer are why I love living in America.

A world of flavor right in your own backyard.

E Dagger: The best, and in a way weirdest, thing about America is just how fucking big it is. There is so much to explore in this country of ours, you could spend damn near your entire life tooling around this land’s nooks and crannies, you might never need to leave and still experience a world’s worth of cultures. Of course, I encourage everyone to travel as much as they possibly can and check out the vast earth, but America offers tons of opportunity by itself.

I thought about this very fact as I stood at the intersection of Broadway and Canal in Manhattan surrounded by swaths of people in every direction, horns honking incessantly, and vendors on every side hawking knockoffs of expensive name brands at low, low prices. When I retreated to the safety of the nearby rented minivan, I was positively flabbergasted that this place existed under the same federal government as say, Wasilla, AK. When Limon and I traveled to Alaska, the landscape seemed to stretch for miles with nothing but rugged wilderness replacing the choked streets and hordes of busybodies assaulting your senses. How two such disparate places – culturally, aesthetically, and geographically – are under the same banner is positively mesmerizing.

I find that every new place I visit in America is a place that in that moment, I’m happy to be in. Whether it’s sitting in the right field stands at Fenway, drunkenly watching the fountain show at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, strolling on the beach in Key West at sundown, or even just having dinner at some shitty restaurant in Wisconsin’s lake country, America just makes me happy to be alive.

It’s true that in Europe you can travel between different countries relatively easily, but when you cross a border, you might as well change planets as well for how different the attitudes are. Spain, Sweden, and England could all fit within the continental United States easily if you plopped them inside it at their current distances apart, and while I found almost everyone in those three countries positively delightful, they are truly three unique stars in a large sky.

In America, regional attitudes always differ, but at the end of the day we all salute the same flag. I find this fascinating. Because America has every type of landscape, every type of climate, and just about every type of person you’d ever hope to encounter, it’s amazing we ever agree on anything. I’ve been to roughly half the states in my young life, but my puzzle is filled in even less than that. I can’t wait to tick off more states and get the feeling of what it’s like to be in every part of the country.

I’ve yet to fully experience the Pacific Northwest or the big sky country of Montana and Idaho. I’ve yet to go to Hawaii, although that’s soon. New England is still largely undiscovered country. And the Deep South, while abstractly terrifying to such a dorky yuppy asshole like me, is on my list of places to travel to.

I guess when it comes down to it, the thing I love about America is the freedom to explore. Whether it’s the city or the countryside, America allows you the freedom to roam and be constantly surprised by what you find. That’s freedom. And you don’t even have to leave home to experience it.

***

Alright kiddies, this should be an easy one if you’re anything like us. We spent the better part of our formative years pondering the answer to this question, and while that answer has changed more times than we can count, we can tell you with certainty how we respond right now. But first, a little preface:

CJS is hosting a small get together next week to watch UFC 100, which brings us to our vital question: If you were a fighter, what music would play as you entered the arena? Feel free to apply this to boxing, professional wrestling, a baseball at-bat, or the Monday afternoon staff meeting. We just want to know what your theme music would be. And if you feel like it, tell us what your fight nickname would be too. Don’t tell us you haven’t thought about this before, because you know you have. And we want to hear about it!

We want to know more about all our readers. So don’t hold back. If you haven’t confessed, or it’s been awhile, or even if you did it last week, we want to hear from you. Don’t be shy and send us your response, along with your posting name to staff@crujonessociety.com and we’ll put them up next week.

Dagger & Hart