'Black Spots' in your country's history

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Perhaps every country has some shameful episode in their history.

I am from the U.S. and as for me, the top three things I feel my country has done that we should be ashamed of are:

1. Not ending slavery as soon as we 'freed' ourselves from our colonial master.

2. The near genocidal way and contempt in which we treated Native Americans, their culture, rights as beings, and the many instances in which we broke treaties we were a party with them in as we pushed west.

3. The fire bombings of large civilian population centers in WW2 and the atomic bomgings of Hiroshima and Japan.

There are definitely more, such as the detentions of Japanese Americans in WW2, the Mai Lai massacre in Vietnam done by Lt. Cali(sp?) and his platoon platoon, etc...

My top 3 however, are chosen based on the enormity of the scale of suffering they caused.

How about you? In your opinion, what are the top 3 things your country has reason to regret doing or have shame in doing? If you want to list more, then please do, but if possible, put your choices for the top 3 worse at the top of the list. Looking forward to reading various perspectives of 'self' examination on one's own history.
 
I find it annoying how the slaves were brought in to America, but then told to get out later on....

uhh...

I know it's an easy observation, but still shameful to think about.


I say, to me, that really stands out are the Witch Hunts.
I'm sure they happened, perhaps, everywhere in the world. But I just know about it occuring in Salem, Mass.

Also I would say the Vietnam War.
 
I'm British. We're currently made to feel guilty about everything that has happened in our history, even if we didn't start it. It's the PC group. If your white and male anything bad in the past is your fault, especially if you speak English as your first language.
 
Mycernius said:
I'm British. We're currently made to feel guilty about everything that has happened in our history, even if we didn't start it. It's the PC group. If your white and male anything bad in the past is your fault, especially if you speak English as your first language.


I understand, Mycernius -- but, in your opinion at self-examination of your own country`s history, what would you say would be the top three things you feel is a shameful blot on your country`s past?
 
Not really caused by the 'country' or its government but mostly one man, the genocide of millions of Congolese by the private recruits of king Leopold II of Belgium. It is important to know that Congo was then Leopold's "private possession" and had no connection with the Belgian state (the monarch was already just a constitutional one with almost no political power). I can't think of anything else... Usually Belgian people had the role of the 'victim' not of the oppressor, as the country only got its independence from foreign powers in 1830.
 
All history of Russia from the moment genocide of her - "christening " and till now...:angel:
 

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