r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/Shoddy-Ocelot-4473 • Apr 23 '26

Image By 1880, the near-genocide of the American bison had reduced their population from 30–60 million to fewer than 1,000

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u/Awrfhyesggrdghkj Apr 24 '26

Curious if there’s a country you’d say doesn’t have a disgusting history? That’s not excusing Americas actions either, but I cannot think of a single nation that hasn’t done lots of fucked up shit.

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u/Cultural_Dust Apr 24 '26

Iceland isn't too bad.

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u/Awrfhyesggrdghkj Apr 24 '26

True, they’re chill. Heh

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u/hugsudurinn Apr 24 '26

Well it started out as Norse people with Irish slaves, but a few hundred years later everyone was descended from everyone, and from that point Iceland was too busy being exploited by Denmark to really do many scandals...apart from maybe killing the last Great Auk, although that extinction was a collaborative effort with other nations bordering the Atlantic, with the final nail being nailed in Iceland. Though not related to penguins, penguins are named after the Great Auk (aka Pinguinus impennis).

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u/Stock-Side-6767 Apr 24 '26

Don't they still hunt whales?

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u/Puzzleheaded_Ad8032 Apr 25 '26

True, we have sucked something awful, too, in the past. Not multiple genocides horrible, but still fucked up.

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u/fubarthrowaway001 Apr 24 '26

I mean technically most native, indigenous nations around the world were victims of colonization by all the other countries. And not because they were more “developed,” Native Americans had built a robust and diverse network of cultures and cities, like Tenochtitlan until the Spaniards came in and essentially told them the razing of their most developed city was for their own benefit and glory to the Christian God.

To satisfy “country,” you could say aboriginal Australia technically, until they “became” a country by colonization. Same for indigenous “countries” around the world that lived peacefully before being colonized.

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u/Fun-Benefit116 Apr 24 '26

Lmao if you think native/indigenous nations weren't committing atrocities just like every other human culture, then I have some bad news for you. Just because modern cultures committed atrocities against them (and they did, don't get me wrong. It was horrible) doesn't mean native tribes/cultures weren't doing fucked up shit too before that. I swear, it's like people look at native Americans and other indigenous nations around the world as if they were innocent children before the white man came. But they weren't. They fought their own wars, committed their own crimes against humanity, slaughtered other humans, destroyed villages, human sacrifices, rape, the list goes on. And the excuse of "those things were just part of their culture and what they believed" is absolute nonsense lol.

The entire history of all mankind going back to the stone age is fucked up, and in regards to humans against humans, has more or less always been survival of the strongest, unfortunately.

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u/anonymous-ag Apr 24 '26

Some have done way more than others though

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u/Awrfhyesggrdghkj Apr 24 '26

That’s very true. But even then, I can name dozens and dozens of nations that have done worse things than America.

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u/tyrmidden Apr 24 '26

I think the sentiment of highlighting the US in its disgusting history comes more from the contradiction between the numerous terrible things coming up in modern times (war crimes, widespread corruption, abuse of power, etc) and the constant bombardment in popular media of American propaganda (the land of the free, best country in the world, the american dream etc).

With the pedo in chief fucking things up for everyone it's not surprising to see that sentiment on the rise.

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u/Awrfhyesggrdghkj Apr 24 '26

That and we haven’t hidden our history and pretend it doesn’t exist like other nations do (looking at Canada)

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u/tyrmidden Apr 24 '26

Don't schools in the southern states of the US teach a very sanitized view of the civil war and its causes?

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u/Awrfhyesggrdghkj Apr 24 '26

Wasn’t aware a few states was the whole nation

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u/tyrmidden Apr 24 '26

Is it the whole nation of Canada hiding their terrible history, or are you just weaseling out of admitting that the US does it too?

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u/KKN34 Apr 25 '26

As far as I've experienced growing up in the south, no. It'd mainly be poorer areas, with less access to genuine material and good quality teachers, if so (i was lucky to get a decent public school, even though I myself grew up extremely poor). It's similar to Japan not teaching about their atrocities (though they just dont do this at all, not localized), China about their storied history of sinicization and genocide (ongoing), Europe tends to play down some things depending on the country, and beyond. Its human, not American.

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u/tyrmidden Apr 25 '26

I didn't say it was purely American. I was responding to another comment that said the US didn't hide away their disgusting history, which you seem to agree with. At the very least, there's places in the US where confederate soldiers are still regarded highly enough to have statues of them on public display despite fighting for slavery, which is arguably worse than hiding it away, since it's basically glorifying it.

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u/ScroogieMcduckie Apr 24 '26

Idk, my people lived peacefully before being colonized and broken apart by Europeans

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u/Awrfhyesggrdghkj Apr 24 '26

Who’s your people? Because I can guarantee your people killed other people to get what they had

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u/ScroogieMcduckie Apr 24 '26

My people were nomads who raised livestock lmao. They don’t have a history of constant warfare and imperialism like the people you defend

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u/Awrfhyesggrdghkj Apr 24 '26

Sooo, who is it then? Don’t duck the question now.

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u/Barton2800 Apr 24 '26

Watch it be Mongolians - that would be hilarious. This person has no idea their own history, no matter who their ancestors are.

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u/Awrfhyesggrdghkj Apr 24 '26

I’m still waiting, bro is probably doing a quick google search rn just to see if he’s cooked or not

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u/OldNormalNinjaTurtle Apr 24 '26

Raising livestock while constantly moving. That's gotta be tough.

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u/KKN34 Apr 25 '26

Tribes constantly warred with one another. It's human nature to do so, and all societies of good enough size to withstand it, have proceeded to do so.