I agree to the extent that America has never lived up to its ideals. With a history of mass slavery, genocide and ethnic cleansing against native Americans, suppression of the press, book burning, oppression of women which are all things that are contrary to the ideals of Liberty and democracy. Where others only see the hypocrisy and the corruption of those ideals, I see a nation which is trying to maintain those ideals of Liberty and become better at their practice. The important thing about America is that its ideals of Liberty and Democracy are worth believing in and fighting for. That we don't always, or even usually, live up to those ideals is disheartening. Whatever your take on the current state of America, we all need to be better at telling the difference between rhetoric and reality, but that doesn't mean we become cynical about our own ideals. It just means when we fall short we try harder.