Exceptionalism (1/1)

[weird_number]

Title: Exceptionalism (1/1)
Rating: PG13
Genre: Angst, Hurt/Comfort
Warnings: odd headcanon?
Summary: The aftermath of the financial crisis is not a pretty sight. America doesn't want anyone to come over anymore, and England just wants to know why.
Pairings, Characters: tiny, almost nonexistent amounts of US/UK/US, Canada

Comments

[shibbyone]

I really, really liked this take on America in the financial situation. My headcanon dictates that in the latter half of the 20th century his boss made him/built him a house to keep him close by, but up until then he lived wherever he could afford on side jobs because being a nation wasn't a "job", it was a "responsibility". ANYWAY, this is excellent. America, shadow of his former self, especially in comparison to the rapid economic growth from the beginning of the 20th century. I feel as if this may scare off people who don't understand/like economics/politics but it was a worthy read.

[weird_number]

Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed my version of post-financial crisis America. =) And yesss - I like the idea that being a nation is viewed as his responsibility -- I actually wanted to write more on the side jobs he'd have taken on (and the stress involved in them), but I got...lazy.

I did hesitate in posting this because, well, I was afraid it may have been too political, but I guess I've already skirted the line too much, haha..

[ren_chan146]

Wow, this story was amazing. It was so well written and realistic I liked it a lot.
The part with those bankers who tied America down and robbed him made me shiver. I felt so bad for the poor devil.
Since I live in a country that wasn't affected too bad by the crisis I never realized how bad it really was on the other side of the Atlantic. The news didn't really talk much about the common people more about those who caused all this trouble.
Thank you very much for sharing this with us.

[weird_number]

Thank you, glad you enjoyed! :D

Aw, that's unfortunate, but I suppose from an outside perspective it makes more sense to report on the people causing problems. But I have to say that I felt like the media in the US also doesn't report much on your average American's experiences. There were a few interviews, but (imo) not enough. I guess most of what I wrote was gathered from irl friends and various forums.

[gramarye1971]

I like this take on the financial crisis far better than just about any other version I've read. It's painful and so very real -- the paying-with-yuan aspect in particular makes me wince every time I think about it. America's frustration and shame, the finger-pointing and taunts of his fellow nations (and the rapaciousness of his own financial institutions), the misery of it all comes through so clearly. I'll be thinking about this for quite a while yet, and to me that's a sign of a really great fic. Thanks so much for sharing this!

(That said, England's confession at the end has given me a fic idea in which England ends up being thrown in debtors prison after losing the American Revolution, and stews in his own fury and resentment for just over a decade until he's 'pardoned' by the government so that he can fight France in the Napoleonic Wars...you will absolutely get credit for the idea if I do end up writing it!)

[weird_number]

Thanks! ;D I'm glad all those emotions came through! I wanted to write this idea for quite a while, so I ended up using bits and pieces of it in multi-chapter stuff, but never really fully fleshed it out until now.

That idea sounds really interesting! Post-revolution England stewing in debtor's prison -- I'd love to see this! =)

[berseker]

... wow

This is so... so powerful and cruel and amazing. I'm glad it was a one shot, because waiting for the next chapters would have made me go crazy. GAH. I love America and England and Canada and I spent the whole thing hoping someone would reach to him and just, I don't know, HOLD HIM. The way you write is so intense, and it never gets purple or melodramatic, it's just... strong. I really loved this fic.

[weird_number]

Heh, I actually considered splitting it into two parts, but then got lazy and just put it all into one. ;D

Yeah, I kind of wanted them to just all get together and have a group hug!

And thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[runecat3]

It is kind of tiring when everyone only sees the small number of bad people in a country and thinks the whole place is that way... It's weird, too, to think that even on a scale as large as being a country, having lots of money seems to cause the same problems as it does to everyone else. And then putting it much more lightly I told a teacher of mine once (who was complaining about the economy and stuff) that we're basically a 19 year-old kid who maxed out his credit card because he forgot it does in fact have a limit. I happen to live in a much more stable area, but I have heard of the plights of many other places, and reading this makes it more into reality unlike the various news stories I've heard. And I think I dislike the big banks even more now, if that was ever possible

[weird_number]

Yeah, it truly is. D: I mean, the average person has nothing to do with the people at the top, and the majority of people in all countries capable of being nice.

I used to live in a very stable area, then I moved, my dad lost his job after buying a house at the height of foreclosures (house hunting with them was how I saw those crazy puncture wounds in the walls of many bank owned places), somehow found another one, and ..haha, the entire story is way too long and complex, so I guess I've just seen a large range of events.

Hehe, I'm glad that you liked the happy-ish ending. =) I mean, the entire matter isn't life threatening (yet), so he's got to move on, with the help of his friends. (That, and I'm a fan of hope as well, haha)

[runecat3]

I could easily feel the frustration you portrayed him as having felt. (I got into a few arguments pointlessly once about something similar. Actually I once read an article that turned into pointless bashing before some nice, sane people came along and won over everyone when they mentioned how a country's people aren't necessarily at fault when their own institutions are holding their well-being hostage.) orz Similar things have happened before though, and we've triumphed in the past

[weird_number]

Yeah, it is frustrating, I see too many articles like that, but I don't have the time to actually participate/intervene. D:

I can definitely see myself lashing out...in fact, I remember the realtors were always really annoyed by the destruction of the foreclosed houses, but I felt like I could understand where the original owners were coming from. =/

Exactly, worse has happened before and the country survived. I hear a lot of doomsday-speak about the "fall of the American Empire", and my reaction is kind of like...well, it depends on how you fall. If you fall like Britain, then I fail to see how that's "falling" at all. Just because you're not #1 at everything doesn't mean that the average citizen can't enjoy a high standard of living. ;)