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Suppose you were to take an Indian a Chinese, or a Mexican and drop them in the US. Drop them 2 hours from NYC (Princeton or Long Island?), give them permission

Suppose you were to take an Indian a Chinese, or a Mexican and drop them in the US. Drop them 2 hours from NYC (Princeton or Long Island?), give them permission to work, and nothing else. Do you think this person will be stuck in poverty forever, given that he's cut off from opportunity by a 2 hour train ride? Also, I find your claim that people in New Haven or Poughkeepsie (approx 2 hours away) don't know they could find work in NYC simply implausible. I've had random conversations in broken Hindi with auto drivers; when they ask where I'm from and I tell them "New York", they immediately recognize it. Random people in South America, SE Asia, etc all seem to have a pretty good picture of what NYC is. Yet somehow someone from Allentown, PA doesn't?

rayiner 10y ago
As someone from Bangladesh, I think it's utterly ridiculous that you keep talking about how much better poor Americans have it than Indians or Chinese. So what? What does it matter that people from countries were things are desperately bad are willing to trade places with people who are in a pretty bad situation in a great country? It's utterly irrelevant.
- yummyfajitas 10y ago
  It's hardly irrelevant. My claim is that the Indian, Bangladeshi or Chinese will better themselves and move up in the world, while the American refuses to do so. That implies that it's the American's choices, rather than his circumstances, which cause him to be poor. How is that irrelevant?
  - searealist 10y ago
    The _average_ Indian, Bangladeshi or Chinese will move up in the world? I get the impression that you are comparing the exceptional people from those countries to the lowest performing Americans. Also, if the average person from those countries is so much more industrious than Americans, why do they need to come to America to enjoy a good life?
    - yummyfajitas 10y ago
      You seem to be agreeing with me. My claim is that some humans are high quality (quality in the sense of having traits that allow them to improve their economic station) and will escape poverty. Other humans are low quality and will not. I.e., quality of the human rather is what matters, and circumstances can be overcome. The only place you seem to disagree with me is that you think many Indians are low quality too. That could be true; I have no strong evidence one way or the other on that matter.
- twblalock 10y ago
  It's totally relevant, because it demonstrates that there are people in the world more worthy of help than poor Americans.

rayiner 10y ago

As someone from Bangladesh, I think it's utterly ridiculous that you keep talking about how much better poor Americans have it than Indians or Chinese. So what? What does it matter that people from countries were things are desperately bad are willing to trade places with people who are in a pretty bad situation in a great country? It's utterly irrelevant.

yummyfajitas 10y ago
It's hardly irrelevant. My claim is that the Indian, Bangladeshi or Chinese will better themselves and move up in the world, while the American refuses to do so. That implies that it's the American's choices, rather than his circumstances, which cause him to be poor. How is that irrelevant?
- searealist 10y ago
  The _average_ Indian, Bangladeshi or Chinese will move up in the world? I get the impression that you are comparing the exceptional people from those countries to the lowest performing Americans. Also, if the average person from those countries is so much more industrious than Americans, why do they need to come to America to enjoy a good life?
  - yummyfajitas 10y ago
    You seem to be agreeing with me. My claim is that some humans are high quality (quality in the sense of having traits that allow them to improve their economic station) and will escape poverty. Other humans are low quality and will not. I.e., quality of the human rather is what matters, and circumstances can be overcome. The only place you seem to disagree with me is that you think many Indians are low quality too. That could be true; I have no strong evidence one way or the other on that matter.
twblalock 10y ago
It's totally relevant, because it demonstrates that there are people in the world more worthy of help than poor Americans.