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The amount of poverty I saw in the States after coming from the UK was shocking to me. So much money in the country but for people at the bottom it was visibly
by maym86 8y ago
The amount of poverty I saw in the States after coming from the UK was shocking to me. So much money in the country but for people at the bottom it was visibly worse with much more homelessness and visible health problems.
- oh_sigh 8y agoWhere did you travel in the states?
- HarryHirsch 8y agoCan't speak for him, but long ago I took the wrong exit from the highway, ending up in North Philly. Merthyr Tydfil has nothing on North Philadelphia.
- thiagocsf 8y agoHow does it compare to Port Talbot?
- HarryHirsch 8y agoPort Talbot can't have improved with they closed the steelworks down, but it can't possibly compete with Philly, the level of decay is unimaginable to a person from Western Europe.
- Maarten88 8y agoI had the same experience, I was mostly in big, rich cities like NY, SF, LA, Seattle. From other travelers I heard when you travel deep into South Central US, you can find full-on third world scenery. It is shocking how many poor people are begging on the streets, in a country that is, on average, richer than where I live.
- ravitation 8y agoThe difference between urban and rural America is that in urban America you have the juxtaposition of wealth and poverty and in rural America you just have poverty.
- dustincoates 8y ago> From other travelers I heard when you travel deep into South Central US, you can find full-on third world scenery. Respectfully, the people who told you this were either vastly exaggerating or had zero sense of perspective. You're not finding houses in "South Central US" (not sure exactly what that refers to anyway) without running water or dirt floors. I actually grew up in the small town South and knew plenty of people who commuted into town from the country. Some were poor, sure, but "full-on third world scenery." Come on...
- ravitation 8y agoWell, unfortunately, having running water and having drinkable running water are not synonymous in the United States. Also, third world countries are not just countries without running water and dirt floors...
- dustincoates 8y agoNot at all, and I thought about being more explicit, but we both know that the gp wasn't referring to upper class third world neighborhoods.
- IOT_Apprentice 8y agoFirst world was non-communist NATO aligned countries. Communist countries were 2nd world, non-aligned with either were 3rd world. That said, American having protectorates where citizens don't have power, drinkable running water or cities where there is no drinkable running water are poor examples for a nation with such resources as the US.
- ravitation 8y ago
- maym86 8y agoTook the Amtrak across it stoping in a lot of places over 2 months. Most shocking was Memphis. It seemed incredibly poor. A lot of closed businesses and many people on the streets. I live in the Bay Area now and SF Civic Center is still incredible given all the money in the area.
- mbrodersen 8y agoSame experience for me visiting LA and Washington D.C. (I live in Melbourne, Australia). Very depressing. I hope things will turn around for the US.