5 ms·

>the more I've realized there's almost no aspect of American life worth preserving I would suggest living in a third or second world country without outside su

>the more I've realized there's almost no aspect of American life worth preserving I would suggest living in a third or second world country without outside support. I had your same mindset, and did that for a few years. I could not wait to come back.

jeffbee 6y ago
Actually it was living abroad in a third world nation that soured me on America. Bringing my children back to the USA was painful to me and disappointing to them.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- fastball 6y ago
  Which nation was this?
runawaybottle 6y ago
Even so, the third world is not our standard. We’re ready for the version two improvements by virtue of the iterative process, and our own expectations for ourselves.
chinesempire 6y ago
Have you ever really tried one for yourself? East Berlin used to be second World, but many of my American friends moved there because they were tired sick of being harassed by their own country brutality and would never go back. Even many African countries are safer than the US if you are black. On the other side, one of the most annoying kind of tourist you can find in my city, which is Rome in Italy, are Americans. They lack the basic notions about "respecting others cultures and habits"
- jsdevwork1 6y ago
  I sure have, Venezuela. No water, constant power failures, gas at 8-12 USD per gallon (controlled by the military police$$$, though that is a recent development), minimum wage at 5USD per month. Food at international prices. Basically non-existent judicial system. Police brutality several notches above what you see in the US.
  - yardie 6y ago
    So out of the 200+ countries you could have compared the US to you chose a failed state. There are many other 3rd world/developing countries who have fully functional governments.
  - chinesempire 6y ago
    Venezuela is in the state it is because, you know, US has tried to undermine its independence for decades. Anyway, I've been to US several times and food, outside of the big city, is of very low quality. Gas is pretty expensive in Europe too, is to discourage its consumption and favour power efficient vehicles. And btw, Venezuela is one of the larger producer of oil in the world, but US seized its control for a long time and when they nationalised it, US supported coups and the rise of the actual presidency and their brutal police. One day you'll start to feel responsible for what you did, and if you don't, the World will make you.
  - mcv 6y ago
    Obviously not every other country is the same. The situation is not that the US does everything one way, and the entire rest of the world does it another way; there are about 200 different countries, and they all do things differently in some ways. Some countries get most things right, some get most things wrong, but most countries get some things right and some things wrong. There's a lot to learn and improve by looking at how other countries solve their problems. This was also the topic of Michael Moore's Where To Invade Next. Instead of taking other countries' oil, the US should take other countries' ideas, and Moore had a couple of suggestions for interesting ideas from other countries, like school lunches from France, prison system from Norway, etc.
  - jessaustin 6y ago
- toomuchcabbage2 6y ago
  "Even many African countries are safer than the US if you are black." Good joke. Reference?
- pyuser583 6y ago
  I like how you used the phrase “second world.” Most people have forgotten that’s a thing. Now it’s just Belarus.
pyuser583 6y ago
Or even Western Europe. I’ve lived in the UK, and it absolutely gave me an appreciation for many aspects of American life. For example, municipal government and school boards. Yes they can go bad. But as the protestors in Minneapolis are showing, the city is extremely responsive because it is local. If there was a similar protest in Birmingham (UK), I can’t imagine the city disbanding the police department under any circumstances. It might result in parliament taking action. But the idea of independent municipal government is very lacking. Municipal governments in England are very much subordinate to Parliament. There’s a reason Blair was so pathetically and stupidly pro-American. America actually has a lot to offer.

jeffbee 6y ago

Actually it was living abroad in a third world nation that soured me on America. Bringing my children back to the USA was painful to me and disappointing to them.

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
fastball 6y ago
Which nation was this?

runawaybottle 6y ago

Even so, the third world is not our standard. We’re ready for the version two improvements by virtue of the iterative process, and our own expectations for ourselves.

chinesempire 6y ago

Have you ever really tried one for yourself? East Berlin used to be second World, but many of my American friends moved there because they were tired sick of being harassed by their own country brutality and would never go back. Even many African countries are safer than the US if you are black. On the other side, one of the most annoying kind of tourist you can find in my city, which is Rome in Italy, are Americans. They lack the basic notions about "respecting others cultures and habits"

jsdevwork1 6y ago
I sure have, Venezuela. No water, constant power failures, gas at 8-12 USD per gallon (controlled by the military police$$$, though that is a recent development), minimum wage at 5USD per month. Food at international prices. Basically non-existent judicial system. Police brutality several notches above what you see in the US.
- yardie 6y ago
  So out of the 200+ countries you could have compared the US to you chose a failed state. There are many other 3rd world/developing countries who have fully functional governments.
- chinesempire 6y ago
  Venezuela is in the state it is because, you know, US has tried to undermine its independence for decades. Anyway, I've been to US several times and food, outside of the big city, is of very low quality. Gas is pretty expensive in Europe too, is to discourage its consumption and favour power efficient vehicles. And btw, Venezuela is one of the larger producer of oil in the world, but US seized its control for a long time and when they nationalised it, US supported coups and the rise of the actual presidency and their brutal police. One day you'll start to feel responsible for what you did, and if you don't, the World will make you.
- mcv 6y ago
  Obviously not every other country is the same. The situation is not that the US does everything one way, and the entire rest of the world does it another way; there are about 200 different countries, and they all do things differently in some ways. Some countries get most things right, some get most things wrong, but most countries get some things right and some things wrong. There's a lot to learn and improve by looking at how other countries solve their problems. This was also the topic of Michael Moore's Where To Invade Next. Instead of taking other countries' oil, the US should take other countries' ideas, and Moore had a couple of suggestions for interesting ideas from other countries, like school lunches from France, prison system from Norway, etc.
- jessaustin 6y ago
toomuchcabbage2 6y ago
"Even many African countries are safer than the US if you are black." Good joke. Reference?
pyuser583 6y ago
I like how you used the phrase “second world.” Most people have forgotten that’s a thing. Now it’s just Belarus.

pyuser583 6y ago

Or even Western Europe. I’ve lived in the UK, and it absolutely gave me an appreciation for many aspects of American life. For example, municipal government and school boards. Yes they can go bad. But as the protestors in Minneapolis are showing, the city is extremely responsive because it is local. If there was a similar protest in Birmingham (UK), I can’t imagine the city disbanding the police department under any circumstances. It might result in parliament taking action. But the idea of independent municipal government is very lacking. Municipal governments in England are very much subordinate to Parliament. There’s a reason Blair was so pathetically and stupidly pro-American. America actually has a lot to offer.