2 ms·

I garner a _lot_ of downvotes every time I mention that the US in many locales shares more in common with a third world country than a first world country. So m

I garner a _lot_ of downvotes every time I mention that the US in many locales shares more in common with a third world country than a first world country. So many people seem addicted to the notion of US cultural superiority because their jobs pay the most. Go on YouTube or Google street view and see for yourself. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1MveHv1lTVBzdM5VYZkcBQ/videos https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1MveHv1lTVBzdM5VYZkcBQ/vid... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opo3OuUae5w https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opo3OuUae5w https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UNvEcR_jM8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UNvEcR_jM8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otwgkeJyuSo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otwgkeJyuSo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKutkXy1Eeo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKutkXy1Eeo

_huayra_ 5y ago
Yeah the "highest salaries = best country!" trend is strong on HN, but high salaries can't really buy you the things you get basically for free in a different country due to culture / government differences. Turns out you can buy a lot of infrastructure and social welfare programs with all the tax revenue not spent on $100 rolls of toilet paper and bombs for secret wars halfway around the world cuz "freedumb!". Even when people point out how those "other countries" may tax you like crazy (which is only half true), the amount of time wealth you get back is significant, e.g. grade-school kids commonly commute to and from school by public transit where I live now (although sometimes with a chaperone if they're too young) and women go running at night in the relatively unlit park near my house, which I never saw where I lived in the US (even in relatively safe burbs). You also don't really have to own a gigantic money-sucking vehicle that you have to worry about insuring, parking, damaging, etc, in most European cities either.
systemvoltage 5y ago
Instead of anecdotes, how about we look at objective data? https://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/ https://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/

_huayra_ 5y ago

Yeah the "highest salaries = best country!" trend is strong on HN, but high salaries can't really buy you the things you get basically for free in a different country due to culture / government differences. Turns out you can buy a lot of infrastructure and social welfare programs with all the tax revenue not spent on $100 rolls of toilet paper and bombs for secret wars halfway around the world cuz "freedumb!". Even when people point out how those "other countries" may tax you like crazy (which is only half true), the amount of time wealth you get back is significant, e.g. grade-school kids commonly commute to and from school by public transit where I live now (although sometimes with a chaperone if they're too young) and women go running at night in the relatively unlit park near my house, which I never saw where I lived in the US (even in relatively safe burbs). You also don't really have to own a gigantic money-sucking vehicle that you have to worry about insuring, parking, damaging, etc, in most European cities either.

systemvoltage 5y ago

Instead of anecdotes, how about we look at objective data? https://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/ https://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/