Speaking as an American who emigrated to a Nordic country, when I go back to visit I feel like I'm leaving a more civilized land for a less civilized land. The

Speaking as an American who emigrated to a Nordic country, when I go back to visit I feel like I'm leaving a more civilized land for a less civilized land. The feeling largely comes from how harshly the US government treats its citizens, and how that harshness is an expression of public will. As but one example, in any forum discussing any infamous man on trial, and there is inevitably a significant number of people talking about how excited they are for him to be anally raped. Prison as a concept is an opportunity for average American to indulge their inner sadist. Related, no matter how well a company is paid to deliver services to the public, those services are inevitably sub-par, and expected to be so. Whether prisons, schools, public utilities, welfare, public transportation, medical care: if it's paid for by taxes, it's gotta be shitty. I don't like the response article, either. It's written in that grating, self-righteous tone of the smug moral scold. This is a person who is not actually helping, but helping himself build a reputation for helping, by moral screeching and bullying. At least the original essay was honest.