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One could argue that US' cultural focus on its flavor of freedom is partly at fault for why GP characterizes it as Jurassic Park. In the movie, the characters h
by lhorie 5y ago
One could argue that US' cultural focus on its flavor of freedom is partly at fault for why GP characterizes it as Jurassic Park. In the movie, the characters had ample freedom to go wherever they wanted (even jumping over electric fences), but at the same time, that same freedom made it easy for them to run into predators. The ease with which a loose predator could find a person in the movie can be likened to the ease of getting into financial trouble in the US. Student debt is notoriously unforgiving, both in terms of raw dollar amount and bankruptcy rules, and the way the US healthcare is structured means there's an unusually high rate of medical bankruptcies compared to other rich countries. The US also leads the charts in average credit card debt. The US also doesn't have as strong social nets for unemployment and parental leave among other things (and for better or worse, there's an undeniable strong relationship between the american notion of freedom and the comparative lack of government-run social net programs).
To continue with the dinosaur park analogy, you could then look at a country like Canada as an alternative zoological park, where you must sacrifice a bit of freedom by staying within designated lanes, but in return you don't run into situations where medical debt beasts can bite your head off in the first place.
- nine_k 5y agoThe founding fathers gave a very fair warning: "The price of liberty is eternal vigilance". That is, a constant expectation of a threat from the environment, even if it's benign most of the time. So the park's elements are here by design.
- cowpig 5y ago1. That is a spurious quotation[1] 2. Your interpretation of its meaning is, frankly, bizarre [1] https://www.monticello.org/site/research-and-collections/eternal-vigilance-price-liberty-spurious-quotation https://www.monticello.org/site/research-and-collections/ete...
- zepto 5y agoThe idea that financial predators are by design, is indeed bizarre. However the idea that they are one of the kinds of threat that a democracy needs to be vigilant against doesn’t seem bizarre in the least.
- chrisweekly 5y agoMedical debt, consumer credit card debt, and student loans, are three radically different beasts, on every meaningful axis.
- heavyset_go 5y agoThe flavor of freedom the US embodies is the freedom to crash and burn. I'd prefer the freedom to flourish, even if that means limiting the freedom to prey upon the vulnerable and desperate.
- actually_a_dog 5y agoIt's a very classic "freedom to" versus "freedom from" dichotomy. You and I would rather have more "freedom from," even if it limits our "freedom to." The US system as a whole tends to tilt the other way, however.
- 3np 5y agoThe problem with this reasoning is that in so many ways, the USA is very non-free and just a cultural meme. You can get thrown in jail for: holding the wrong kind of plant; associating/trading with/helping a persona-non-grata or a person from the “wrong” country; speaking up about military misconduct; sharing a copy of music you bought with friends... And that’s just what’s imposed by by federal law. “The land of the free” is a mirage and hasn’t been reality for decades, maybe centuries.
- lhorie 5y agoPointing out that you can get be thrown in jail for breaking the law isn't really a good argument. The alternative to rule of law is anarchy. Just because you don't agree with specific laws doesn't mean freedom is a lie. Besides, the point wasn't about platonic freedom, but instead about a specific flavor of "freedom" that exists in US culture. In the dinosaur park analogy, the electric fences can be likened to government safety net programs. As you may be familiar with, there is a political faction in the US that dislikes the idea of being "forced" to pay taxes to fund programs to help the less fortunate, and a lot of the issues related to various forms of crushing debt stem from that ideology that a rich person should be "free" to be selfish.
- profile53 5y agoHowever, when the laws greatly restrict one’s ability to do things, are they really free? Whether or not you agree with a law, laws are nearly always aimed at restricting people.
- ethbr0 5y agoPaying higher tax rates to fund social safety nets is a law that impacts freedom too. The US' top federal marginal rate of 37% is pretty low. In countries with more expansivo safety nets, it looks like it's up around 50%.
- actually_a_dog 5y ago