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The common theme in all of these EOs seems to be concentrating power to the executive branch, and scapegoating wokeness/dei so that people can celebrate/panic o

The common theme in all of these EOs seems to be concentrating power to the executive branch, and scapegoating wokeness/dei so that people can celebrate/panic over culture warring nonsense. Trump is also floating the idea of booting criminals who are citizens out of the country. I don't want to panic, but we're only a week in, and trajectory of all this is very terrifying to me. I'm not sure what, if anything, I can do on an individual level.

scrollaway 2y ago
You can leave. I encourage Americans to look at alternatives. My country (Belgium) as well as most of Europe will welcome you and many other highly skilled migrants for in-demand jobs such as programming and other tech adjacent jobs. Cost of life here is lower and life is nice. You get your pick of a country; many are different and give you access to different cultures across the EU. Of course don’t get me wrong, things are veering far-right here as well, but it’s nothing compared to the US and you’ll be shocked how much nicer life is when you can walk to get groceries instead of having to bring your pickup truck. In a few years, when things have calmed down (they eventually will), you can go back and help fix whatever mess the US has been left in. And as usual if you do want to take up the opportunity of moving to Europe and you’re serious about it, feel free to email me (see profile), I will do what I can to guide and advise you.
- cudgy 2y ago
  Can you walk and find groceries in all areas of Belgium? I live in the US and I can walk to two large grocery stores, but I know there are large swathes of the US that you cannot do that. Is that any different than Belgium? Belgium has significant opportunities for software developers? Interesting. I thought many were struggling for these jobs. By the way, in the United States, most of the backlash against immigrants is against low skill, immigrants sneaking across the border. I find it interesting that you mention that you are welcoming of people that you need, yet you imply that those that don’t want unneeded laborers are right wing. You just made the same error. So you’re right wing too, right?
  - ninalanyon 2y ago
    In most of Europe if you are in any kind of town or a village of more than a few hundred people there will at least be a small supermarket within easy walking distance, say one kilometre. And if you are in any reasonable sized town, say a few tens of thousands or more then there will be multiple supermarkets within that range. Belgium is one of the most densely populated countries in the world so you won't find many places that are too far from a supermarket to walk to.
    - cudgy 2y ago
      In the US, small grocery stores are called convenience stores. Almost all small towns have one or more of these within a kilometer of most people in that town. Now you aren’t gonna find fancy organic produce at these stores, but the quality of food in the US is probably not generally as good as what you have in Europe. Anyway, comparing a small country like Belgium (approximately the size of the state of Maryland) to a huge vast country like the United States is not a valid comparison.
      - dmonitor 2y ago
        > Almost all small towns have one or more of these within a kilometer of most people in that town I find this hard to believe based on my lived experience in the southeast US. Where I live, there are stores a moderate walk away (still over a km) that are completely unreachable from where people live because they require crossing 4-6 lanes of traffic with no crosswalk or pedestrian route. > Anyway, comparing a small country like Belgium (approximately the size of the state of Maryland) to a huge vast country like the United States is not a valid comparison. This is a valid point.
  - scrollaway 2y ago
    > I find it interesting that you mention that you are welcoming of people that you need, yet you imply that those that don’t want unneeded laborers are right wing. You just made the same error. So you’re right wing too, right? I don't welcome or reject any "type" of migrant, because I don't work in politics nor at any of the public institutions in charge of this. What I said is factual: Belgium, as well as most countries, /will/ be welcoming of high-skill migrants for jobs that are in-demand (and are likely to be a budget positive), and less welcoming towards people who do not have a prospect to get a job (and are likely to be a budget negative). This isn't a political statement, nor is it me being more or less welcoming of people. If you want my personal feelings: the people I'm less tolerant/welcoming for are those that have been so used to picking political fights with everybody, and who are in such an advanced state of Facebook-brainrot, that they see political statements everywhere, such as in a harmless HN thread offering assistance to people who want to move. Those, I don't want in my country. They can go take a swim in their favourite Gulf.
nickff 2y ago
This is just an extension of the Mexico City Policy type behavior that has been going on for a long time; there isn’t much new under the Sun. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexico_City_policy https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexico_City_policy

scrollaway 2y ago

You can leave. I encourage Americans to look at alternatives. My country (Belgium) as well as most of Europe will welcome you and many other highly skilled migrants for in-demand jobs such as programming and other tech adjacent jobs. Cost of life here is lower and life is nice. You get your pick of a country; many are different and give you access to different cultures across the EU. Of course don’t get me wrong, things are veering far-right here as well, but it’s nothing compared to the US and you’ll be shocked how much nicer life is when you can walk to get groceries instead of having to bring your pickup truck. In a few years, when things have calmed down (they eventually will), you can go back and help fix whatever mess the US has been left in. And as usual if you do want to take up the opportunity of moving to Europe and you’re serious about it, feel free to email me (see profile), I will do what I can to guide and advise you.

cudgy 2y ago
Can you walk and find groceries in all areas of Belgium? I live in the US and I can walk to two large grocery stores, but I know there are large swathes of the US that you cannot do that. Is that any different than Belgium? Belgium has significant opportunities for software developers? Interesting. I thought many were struggling for these jobs. By the way, in the United States, most of the backlash against immigrants is against low skill, immigrants sneaking across the border. I find it interesting that you mention that you are welcoming of people that you need, yet you imply that those that don’t want unneeded laborers are right wing. You just made the same error. So you’re right wing too, right?
- ninalanyon 2y ago
  In most of Europe if you are in any kind of town or a village of more than a few hundred people there will at least be a small supermarket within easy walking distance, say one kilometre. And if you are in any reasonable sized town, say a few tens of thousands or more then there will be multiple supermarkets within that range. Belgium is one of the most densely populated countries in the world so you won't find many places that are too far from a supermarket to walk to.
  - cudgy 2y ago
    In the US, small grocery stores are called convenience stores. Almost all small towns have one or more of these within a kilometer of most people in that town. Now you aren’t gonna find fancy organic produce at these stores, but the quality of food in the US is probably not generally as good as what you have in Europe. Anyway, comparing a small country like Belgium (approximately the size of the state of Maryland) to a huge vast country like the United States is not a valid comparison.
    - dmonitor 2y ago
      > Almost all small towns have one or more of these within a kilometer of most people in that town I find this hard to believe based on my lived experience in the southeast US. Where I live, there are stores a moderate walk away (still over a km) that are completely unreachable from where people live because they require crossing 4-6 lanes of traffic with no crosswalk or pedestrian route. > Anyway, comparing a small country like Belgium (approximately the size of the state of Maryland) to a huge vast country like the United States is not a valid comparison. This is a valid point.
- scrollaway 2y ago
  > I find it interesting that you mention that you are welcoming of people that you need, yet you imply that those that don’t want unneeded laborers are right wing. You just made the same error. So you’re right wing too, right? I don't welcome or reject any "type" of migrant, because I don't work in politics nor at any of the public institutions in charge of this. What I said is factual: Belgium, as well as most countries, /will/ be welcoming of high-skill migrants for jobs that are in-demand (and are likely to be a budget positive), and less welcoming towards people who do not have a prospect to get a job (and are likely to be a budget negative). This isn't a political statement, nor is it me being more or less welcoming of people. If you want my personal feelings: the people I'm less tolerant/welcoming for are those that have been so used to picking political fights with everybody, and who are in such an advanced state of Facebook-brainrot, that they see political statements everywhere, such as in a harmless HN thread offering assistance to people who want to move. Those, I don't want in my country. They can go take a swim in their favourite Gulf.

nickff 2y ago

This is just an extension of the Mexico City Policy type behavior that has been going on for a long time; there isn’t much new under the Sun. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexico_City_policy https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexico_City_policy