4 ms·

I understand where you're coming from, I'm not so sure though. Everything that isn't housing, healthcare, or higher education is vastly cheaper today than it w

I understand where you're coming from, I'm not so sure though. Everything that isn't housing, healthcare, or higher education is vastly cheaper today than it was before. Food especially. The 1960s was also the same time that rivers were so polluted they were catching fire. That would never happen today- and that has a cost associated with it. Your food is significantly safer. So is your water. So is your air. So is the building you're reading this in. There is vastly less crime. This has been expensive- we've locked a lot of people up to get there, and paid lots of money to police. The mafia is basically gone, and modern criminal organizations are pretty limited in scope north of the border. There are still bad places in the US, but there are awfully few no-go zones. Media is better now. It's cheaper, it's broader, it's better, it's more democratic. This is true both for news and entertainment. The national debt is a bullshit non-problem.

gred 13y ago
> The national debt is a bullshit non-problem. Can you elaborate? I ask because debt (along with domestic snooping) is at the top of my voting criteria right now -- city, state and national.
- astrange 13y ago
  The nation owes debt in USD, but controls the supply of USD and can always print more. This causes inflation as a side effect, which is not a problem, or you would have noticed it. I don't see why you should care about city debt either, unless you live somewhere near bankrupt. Interest rates are incredibly low meaning there is no better time to be in debt, and you probably have some crumbling public infrastructure in the area.
  - gaius 13y ago
    The flipside of that if course is if the rest of the world finally gets its act together and starts to trade oil in some other currency, the US implodes overnight. You're in a powerful position right now, but it is more precarious than you think.
    - antientropic 13y ago
      Paul Krugman would disagree with the odds of an "overnight implosion": http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/10/22/godwin-and-the-greenback/ http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/10/22/godwin-and-the-g...
      - gaius 13y ago
        Krugman's solution to every problem is to print more money. He's a one-trick pony.
drusenko 13y ago
> The national debt is a bullshit non-problem. i don't disagree with you, but i'd love to hear why you think that.
troisx 13y ago
The per capita homicide rate is 30% higher today than it was in 1950. What do you mean when you say there is "vastly less crime"?
- vacri 13y ago
  Per capita homicide rate is around the same today as it was in '67, the GP's reference year.
pdonis 13y ago
modern criminal organizations are pretty limited in scope north of the border So all those illegal drugs just magically appear from nowhere? There are still bad places in the US, but there are awfully few no-go zones How many major cities in the US have you been in? How many of them have no-go zones? How many compared to 1950?

gred 13y ago

> The national debt is a bullshit non-problem. Can you elaborate? I ask because debt (along with domestic snooping) is at the top of my voting criteria right now -- city, state and national.

astrange 13y ago
The nation owes debt in USD, but controls the supply of USD and can always print more. This causes inflation as a side effect, which is not a problem, or you would have noticed it. I don't see why you should care about city debt either, unless you live somewhere near bankrupt. Interest rates are incredibly low meaning there is no better time to be in debt, and you probably have some crumbling public infrastructure in the area.
- gaius 13y ago
  The flipside of that if course is if the rest of the world finally gets its act together and starts to trade oil in some other currency, the US implodes overnight. You're in a powerful position right now, but it is more precarious than you think.
  - antientropic 13y ago
    Paul Krugman would disagree with the odds of an "overnight implosion": http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/10/22/godwin-and-the-greenback/ http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/10/22/godwin-and-the-g...
    - gaius 13y ago
      Krugman's solution to every problem is to print more money. He's a one-trick pony.

drusenko 13y ago

> The national debt is a bullshit non-problem. i don't disagree with you, but i'd love to hear why you think that.

troisx 13y ago

The per capita homicide rate is 30% higher today than it was in 1950. What do you mean when you say there is "vastly less crime"?

vacri 13y ago
Per capita homicide rate is around the same today as it was in '67, the GP's reference year.

pdonis 13y ago

modern criminal organizations are pretty limited in scope north of the border So all those illegal drugs just magically appear from nowhere? There are still bad places in the US, but there are awfully few no-go zones How many major cities in the US have you been in? How many of them have no-go zones? How many compared to 1950?