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This is not an isolated case either. I don't mean facebook-comment-wise, but rather wtf-wise. From Internet, through airports and car stops to interacting with
by rplnt 13y ago
This is not an isolated case either. I don't mean facebook-comment-wise, but rather wtf-wise. From Internet, through airports and car stops to interacting with random strangers. Lot's of horrific stories where you end up in the justice system, while done absolutely nothing that breaks the law or would endanger someone in any way.
But maybe because the US is so big it's bound to happen sometimes? I don't know, but USA is certainly not on my want-to-visit list (though it's on a wish-to-visit along with Pakistan).
- Nux 13y agoUSA is a lovely country, too bad it's inhabited. ;-)
- ItendToDisagree 13y agoThat didn't stop the original European settlers now did it? ;D
- Nux 13y agoYep, they sure liked it. The above is an expression we use a lot in my own country (Romania): "Our country is great, too bad it's inhabited". It can easily be extended to any country, imho. :)
- jaimebuelta 13y agoI've heard the expression (in Spanish), but referring to the particular people living there (and other countries). "America is great, too bad it's full of Americans" (change to any country that you want to mock)
- Kurtz79 13y agoAlways liked this (my traslation from the Italian translation of the original): "What is Heaven like? It has everything at its best: delicious food, classy wines, mild climate, superb views from all sides. A bit like France, but without the French." (Jeremy Pascall)
- RexRollman 13y agoThat's the same reason I don't want to see humans on Mars. I can't think of anything that improved with the presence of humans.
- nathan_long 13y agoImproved for whom?
- bronson 13y agoHacker News?
- mjolk 13y agoShut up. This snide comment isn't even cute. The US is vastly better than many parts of the world and we get a disproportionate amount of attention on our ills because we're an economic powerhouse that does many things. The country is a collection of states that each have their boons and drawbacks. Texas is near (or at) last in public education. Don't make public threats to kill children in a state that might not understand or care about sarcastic context.
- jonhohle 13y ago> Texas is near (or at) last in public education. According to what metric? They rank in the the top 25% in US News rankings, 14th in Quality Counts rankings, and have one of the highest high school completion rates in the country. I would imagine that Austin in particular is probably over average compared to much of the rest of the state due to the number of colleges in the area and significant tech sector.
- nitrogen 13y agoThis is the first time I've ever read the words "Shut up" on HN. I am disappointed.
- albertop 13y agoActually CA is at the bottom 48 or 49.
- drjesusphd 13y agoBe careful. Some people might take that as a threat. My country has lost its damn mind.
- asadlionpk 13y agoOn the other hand, you are most welcome to Pakistan :) I assure you things are more sane here contrary to what you usually hear on TV.
- rplnt 13y agoI haven't heard good things about foreigners in north (alps) though.
- asadlionpk 13y agothings are way exaggerated. We (and almost everyone I know here in South) usually go visit the beautiful north every year or two.
- selimthegrim 13y agoSeconding this. The north is one of the safest areas for foreigners. I would give Chitral, Swat and especially Peshawar a miss right now, but Neelum Valley, Skardu, etc, and north are all fine. http://www.rockandice.com/lates-news/tnb-is-pakistan-safe-for-climbers?page=2 http://www.rockandice.com/lates-news/tnb-is-pakistan-safe-fo...
- mjolk 13y agoAmerica is pretty good -- don't anecdotes from the internet says deter you. We're a collection of states that each are allowed to do things more or less their own way. Texas is one of the states with serious issues surrounding illegal immigration, income, and education, but has about the same economic power as Canada.
- mcv 13y ago> America is pretty good -- don't anecdotes from the internet says deter you. It's not merely anecdotes; there's plenty of hard data. The US locks up more people in absolute numbers than any country in the world, including China, which has 4 times the population and a totalitarian government. Per capita, the only countries with more inmates are a handful of tiny Carribean islands, I believe. Law enforcement is structurally not being held accountable. Stories about police officers killing or tazering unarmed and even disabled people abound, usually followed up by a story that nobody got charged with any wrongdoing (except maybe the victim). In talks online, I notice that a lot of Americans are afraid of the police. Tons of websites warn not to say anything to the police. The message that the police cannot be trusted is everywhere. This is not the image of healthy, democratic, rule of law. It's a police state.
- scarmig 13y agoFun fact: the USSR under Stalin and the gulag incarcerated fewer people than does the contemporary United States. http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2109777,00.html http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2109777...
- tinbad 13y agoThis is simply not true! Could you please provide a quote from where you got this in the article, because there seems to be no mention of it. My grandparents were lucky enough to survive the Stalinist regime but many of our family didn't. There's no reliable numbers of how many where imprisoned by Stalin and, even worse, how many died in prison camps. For the latter, even the most conservative estimates are in the millions.