Is America the greatest country in the world?

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Comments

  • brianluxbrianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 42,274
    Better still:

    But, really, if we're using ketchup as the marker for which is the "greatest" country, does it matter?  :lol:
    "Pretty cookies, heart squares all around, yeah!"
    -Eddie Vedder, "Smile"

    "Try to not spook the horse."
    -Neil Young













  • Meltdown99Meltdown99 None Of Your Business... Posts: 10,739
    brianlux said:
    Better still:

    But, really, if we're using ketchup as the marker for which is the "greatest" country, does it matter?  :lol:
    All great empires had great ketchup...
    Give Peas A Chance…
  • brianluxbrianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 42,274
    brianlux said:
    Better still:

    But, really, if we're using ketchup as the marker for which is the "greatest" country, does it matter?  :lol:
    All great empires had great ketchup...
    Oui monsier!


    "Pretty cookies, heart squares all around, yeah!"
    -Eddie Vedder, "Smile"

    "Try to not spook the horse."
    -Neil Young













  • PJ_SoulPJ_Soul Vancouver, BC Posts: 49,986
    edited March 2019
    Interesting article about American capitalism vs European "socialism", with a lot of points that I happen to agree with (it was written by someone whose first language is not English btw, hence the grammatical issues). I think Eudaimonia & Co. is essentially a freelance political editorial publication, possibly based out of Morocco, but I'm not positive, and the author here seems to be a prolific political pundit who currently lives in London.

    How Capitalism Made Americans Poor, and Socialism Made Europeans Rich

    Capitalism Doesn’t Make Us Rich, and Socialism Doesn’t Make Us Poor — Socialism Makes Us Rich, and Capitalism Makes Us Poor.









    Post edited by PJ_Soul on
    With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be careful. Strive to be happy. ~ Desiderata
  • brianluxbrianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 42,274
    PJ_Soul said:
    Interesting article about American capitalism vs European "socialism", with a lot of points that I happen to agree with (it was written by someone whose first language is not English btw, hence the grammatical issues). I think Eudaimonia & Co. is essentially a freelance political editorial publication, possibly based out of Morocco, but I'm not positive, and the author here seems to be a prolific political pundit who currently lives in London.

    How Capitalism Made Americans Poor, and Socialism Made Europeans Rich

    Capitalism Doesn’t Make Us Rich, and Socialism Doesn’t Make Us Poor — Socialism Makes Us Rich, and Capitalism Makes Us Poor.









    I'll have to read this later, it sounds interesting.  My first reaction to the headlines is, "Yeah, that make's sense."  My second reaction is that if I were a third world person my reaction would be, "Neither of you Americans or Europeans know poor from rich from".
    "Pretty cookies, heart squares all around, yeah!"
    -Eddie Vedder, "Smile"

    "Try to not spook the horse."
    -Neil Young













  • Meltdown99Meltdown99 None Of Your Business... Posts: 10,739
    edited March 2019
    ...
    Give Peas A Chance…
  • Meltdown99Meltdown99 None Of Your Business... Posts: 10,739
    brianlux said:
    PJ_Soul said:
    Interesting article about American capitalism vs European "socialism", with a lot of points that I happen to agree with (it was written by someone whose first language is not English btw, hence the grammatical issues). I think Eudaimonia & Co. is essentially a freelance political editorial publication, possibly based out of Morocco, but I'm not positive, and the author here seems to be a prolific political pundit who currently lives in London.

    How Capitalism Made Americans Poor, and Socialism Made Europeans Rich

    Capitalism Doesn’t Make Us Rich, and Socialism Doesn’t Make Us Poor — Socialism Makes Us Rich, and Capitalism Makes Us Poor.









    I'll have to read this later, it sounds interesting.  My first reaction to the headlines is, "Yeah, that make's sense."  My second reaction is that if I were a third world person my reaction would be, "Neither of you Americans or Europeans know poor from rich from".
    I would agree.  3rd world countries must look at us westerners and go "REALLY".  Most of us have no clue to the daily struggles of so many.
    Give Peas A Chance…
  • Spiritual_ChaosSpiritual_Chaos Posts: 30,561
    edited March 2019
    brianlux said:
    PJ_Soul said:
    Interesting article about American capitalism vs European "socialism", with a lot of points that I happen to agree with (it was written by someone whose first language is not English btw, hence the grammatical issues). I think Eudaimonia & Co. is essentially a freelance political editorial publication, possibly based out of Morocco, but I'm not positive, and the author here seems to be a prolific political pundit who currently lives in London.

    How Capitalism Made Americans Poor, and Socialism Made Europeans Rich

    Capitalism Doesn’t Make Us Rich, and Socialism Doesn’t Make Us Poor — Socialism Makes Us Rich, and Capitalism Makes Us Poor.









    I'll have to read this later, it sounds interesting.  My first reaction to the headlines is, "Yeah, that make's sense."  My second reaction is that if I were a third world person my reaction would be, "Neither of you Americans or Europeans know poor from rich from".
    Still, people in a country like the US or wherever can fall under the threshold of poverty. 

    UNICEF's list of extreme poverty, why is the US -- if it is THE GREATEST COUNTRY IN THE UNIVERSE -- on this list?? So in the US kids don't get a proper meal at school, health care isn't seem as a human right AND you are among the countries with the highest level of EXTREME poverty?

    Something isn't adding up with this GREATEST COUNRY thing..


    Post edited by Spiritual_Chaos on
    "Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
  • cincybearcatcincybearcat Posts: 16,488
    brianlux said:
    PJ_Soul said:
    Interesting article about American capitalism vs European "socialism", with a lot of points that I happen to agree with (it was written by someone whose first language is not English btw, hence the grammatical issues). I think Eudaimonia & Co. is essentially a freelance political editorial publication, possibly based out of Morocco, but I'm not positive, and the author here seems to be a prolific political pundit who currently lives in London.

    How Capitalism Made Americans Poor, and Socialism Made Europeans Rich

    Capitalism Doesn’t Make Us Rich, and Socialism Doesn’t Make Us Poor — Socialism Makes Us Rich, and Capitalism Makes Us Poor.









    I'll have to read this later, it sounds interesting.  My first reaction to the headlines is, "Yeah, that make's sense."  My second reaction is that if I were a third world person my reaction would be, "Neither of you Americans or Europeans know poor from rich from".
    Still, people in a country like the US or wherever can fall under the threshold of poverty. 

    UNICEF's list of extreme poverty, why is the US -- if it is THE GREATEST COUNTRY IN THE UNIVERSE -- on this list?? So in the US kids don't get a proper meal at school, health care isn't seem as a human right AND you are among the countries with the highest level of EXTREME poverty?

    Something isn't adding up with this GREATEST COUNRY thing..


    I don’t know, but I would imagine the Us gets hit because of the health care more than anything else.


    hippiemom = goodness
  • Meltdown99Meltdown99 None Of Your Business... Posts: 10,739
    brianlux said:
    PJ_Soul said:
    Interesting article about American capitalism vs European "socialism", with a lot of points that I happen to agree with (it was written by someone whose first language is not English btw, hence the grammatical issues). I think Eudaimonia & Co. is essentially a freelance political editorial publication, possibly based out of Morocco, but I'm not positive, and the author here seems to be a prolific political pundit who currently lives in London.

    How Capitalism Made Americans Poor, and Socialism Made Europeans Rich

    Capitalism Doesn’t Make Us Rich, and Socialism Doesn’t Make Us Poor — Socialism Makes Us Rich, and Capitalism Makes Us Poor.









    I'll have to read this later, it sounds interesting.  My first reaction to the headlines is, "Yeah, that make's sense."  My second reaction is that if I were a third world person my reaction would be, "Neither of you Americans or Europeans know poor from rich from".
    Still, people in a country like the US or wherever can fall under the threshold of poverty. 

    UNICEF's list of extreme poverty, why is the US -- if it is THE GREATEST COUNTRY IN THE UNIVERSE -- on this list?? So in the US kids don't get a proper meal at school, health care isn't seem as a human right AND you are among the countries with the highest level of EXTREME poverty?

    Something isn't adding up with this GREATEST COUNRY thing..


    I don’t know, but I would imagine the Us gets hit because of the health care more than anything else.


    You will never be as great as Sweden or Europe...you might as well give it.
    Give Peas A Chance…
  • Meltdown99Meltdown99 None Of Your Business... Posts: 10,739
    Of course, the US isn't the greatest country in the world. But of all those countries on that list, in the US you stand a better than average chance to at least lift yourself out of poverty.  

    There is no greatest country in the world, many Canadians feel they live in the best country in the world, I'm sure plenty of Swedes do as well.  Be happy where you live is best...


    Give Peas A Chance…
  • cincybearcatcincybearcat Posts: 16,488
    brianlux said:
    PJ_Soul said:
    Interesting article about American capitalism vs European "socialism", with a lot of points that I happen to agree with (it was written by someone whose first language is not English btw, hence the grammatical issues). I think Eudaimonia & Co. is essentially a freelance political editorial publication, possibly based out of Morocco, but I'm not positive, and the author here seems to be a prolific political pundit who currently lives in London.

    How Capitalism Made Americans Poor, and Socialism Made Europeans Rich

    Capitalism Doesn’t Make Us Rich, and Socialism Doesn’t Make Us Poor — Socialism Makes Us Rich, and Capitalism Makes Us Poor.









    I'll have to read this later, it sounds interesting.  My first reaction to the headlines is, "Yeah, that make's sense."  My second reaction is that if I were a third world person my reaction would be, "Neither of you Americans or Europeans know poor from rich from".
    Still, people in a country like the US or wherever can fall under the threshold of poverty. 

    UNICEF's list of extreme poverty, why is the US -- if it is THE GREATEST COUNTRY IN THE UNIVERSE -- on this list?? So in the US kids don't get a proper meal at school, health care isn't seem as a human right AND you are among the countries with the highest level of EXTREME poverty?

    Something isn't adding up with this GREATEST COUNRY thing..


    I don’t know, but I would imagine the Us gets hit because of the health care more than anything else.


    You will never be as great as Sweden or Europe...you might as well give it.
    Well never stop striving! 
    hippiemom = goodness
  • Meltdown99Meltdown99 None Of Your Business... Posts: 10,739
    brianlux said:
    PJ_Soul said:
    Interesting article about American capitalism vs European "socialism", with a lot of points that I happen to agree with (it was written by someone whose first language is not English btw, hence the grammatical issues). I think Eudaimonia & Co. is essentially a freelance political editorial publication, possibly based out of Morocco, but I'm not positive, and the author here seems to be a prolific political pundit who currently lives in London.

    How Capitalism Made Americans Poor, and Socialism Made Europeans Rich

    Capitalism Doesn’t Make Us Rich, and Socialism Doesn’t Make Us Poor — Socialism Makes Us Rich, and Capitalism Makes Us Poor.









    I'll have to read this later, it sounds interesting.  My first reaction to the headlines is, "Yeah, that make's sense."  My second reaction is that if I were a third world person my reaction would be, "Neither of you Americans or Europeans know poor from rich from".
    Still, people in a country like the US or wherever can fall under the threshold of poverty. 

    UNICEF's list of extreme poverty, why is the US -- if it is THE GREATEST COUNTRY IN THE UNIVERSE -- on this list?? So in the US kids don't get a proper meal at school, health care isn't seem as a human right AND you are among the countries with the highest level of EXTREME poverty?

    Something isn't adding up with this GREATEST COUNRY thing..


    I don’t know, but I would imagine the Us gets hit because of the health care more than anything else.


    You will never be as great as Sweden or Europe...you might as well give it.
    Well never stop striving! 
    Good luck.  We in Canada have given up trying to be better than Sweden.  If we are not careful we will lose our edge to them in hockey, on second thought those pussy swede hockey players will never catch up...lol
    Give Peas A Chance…
  • Meltdown99Meltdown99 None Of Your Business... Posts: 10,739


    I can now see it.  Everyone is so HAPPY in Europe...they fart unicorn rainbows.

    Just look at how happy the French are.  They are protesting so they can pay more taxes...
    Give Peas A Chance…
  • HesCalledDyerHesCalledDyer Maryland Posts: 16,455


    Right-minded Canadians use French's...
    If I use ketchup, I use French's.
  • Spiritual_ChaosSpiritual_Chaos Posts: 30,561
    edited March 2019


    I can now see it.  Everyone is so HAPPY in Europe...they fart unicorn rainbows.

    Just look at how happy the French are.  They are protesting so they can pay more taxes...
    You sound a bit defensive. How come?

    Compare the shittiness-level of the police in France and the one in the US - do you really think the US would win? Whatever your anecdotal twitter-video show?  

    And I don't think anyone in here says Europe is perfect.
    Post edited by Spiritual_Chaos on
    "Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
  • rgambsrgambs Posts: 13,576
    CM189191 said:

    This is why I buy my ketchup from the Mexican grocer, same as my Coca-Cola : made with sugar, not HFCS.
    Hahahaha as if there is a difference!!!

    Guess what?
    There isn't.
    Monkey Driven, Call this Living?
  • Spiritual_ChaosSpiritual_Chaos Posts: 30,561
    rgambs said:
    CM189191 said:

    This is why I buy my ketchup from the Mexican grocer, same as my Coca-Cola : made with sugar, not HFCS.
    Hahahaha as if there is a difference!!!

    Guess what?
    There isn't.
    " Most of the Mexican Coke exported to the United States is made with cane sugar, while some Mexican bottlers may use high-fructose corn syrup for drinks intended for sale in Mexico.[4] Therefore, while most of the Coca-Cola labeled "Mexican" in the United States is made with cane sugar, this is not true of all Coca-Cola sold in Mexico."

    "
    A similar phenomenon exists in New Zealand, where Coca-Cola is available both bottled locally (sweetened with sugar) and imported from the United States (with high-fructose corn syrup)."
    "Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
  • brianluxbrianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 42,274
    brianlux said:
    PJ_Soul said:
    Interesting article about American capitalism vs European "socialism", with a lot of points that I happen to agree with (it was written by someone whose first language is not English btw, hence the grammatical issues). I think Eudaimonia & Co. is essentially a freelance political editorial publication, possibly based out of Morocco, but I'm not positive, and the author here seems to be a prolific political pundit who currently lives in London.

    How Capitalism Made Americans Poor, and Socialism Made Europeans Rich

    Capitalism Doesn’t Make Us Rich, and Socialism Doesn’t Make Us Poor — Socialism Makes Us Rich, and Capitalism Makes Us Poor.









    I'll have to read this later, it sounds interesting.  My first reaction to the headlines is, "Yeah, that make's sense."  My second reaction is that if I were a third world person my reaction would be, "Neither of you Americans or Europeans know poor from rich from".
    Still, people in a country like the US or wherever can fall under the threshold of poverty. 

    UNICEF's list of extreme poverty, why is the US -- if it is THE GREATEST COUNTRY IN THE UNIVERSE -- on this list?? So in the US kids don't get a proper meal at school, health care isn't seem as a human right AND you are among the countries with the highest level of EXTREME poverty?

    Something isn't adding up with this GREATEST COUNRY thing..


    Even still, poverty is a relative term.  Yes, we have poor people.  But we rarely have starvation.  For about five years, when my life was derailed by unfortunate circumstances, I live on income that was so low it was considered "poverty".  And yet the average third world person would have felt as though they were living like royalty had they been me.  If you talk to or read people who have been to the poorest parts of the world, you would have to agree that in the U.S. (especially) and most of Europe, what we call "poverty" is next to nothing in comparison. 

    What we do have is a great and ever widening disparity between the rich and the poor. 
    "Pretty cookies, heart squares all around, yeah!"
    -Eddie Vedder, "Smile"

    "Try to not spook the horse."
    -Neil Young













  • Spiritual_ChaosSpiritual_Chaos Posts: 30,561
    edited March 2019
    brianlux said:
    brianlux said:
    PJ_Soul said:
    Interesting article about American capitalism vs European "socialism", with a lot of points that I happen to agree with (it was written by someone whose first language is not English btw, hence the grammatical issues). I think Eudaimonia & Co. is essentially a freelance political editorial publication, possibly based out of Morocco, but I'm not positive, and the author here seems to be a prolific political pundit who currently lives in London.

    How Capitalism Made Americans Poor, and Socialism Made Europeans Rich

    Capitalism Doesn’t Make Us Rich, and Socialism Doesn’t Make Us Poor — Socialism Makes Us Rich, and Capitalism Makes Us Poor.









    I'll have to read this later, it sounds interesting.  My first reaction to the headlines is, "Yeah, that make's sense."  My second reaction is that if I were a third world person my reaction would be, "Neither of you Americans or Europeans know poor from rich from".
    Still, people in a country like the US or wherever can fall under the threshold of poverty. 

    UNICEF's list of extreme poverty, why is the US -- if it is THE GREATEST COUNTRY IN THE UNIVERSE -- on this list?? So in the US kids don't get a proper meal at school, health care isn't seem as a human right AND you are among the countries with the highest level of EXTREME poverty?

    Something isn't adding up with this GREATEST COUNRY thing..


    Even still, poverty is a relative term.  Yes, we have poor people.  But we rarely have starvation.  For about five years, when my life was derailed by unfortunate circumstances, I live on income that was so low it was considered "poverty".  And yet the average third world person would have felt as though they were living like royalty had they been me.  If you talk to or read people who have been to the poorest parts of the world, you would have to agree that in the U.S. (especially) and most of Europe, what we call "poverty" is next to nothing in comparison. 

    What we do have is a great and ever widening disparity between the rich and the poor. 
    Organizations has quantified "poverty" though, so saying it's a relative term isn't completely true. 

    Take the chart above for example, its based on:

    "Here, poverty is expressed in so-called PPP dollars. PPP stands for Purchasing Power Parities, which is translated into purchasing power parity. When poverty is calculated using PPP, it takes into account the price level and income in each country when calculating. The statistics thus show the proportion of the population in a country that lives for less than what one can buy for US $ 1.9 in the United States."

    And regardless - is it reasonable that the USA is on a chart like this? Whatever relative context you want to give "poverty". 

    And regarding starvation:

    According to Gallup’s findings, cited by the OECD, Americans are far more likely to say they were unable to pay for food than citizens of other rich countries. In 2011 and 2012, 21 percent of U.S. citizens reported food trouble, versus 8 percent of British survey takers, 6 percent of Swedes, and 5 percent of Germans.
    "Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
  • Meltdown99Meltdown99 None Of Your Business... Posts: 10,739


    I can now see it.  Everyone is so HAPPY in Europe...they fart unicorn rainbows.

    Just look at how happy the French are.  They are protesting so they can pay more taxes...
    You sound a bit defensive. How come?

    Compare the shittiness-level of the police in France and the one in the US - do you really think the US would win? Whatever your anecdotal twitter-video show?  

    And I don't think anyone in here says Europe is perfect.
    I'm not.  Just pointing out every country has there problems.
    Give Peas A Chance…
  • brianluxbrianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 42,274
    brianlux said:
    brianlux said:
    PJ_Soul said:
    Interesting article about American capitalism vs European "socialism", with a lot of points that I happen to agree with (it was written by someone whose first language is not English btw, hence the grammatical issues). I think Eudaimonia & Co. is essentially a freelance political editorial publication, possibly based out of Morocco, but I'm not positive, and the author here seems to be a prolific political pundit who currently lives in London.

    How Capitalism Made Americans Poor, and Socialism Made Europeans Rich

    Capitalism Doesn’t Make Us Rich, and Socialism Doesn’t Make Us Poor — Socialism Makes Us Rich, and Capitalism Makes Us Poor.









    I'll have to read this later, it sounds interesting.  My first reaction to the headlines is, "Yeah, that make's sense."  My second reaction is that if I were a third world person my reaction would be, "Neither of you Americans or Europeans know poor from rich from".
    Still, people in a country like the US or wherever can fall under the threshold of poverty. 

    UNICEF's list of extreme poverty, why is the US -- if it is THE GREATEST COUNTRY IN THE UNIVERSE -- on this list?? So in the US kids don't get a proper meal at school, health care isn't seem as a human right AND you are among the countries with the highest level of EXTREME poverty?

    Something isn't adding up with this GREATEST COUNRY thing..


    Even still, poverty is a relative term.  Yes, we have poor people.  But we rarely have starvation.  For about five years, when my life was derailed by unfortunate circumstances, I live on income that was so low it was considered "poverty".  And yet the average third world person would have felt as though they were living like royalty had they been me.  If you talk to or read people who have been to the poorest parts of the world, you would have to agree that in the U.S. (especially) and most of Europe, what we call "poverty" is next to nothing in comparison. 

    What we do have is a great and ever widening disparity between the rich and the poor. 
    Organizations has quantified "poverty" though, so saying it's a relative term isn't completely true. 

    Take the chart above for example, its based on:

    "Here, poverty is expressed in so-called PPP dollars. PPP stands for Purchasing Power Parities, which is translated into purchasing power parity. When poverty is calculated using PPP, it takes into account the price level and income in each country when calculating. The statistics thus show the proportion of the population in a country that lives for less than what one can buy for US $ 1.9 in the United States."

    And regardless - is it reasonable that the USA is on a chart like this? Whatever relative context you want to give "poverty". 

    And regarding starvation:

    According to Gallup’s findings, cited by the OECD, Americans are far more likely to say they were unable to pay for food than citizens of other rich countries. In 2011 and 2012, 21 percent of U.S. citizens reported food trouble, versus 8 percent of British survey takers, 6 percent of Swedes, and 5 percent of Germans.
    Well, many Americans do like to whine and believe they are privileged, right?  And I'm not saying there isn't inequity in America or that there aren't those who struggle.  I just don't think the average American understands and appreciates how well off we are in a world of 7.7 billion people.  I do think we are not far from learning that the hard way.  I believe the time will come- and not too far down the road- when all but the world's wealthiest will be poor.  I don't see any way we can escape this fate.
    "Pretty cookies, heart squares all around, yeah!"
    -Eddie Vedder, "Smile"

    "Try to not spook the horse."
    -Neil Young













  • Halifax2TheMaxHalifax2TheMax Posts: 39,292
    And the meek shall inherit the world.
    09/15/1998 & 09/16/1998, Mansfield, MA; 08/29/00 08/30/00, Mansfield, MA; 07/02/03, 07/03/03, Mansfield, MA; 09/28/04, 09/29/04, Boston, MA; 09/22/05, Halifax, NS; 05/24/06, 05/25/06, Boston, MA; 07/22/06, 07/23/06, Gorge, WA; 06/27/2008, Hartford; 06/28/08, 06/30/08, Mansfield; 08/18/2009, O2, London, UK; 10/30/09, 10/31/09, Philadelphia, PA; 05/15/10, Hartford, CT; 05/17/10, Boston, MA; 05/20/10, 05/21/10, NY, NY; 06/22/10, Dublin, IRE; 06/23/10, Northern Ireland; 09/03/11, 09/04/11, Alpine Valley, WI; 09/11/11, 09/12/11, Toronto, Ont; 09/14/11, Ottawa, Ont; 09/15/11, Hamilton, Ont; 07/02/2012, Prague, Czech Republic; 07/04/2012 & 07/05/2012, Berlin, Germany; 07/07/2012, Stockholm, Sweden; 09/30/2012, Missoula, MT; 07/16/2013, London, Ont; 07/19/2013, Chicago, IL; 10/15/2013 & 10/16/2013, Worcester, MA; 10/21/2013 & 10/22/2013, Philadelphia, PA; 10/25/2013, Hartford, CT; 11/29/2013, Portland, OR; 11/30/2013, Spokane, WA; 12/04/2013, Vancouver, BC; 12/06/2013, Seattle, WA; 10/03/2014, St. Louis. MO; 10/22/2014, Denver, CO; 10/26/2015, New York, NY; 04/23/2016, New Orleans, LA; 04/28/2016 & 04/29/2016, Philadelphia, PA; 05/01/2016 & 05/02/2016, New York, NY; 05/08/2016, Ottawa, Ont.; 05/10/2016 & 05/12/2016, Toronto, Ont.; 08/05/2016 & 08/07/2016, Boston, MA; 08/20/2016 & 08/22/2016, Chicago, IL; 07/01/2018, Prague, Czech Republic; 07/03/2018, Krakow, Poland; 07/05/2018, Berlin, Germany; 09/02/2018 & 09/04/2018, Boston, MA; 09/08/2022, Toronto, Ont; 09/11/2022, New York, NY; 09/14/2022, Camden, NJ; 09/02/2023, St. Paul, MN; 05/04/2024 & 05/06/2024, Vancouver, BC; 05/10/2024, Portland, OR;

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  • brianluxbrianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 42,274
    And the meek shall inherit the world.
    "We'll inherit the earth, but we don't want it."  - Paul Westerberg
    "Pretty cookies, heart squares all around, yeah!"
    -Eddie Vedder, "Smile"

    "Try to not spook the horse."
    -Neil Young













  • Spiritual_ChaosSpiritual_Chaos Posts: 30,561
    edited March 2019
    brianlux said:
    brianlux said:
    brianlux said:
    PJ_Soul said:
    Interesting article about American capitalism vs European "socialism", with a lot of points that I happen to agree with (it was written by someone whose first language is not English btw, hence the grammatical issues). I think Eudaimonia & Co. is essentially a freelance political editorial publication, possibly based out of Morocco, but I'm not positive, and the author here seems to be a prolific political pundit who currently lives in London.

    How Capitalism Made Americans Poor, and Socialism Made Europeans Rich

    Capitalism Doesn’t Make Us Rich, and Socialism Doesn’t Make Us Poor — Socialism Makes Us Rich, and Capitalism Makes Us Poor.









    I'll have to read this later, it sounds interesting.  My first reaction to the headlines is, "Yeah, that make's sense."  My second reaction is that if I were a third world person my reaction would be, "Neither of you Americans or Europeans know poor from rich from".
    Still, people in a country like the US or wherever can fall under the threshold of poverty. 

    UNICEF's list of extreme poverty, why is the US -- if it is THE GREATEST COUNTRY IN THE UNIVERSE -- on this list?? So in the US kids don't get a proper meal at school, health care isn't seem as a human right AND you are among the countries with the highest level of EXTREME poverty?

    Something isn't adding up with this GREATEST COUNRY thing..


    Even still, poverty is a relative term.  Yes, we have poor people.  But we rarely have starvation.  For about five years, when my life was derailed by unfortunate circumstances, I live on income that was so low it was considered "poverty".  And yet the average third world person would have felt as though they were living like royalty had they been me.  If you talk to or read people who have been to the poorest parts of the world, you would have to agree that in the U.S. (especially) and most of Europe, what we call "poverty" is next to nothing in comparison. 

    What we do have is a great and ever widening disparity between the rich and the poor. 
    Organizations has quantified "poverty" though, so saying it's a relative term isn't completely true. 

    Take the chart above for example, its based on:

    "Here, poverty is expressed in so-called PPP dollars. PPP stands for Purchasing Power Parities, which is translated into purchasing power parity. When poverty is calculated using PPP, it takes into account the price level and income in each country when calculating. The statistics thus show the proportion of the population in a country that lives for less than what one can buy for US $ 1.9 in the United States."

    And regardless - is it reasonable that the USA is on a chart like this? Whatever relative context you want to give "poverty". 

    And regarding starvation:

    According to Gallup’s findings, cited by the OECD, Americans are far more likely to say they were unable to pay for food than citizens of other rich countries. In 2011 and 2012, 21 percent of U.S. citizens reported food trouble, versus 8 percent of British survey takers, 6 percent of Swedes, and 5 percent of Germans.
    Well, many Americans do like to whine and believe they are privileged, right?  And I'm not saying there isn't inequity in America or that there aren't those who struggle.  I just don't think the average American understands and appreciates how well off we are in a world of 7.7 billion people.  I do think we are not far from learning that the hard way.  I believe the time will come- and not too far down the road- when all but the world's wealthiest will be poor.  I don't see any way we can escape this fate.
    Okey okey, I get it. Kids do not go asleep hungry in the US. 


    "Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
  • Meltdown99Meltdown99 None Of Your Business... Posts: 10,739
    If children are going hungry in the US that is the responsibility of the parent.  There is no shortage of people willing to help feed people, same here in Canada...there are food banks, many churches offer meals on a weekly and monthly basis, soup kitchens, Salvation Army feeds people...and the food is affordable over here.

    And you can not help everyone who is poor or down and out.  Some people have no interest in improving their lot in life.  
    Give Peas A Chance…
  • The US has its faults and, like every other country, could be better; however, its citizens fare very well compared to a lot of other countries.

    Look at Pakistan, where women can be killed for clapping to music... or disfigured for making their husband jealous, for example: https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/world/a-pakistani-man-told-me-he-feared-hed-be-killed-for-exposing-“honor-killings”-his-worst-fear-just-came-true/ar-BBUvr7G?ocid=spartanntp
    "My brain's a good brain!"
  • Spiritual_ChaosSpiritual_Chaos Posts: 30,561
    The US has its faults and, like every other country, could be better; however, its citizens fare very well compared to a lot of other countries.

    Look at Pakistan, where women can be killed for clapping to music... or disfigured for making their husband jealous, for example: https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/world/a-pakistani-man-told-me-he-feared-hed-be-killed-for-exposing-“honor-killings”-his-worst-fear-just-came-true/ar-BBUvr7G?ocid=spartanntp
    You are right now trying to make the US look good by comparing the US... to Pakistan.
    "Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
  • So what?

    I’m as big a critic of the US as anyone and would never concede it is the greatest country in the world by a long shot; however, it’s far better than what some are making it out to be.
    "My brain's a good brain!"
  • cincybearcatcincybearcat Posts: 16,488
    The US has its faults and, like every other country, could be better; however, its citizens fare very well compared to a lot of other countries.

    Look at Pakistan, where women can be killed for clapping to music... or disfigured for making their husband jealous, for example: https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/world/a-pakistani-man-told-me-he-feared-hed-be-killed-for-exposing-“honor-killings”-his-worst-fear-just-came-true/ar-BBUvr7G?ocid=spartanntp
    You are right now trying to make the US look good by comparing the US... to Pakistan.
    Seriously wants your problem? The thread was started as a veiled “everything that’s wrong with America” thread. No one is in here saying the USA is perfect. What is your continued motivation here? 

    Brian - who is a pretty far left and overall nice guy - posts about poverty in the US, and you respond with a meme.


    hippiemom = goodness
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