really jarring coming back to the US after traveling to Asia for the last three weeks

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was just in Vietnam & Cambodia and was overall impressed with how much a strong sense of family structure impacts the overall society. There is very little visible homelessness (there is lots of visible poverty everywhere), and there is great pride in the family.
Social services are much fewer yet people seem more secure.

The loss of a shared culture and moral and decay of America is at fault here IMO. I now live in a micro-niche US locale that has a subtly oppressive, homogenous shared culture with strong families and, despite the drawbacks associated with that, it’s an incredibly clean and orderly place like something out of Scandinavia. To the extent that people lose their nerve and become lax in their moral life is when pockets of violence, despair, and poverty begin popping up.

Mormon enclave?

Hell no, LOL. An enclave of tiny niche Northern European ethnic group immigration who kept all their weird (but cute!) traditions and religious identity.

Sami? Or not that far north ?

My vote is Quaker

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was just in Singapore for the first time and after hearing how incredibly clean and modern it is from many people I was really surprised by the amount of litter I saw all over as well as the strange dearth of garbage cans anywhere. I wasn’t nearly as impressed as I expected to be.

I wasn't impressed visiting the US, because they call themselves #1 for everything, yet all you need to do is drive through MLK Blvd. in Baltimore where it looks like a real life epsode of the Walking Dead with all of the homeless drug users everywhere. So many boarded up row homes in many US cities that make it look like Baghdad.

Singapore is incredibly clean compared to how much human dookie and pee is on the streets in many US cities from all of the homeless people everywhere. There's really no neighborhood in Singapore as filthy and disgusting as Skid Row in SF or Kensington in Philly, for example. I mean Kensington in Philly really makes you call into question whether the US is a first world country.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I did a lot of work in Japan and honestly it is like living in an Ant Farm, crowded, everyone looks the same and eats the same food. No diversity of anything. Plus everything filmed 24/7 so no privacy

Agree. Japan = Ant Farm!
Yep, no diversity. They hate most foreigners, except for Whites. Japanese sees themselves as honorary Whites. In manga comics, they portray themselves with blond hair and blue eyes. Talk about weird appropriation!!

NP

The Japanese see themselves as Japanese, and that is a point of great pride. They are certainly not scrambling to be seen as “white adjacent,” or whatever term you make up. Only in someone’s narrow US racialized worldview would your silly comment make sense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was just in Singapore for the first time and after hearing how incredibly clean and modern it is from many people I was really surprised by the amount of litter I saw all over as well as the strange dearth of garbage cans anywhere. I wasn’t nearly as impressed as I expected to be.

I wasn't impressed visiting the US, because they call themselves #1 for everything, yet all you need to do is drive through MLK Blvd. in Baltimore where it looks like a real life epsode of the Walking Dead with all of the homeless drug users everywhere. So many boarded up row homes in many US cities that make it look like Baghdad.

Singapore is incredibly clean compared to how much human dookie and pee is on the streets in many US cities from all of the homeless people everywhere. There's really no neighborhood in Singapore as filthy and disgusting as Skid Row in SF or Kensington in Philly, for example. I mean Kensington in Philly really makes you call into question whether the US is a first world country.

Well, the executions for drug use help Singapore maintain its streets unpopulated by the homeless. Ready for that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was just in Singapore for the first time and after hearing how incredibly clean and modern it is from many people I was really surprised by the amount of litter I saw all over as well as the strange dearth of garbage cans anywhere. I wasn’t nearly as impressed as I expected to be.

I wasn't impressed visiting the US, because they call themselves #1 for everything, yet all you need to do is drive through MLK Blvd. in Baltimore where it looks like a real life epsode of the Walking Dead with all of the homeless drug users everywhere. So many boarded up row homes in many US cities that make it look like Baghdad.

Singapore is incredibly clean compared to how much human dookie and pee is on the streets in many US cities from all of the homeless people everywhere. There's really no neighborhood in Singapore as filthy and disgusting as Skid Row in SF or Kensington in Philly, for example. I mean Kensington in Philly really makes you call into question whether the US is a first world country.

Well, the executions for drug use help Singapore maintain its streets unpopulated by the homeless. Ready for that?

DP. I looked it up: In 2022, Singapore executed 11 people for drug offences. In 2021, the US executed 11 people (not sure what the offences were).

[Anonymous]

The U.S. is just ended multiple wars in the Middle East. That's where our GDP got poured into. Ask the Taliban how they like our war gear?

Dumb. Then we need to support all the folks who pour into the U.S. as refugees. They get more benefits from the U.S. government than taxpaying citizens do.

Dumb. Then we allow corporations owned by the likes of DJTrump, JBezos to not pay taxes for years and years. Biden just ended that free gravy train but I have a sneaking suspicion they'll still get away with murder.

Dumb. Dumb. Dumb. That's why our infrastructure is crumbling.

[Anonymous]

here's the thing:

It's easier to build a high tech infrastructure when you have to start from scratch. Both Japan and S. Korea were decimated after WWII. The US poured money into both countries. Even so, the high tech infrastructure in S. Korea is relatively new, probably the last 10 years or so.

Most of the US infrastructure is now pretty old. It's harder to modernize when there is already an (old) infrastructure in place.

Example: the infrastructure in the UK is pretty old. Their underground metro is the oldest in the world. They don't have a/c in the majority of their subway cars or platforms. DC at least does have that. BUT, I will say that their payment platform is more advanced than ours.

Part of the problem with the US is that it's disjointed. Individual states rights and all that, and the deregulation of so much of our infrastructure. It's a hot mess.

Example: the EU has forced companies like Apple to be more compatible with other devices. It forced them to allow USB-C chargers on Apple products.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/07/eu-makes-usb-c-mandatory-for-apple-iphones-and-other-devices.html

If Apple can do that in the EU, why can't they in the US? Because capitalism and low regulation. Despite what some people think, the US has one of the lowest regulations in the developed world.

Imagine if the US tried to build a high speed rail between NY and LA. Think about all the states that the rail would have to go through, and then think about all the individual states asserting its rights. Other countries don't have that problem.

This is why the US infrastructure will never be able to progress like that of other countries.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP is correct. We lived 15 years in 5 countries and feel the exact same. We have fallen way behind. Just as an example, we pay a lot for poor internet in the U.S., because of de facto ISP monopolies/collusion. Our government represents corporate interests, not the people's. We trail in education, infant and maternal mortality, suicide, and many other metrics.

Re: airports, visiting Incheon Airport near Seoul is like visiting the future.

Add to this public transportation. Why don't we have high speed rail? Why are our bridges crumbling. Why is the DC metro so expensive when compared to NYC?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:here's the thing:

It's easier to build a high tech infrastructure when you have to start from scratch. Both Japan and S. Korea were decimated after WWII. The US poured money into both countries. Even so, the high tech infrastructure in S. Korea is relatively new, probably the last 10 years or so.

Most of the US infrastructure is now pretty old. It's harder to modernize when there is already an (old) infrastructure in place.

Example: the infrastructure in the UK is pretty old. Their underground metro is the oldest in the world. They don't have a/c in the majority of their subway cars or platforms. DC at least does have that. BUT, I will say that their payment platform is more advanced than ours.

Part of the problem with the US is that it's disjointed. Individual states rights and all that, and the deregulation of so much of our infrastructure. It's a hot mess.

Example: the EU has forced companies like Apple to be more compatible with other devices. It forced them to allow USB-C chargers on Apple products.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/07/eu-makes-usb-c-mandatory-for-apple-iphones-and-other-devices.html

If Apple can do that in the EU, why can't they in the US? Because capitalism and low regulation. Despite what some people think, the US has one of the lowest regulations in the developed world.

Imagine if the US tried to build a high speed rail between NY and LA. Think about all the states that the rail would have to go through, and then think about all the individual states asserting its rights. Other countries don't have that problem.

This is why the US infrastructure will never be able to progress like that of other countries.

But the high speed rail system goes through other countries in Europe. How can they manage to do that but we cant collaborate on going through different states in the same country?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:here's the thing:

It's easier to build a high tech infrastructure when you have to start from scratch. Both Japan and S. Korea were decimated after WWII. The US poured money into both countries. Even so, the high tech infrastructure in S. Korea is relatively new, probably the last 10 years or so.

Most of the US infrastructure is now pretty old. It's harder to modernize when there is already an (old) infrastructure in place.

Example: the infrastructure in the UK is pretty old. Their underground metro is the oldest in the world. They don't have a/c in the majority of their subway cars or platforms. DC at least does have that. BUT, I will say that their payment platform is more advanced than ours.

Part of the problem with the US is that it's disjointed. Individual states rights and all that, and the deregulation of so much of our infrastructure. It's a hot mess.

Example: the EU has forced companies like Apple to be more compatible with other devices. It forced them to allow USB-C chargers on Apple products.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/07/eu-makes-usb-c-mandatory-for-apple-iphones-and-other-devices.html

If Apple can do that in the EU, why can't they in the US? Because capitalism and low regulation. Despite what some people think, the US has one of the lowest regulations in the developed world.

Imagine if the US tried to build a high speed rail between NY and LA. Think about all the states that the rail would have to go through, and then think about all the individual states asserting its rights. Other countries don't have that problem.

This is why the US infrastructure will never be able to progress like that of other countries.

Or its because we have stupid cars. How many billions did MD piss away on express lanes for I95 and the ICC over the years, for example? Now they want to piss away even more money on widening the Beltway in the region.

All Americans ever have are excuses for their crappy infrastructure, there's never any admission of guilt and accepting responsibility for the fact that the development of the country has fallen so far behind advanced countries for the last 50 years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:here's the thing:

It's easier to build a high tech infrastructure when you have to start from scratch. Both Japan and S. Korea were decimated after WWII. The US poured money into both countries. Even so, the high tech infrastructure in S. Korea is relatively new, probably the last 10 years or so.

Most of the US infrastructure is now pretty old. It's harder to modernize when there is already an (old) infrastructure in place.

Example: the infrastructure in the UK is pretty old. Their underground metro is the oldest in the world. They don't have a/c in the majority of their subway cars or platforms. DC at least does have that. BUT, I will say that their payment platform is more advanced than ours.

Part of the problem with the US is that it's disjointed. Individual states rights and all that, and the deregulation of so much of our infrastructure. It's a hot mess.

Example: the EU has forced companies like Apple to be more compatible with other devices. It forced them to allow USB-C chargers on Apple products.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/07/eu-makes-usb-c-mandatory-for-apple-iphones-and-other-devices.html

If Apple can do that in the EU, why can't they in the US? Because capitalism and low regulation. Despite what some people think, the US has one of the lowest regulations in the developed world.

Imagine if the US tried to build a high speed rail between NY and LA. Think about all the states that the rail would have to go through, and then think about all the individual states asserting its rights. Other countries don't have that problem.

This is why the US infrastructure will never be able to progress like that of other countries.

Or its because we have stupid cars. How many billions did MD piss away on express lanes for I95 and the ICC over the years, for example? Now they want to piss away even more money on widening the Beltway in the region.

All Americans ever have are excuses for their crappy infrastructure, there's never any admission of guilt and accepting responsibility for the fact that the development of the country has fallen so far behind advanced countries for the last 50 years.

It's because countries build out their infrastructure as they become rich enough to do so. WWII forced Japan and Europe to start from scratch. South Korea was devastated by the Korean war and relatively poor until later in the 20th Century.

[Anonymous]

America is merely a corporation only caring about generating more employees to generate more profits for the wealthy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:here's the thing:

It's easier to build a high tech infrastructure when you have to start from scratch. Both Japan and S. Korea were decimated after WWII. The US poured money into both countries. Even so, the high tech infrastructure in S. Korea is relatively new, probably the last 10 years or so.

Most of the US infrastructure is now pretty old. It's harder to modernize when there is already an (old) infrastructure in place.

Example: the infrastructure in the UK is pretty old. Their underground metro is the oldest in the world. They don't have a/c in the majority of their subway cars or platforms. DC at least does have that. BUT, I will say that their payment platform is more advanced than ours.

Part of the problem with the US is that it's disjointed. Individual states rights and all that, and the deregulation of so much of our infrastructure. It's a hot mess.

Example: the EU has forced companies like Apple to be more compatible with other devices. It forced them to allow USB-C chargers on Apple products.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/07/eu-makes-usb-c-mandatory-for-apple-iphones-and-other-devices.html

If Apple can do that in the EU, why can't they in the US? Because capitalism and low regulation. Despite what some people think, the US has one of the lowest regulations in the developed world.

Imagine if the US tried to build a high speed rail between NY and LA. Think about all the states that the rail would have to go through, and then think about all the individual states asserting its rights. Other countries don't have that problem.

This is why the US infrastructure will never be able to progress like that of other countries.

But the high speed rail system goes through other countries in Europe. How can they manage to do that but we cant collaborate on going through different states in the same country?

Because they don't have the "individual states (country) rights" , "we go it alone" attitude.

IMO CA would cooperate with OR and WA. But, I doubt OK would cooperate with MD. Heck, MD can't even cooperate with VA to build another bridge. And I live in MD.

Try getting 10 states (especially the red ones) to cooperate with each other. States even have different road laws to each other. The US is a hodge podge of different state and their laws and rules. Remember, at one point, gay marriage was legal in some states but not all. So a gay married couple could be "legally" wed in one state, but if they moved to a (deep red) state, then their marriage would not be recognized. Finally, SCOTUS made it the law of the land. That's what it takes. SCOTUS to force it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:America is merely a corporation only caring about generating more employees to generate more profits for the wealthy.

We're getting there.

I read Margaret Atwood's Maddaddam Trilogy several years ago and I think that's exactly where we are headed - privatize everything so that we are ruled by a corpocracy, which will not be accountable in any way to the citizens.

Look at the screwed up thinking on Social Security that most of us embrace on some level. We've known for years (or decades?) that Social Security is operating at a deficit. Instead of being indignant that our elected officials didn't come up with a plan to fund it we're arguing about whether it would be better to force everyone to invest their money in the private sector (see how that works?) because we've bought into the idea that government in any form is bad. And we're driving ourselves into ruin because of it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:here's the thing:

It's easier to build a high tech infrastructure when you have to start from scratch. Both Japan and S. Korea were decimated after WWII. The US poured money into both countries. Even so, the high tech infrastructure in S. Korea is relatively new, probably the last 10 years or so.

Most of the US infrastructure is now pretty old. It's harder to modernize when there is already an (old) infrastructure in place.

Example: the infrastructure in the UK is pretty old. Their underground metro is the oldest in the world. They don't have a/c in the majority of their subway cars or platforms. DC at least does have that. BUT, I will say that their payment platform is more advanced than ours.

Part of the problem with the US is that it's disjointed. Individual states rights and all that, and the deregulation of so much of our infrastructure. It's a hot mess.

Example: the EU has forced companies like Apple to be more compatible with other devices. It forced them to allow USB-C chargers on Apple products.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/07/eu-makes-usb-c-mandatory-for-apple-iphones-and-other-devices.html

If Apple can do that in the EU, why can't they in the US? Because capitalism and low regulation. Despite what some people think, the US has one of the lowest regulations in the developed world.

Imagine if the US tried to build a high speed rail between NY and LA. Think about all the states that the rail would have to go through, and then think about all the individual states asserting its rights. Other countries don't have that problem.

This is why the US infrastructure will never be able to progress like that of other countries.

Or its because we have stupid cars. How many billions did MD piss away on express lanes for I95 and the ICC over the years, for example? Now they want to piss away even more money on widening the Beltway in the region.

All Americans ever have are excuses for their crappy infrastructure, there's never any admission of guilt and accepting responsibility for the fact that the development of the country has fallen so far behind advanced countries for the last 50 years.

Are you not American?