Is the United States the best?

I thought there are five boards, including one that has just one member set up as a shrine to worship someone. You all are crazy.

 

The fact this didn’t include a link to this video is highly disappointing.

 

"SLAVERY! FUCK YEAH!" -- heyabbott

 

Another factor is your age when this question comes up.

If you guaranteed me a comfortable middle-class life f I moved to any foreign country, I would move to.... France. Preferably Paris. And that's it.

You get older, you get tired of the hassle. Or you prefer the same hassle you know. I love Australians. They're wonderful people. They live in a sunny and friendly land (well, except for the infernos and such.) I'm not moving across the globe to go there.

 

It costs a buck 'o five.

 

I always wondered about the "freedom isn't free" crowd always bragging about how little they pay in taxes.

 

How about Switzerland? Or Netherlands?

 

I'd do either Germany or England (maybe in Wales).

 

I've heard that when people think of Switzerland - the rolling green meadows at the foot of mountains, untouched countryside - that really describes Austria?

All three countries sound cool in theory. It's the whole grind of moving, plus the all-important job/language issues, that throw water on it.

England - once you get past the visa issue - is almost like Canada in terms of culture shock. Yeah, it's different, but not that much.

Even the list of preferred occupations for visas is surprisingly broad - teachers, paramedics, etc. etc : UK Tier 2 Shortage Occupation List

 

Wow. Graphic designer. I would qualify.

 

In addition to the Constitution and Bill of Rights, the U.S. is the only country that actually codifies the fact that happiness is part of the deal. It's in the Declaration of Independence: "Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." You're not guaranteed it but you've got the right to seek it out and do what makes you happy.
I also wish the women who think there's some kind of "War on Women" would be intellectually honest enough to admit their life in the U.S. is light years better than the Middle East and many African and Asian countries. They're allowed to drive themselves to the next "Me Too" rally.
Ditto the GLBT crowd. There may be some rednecks out there who don't like gays. There are also some terrible crimes perpetrated against gays on occasion in this country but there are countries that actually have the death penalty for being gay. This isn't one of them.
I think the best testament to this country is that two of the last four presidents were the sons of poor or working-class single mothers, and that Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan were men raised in modest, middle-class families.

 

I've always thought arguments like this are dumb and too many people fall for them because they sound good, but they have very little substance.

Yes, lets compare our freedoms to the worst of the worst. That's like me putting myself in a two-man beauty contest with Sloth from The Goonies. Yeah, I'd win (maybe), but what does that really mean?

How about we compare our freedoms to countries like us? Maybe we come out good, maybe we come out bad, mostly likely? We come out good in some ways and bad in others, but to compare us to the Saudi Arabia's of the world is just disingenuous pandering to make yourself feel good falsely.

And for the record? I don't think there's such a thing as a "great" country. It's a dumb thing to obsess over and a stupid construct. Nation-states are just a function of those who have power within them. They're open to all of the good and bad things any human-run organization is exposed to. Organized religion is the same way.