Author Topic: 10 Things Americas don't know about America  (Read 13498 times)

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Offline DiscoBerry

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10 Things Americas don't know about America
« on: May 16, 2013, 04:31:13 pm »
I thought this would make for a nice discussion piece here.  I found this one especially astute. 

Quote
5. THE QUALITY OF LIFE FOR THE AVERAGE AMERICAN IS NOT THAT GREAT

If you’re extremely talented or intelligent, the US is probably the best place in the world to live. The system is stacked heavily to allow people of talent and advantage to rise to the top quickly.

The problem with the US is that everyone thinks they are of talent and advantage. As John Steinbeck famously said, the problem with poor Americans is that “they don’t believe they’re poor, but rather temporarily embarrassed millionaires.” It’s this culture of self-delusion that allows America to continue to innovate and churn out new industry more than anyone else in the world. But this shared delusion also unfortunately keeps perpetuating large social inequalities and the quality of life for the average citizen lower than most other developed countries. It’s the price we pay to maintain our growth and economic dominance.
In my Guide to Wealth, I defined being wealthy as, “Having the freedom to maximize one’s life experiences.” In those terms, despite the average American having more material wealth than citizens of most other countries (more cars, bigger houses, nicer televisions), their overall quality of life suffers in my opinion. American people on average work more hours with less vacation, spend more time commuting every day, and are saddled with over $10,000 of debt. That’s a lot of time spent working and buying crap and little time or disposable income for relationships, activities or new experiences.

http://thoughtcatalog.com/2013/10-things-most-americans-dont-know-about-america/

Offline PosthumanHeresy

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Re: 10 Things Americas don't know about America
« Reply #1 on: July 04, 2013, 09:50:18 pm »
Interesting article. More people should see this thread, so I'm so going to bump it up. I actually want to live on this planet a little more, but not in America.
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Offline MadmanJohnson

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Re: 10 Things Americas don't know about America
« Reply #2 on: July 08, 2013, 04:04:35 pm »
MURICA! LOVE OR LEAVE IT!
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Offline The Right Honourable Mlle Antéchrist

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Re: 10 Things Americas don't know about America
« Reply #3 on: July 08, 2013, 04:46:21 pm »
To be fair, a lot of these points apply to most first-world countries. Take Canada, for instance:

3. WE KNOW NOTHING ABOUT THE REST OF THE WORLD: While our school curriculum & media does seem to focus a bit more on other parts of the world, your average Canadian is still pretty ignorant about most nations that don't have a white majority (and, to a lesser extent, non-English speaking nations).

4. WE ARE POOR AT EXPRESSING GRATITUDE AND AFFECTION: Definitely true of most Canadians, outside of parts of Quebec and the Maritimes.

6. THE REST OF THE WORLD IS NOT A SLUM-RIDDEN SHITHOLE COMPARED TO US: Similar to number 3, people seem to have this attitude about non-white countries, and certain non-English speaking nations.

8. WE’RE STATUS-OBSESSED AND SEEK ATTENTION: This isn't necessarily true of Canada in terms of nationalism, but on a personal level, we're definitely guilty of this one.

9. WE ARE VERY UNHEALTHY: We have pubic health care, which is great (and possibly one of the reasons why we tend to live slightly longer than Americans), but we also have all of the same unhealthy, overly-processed foods, and the decline in physical activity. Our stats for obesity, heart disease, etc. aren't too far behind the US.

10. WE MISTAKE COMFORT FOR HAPPINESS: 100% true in Canada. Big cars, big houses, expensive clothes, etc. -- all staples of Canadian culture.
« Last Edit: July 08, 2013, 04:48:18 pm by Mlle Antéchrist »
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Offline Her3tiK

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Re: 10 Things Americas don't know about America
« Reply #4 on: July 08, 2013, 06:11:50 pm »
9. WE ARE VERY UNHEALTHY: We have pubic health care, which is great (and possibly one of the reasons why we tend to live slightly longer than Americans), but we also have all of the same unhealthy, overly-processed foods, and the decline in physical activity. Our stats for obesity, heart disease, etc. aren't too far behind the US.
Gotta love that pubic health care :3
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Offline Askold

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Re: 10 Things Americas don't know about America
« Reply #5 on: July 08, 2013, 06:19:44 pm »
9. WE ARE VERY UNHEALTHY: We have pubic health care, which is great (and possibly one of the reasons why we tend to live slightly longer than Americans), but we also have all of the same unhealthy, overly-processed foods, and the decline in physical activity. Our stats for obesity, heart disease, etc. aren't too far behind the US.
Gotta love that pubic health care :3
Well if it helps them live longer than americans then there must be some good in it.
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Offline The Right Honourable Mlle Antéchrist

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Re: 10 Things Americas don't know about America
« Reply #6 on: July 08, 2013, 06:28:30 pm »
Oh, there's plenty of good in it. I'd be completely screwed if we didn't have it, since I make too much to qualify for most coverage programs but not enough to pay for insurance.

However, the point still remains that most Canadians aren't living a healthy lifestyle, between the food we eat, limited physical activity, shoddy sleep patterns, stress, etc.
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Offline RavynousHunter

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Re: 10 Things Americas don't know about America
« Reply #7 on: July 09, 2013, 08:32:04 am »
I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of that didn't apply to most modern, Western civilizations.  We all eat processed crap.  I eat processed crap.  I KNOW I'm eating processed crap when I eat it.  Thing is...can't really say I give much of a shit.  I do try to be healthy, but, ya know what?  I'm going to die, one day.  I wanna extract every ounce of pleasure outta life that I reasonably can, and sometimes, that means eating that tasty, unhealthy, processed crap.  Other times, it means going on walks or fucking.  I'm not wasting this fuckin life, I've seen that happen to far, FAR too many people.
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Offline PosthumanHeresy

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Re: 10 Things Americas don't know about America
« Reply #8 on: July 09, 2013, 08:36:03 am »
I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of that didn't apply to most modern, Western civilizations.  We all eat processed crap.  I eat processed crap.  I KNOW I'm eating processed crap when I eat it.  Thing is...can't really say I give much of a shit.  I do try to be healthy, but, ya know what?  I'm going to die, one day.  I wanna extract every ounce of pleasure outta life that I reasonably can, and sometimes, that means eating that tasty, unhealthy, processed crap.  Other times, it means going on walks or fucking.  I'm not wasting this fuckin life, I've seen that happen to far, FAR too many people.
That's pretty much my mindset. Everything's trying to kill me, so I'm not going to ruin my life trying not to die.
What I used to think was me is just a fading memory. I looked him right in the eye and said "Goodbye".
 - Trent Reznor, Down In It

Together as one, against all others.
- Marilyn Manson, Running To The Edge of The World

Humanity does learn from history,
sadly, they're rarely the ones in power.

Quote from: Ben Kuchera
Life is too damned short for the concept of “guilty” pleasures to have any meaning.

Offline RavynousHunter

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Re: 10 Things Americas don't know about America
« Reply #9 on: July 09, 2013, 09:03:47 am »
Exactly, not like I'm in a hurry to meet the reaper...and I'll fight him tooth and nail for as long as I can, but I want at least a decent life.  My life until recently has been shit, but its taken a pretty good turn for the better, and I'm not going to let it stop now, damn it!
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Offline The Right Honourable Mlle Antéchrist

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Re: 10 Things Americas don't know about America
« Reply #10 on: July 09, 2013, 11:03:56 am »
I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of that didn't apply to most modern, Western civilizations.  We all eat processed crap.  I eat processed crap.  I KNOW I'm eating processed crap when I eat it.  Thing is...can't really say I give much of a shit.  I do try to be healthy, but, ya know what?  I'm going to die, one day.  I wanna extract every ounce of pleasure outta life that I reasonably can, and sometimes, that means eating that tasty, unhealthy, processed crap.  Other times, it means going on walks or fucking.  I'm not wasting this fuckin life, I've seen that happen to far, FAR too many people.

Eh, I'm not complaining about people eating crappy food, just pointing out that most of the list applies to the first world in general.
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Re: 10 Things Americas don't know about America
« Reply #11 on: July 09, 2013, 11:36:40 am »
I have to say, this one strikes me as a little bit bullshit.
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1. FEW PEOPLE ARE IMPRESSED BY US

Unless you’re speaking with a real estate agent or a prostitute, chances are they’re not going to be excited that you’re American. It’s not some badge of honor we get to parade around. Yes, we had Steve Jobs and Thomas Edison, but unless you actually are Steve Jobs or Thomas Edison (which is unlikely) then most people around the world are simply not going to care. There are exceptions of course. And those exceptions are called English and Australian people. Whoopdie-fucking-doo.

As Americans, we’re brought up our entire lives being taught that we’re the best, we did everything first and that the rest of the world follows our lead. Not only is this not true, but people get irritated when you bring it to their country with you. So don’t.
I have no idea where this guy's getting his information from, and I can't speak for the Brits, but I can safely say that most Australians look down their noses at Americans. Not to any American tourist's face, naturally, but the attitude is very much there. The more recent reputation they've picked up as the land of the disturbingly frequent school shootings hasn't exactly helped matters.

Offline The Right Honourable Mlle Antéchrist

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Re: 10 Things Americas don't know about America
« Reply #12 on: July 09, 2013, 11:41:02 am »
^^ To be fair, it's very difficult to tell whether an Australian is insulting or complimenting you. :P
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Re: 10 Things Americas don't know about America
« Reply #13 on: July 09, 2013, 11:44:52 am »
^^ To be fair, it's very difficult to tell whether an Australian is insulting or complimenting you. :P
A good rule of thumb is if you're being compared to either Brits or Americans, you're being insulted.

Offline The Right Honourable Mlle Antéchrist

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Re: 10 Things Americas don't know about America
« Reply #14 on: July 09, 2013, 12:17:17 pm »
But Canadians are good cunts, yeah?
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