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Here is the thing, I have found many Europeans to be pretentious and rude and at the same time, I have found many Americans (mostly liberal) to be the same way. The one thing is that we shouldn't expect the government to provide us with a better life or to even guarantee us a better life. It is there for the taking and what you make of it. I would rather have the opportunity to make a better life than to be told what I can do with my life. We have seen here in America what an over-bearing government interested in buying votes gets us and it is not pretty. The people should have more power and then quality of life will be it. Until then, the liberal panacea of quality of life is just meaningless words. Ironically, I do what I need to do and I have an excellent quality of life in spite of the government. When they get involved, it is when QOL goes down.
What you had secretly suspected is true: Europe is superior
In the context of the 'western world', Europe is superior only to 'no europe'. Just as in the same context, the U.S. is superior only to 'no U.S.'. However, an absence of Canada would create an unbearable vacuum. The two regions are only different neighborhoods of the same society. And yes, I've also been there and even lived near Lisbon as a child. I've been back a few times and unless I have an appointment with a location, I make it a point to walk.
One just cannot compare Dallas with Houston, NYC with LA, or the U.S. with Europe. Different neighborhoods.
El OPo's post declared his intent of the post...
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If only America wasn't infested with ignorant republican yahoos, it too could enjoy the full benefits of being a western democracy.
If it weren't for some western descendents of the Europeans, that western democracy might look a great deal different.
Yes, elections have consequences. It must have hurt. Deal with it.
Europhiles i tell you, they think the whole world must live how their beloved Europe does.
I'll take an American Redneck over a snobby Europhile any day, at least American rednecks don't worry endlessly about peoples lives in other countries.
I don't think I agree. Sure, Germany leads, but the Scandinavian countries, Ireland, Britain,the Netherlands, Finland, and France all have fairly strong economies. Italy too. Though the Mediterranean countries are struggling more. The eastern countries are all in transition, so too early to say. A lot of it seems to be differences in culture as well as political organization. The NW. European countries are very similar to the cultural roots of America, industrious people, and strong, innovative economies. The South and East, not so much.
Germany is fading, brought down by the weakness of Europe in general. Germany is highly dependent on exports - so its own well being depends heavily on other countries. France is stagnant (no growth since 2011) and Italy is in recession.
It's coming, these next two years will bring republican to be exposed for the vile and the negative agenda they have long built and upheld their mentality ideals upon. It is anti government and anti-regulation and would like to convert to 1950's ignorance.
But the younger generation is more aware, they may not currently have money to push their voice, but they have social media where they are communicating. As they get past their 18-23 yrs of age, they will become more political involved and they will mobilize their forces to vanquish the ignorance of this Right Wing madness and the Republican Programming.
Republican have relegated us to a 2nd World Status nation, They allowed the infrastructure to deteriorates, and under their push and position in charge we saw the results of their actions, via bankrupt cities, devastate communities and blight spread across the nation. They support cheap building methodology, all in doing things cheap to feed the wealthy greed aims of the wealthy. They have gridlocked growth modeling in areas that they could. But we have today, more people in vocational and technical schools and they are also challenging and changing the greed based programming that Republican Agenda had infected university programming with.
Those things are being challenged by the youth. They also are following the money and the madness and tying it to Right Wing Political Agenda, and in doing so, they are preparing to dismantle all of it.
A little history to make a point
America has moved 30 yrs behind, with trade deficit that are criminal, republicans have done nothing to bring industry back, they have done nothing to manage quota's and they have done nothing to protect American industry. They have made no efforts to sanction companies that move offshore and think they can send their goods back here duty free. We found out in 2008, that under the Republican Programming, Offshore hiding of money had reached into the Trillions of Dollars. All these things are part of the Republican acts that brought America down.
They shut down the government, failed to pass funding bills, and resulted to cost us higher interest rates, lower credit rating and insulted us as a people on the world stage.
There is not one High Speed Rail on the Lands of America. Republican agenda again, trying to get contracts lined up with 'cronies" who can bleed it dry and impose cost over-runs. Therefore the end result is no High Speed Rail.
The only Republican in the past 50 or so years who did anything meaningful in America, was Eisenhower, who pushed to expand our freeway system. Because he learned from War, that Infrastructure is critical to national security as well as national progress. But, Eisenhower was a moderate Republican, not one of the stuck in the past die-hards caught up in trying to re-fight the Civil War.
He did nothing to advance Civil Rights, nor did he do anything to publicly uphold the measures of Civil Rights legislation. but under the agenda of republican mentality and especially during this period of high racism and bigotry, he avoided it to focus on his other agenda.
I'm sure he knew that Civil Rights was an issue that was not going away, and he had to have known that at some point it was an issue that would take center stage. But he weighted that against his program strengthening aims. Which ultimately resulted to being beneficial to all Americans; he had to know that under the Kennedy Administration, Civil Rights would then be with better elements in timing to get it in order for passage.
Eisenhower also warned Kennedy, to be well aware of the manipulations and powers of the Military-Industrial system. he knew their greed and their aims for generating conflict was a high agenda of this Industrial system of Military hardware and ammunition producers. Kennedy opposed Vietnam on a number of front, and certainly he was not going to be pushed to war, for the sake of profit seeking by the Military Industrial System. Unfortunately, Johnson succumbed to this Industrial System and went to war with no agenda, and no program other than the expansion of military hardware being bought and transported to this area. We all know the end result of that.
Now back to current day. Europe is struggling Financially, but they are very well ahead of us in the design of their facility and how they approach things. They will ultimately take a lead to show us how to take back industry and push for a balance in Trading Reforms. This is a critical component being discussed in the European Union these very days. We as American first will need to dispense with the Republican led craziness, and we will again become a nations that can truly lead.
Republican have done all they can to try and weaken the Office of the President of the United States, for no other reasons than racism. They can't stand seeing a black man in office, and their vile is so deep they have not a second thought of insulting the Office of the President of the United States, on a global platform by any and every act of attack and vile they can imagine to engage. IF this was any other country, they'd have probably lined Republican Leadership and Maybe the Whole bonded gang up in front of a firing squad, based on the way they have conspired together to insult the highest office in the ways they have and continue to do.
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Originally Posted by Chance and Change
American over all will do better,when we realize and understand that we have much room and great need for improvements. Those with the Post World War II Glaze of thinking we are what we were then, need to re-consider and realize, we have as much to learn from the world and maybe more, than we think they need to learn from us.
Heck we can't even get rid of racism and the wealth gap even after 500 yrs of such craziness.
We need to get down to reality, and stop with the delusion that we are above learning from others around the world.
The second post of yours sounds like Back peddling to me.
According to your first post, America will be a much better place if we can just get rid of Republicans.
Where are you seeing 50% in Europe? The people I worked with over there were saying 60-75% tax rate. Many middle and upper middle class professionals couldn't even afford their own house. Even somewhat dumpy apartments were terribly expensive. About the nicest thing I saw about Europe was the competence of the drivers. Austria is spectacular though.
I'm an American who recently moved to Brussels. The quality of life here is so much better. Nice, dense neighborhoods, good public transit, very little signs of poverty, well paid workers, polite manners, sensible laws about guns, much lower rate of violent crime - the list goes on. If only America wasn't infested with ignorant republican yahoos, it too could enjoy the full benefits of being a western democracy. It's such a shame the non Yankee element keeps America from reaching it's potential.
Yep european coubntruies are smarter...they manipulate the USA to be their persona;l army to address issues in their part of the world. No defense budget to speak of, so they can afford free edu for everyone and herds of PhDs doing menial jobs. of course the unions ensure inefficiency by demanding esoteric job titles for all.
Their global responsibility in the event of turmoil is to meet at Brussels and issue indignant rhetoric, then go home with a sense of accomplishment and duty served.
No everyone wants to live in dense cities.
Amsterdam has been confiscating broadheads on the arrows of hunters passing thru to hunt in other countries....sensible gun laws in your dreams.
BE like other countries has an inferiority complex and tries to take shaots at USA at every opportunity.
Only the fringe D-party is obtuse enough to want to be more like European countries.
Rules for many pof the EU countries, if enforced here would cause pitched battle with the social justice crowd/ ACLU which seems to get a lot of traction here.
I think Americans want good wages, affordable education, and low cost health care along with a competitive capitalist economy. That's what Western Europeans have.
What makes you think Europe has good wages? Even in Belgium you like to boost about average wages is
55,968 dollars, while it is 56340 in US.
However, after tax income in Belgium will be 31900 dollars while it is 44,600 in the US. Then you got to pay your rent. Lets say you got to choose between Houston and Antwerp. In Antwerp the rent will be 1600 for a three bedroom apartment outside the city centre, in Houston the rent will be 1000. That means you got 12700 left in Belgium and 32600 left in Houston. How is that a better salary?
And that's Belgium. New jobs give people around 600 - 1000 euros per month in Spain, Greece and Portugal. Good luck trying to balance the budget with that kind of salary. Are they not part of Europe?
Yep european coubntruies are smarter...they manipulate the USA to be their persona;l army to address issues in their part of the world. No defense budget to speak of, so they can afford free edu for everyone and herds of PhDs doing menial jobs. of course the unions ensure inefficiency by demanding esoteric job titles for all.
Their global responsibility in the event of turmoil is to meet at Brussels and issue indignant rhetoric, then go home with a sense of accomplishment and duty served.
No everyone wants to live in dense cities.
Amsterdam has been confiscating broadheads on the arrows of hunters passing thru to hunt in other countries....sensible gun laws in your dreams.
BE like other countries has an inferiority complex and tries to take shaots at USA at every opportunity.
Only the fringe D-party is obtuse enough to want to be more like European countries.
Rules for many pof the EU countries, if enforced here would cause pitched battle with the social justice crowd/ ACLU which seems to get a lot of traction here.
Probably the biggest difference between Europe and America is in inequality.
In America, CEOs make about 400 times the average worker. In Germany, the ratio is something like 12 times. American conservatives seem to cheerlead for that sort of inequality, whereas in Europe it is seen for what it is. A return to a feudal power structure. American was at its strongest when inequality was far less. That is, when Democrats ran the government. The GOP economic model is hollowing out our country from within. It is still a great country, but the trajectories are not inspiring, and I see no evidence the GOP intends to change anything. They are shills for the plutocracy.
Probably the biggest difference between Europe and America is in inequality.
In America, CEOs make about 400 times the average worker. In Germany, the ratio is something like 12 times. American conservatives seem to cheerlead for that sort of inequality, whereas in Europe it is seen for what it is. A return to a feudal power structure. American was at its strongest when inequality was far less. That is, when Democrats ran the government. The GOP economic model is hollowing out our country from within. It is still a great country, but the trajectories are not inspiring, and I see no evidence the GOP intends to change anything. They are shills for the plutocracy.
Also, it is meaningless to look at CEO pay to average workers. CEO pay is a tiny fraction of company revenue. What really matters is the inequality in skill. For instance doctors earn a lot more money in the US than they would earn in Europe. But why is that the case?
Because doctors in the US are expected to work very long hours, while in Europe they can work normal hours. Also, they are expected to be interns for a lot of years, and in that period they are paid about 50K a year while they have to do 70+ hours. This discourage a lot of people from becoming doctors, hence creating a skill gap.
It is the skill gap that is really driving inequality in the US. And that gap is often caused by bad practices or government mishandling.
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