Is America a third world country?

JBR said:
Interesting post, frightful events. But, mm, the armed official responses were to riots.
Click to expand...
Yes, my point was riots appear to happen from people conflicting over things our leaders were not addressing and trying to prevent
prior to the event. Most riots I think begin with what are supposed to be Peaceful demonstrations because We The People are not being heard or taken serious enough for leaders to set aside their ego's and wants (on BOTH sides) to find a solution before disaster happens. Yes, there will be cases where that is not the beginning but prevention probably was possible before the destruction.
 

@IrishEyes I think you have touched upon one of the, maybe the most important dynamics in acting in ways that begin to improve our lives. 🛑 Fanning the flames of telling others they are wrong, bad, evil...and so on is bound to cause defensive behavior. It is time to drop the fighting and begin to listen.

Have you heard of any good riots lately? Or maybe some good wars?
 
Paco Dennis said:
@IrishEyes I think you have touched upon one of the, maybe the most important dynamics in acting in ways that begin to improve our lives. 🛑 Fanning the flames of telling others they are wrong, bad, evil...and so on is bound to cause defensive behavior. It is time to drop the fighting and begin to listen.

Have you heard of any good riots lately? Or maybe some good wars?
Click to expand...
I am not a political expert by any means I just know how I feel, I am sick of hearing the confusion and not knowing what is true.
So I have to trust my feelings. We need a 2 party system so one does not over power the other (checks and balances) but there
has to be give and take in that.
If (let's say a Mayor) is great at programs, keeping the city in good financial balance, that mayor may not be as good at enforcing
law and surely needs help. What is wrong with going to the feds and saying can you send an advisor to us and give us a prevention plan to avoid harsh results? I want to scream it sometimes. I wish someone would try it.
Untitled.jpg

I hope I don't get banned for this, I am not saying anyone is wrong. I just feel like we need to rub their noses
together and make them sit down and figure out something before we end up where this looks like it's going.
 

gruntlabor said:
This topic, San Francisco vs Thailand, is not political. The OP has not specified any rules. It seems to me that oslooskar's posts are within bounds of our subject: IS AMERICA A THIRD-WORLD COUNTRY?
Click to expand...

And I made no claim otherwise. My desire to end the discussion is based around the observation that it had already become a fruitless back and forth which neither informed nor moved the topic along. In fact, it might even dissuade others from joining in. ;)
 
VaughanJB said:
And I made no claim otherwise. My desire to end the discussion is based around the observation that it had already become a fruitless back and forth which neither informed nor moved the topic along. In fact, it might even dissuade others from joining in. ;)
Click to expand...
:) I just believe that, with regard to San Francisco and some other American cities, we must have order. The first requirement of civilization is order.
 
gruntlabor said:
:) I just believe that, with regard to San Francisco and some other American cities, we must have order. The first requirement of civilization is order.
Click to expand...

The US allows states, and even cities, to define their own way forward. Local people, making local decisions.

No-one, not even the homeless, are in favor of homelessness, helplessness, and a life lost to addiction. No-one is choosing that. They find themselves there, for a multitude of reasons. The trouble with this whole thing is the toothpaste analogy - you squeeze these people out of one area, they simply go elsewhere. What's needed are solutions that actually resolve, rather than move people around.

When it comes to Thailand v. the US, expectations are radically different. Plus, as an American, you enter such a country at a huge advantage financially. As such, from a first person perspective, things can seem terrific. From a third person, or native perspective, things can be very different.

I have lived as a migrant on three continents. It changes you. It brings new perspectives. I've been that foreigner taking the job of a local person. I've been an immigrant to a country where I didn't speak the language. Trust me, it's not the easy option.

I'll try to give an example. I had a discussion today about some menial thing about MS Windows 11 v. Apple iOS. I won't go into details. People like to compare Microsoft and Apple. What people don't always appreciate is that there's a massive difference. Apple essentially define and own the hardware. Microsoft on the other hand supports all and sundry, big, small, whatever. Apple have a level of control Microsoft have never attempted to achieve.

This brings big advantages to Apple. On the other hand, they stifle third-party development. This, they market themselves as a high-end brand to cover the fact that you're going to be restricted.

Now, what kind of America do you want? And Apple America, or a Microsoft America? Conformity from the top down, to conformity from the bottom up? Try telling a Texan they must do something they don't like.
 
VaughanJB said:
The US allows states, and even cities, to define their own way forward. Local people, making local decisions.
Click to expand...
VaughanJB said:
Now, what kind of America do you want? And Apple America, or a Microsoft America? Conformity from the top down, to conformity from the bottom up? Try telling a Texan they must do something they don't like.
Click to expand...
States may define their own way within limits, of course.

And I don't want either an Apple America or a Microsoft America. Monopolies are illegal, but they're back with a vengeance anyway.
 
VaughanJB said:
And I made no claim otherwise. My desire to end the discussion is based around the observation that it had already become a fruitless back and forth which neither informed nor moved the topic along. In fact, it might even dissuade others from joining in. ;)
Click to expand...
Stuff it I'm in...
Clearly the USA, is not a third world country despite people living in worse conditions than some third world countries.
As a pendant I remind you that America is one or two continents.
 
Rakaia said:
Stuff it I'm in...
Clearly the USA, is not a third world country despite people living in worse conditions than some third world countries.
As a pendant I remind you that America is one or two continents.
Click to expand...

:) Just kidding, Rakaia, but as a pendant I remind you that, while we call ourselves Americans, we occupy only about forty percent of ONE of the two continents.

090725pendant.jpg
 
Last edited:
Rakaia said:
Clearly the USA, is not a third world country despite people living in worse conditions than some third world countries.
Click to expand...
Which 3rd world countries? No one in the US is living in worse conditions than any 3rd world country I can think of.

Sometime in the last 5 years, a federal law was passed that says any structure can be a home. Whether it's a cardboard box or a car, if someone lives in it, it's officially recognized as a home. Congress approved that law because, previously, you couldn't qualify for all social services unless you had an official address, which had to be a number on a house that had at least one door, two windows, and access to sanitation facilities and a place to prepare food.

Today, you can live on a piece of cloth on a sidewalk and get an Electronic Benefits Transfer card and a Medicaid card, be placed in a motel room or an apartment or on a waiting list for zero and low-income housing, and be assigned a social worker dedicated to making sure you get all the benefits you can qualify for, such as free drug rehab, free daycare, preschool, and wellness exams for your children, disability benefits if you have any type of disability including drug addiction, an official disability in the US, and free job training.

Every homeless American qualifies for social services. So, what's the problem?

I can tell you. I used to take supplies to 4 different homeless encampments here in Sacramento. Until about a year and a half /two years ago, I went to 3 of them every week, and 1 of them once or twice a month...that one was by the river, a long drive followed by a rather difficult hike, and it could be dangerous when Jazzy-Jay was around. And I never knew for sure when he'd be around.

Anyway, the majority of the people who lived there didn't want a social worker, because a social worker's 1st order of business was to get them into rehab. And the 2nd-rated fear was that, at some point, the social worker would know if they had an outstanding warrant, were in violation of probation or parole, or were wanted in another state, which would result in an arrest.

In my personal experience, most homeless people choose to stay homeless. Most that I met, anyway. And whenever I saw single moms with kids in these camps, they weren't there for long....because they got social services. I gave one gal and her 3 kids a ride to the county office myself, and got bus passes for another one.
 
Last edited:
This entire thread has been confusing from the start. First, America is not a country, it is a reference to either the North or South American continents, or maybe both. I have to assume the original poster is referencing the USA.

Assuming we are discussing the USA the term "poverty" is assumed to mean any single person with yearly income below $15,650 or family of four with income below $32,150. I arbitrarily Googled the average yearly income of Somalia which is a bit over $300 per year. Additionally, as Murrmurr stated in his post above, citizens of the USA have access to many services that can enhance their situation should they choose to accept help.

The people referenced as examples of USA poverty are often people who for various reasons choose not to seek out help. That is their choice so should not be in the discussion of whether the USA is a third world country. Third world countries do not have the where with all to offer government support to the truly needy. I have heard numerous news stories where the USA has spent huge amounts to support millions of illegals. No third world country could do that.

This whole discussion reinforces my opinion that anti USA posts, such as this, are primarily meant to create unnecessary dissent and to project an unrealistic representation of this country.
 
Pepper said:
:ROFLMAO:
Click to expand...
I don't understand what is funny about Tom52's remark.
We have homeless because we have found the homeless to have a right to be homeless which is over generous in my opinion because it means that the rights of the homeless trump the rights of the rest of us and our families to the safety, order, cleanliness, decency that we need in our communities.
There is also the problem of the safekeeping of the poor among us.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top