Originally Posted by Glass

England specifically supports actions against "Travelers" an ethnic group similar to Gypsies. That would be racism.

The term traveler encompasses many different groups and sects from different sects- it's not an ethnicity. Being British myself and actually living near several traveling communities, I can tell you that some communicates are fine and live within the legal scope. Problems arise when traveling communities either expand illegally without planning permission, in which case warnings are issued and the council will offer alternate accommodation such as housing. Or there are social issues regarding crime. Where I live there are two feuding communities, and the police are constantly raiding sites for drugs and guns.

Originally Posted by Glass

France kicked the entire Romani refugee group out of their country. The Germans sold them back to authorities in Romania. In Greece they are treated as less than trash. The same goes in Italy, Spain, and Portugal.

Firstly, France did not kick out an entire 'Romani refugee' group. The people who were expelled from France were Roma and Bulgarian gypsies who were setting up illegal camps and engaging in criminal activities. It was controversial but not racial motivated as you so claim.

Originally Posted by Glass

Not to mention that many of the current problems all over Africa are caused by the diamond trade, which goes entirely through De Beers. A European owned company. Thus, the babbling about how the us steals money from other countries through business is sheer fluff. Especially considering that Diamonds are completely worthless, and one of the most common stones on the planet.

So corrupt governments, tinpot dictators and a struggle for natural resources have nothing to do with the majority of Africa's problems... okay. I have three words for you Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. Google it- cos we use the same regulations as you guys.... even De Beers.

Capitalism- well the breed found in America is dangerous. It's corrupt to the point American politics have been reduced to feudal like states where the massive corporations are the evil land barons bullying and exploiting. No one touches them because it is assumed- bizarrely- that government interaction will cause anything from communism, fascism, something and stuff. The US healthcare system has been so screwed up by capitalism that it can not even support own population. The average cost of care per patient is shocking. When I went to America I was shocked by the lack of infrastructure for a MEDC. The poverty gap is massive. Don't get me wrong, I love America, I just think it kinda needs to wake up from the media induced coma and realise that the capitalist system needs an ethical reform.

Originally Posted by Glass

The U.S. is larger than all of Europe, and has laws, cultures, etc. which differ strikingly from not only state to state, but even city to city, and yet we are all lumped together because of the one governing body that doesn't understand us, nor do what we ask most of the time. Somewhat similar to the EU, which is clearly meant to organize Europe under one central governing body. And then pulls similar crap.

Most of the flaws she sees aren't actually there, and it's the same crap that gets spewed all over the internet. It's meaningless, useless, and for the very most part completely untrue.

Again, please answer why you think finger pointing at other countries is some how winning your argument. Seriously I could sit and point at China and go 'look they have no human rights' but that still doesn't magically negate my own countries hang up.

Originally Posted by Glass

France kicked the entire Romani refugee group out of their country. The Germans sold them back to authorities in Romania. In Greece they are treated as less than trash. The same goes in Italy, Spain, and Portugal.

As much as I'd like to leave this thread alone, maybe you should do some research before stating ridiculous and false claims. I live in Portugal. I know my country's reality. You do not. We do not treat anyone as "less than trash" so I suggest you don't speak of Portuguese-related things you do not understand before doing research and verifying facts.

NeuzaKC: ERRC.org - European Roma Rights Centre ERRC.org - European Roma Rights Centre Romani people in Portugal - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Europe's Roma community still facing massive discrimination | Amnesty International

Just calling it based on what I've read. This isn't all of it, but I've seen some bad stuff. In Greece two Roma girls drowned at a beach, and were allowed to rot in the sun for several hours, before anyone was even contacted about it.

Much of the "illegal activities" attributed to Roma, turn out to be false reports. It's racism plain and simple.

Una: I don't mean to simply point fingers here. Not what I'm trying to do, but I get irritated by the fact that people in Europe constantly complain about how evil the U.S. is, when their own countries are no better.

As for De Beers and the kimberly process. . . yeah, it's kinda a failure. Blood diamonds are all over the market, and De Beers knows it. They simply don't care. You'd be surprised how easy it is to get around. It's really very sad. They only came up with that lemon to try to appease the international community. I realize that's not a national thing, but it goes to the fact that conglomerate corporations don't give two craps about people, and they are international, having no real national identity or pride. They are their own entity.

And once again. I realize that my country has issues, but it's mostly due to politicians who are well. . . witless pansies. Most of them admitted to not having read SOPA before people started protesting. None of them read Obama's health care bill, which in it's original form was terrible and somehow the trimmed version is even fricking worse. >.> They based it on Canada for God's sake, and they actually had human rights problems with theirs. Wtf? They couldn't use the models from the U.K. which has much less flaws, or the one from Germany which seems to work rather beautifully? No. They had to be morons.

I guess my major problem is that people say "America" when they mean the American government. See the American people are mostly reasonable, but our government is not really in touch with us anymore. I'm told that's a problem in much of Europe as well?

Originally Posted by Glass

NeuzaKC: ERRC.org - European Roma Rights Centre ERRC.org - European Roma Rights Centre Romani people in Portugal - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Europe's Roma community still facing massive discrimination | Amnesty International

Just calling it based on what I've read. This isn't all of it, but I've seen some bad stuff. In Greece two Roma girls drowned at a beach, and were allowed to rot in the sun for several hours, before anyone was even contacted about it.

Much of the "illegal activities" attributed to Roma, turn out to be false reports. It's racism plain and simple.

Una: I don't mean to simply point fingers here. Not what I'm trying to do, but I get irritated by the fact that people in Europe constantly complain about how evil the U.S. is, when their own countries are no better.

The thread is about discussing problems in America and that is what we are doing. If you set up a thread discussing problems in Britain then the content of that thread would be about problems that British society faces. What you are doing is warping this into some kind of personal attack and retaliating with 'well your country is rubbish'. This has nothing to do with us Europeans have a dig at the US- all that we are doing is discussing the topic of the thread. I'm sure if you set up a thread about the problems of country x, then that is what we would discuss country x's problems.

Originally Posted by Glass

As for De Beers and the kimberly process. . . yeah, it's kinda a failure. Blood diamonds are all over the market, and De Beers knows it. They simply don't care. You'd be surprised how easy it is to get around. It's really very sad. They only came up with that lemon to try to appease the international community. I realize that's not a national thing, but it goes to the fact that conglomerate corporations don't give two craps about people, and they are international, having no real national identity or pride. They are their own entity.

I think you missed my point, the regulations are the same for Europe as it is the US, so how can Europe be any worse then America if they are both using the regulations.

Originally Posted by Glass

And once again. I realize that my country has issues, but it's mostly due to politicians who are well. . . witless pansies. Most of them admitted to not having read SOPA before people started protesting. None of them read Obama's health care bill, which in it's original form was terrible and somehow the trimmed version is even fricking worse. >.> They based it on Canada for God's sake, and they actually had human rights problems with theirs. Wtf? They couldn't use the models from the U.K. which has much less flaws, or the one from Germany which seems to work rather beautifully? No. They had to be morons.

I sympathize with the American healthcare system because it is trying to piece together a workable model. And yeah the politician's aren't great. My parents were in Washington in the Autumn and my Mother was describing to me a debate between several candidates, and she said how odd it was that they constantly trying to come across as a moral beacon of patriotic light, preaching about how much they loved their families and just trivia. One candidate accused another candidate of endorsing cervical cancer vaccinations because they wanted to 'see little girls cry'. And people applauded that. As foreigner, whose political system doesn't work that way it is frankly bizarre. In the UK a politician would ridiculed if they said 'well I love my country and I'm a good family man' because its irrelevant to their job. However that doesn't mean that I'm implying that politicians in UK are angels- because they aren't.

Originally Posted by Glass

I guess my major problem is that people say "America" when they mean the American government. See the American people are mostly reasonable, but our government is not really in touch with us anymore. I'm told that's a problem in much of Europe as well?

Europe is continent, if you asked the people of Greece do they feel disconnected from their government you wouldn't get the same response as some one in Denmark. Our political systems are entirely different. It's like me saying, hey you and Brazil are on the same continent so your governments and social problems must be the same. I think the disillusionment you feel about your government, isn't the same as mine because our political systems are entirely different. Russel Brand once famously that in Britain George Bush wouldn't be trusted with a pair of scissors let alone running a country, which is true. Sarah Palin was another crazy, poor old John McCain didn't look like he would survive a mild winter, and if croaked then we would be faced with 'hockey-mom' playing president.
I have felt disillusioned with my government at times but I have never felt that the inmates have been given the keys to the asylum- if you know what I mean, and that's the major difference between American and British politics. For example our conservative party looks almost socialist when compared with the republicans.
Don't get me wrong, we have problems, just not on that scale of craziness.

I think you missed my point, the regulations are the same for Europe as it is the US, so how can Europe be any worse then America if they are both using the regulations.

actually I think you missed my point here. People were saying that American business was stealing money all over the world, and basically suppressing business in other countries. I was pointing out an example of a European country doing exactly that, and to a much greater degree. That's what I was driving at.

And the thread wasn't about discussing anything. It was a bunch of people jibbering on about how terrible it is to live in one of the most objectively amazing places on the planet. I merely tried to point out that the rest of the world has flaws too.

And in response to George bush. . . why would you even bring him up? We are trying very hard to forget him. Though the new fellow isn't really doing so well either. >.> I can say that. I voted for him, and am disappointed.

And there are crazies on both sides of the aisle here. There are literally people who want to prevent anyone from breeding anymore because there are too many humans. That is insane, and it's on the left here.

Recently I've been really liking Ron Paul. He seems to make more sense than most of them.

Originally Posted by Glass

And the thread wasn't about discussing anything. It was a bunch of people jibbering on about how terrible it is to live in one of the most objectively amazing places on the planet. I merely tried to point out that the rest of the world has flaws too.

Interesting. Allow me: My country's better than yours, nananananana!

You're wrong. I haven't seen anyone saying that they don't like living in America (or the United States of America, to be more objective) in this thread, ever. Point me out someone who did that and I'll tell you that out of the +30 replies, that one person doesn't matter anyway. On the other hand, you've been consistently stuffing this thread with subjects you know nothing about and blaming other countries for "being racist" and "having flaws" (Seriously, what's the matter with you?) and as for Ciganos:

Did you know that they don't want houses? They're nomades, they refuse houses. Do you want to know why? They're here illegally. The majority of them are here illegally and as such, they prefer not being given houses and not occupying abandoned houses because they'd have to pay to be there, quite obviously. They also steal, a whole fucking lot. They steal from stores and houses and sell at very low prices, and steal from people too. It's not my country's fault they're trying to survive illegally but you best be damn sure we will absolutely fucking not make it easy for them.

This is not racism, it's us not letting them mooching off my country, and further more, genius, when it comes the time for CENSUS, like this past year, all we ask from them is the gender so that they don't get in trouble for giving us information that can get them tracked down and sent away from the country.

There's your "reading" right there. Come over to my country and see the reality with your own eyes or stop hiding behind false information.

Also el-oh-el at the "objectively amazing" bit. Not only is that hypocritial, it's also wrong. There is nothing objective about a personal taste.

Originally Posted by Glass

actually I think you missed my point here. People were saying that American business was stealing money all over the world, and basically suppressing business in other countries. I was pointing out an example of a European country doing exactly that, and to a much greater degree. That's what I was driving at.

And the thread wasn't about discussing anything. It was a bunch of people jibbering on about how terrible it is to live in one of the most objectively amazing places on the planet. I merely tried to point out that the rest of the world has flaws too.

And in response to George bush. . . why would you even bring him up? We are trying very hard to forget him. Though the new fellow isn't really doing so well either. >.> I can say that. I voted for him, and am disappointed.

And there are crazies on both sides of the aisle here. There are literally people who want to prevent anyone from breeding anymore because there are too many humans. That is insane, and it's on the left here.

Recently I've been really liking Ron Paul. He seems to make more sense than most of them.

Look, from post one I have repeatedly said that your argument is flawed because you are taking it personally. You may believe that America is the shizz, and that is your subjective opinion, and it may be painful to hear that the other people do not share your view. Why engage in a debate that is specifically about America's problems if you are so offended by allegations made against your country. Oh course people making assertions like 'American companies are raping the world', because that what the thread is about- America. No one is going to drag in European countries into the thread because that is not what we are discussing. Neither is anyone claiming that European companies are any better than American companies, it's just the spot light is falling on American companies because that is what the subject is about. Pointing out De Beers as a European Corporation behaving badly is a moot point. It may behave badly, and some corporations do, but we are not discussing the ethical issues within European corporations- which in itself is false because business is global. De Beers is global corporation with international share holders and international exports. The company that own De Beers is Anglo American PLC which is an international company.
Ironically you could have used the above as an argument against American corporations 'raping' the worlds resources. But instead your whole argument is based on 'look at your country and how shit it is', which is not valid and clearly offensive. Being objective would be what you said in your previous post like the politicians aren't great and we're having a hard time sorting out our healthcare system. Those are contemporary issues in America.

As for Ron Paul, I think he will great for people who fit the American conservative template. I just worry about the minorities. Yet as you say people seem to think of him as sensible.

Originally Posted by Glass

Also, international corporations are just that, international. They have no real loyalty to any one country, that's why so many of them move. Many of the largest companies on earth have people from various countries on their boards of directors. So saying it's the U.S. fault is a bit ignorant.

Una: See I made exactly that argument before. I was told that I was wrong because blah blah blah America is evil.

Originally Posted by Glass

Una: See I made exactly that argument before. I was told that I was wrong because blah blah blah America is evil.

Then why use it as an argument against Europe when you 'knew' De Beers was an international business? Again you are taking this personally, flick through the thread and try and spot where people have expressed that 'America' in its entirety is evil. People have expressed anger or disappointment with particular aspects such as business, government and mentality (which as I have said before is the purpose of the thread), but no one has called America down right evil. So in essence you are arguing against your own conjecture, while dragging other countries, that you have no real knowledge about, through the mud.

You missed the point completely. I was simply saying that other countries have done exactly the same kind of thing. That is all. That's not beyond the scope of this thread and if it is, then this thread is in the wrong place, and should be in the life issues section. I wasn't "finger pointing" I was bringing up the fact that no one has the moral high ground here. Governments in general do stupid crap. It's their nature.

The real problem with America is the sheer number of people who jabber on and on about what is wrong with it, but are too lazy to actually do anything to make a change. Not to mention the people who have done no research and still act as if they're experts.

I've watched people from the Europe (all over Europe) complain about how racist the Arizona laws were, but when I mention the fact that their governments do the same thing, they say "you don't know what you're talking about."

How is this, if you don't live her, you don't understand, and need not talk about our "problems." Many of which come from people trying to copy what your governments do.

----------

And as for no one insulting America as a whole. Look at the title of the thread. I mean really. It's a straight up insult.

It could have been "what I don't like about America" or "My problems with America" or any number of things, but no. It is a direct insult to an entire country.

Originally Posted by Glass

You missed the point completely. I was simply saying that other countries have done exactly the same kind of thing. That is all. That's not beyond the scope of this thread and if it is, then this thread is in the wrong place, and should be in the life issues section. I wasn't "finger pointing" I was bringing up the fact that no one has the moral high ground here. Governments in general do stupid crap. It's their nature.


The real problem with America is the sheer number of people who jabber on and on about what is wrong with it, but are too lazy to actually do anything to make a change. Not to mention the people who have done no research and still act as if they're experts.

Life issues is about personal problems related to a person...not an entire country, so I don't understand how you jumped to that conclusion. Anywhoo, no one here is trying to take the higher moral ground. Again that is your own conjecture. What I'm querying is how your comparative analysis between America and country x or continent x, makes a valid argument or discussion. I could shrug my shoulders and say, "well you know America and Europe have problems but nothing in comparison to North Korea- phew, thank God we live in the West."
Well, despite North Korea being ...well, North Korea, our problems still exist, so pointing out the existent of a worse or similar problem existing else where in the world, is a moot point. Plus you can't assume that the issues America has with racism is going to be the same as the issues European countries has with racism. The politics and culture is not the same. So for example comparing issues of immigrant workers in the UK and Poland, and then Mexico and America, we see similarities regarding attitudes such as 'foreigners are taking our jobs' ect, but there are major differences such as EU laws, illegally crossing the border ect. In essence our problems are not the same beast- which adds another flaw to comparative analysis.

Originally Posted by Glass

I've watched people from the Europe (all over Europe) complain about how racist the Arizona laws were, but when I mention the fact that their governments do the same thing, they say "you don't know what you're talking about."

Neither of us pleaded ignorance or denied the legal action taken against those groups. However, what we did contest was the accusation that the legal actions against those groups were racially motivated. Both NeuzaKC and I have explained that pockets of these social groups engage illegal activity, and despite the government's efforts to socially integrate groups into society by offering housing ect, they still choose isolate themselves and engage in crime. It the involvement in illegal activities which has caused our governments to react- not racism.

Originally Posted by Glass

How is this, if you don't live her, you don't understand, and need not talk about our "problems." Many of which come from people trying to copy what your governments do.

----------

And as for no one insulting America as a whole. Look at the title of the thread. I mean really. It's a straight up insult.

It could have been "what I don't like about America" or "My problems with America" or any number of things, but no. It is a direct insult to an entire country.

The title of the thread is meant to provoke discussion and the OP puts the title of the thread into context expressing her anger and disgust with elements of America in the OP. That is the only time anyone has come close to an insult against America. Otherwise everyone was happily discussing problems in America, until we had all this Europe nonsense from you, which has clearly insulted one member of this discussion because the accusations against her country/continent were untrue.

The US is well known world wide for being self centred in multiple areas such as business and world politics. It's not secret or no matter of opinion. They are the model for ethnocentricism in even my university studies in international business.

In business, the US are the biggest money suckers of any country in terms of money itself as brain draining nations worldwide. O_o

Clearly this wasn't insulting to anyone right? Wrong. It's a direct insult. That's what made me defensive in the first place. It wasn't "happy discussion," or any discussion for that matter. It was a blatant insult.

That last quote by the way is what brought me to De Beers in the first place. It clearly opens things up for such an argument. From there, things just got all jumbled and confused. >.> I apologize.

NeuzaKC: I apologize for being insulting. I was simply regurgitating what I'd heard/read. That was ignorant of me. I've not actually had a chance to speak with someone from your country, aside from the ones complaining about the education on another site. >.>


Aside from all that.

Along the lines of the racial issue. The illegal immigrants in this country aren't so much responsible for "stealing jobs" as they tend to be members of known criminal organizations. A lot of the illegal drugs brought into this country are brought in by illegal immigrants in exchange for transport to the states, as well as fake papers which generally fool no one.

I'm sorry for my badly worded last remark. I meant that the US was particularly big when it came to brain draining other nations of both skills and wealth.

They are not insults. Other nations, particularly OECD ones are guilty of these, however the US have been exemplary.

Just to simplify things, this article indicates how important skilled and educated migrants from developed are though the trend is changing in recent years.
America's Immigrant Brain Drain - BusinessWeek
Where these people are coming from and the fact they are developing and creating revenue in the US and not their own country must be considered.

Regarding ethnocentrism, it appears both in subtle and not so subtle forms.
This is just one research regarding it in Japanese/US political and trade relations.
JSTOR: An Error Occurred Setting Your User Cookie
While not always explicit, after doing international law, economics, management, marketing and accounting and studying a variety of vases, companies and regulatory bodies from the US have a tendency to enforce their values, beliefs, and practices worldwide. The US also has the largest influence in these areas.

Some of that is true, however many skilled workers got their skills here. They come here to learn, decide they like here better, and then stay. There's nothing wrong with that. It's not some evil plan, or plot to keep the rest of the world down. There are great opportunities in the U.S. and a lot of people from other countries recognize that.

Not only that, but do you see these revolutions taking place all over the world? A lot of them got their spark, because someone from say, Egypt, or Libya, looked at the U.S. saw our general freedoms, and wanted that for their home.

I do realize that the U.S. is not the only free country (less free by the freaking minute lately) but we are recognized the world over for that freedom, especially by younger people.

As for those business practices which you seem to dislike. They're not uniquely American. They show up with whoever is currently on top. It's a symptom of corporatism. The East India Company did all of those things, and so does De Beers. If we want that to change, then we need to stop supporting companies like that. If you find that a company does things you don't like, then don't buy from them, and make sure your friends, and family know why. That's how free market capitalism works, and if we all did it, then the system would go back to working that way.

In stead right now, we have this Corporatist crony capitalism, which screws with governments world wide, and just generally mucks things up for everyone. Brand loyalty is one of the problems. A lot of people buy Macs in stead of PCs. Those of us who know anything about computers will tell you that Mac makes crummy overpriced electronics and with a little research you could get two better computers for the same price. But Mac users will only buy Macs because. . . well honestly they're slightly brainwashed, just like people who want any one brand over every other despite it being fail. The brands' marketing people got into their heads and now it's really hard for them to switch.

. . . I could get into the psychology of that, but that's really another topic altogether.

Originally Posted by Glass

Clearly this wasn't insulting to anyone right? Wrong. It's a direct insult. That's what made me defensive in the first place. It wasn't "happy discussion," or any discussion for that matter. It was a blatant insult.

That last quote by the way is what brought me to De Beers in the first place. It clearly opens things up for such an argument. From there, things just got all jumbled and confused. >.> I apologize.

NeuzaKC: I apologize for being insulting. I was simply regurgitating what I'd heard/read. That was ignorant of me. I've not actually had a chance to speak with someone from your country, aside from the ones complaining about the education on another site. >.>

Don't worry about it. There is a lot of anti-American rhetoric out there and I can understand why you would want to defend your country, because it is a great country. I would happily have America as the world's super power then a country like China.

Originally Posted by Glass

Aside from all that.

Along the lines of the racial issue. The illegal immigrants in this country aren't so much responsible for "stealing jobs" as they tend to be members of known criminal organizations. A lot of the illegal drugs brought into this country are brought in by illegal immigrants in exchange for transport to the states, as well as fake papers which generally fool no one.

I meant 'stealing jobs' as in the context of attitudes either from the general public or media, which does not necessarily reflect the reality the situation.

See the media rarely has the real issue to show you. They pick what's sensational, and politically correct. The fact is that those who do take jobs here, and send their money home weaken our economy because the money cycles out, and never comes back.

It's like anti tourism. O.o

Originally Posted by Glass

Some of that is true, however many skilled workers got their skills here. They come here to learn, decide they like here better, and then stay. There's nothing wrong with that. It's not some evil plan, or plot to keep the rest of the world down. There are great opportunities in the U.S. and a lot of people from other countries recognize that.

Not only that, but do you see these revolutions taking place all over the world? A lot of them got their spark, because someone from say, Egypt, or Libya, looked at the U.S. saw our general freedoms, and wanted that for their home.

I do realize that the U.S. is not the only free country (less free by the freaking minute lately) but we are recognized the world over for that freedom, especially by younger people.

I would argue that. My uncle was an Iraqi nuclear scientist and was offered a place in the US. Once he got there, they decided they didn't want him (I can't remember the reasoning but it is a common practice) and now he's working as a hairdresser. Same applies to many highly skilled workers working far below their abilities.

Yes, I do know of the revolution. Those things are not sparked by the US freedoms. They were sparked by a Tunisian event. The Middle East don't want the same things as the US, but they want freedom, which is a universal thing. The educated know the problems with the US, and do not actually want the same liberalism. The uneducated are often told negative things about the US. Usually the US is seen as a place of debauchery, naivety, spoilt youths and evil corporations. It's also seen as a failing country. These are not my personal observations but of those through my Muslim Afghan husband and my own Iraqi, Lebanese, Saudi, Turkish and Iranian friends and family as well as the news/general opinions from their own countries.

That's not to say that the Middle East aren't also guilty of these things like Dubai being a haven for prostitutes despite two friends of the opposite sex not being able to share a room without going to gaol, or the nature of their 'government'.

Did your uncle not sue the ones who promised him a job? He should have. By law they would have had to pay him a great deal. It's fraud at least and a good lawyer could have almost made him rich.

And as for the propaganda constantly spewed in the middle east. If you are only told of the bad things about the U.S. which are a minority, of course you'll have a negative view.

Some good things about the U.S.

We have some of the best universities in the world.

We are on the cutting edge in every field of science.

Even after handing over many of our freedoms, we still have more than most of the world.

Regardless of your religion here, no one kills you for it, unless they're insane.

We can eat food from anywhere in the world.

Even the poorest person here is better off than many people around the world.

We have the best healthcare technology on earth, and if it weren't for people not realizing that "insurance" is a Ponzi Scheme, we'd have the cheapest healthcare too. (I'm counting taxes as a payment. No healthcare is free.)

See the thing of it is, it's an awesome country, and we actually have the ability to fight back against government oppression without fearing for our lives. We are in a bad spot at the moment, but we've been in worse, and we'll see this through.

No, without the money or access it's near impossible for a lawyer, or even a decent one to get anywhere.
For the uneducated, yes, for the educated, it's an entirely different story as the feelings they have are shared with those in the US, however as a foreigner, naturally they will be much more critical. On top of that, there are major cultural differences which makes the 'good' in the US not necessarily 'good' elsewhere.

In the fields of science and universities, that falls once again on the brain drain issue.

And food? oO You can grab sushi and curry in Kabul.

Honestly there are lawyers who will take a case they think they can win, assuming they'll get paid out of the winnings. It's called eating what you kill. You'd be surprised how many are out there, and how easy they are to find when you need to.

And the brain draining is bad why?

If people want to come here for an opportunity to be a part of something amazing like say, the scientists at Berkly who just built a machine that (kinda) shows an image of what a person is seeing, based upon brainwaves, then it's their prerogative.

It's not selfish on the part of my country for attracting intelligent people from other parts of the world. It's not an evil policy. It's just one way of making our country a better place.

If any other country were doing it, would you think them evil? If the country you are from were doing the same, would you have a problem with it, and call it evil, or malicious? No. I think not. You'd be glad that smart people were coming there and making it better. It's not about suppressing anyone, it's about building ourselves up. There is nothing wrong with it at all.

As for food. I can get curry, sushi, matzo ball soup, chow mein, enchiladas, or a burger all within a few blocks of my house. I can also get Indian, Chinese, Thai, or Italian food delivered to my house, and the awesome part of all of it is, that even though I can do those things, I'd rather cook for myself, since I can get literally any spice in three or four forms at the store a block away, along with ingredients for just about anything imaginable. White truffles are still a bit out of my reach, but that's true most places. lol. . . . I'm a fan of Gastronomy. I can talk about food all day. lol. I can also fix my own plumbing to a degree, and make simple repairs to my home, because I'm a DIYer. :) It's becoming rather popular to learn to do things for ourselves here. Making clothes especially.

Originally Posted by Heiyuu

I'd love to know what people think is wrong with the American military. I'm a third-class petty officer in the US Navy, myself. I joined the military because I didn't know what to do with my life and I wanted to travel. Currently, I'm living on foreign soil, and on a daily basis, my job is to keep radios working. It actually really upsets me to hear people say "America's all about playing world police" or similar, because not all military forces who are stationed outside the States are where they are to control the local populace. My antenna field and radios are where they need to be to relay the signal to troops in combat-heavy areas, not because we're 'policing' anyone.

it upsets me as well, but, then the people who say this are not military.
they do not understand the branches of service are only following orders.
nothing more, and nothing less.
we follow orders because that is the oath we took and even if we do not agree with that order.
period.
having lived in many countries, i have never been treated poorly by the nationals of said country.
i have never experienced any 'hate' at all.
i have seen demonstrations, but that is usually about nuke subs.
oh, and Okinawa wanting all military out of the island.
but still, no hate shown toward America, herself.