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Comment by INTPenis | Hacker News Reader

I'm glad this is being addressed but I don't feel qualified to add anything of substance to it.

As many other techies I frequent message boards on reddit and other sites. A majority of users are from the US and many posts are written from a US-centric point of view.

What I've observed on those message boards regarding workers rights and health has made me deeply concerned about US workers. And that's only in the tech field. I can't even imagine how it compares to other industrial fields.

I'm not qualified to debate this but I am convinced that I would never want to work in the united states.

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I think it all comes down to how Americans see and value money versus how the rest of the developed world values it.

American culture puts 100% emphasis on how much money you make, and how you make it. More than health, or stability, or a well rounded life, American's are taught that money is the cure-all.

And sure, when you are in the top 1/4 of income earners, the U.S. has quite a bit to offer. But what good is all that money if your job can literally disappear over night? Or you get sick and can no longer work? Or any other unexpected tragic circumstance.

Somehow, we as American's have been brainwashed to believe that we are all just 'down-on-our-luck millionaires'. The opportunity exists, but it is certainly not a fair playing field - and offering assistance to those who experience bad luck or tragedy will not take away from someones ability to make what they wish, despite what we are being sold.

> we as American's have been brainwashed to believe that we are all just 'down-on-our-luck millionaires'

I'm not sure I'd say "brainwashed" -- this is a founding mythos of the United States. It's embedded in our most sacred documents -- the Declaration of Independence, the Preamble to the Constitution, etc. -- that the individual (in theory) reigns supreme and (in theory) has ultimate control over his/her life.

It's a noble ideal, truly, but also a damn convienent excuse for those in power ("I/my ancestors didn't get lucky, they made smart decisions and worked hard, and so did I, so I succeeded") and those in poverty ("I can win if I just work harder/emulate those more successful than I -- ultimately I'm in control and nothing else matters").

It's both our ace-in-the-hole and our fatal flaw IMO.

That's fair. Brainwashed is probably an overly emotional label for what is actually a great idea that has deviated from it's original intent.

The American Spirit (for lack of a better term) is at odds with the economic and political structure of current-day America. We are led to believe (for good reasons) that we control our fate, but the infrastructure no longer supports it in a way that makes it available to every American.

From 1862 till 1976 an American could always head west(or north) and claim 160 acres with 5 years of hard work(caveats apply)[1]. It would be cool if some similar opportunity was available today. 1976 was not that long ago.

[1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homestead_Acts

>"I can win if I just work harder/emulate those more successful than I -- ultimately I'm in control and nothing else matters"

While obviously there are things outside individual's control, is this really a harmful outlook? I'd certainly rather look at my life as if I had agency vs thinking I had none, or it was incredibly limited.

As a third-world citizen, reading about US worker conditions in Reddit made me realize that working minimum-wage burger-flipping job with no benefits in US affords you a better life than working one of the rarer white-collar high-skill jobs in my country.

It really depends on your third world country.

That’s not really due to the job there though - it’s due to the overall state of the country & infrastructure.

Not really the same thing.

When compared to countries with similar quality of infrastructure & “development” the US fares extremely poorly.

Extremely poorly? How so?

Did you read this article or the OECD report it is based on? Probably some clues in there if you are interested in finding your answer.

It is likely true that there is a high degree of self-selection here: because U.S. citizens dominate a lot of these discussion boards, U.S. news will dominate them as well. And because emotions garner upvotes, news of terrible things in America rise to the top. And on top of that, the most vocal, emotional commenters with the most amazing stories of U.S. suffering tend to rise to the top of the comments section.

Take it all with a huge grain of salt and stick to the facts and figures.

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