3d ago

Comfy cozy

178 comments

Eh, at least the USA has agency - we get to choose which stupid direction to take half the world in, while most other countries are just along for the ride. Nowhere else except maybe China is like that, and I prefer even Trump to Xi.
- The delusion, awesome.
- What about this did you choose in particular?
  
  Well, I have the option of leaving. It's not purely hypothetical for me because I'm not originally from the USA - I was just a kid when I came here, so it wasn't my choice but it was a choice and I can see myself making a similar choice to go somewhere else. Maybe I will need to leave if things in the USA get a lot worse but for now living in a blue state still seems like the best available option.
- Oh, you must be one of those techno-pharaohs out there.
  
  Obviously the average American isn't directly participating in making the major decisions, but what the average American wants still generally has far more influence on the future of the entire world than what the average citizen of any other country wants.
  
  Um... I'm Australian and we just kicked out all the pro-Trump candidates. We also get to pick from a really long list of parties and even get to pick exactly who in the party we want. Voting is compulsory and because of that, voting has to be made accessible: it's on a Saturday, you can vote early and polling stations are set up literally everywhere, even in the most remote locations.
  America has more agency than a dictatorship. That's a very low bar.
  Edit: also Trump vs Xi.
  One has no goal for the country except to line his own pockets and the other has very strong goals for the country (involving actually making their country an economic powerhouse).
  One sees himself as a strict father of his country and the other sees himself as king.
  If it was a decision between Trump and Xi, I'd pick Xi any day of the week. It's a shit choice but I'd rather a leader than a puppet.
  
  I think you are being naive. Sure, Americans may have more influence than most people in the world, but their electoral and political systems invalidate that privilege. Most people in the world expect nothing from Americans, we know better. Potentially, Americans could be far more influential in the world in a good sense, but they maintain a government that is toxic for the planet and seemingly, they just can't get rid of it.

178 comments