American Disneyland
I don’t feel very American, anymore. I can barely relate to their (our?) whole… mindest, worldview, lifestyle, whatever anymore. And that applies across race, religion, class, region, and political lines.
Hearing them talk is like listening to people from Kenya or Laos or wherever talk. It’s interesting. They’re nice people or maybe even good friends, business partners, or well-loved relatives. But… it’s clear that they are foreigners. The foreigners — yes, even those from the Middle East or someplace even further away — here actually feel less foreign to me, than the Americans over there. At least I can understand what they are saying. I mean, really understand. Empathize.
A lot of Americans are actually really difficult to talk to because they have so little knowledge of what the world outside of America is like and they think everyone wants to be American. Quality of life is much better here, overall. The last time we traveled to the USA, to one of the nicest, most-peaceful, beautiful, and wealthiest parts of the country, it was so unpleasant and unnerving, that my kids are refusing to ever return.
I only know one person here (a Russian immigrant), who has ever expressed any desire to move to America. Mostly to buy a gigantic rifle for the grocery store and drive around his Texas ranch in a cybertruck with Elon Musk. American Disneyland.
But Russians aren’t allowed to move there, anymore.
That is all.
“unnerving” is the right word. In the U.S. everyone seems to be in a permanent state of muted panic, one feels a sort of constant vibration. Other countries have some of that, Germany comes to mind, but not to the same extent. Spending a few years in Asia made me forget it, and then there it was again when I went back.
Yeah, they seem to tolerate worse conditions, personally, because of more power, nationally. Like, they feel richer, if the stock market goes up, even if they don’t own the stocks that increased and those companies are laying off American workers.
Classic Russ.
Well, there’s the general, widespread, peacetime violence, and the conviction that the answer is moar guns. The amount of national politics that are just plain kooky, like a never-ending circus. Lack of any effective social safety net, despite spending more per capita than anyone else, trying to make one. The car-centered lifestyle and tolerance for long commutes, and the way that totally skews all planning. Having crazy amounts of empty space, but also a housing shortage and there’s hardly anywhere to walk or bike around and hardly any real trains. The billionaire worship, and the illogical sense that anyone could also become one. The strange habit of measuring quality of life purely according to whether you have bought an expensive home and filled it with trinkets. And the constant, low-key terror of the inexplicably gigantic medical and educational bills looming over everyone. Spending Sundays shopping at the mall or working. And etc. etc.
I’ve been away from the sheer strangeness of American life for so long, that I can’t relate to trying to navigate in that environment. Even the Americans that agree with me that the environment is suboptimal, are still negatively-mentally effected by having to somehow get along within it. They can’t really become the people they have the potential to be because they have to slog through that sort of constant mess and I’m just glad to be away from it.
Thanks. I’m a bit of a self-hating American, at least when I travel. I don’t really like nationalism/patriotism in general, so I don’t think of it that way really. I do tend to find other countries more “charming,” and Americans do appear like loud oafs in foreign context sometimes, so I feel like I have an ok perspective (though limited as I don’t actually live abroad, or even travel all THAT much). Not sure my point, guess I mostly don’t appreciate the assumption that Americans are in some way better by virtue of living here. If anything, I think that ingrained belief has led to a gradual decline on many levels.
You’re just feeling the pull of your ancestors back to your homeland. All true Americans feel more at home in Europe.
Feel free to expound. I’m all ears, as I find these observations interesting, and especially pertinent as America fades out of the top spot while we shift to a multi-polar world.
It’s more than that. There are a lot of weird things about American life that loom large over there, but play little role here.
Americana is hard to shake off, but omnipresent.
Yeah, you come across as tongue-in-cheek but confident & self aware American. It’s a nice combo. You make us look good.
I think I get it too… It’s “embarrassing” I suppose.
I guess news over there makes it look really bad over here.
Tbf, I did just log in to twitter and there was a clip of a “spiritual advisor” from the official Office of Faith performing what appeared to be an exorcism so I guess it is a little head-turning.
I’m at the point where it’s all just so absurd that it’s funny.
I’m seriously considering powering off my node and disconnecting from internet and just going back to public library.
Lol, well said. Fwiw, I’ve done some traveling, and consider myself not the typical rah rah ’merican, so I sorta get where OP is coming from.
Strong nationalities loosely held
The U.S. is a paradise for Russians because Russians love guns and big, fast cars 🤭 Suburban America is basically ideal - just without niggers.
Damn…feels like we got dumped via a letter. Not cool, man, not cool. You’re just jealous – wait, no, you covered that.