America in Decline.
This is a post I originally wrote and published in January of 2013. At the time of writing, I was pretty fed up with the way America was headed. Back then, I used this post as a sort of self-justification (as if one was really needed) for our decision to retire early and expatriate to the Philippines. The article is nothing more than furthered evidence that depicts the varied reasons why many (including me) choose to retire (some very early), move and live abroad. Many of us were evolving as Libertarian Anarchists.
After watching a "trailer" for a popular HBO television series, my gut instinct told me not to believe everything I had just heard. But I had to ignore my gut as this message seemed so totally spot-on accurate - and it wasn't so much that I was sold by this actor's performance as I was by the presentation of truthful speak. Afterwards however, I felt the need to verify some of the factual numbers that were presented for my own peace of mind. Here I will pause and encourage you to watch the 3 minute trailer (caution - some strong language). If you have never seen it, I think it will move you emotionally as it moved me, and most especially if you understand what it meant to be a proud American. Go ahead...I'll wait!
In this video, I was amazed at the staged sincerity of this actor as he describes how the United States is not the place it once was. Okay, he was acting, but I believe that the gist of the message was a sublime wake-up call, directed at the many Americans who have no clues about their beloved country, especially the younger generations (especially the generation of "Vidiots.") For those who are unfamiliar with that term, it is defined by the Urban Dictionary as: A person whose main source of knowledge, be it scientific, historic etc., comes from TV, video games and Movies. I remain true to my disclaimer that I still love my country and I always will, I just choose not to live there any longer. It had become too disheartening - and to think that I feel like joining the likes of Juan S. Galt and Jeff Berwick in Acapulco for a few cold ones (although rumor has it that Berwick quit drinking).
At the time, most of the numbers presented in the above video were accurate and were further corroborated through the links provided at the end of this post. Some of the numbers can be almost mind numbing if one didn't know any better.
Education in Decline
With the United States ranked against the rest of the world in the below listed academics and categories, it seemed that more Americans should be concerned (Obviously not.)
7th in Literacy
27th in Math
22nd in Science
50th in Life Expectancy
51st in Infant Mortality
3rd in Median Household Income(Down 8.2% during the Obama Presidency)
4th in Labor Force
4th in Exports (#1 in the number of guns exported)
But rest assured, we still hold the top spots in some areas as follows:
1st in Number of Deaths by Violence
1st in Incarcerated Citizens per capita
1st in Number of Adults who Believe Angels are Real
1st in Defense Spending (where we spend more than the next 26 countries combined)
1st in Health Care Costs (yet ranked #38 in health systems)
...and I'm sure if one keeps digging, they could find a few more titles that we hold.
We're Oh So Happy!
Of the most popular places in the world to be born, the "desirability" of the United States has dropped over the years and was ranked at #16 (at the time I published this). But not to fear, we are a happy country as our "happiness" rank placed us at #11 and we were ranked #3 in the world among countries that "like themselves". Only the Japanese and the Kenyans like us better than we do. That's a lot of arrogance - and for what? What is it that we are so adamantly arrogant about? In many opinion, it is the American arrogance that is precisely the reason that we are not looked upon as favorable as we used to be. Could it be because America continues to flaunt itself as being the "best" country in the world with such an "in your face" attitude. Maybe we should begin flaunting our own stupidity? Oh wait, we already do that.
We Have Become Stupid!
And nothing much has since changed. While I couldn't find out which country was the most stupid, I did happen to find that we were the 6th "most hated" country in the world behind Japan, both of the Korea's, China and Israel. And while there was no confirmation about being stupid, we rank right up there as the "most lazy".
I know one thing for certain - while America will always be #1 in my own heart, I will be living in the #1 "most emotional" country in the world, the Philippines. And going forward, I will spend my days coin collecting... coins of the Crypto variety. And I just might spend some more of my time on Steemit talking about it.
Sources
Related articles
America: Red, White And Some Still Sing The Blues (atlantablackstar.com)
4 Freedoms in America That Don't Exist Anymore (readersupportednews.org)
America the great (wnd.com)
