Explaining American Civilization
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Date: 2023-04-01
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• TED-Ed
Comments and reviews: 14
XXXTENTAClON
16: 56 one thing I want to highlight is, those self made billionaires also conveniently inherited the millions to startup their journey towards doing so
I personally think the statistic has more to do with this:
The ten wealthiest European billionaires on Forbes 2022 list are worth a collective 590 billion, up by 38 billion in the past year. In comparison, the top ten richest U. S. billionaires are worth a total of 1. 2 trillion, showing the big difference between tech when it comes to billionaire wealth at the very top. Seven of the top ten U. S. billionaires are tech tycoons who made their money in the years following the mass adoption of personal computing, the internet and social media. Europe, by comparison, has no tech billionaires in its top 10.
Such modern tech is something recent, so cannot be inherited.
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16: 56 one thing I want to highlight is, those self made billionaires also conveniently inherited the millions to startup their journey towards doing so
I personally think the statistic has more to do with this:
The ten wealthiest European billionaires on Forbes 2022 list are worth a collective 590 billion, up by 38 billion in the past year. In comparison, the top ten richest U. S. billionaires are worth a total of 1. 2 trillion, showing the big difference between tech when it comes to billionaire wealth at the very top. Seven of the top ten U. S. billionaires are tech tycoons who made their money in the years following the mass adoption of personal computing, the internet and social media. Europe, by comparison, has no tech billionaires in its top 10.
Such modern tech is something recent, so cannot be inherited.
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49
super like! very informative.
Im a west coast guy and everything you said fits pretty well to what I see.
One caveat tho; there are SOME counties, at least in NorCal, that do have massive differences or severe presuppositions about the neighboring counties. but Im from the county that discovered gold, starting the Gold Rush, and I think that has something to do with it lol so my county has deep ties to the 1850s and the neighboring counties have such different landscapes and urban populations that theres no gettin around it. This county is still very rural and underdeveloped while Sacramento and San Francisco, while being close, have very different societal differences.
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super like! very informative.
Im a west coast guy and everything you said fits pretty well to what I see.
One caveat tho; there are SOME counties, at least in NorCal, that do have massive differences or severe presuppositions about the neighboring counties. but Im from the county that discovered gold, starting the Gold Rush, and I think that has something to do with it lol so my county has deep ties to the 1850s and the neighboring counties have such different landscapes and urban populations that theres no gettin around it. This county is still very rural and underdeveloped while Sacramento and San Francisco, while being close, have very different societal differences.
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Junior
I'll always remember how back in college, visiting international professors and students from the UK and Europe would always talk about how they felt so free in the United States. A visiting Spanish professor talked how great it felt that nobody in the US could identify her Andalusian (Southern Spain) accent, and therefor couldn't assess her regional or economic class. A student from the UK said the same thing- that nobody in the States could tell if she was from Liverpool, or Manchester, or Oxford. We couldn't tell if she was posh or a chav - she was just BRITISH! Thats when I realized that the American Dream is just the opportunity from foreigners to re-invent themselves.
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I'll always remember how back in college, visiting international professors and students from the UK and Europe would always talk about how they felt so free in the United States. A visiting Spanish professor talked how great it felt that nobody in the US could identify her Andalusian (Southern Spain) accent, and therefor couldn't assess her regional or economic class. A student from the UK said the same thing- that nobody in the States could tell if she was from Liverpool, or Manchester, or Oxford. We couldn't tell if she was posh or a chav - she was just BRITISH! Thats when I realized that the American Dream is just the opportunity from foreigners to re-invent themselves.
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SDagoth
As far as I'm concerned, New England and the South have a lot in common despite being archenemies. They are both very controlling, if in slightly different ways, because southern conservatives and northern liberals tend to all see themselves as the good guys and are totally incapable of understanding the other side's perspective. So they try to cram their often extremist worldviews down everyone else's throats. They were also the two most hierarchal of America's founding nations, with New England being run by oppressive, above-it-all Puritans, and the South being run by oppressive, racist plantation owners.
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As far as I'm concerned, New England and the South have a lot in common despite being archenemies. They are both very controlling, if in slightly different ways, because southern conservatives and northern liberals tend to all see themselves as the good guys and are totally incapable of understanding the other side's perspective. So they try to cram their often extremist worldviews down everyone else's throats. They were also the two most hierarchal of America's founding nations, with New England being run by oppressive, above-it-all Puritans, and the South being run by oppressive, racist plantation owners.
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Elliott
As someone who has lived his entire life in California, I have to disagree with the notion county identification doesn't matter out here. I've always had the experience of it being very relevant. Saying you're from San Diego County means something very different than saying you're from one of the inland empire counties or Los Angeles County. People from where I am - Oramge County - go so far as to identify primarily with the county when traveling outside of it rather than from our cities. I think counties became more important in California because of how decentralized our urban structures are out here.
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As someone who has lived his entire life in California, I have to disagree with the notion county identification doesn't matter out here. I've always had the experience of it being very relevant. Saying you're from San Diego County means something very different than saying you're from one of the inland empire counties or Los Angeles County. People from where I am - Oramge County - go so far as to identify primarily with the county when traveling outside of it rather than from our cities. I think counties became more important in California because of how decentralized our urban structures are out here.
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Perridan
For your last point, America is already exporting its social cancer, trying to spread crazy social justice and what's not with various NGOs and direct government intervention. Like seriously organizing a gay pride in Afghanistan during its occupation, I also regularly see that they try to set up shop in Eastern Europe and produce papers about the shocking lack of diversity in Eastern Europe.
When I was a child I loved America and even thought of moving there, now I hope it dies quickly so that it stops destroying the world. I went from long live the US to death to America.
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For your last point, America is already exporting its social cancer, trying to spread crazy social justice and what's not with various NGOs and direct government intervention. Like seriously organizing a gay pride in Afghanistan during its occupation, I also regularly see that they try to set up shop in Eastern Europe and produce papers about the shocking lack of diversity in Eastern Europe.
When I was a child I loved America and even thought of moving there, now I hope it dies quickly so that it stops destroying the world. I went from long live the US to death to America.
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Joe
21: 48 China due to its security became indolent and silly when the British arrived in 1791 as steamships rifles and advanced. oh he said Clockwork. once you see advance clockwork puts thing in perspective you start wondering hows my clockwork compared to the other clocks. its the best clock ive ever see sooner later doubt creep in and it leads to losing face and 100 years of humliation. Afterwards people dont have to see your clockwork to know you got bad clocks
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21: 48 China due to its security became indolent and silly when the British arrived in 1791 as steamships rifles and advanced. oh he said Clockwork. once you see advance clockwork puts thing in perspective you start wondering hows my clockwork compared to the other clocks. its the best clock ive ever see sooner later doubt creep in and it leads to losing face and 100 years of humliation. Afterwards people dont have to see your clockwork to know you got bad clocks
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Doug
People in America think every other country is of the same size as us and thinks like us. Most countries have less than 10 million or so people and bigger countries minus the top ten have less than 100 million. Most of those other countries also have a shared religion or vision of there country and we are insanely diverse. I also think 50%of Americans are not so much dumb but believe what the media tells them and are incapable of independent thought.
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People in America think every other country is of the same size as us and thinks like us. Most countries have less than 10 million or so people and bigger countries minus the top ten have less than 100 million. Most of those other countries also have a shared religion or vision of there country and we are insanely diverse. I also think 50%of Americans are not so much dumb but believe what the media tells them and are incapable of independent thought.
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Mikael
Your move away from thinking about alternative history to reflecting on the actual reality in our timeline has been very rewarding. I really appreciate your honest and brave attempt to understand culture.
The next frontier could be to think about the underlying mental structure of our societies, not only genetic origins but also the distribution of personality traits in different countries, regions and civilisations.
Keep up the good work!
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Your move away from thinking about alternative history to reflecting on the actual reality in our timeline has been very rewarding. I really appreciate your honest and brave attempt to understand culture.
The next frontier could be to think about the underlying mental structure of our societies, not only genetic origins but also the distribution of personality traits in different countries, regions and civilisations.
Keep up the good work!
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You
Am I the only one who thinks that Whatifalthist needs to read up about the European arms market, cause I don't think he gets just how strong several European armies are, like France, Britain, Fins, Swedish, and Swiss to name a few examples, plus places like Poland how are rapidly building up their army to be on of the best land-based military in the world, especially with their gigantic arsenal of tanks and SPA and Poland is just the biggest outliner
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Am I the only one who thinks that Whatifalthist needs to read up about the European arms market, cause I don't think he gets just how strong several European armies are, like France, Britain, Fins, Swedish, and Swiss to name a few examples, plus places like Poland how are rapidly building up their army to be on of the best land-based military in the world, especially with their gigantic arsenal of tanks and SPA and Poland is just the biggest outliner
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Huwhite
American foreign policy is just absolutely atrocious, and has been ever since its infancy. It's democracy means it so easily will get dragged into something it yesterday didn't want to be involved with, to tomorrow being staunchly for it, to the day after tomorrow suffering from PTSD for having been involved with it. The mentality of schizo
No other country can be credited to creating another rival great-/superpower than the US.
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American foreign policy is just absolutely atrocious, and has been ever since its infancy. It's democracy means it so easily will get dragged into something it yesterday didn't want to be involved with, to tomorrow being staunchly for it, to the day after tomorrow suffering from PTSD for having been involved with it. The mentality of schizo
No other country can be credited to creating another rival great-/superpower than the US.
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Wolf
In any video about America or western society, he takes a chance to swipe at the liberal left and its decadence, but I have not heard him ever criticize the right's ideological insanity in bing pro-guns, ant-abortion, religious zealot, Cheeto-electing, anti-intellectual, anti-reform etc etc. It would really make his arguments more compelling if there was a balanced critique of both versus ignoring the side he supports completely.
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In any video about America or western society, he takes a chance to swipe at the liberal left and its decadence, but I have not heard him ever criticize the right's ideological insanity in bing pro-guns, ant-abortion, religious zealot, Cheeto-electing, anti-intellectual, anti-reform etc etc. It would really make his arguments more compelling if there was a balanced critique of both versus ignoring the side he supports completely.
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Omar
What's the explanation for lower living standards in America then in Europe? I'm from Italy and comparing my country with a average American state like Ohio or Pennsylvania the obesity rate is much higher, the homicide rate is much higher, homeless rate, suicide rate, overdose rate, STDs rate, infant morality, maternal mortality, more hours of work, less holidays or free time, more teen pregnancy, alcohol consumption etc etc
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What's the explanation for lower living standards in America then in Europe? I'm from Italy and comparing my country with a average American state like Ohio or Pennsylvania the obesity rate is much higher, the homicide rate is much higher, homeless rate, suicide rate, overdose rate, STDs rate, infant morality, maternal mortality, more hours of work, less holidays or free time, more teen pregnancy, alcohol consumption etc etc
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Juliane
6: 18 As you like to talk nose up about other countries, you are more a Yankee than a Quaker, so no surprise here. Maybe it would help not to state Europe has no science, no innovation for example. As you appearantly not know, Europe does more science than the US. But if you retain a myoptic view on other countries, you will brush off people in the future. Like a Yank.
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6: 18 As you like to talk nose up about other countries, you are more a Yankee than a Quaker, so no surprise here. Maybe it would help not to state Europe has no science, no innovation for example. As you appearantly not know, Europe does more science than the US. But if you retain a myoptic view on other countries, you will brush off people in the future. Like a Yank.
reply
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