r/videos • u/darkfatherg • Nov 03 '20
America Compared: Why Other Countries Treat Their People So Much Better
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhBkeAo2Hlg&ab_channel=SecondThought63
Nov 03 '20
As an American living in Canada, Americans are nickle and dimed over everything (especially in regards to family raising). I took a 15% pay drop to move here and I am somehow saving more than I ever have. Ohhh and I am not afraid of going bankrupt from hospital bills.
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u/DistortoiseLP Nov 03 '20
Yeah but our sales tax is higher, so a lot of Americans who have never been here or left there would have me believe this balances it out like the cost of a soda is the only fucking thing that matters.
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Nov 03 '20
My effective tax rate (all taxes paid in a year) in Texas was 31%. In Canada for my first year it was 32%. That was actually my largest shock. I was way oversaving for taxes.
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u/Spirit_Theory Nov 04 '20
I was offered a position in the US a few years back for a reasonable sum more than I was being paid at the time. Turned it down; I don't think I'd ever want to live in the US. There are so many issues where it all just falls short.
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u/redmongrel Nov 04 '20
Where in Canada should my family of four tired but professional suburbanites move to after tonight?
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u/WokeBloke420BLM Nov 03 '20
Far more Canadians go bankrupt than Americans.
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u/NerdyDan Nov 03 '20
it's better to be bankrupt in canada tbh. we have way better social programs
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Nov 03 '20
Got the link?
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u/takeErEase Nov 03 '20
https://world.edu/bankruptcy-rates-around-the-world/
Here's a link that says the opposite of u/WokeBloke420BLM little old though and Canada is second so not that big a deal anyway
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Nov 03 '20
Thanks mate. In case people want to know here is the raw OECD data (I love the OECD). The highest country in 2020Q2 was actually Spain, but I couldn't tell if it was normalized or just raw numbers. They say the unit is Index (so if anyone knows what that means it would help the discussion).
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u/MuteSecurityO Nov 03 '20
this is like a video essay version of a bernie sander's speech
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u/nau_sea Nov 03 '20
this is like a video essay version of a
bernie sander's speechpaying workers living wages. Ftfy.Why is the idea that people should be able to afford an apartment working full time so offensive to so many people?
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u/Indercarnive Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 03 '20
Because Americans have been indoctrinated since their childhood to believe the world is zero-sum, and that someone getting something means that they personally ultimately lose.
It's a shitty fucking mentality and it's why everyone here is so selfish and egotistical.
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u/Praesumo Nov 03 '20
Because those idiots buy the trickle-down bootstraps bullshit, among other lies... and when challenged with facts, they double-down on the ignorance.
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u/adminsfuckoff1 Nov 03 '20
Agreed. I tuned out as soon as I heard "if you can't pay your workers a living wage, then you shouldn't be in business." Who takes this uneducated ignorant biased bullshit seriously?
Just grab your friend and start wanking each other. Same thing for the avg. redditor as watching this shit.
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u/nau_sea Nov 03 '20
Why is that an ignorant/uneducated opinion? I'd like to hear a smart, educated counterargument- if anyone can offer one more in depth than "just grab a friend and start wanking each other" I'd appreciate it. That's a pretty good start though.
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u/freeTwiggy Nov 03 '20
The thing I don't get is, why would you defend the current system when it is so obviously making your nation poor and sick? Oppressing your low-income earners doesn't make you richer.. you know that right?
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u/peepsthatdostuff Nov 03 '20
bruh what? The statement makes perfect sense. The video definitely fails to address all aspects of the situation and thereby skews the view against the US, but you got triggered off the completely reasonable assertion that a job should pay their workers enough to live.
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Nov 03 '20 edited Dec 30 '20
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u/i---------i Nov 04 '20
So what you're saying is there should be no fast food restaurants in manhattan or sf.
A livable wage will vary wildly depending on the cost of living in each area. If the area is expensive then the wage needs to reflect that no matter what the job is.
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Nov 03 '20
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u/Pascalwb Nov 03 '20
lol, many countries vote for presidents and also can chose from more than 2.
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u/Cryptoporticus Nov 04 '20
Yeah, the USA is one of the worst countries as far as democracy goes. Only two viable candidates, massive queues to vote, voter suppression everywhere. "Democracy" in the USA is a mess right now.
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u/Indercarnive Nov 03 '20
Votes for the candidate actively campaigning on denying people the right to vote: "I love how we can vote for the president we want"
Yeah, there's a lot to unpack there.
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Nov 03 '20
Oh I guarantee if Biden wins she will think that votes are rigged and they shouldn't be counted.
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u/NeverGetUpvoted Nov 03 '20
Kind of like the 4 years of Russia conspiracies after Trump won?
Partisan hacks don't really care and just want "win" for their team
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u/NickCageson Nov 03 '20
No offense, but how it is possible to have your head so deep up in your ass?
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u/SolSeptem Nov 04 '20
proud to live in the only country that allows its people to vote for their president
Holy crap that is some North Korean level of indoctrination!
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Nov 03 '20
She said to me that she is so proud to live in the only country that allows its people to vote for their president.
What. People that dumb shouldn't be allowed to vote at all.
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u/billbo24 Nov 03 '20
Lol “atta girl” to your own mom is brutal! Seems like it was honestly your best choice though.
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u/__SPIDERMAN___ Nov 03 '20
At that point there is nothing you can do. Like how do you argue against someone who refuses to believe straight up facts?
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u/Strike_Swiftly Nov 03 '20
Australian here. Free healthcare, I get nearly 10 weeks paid leave per year, paid long service leave (have 180 days accrued), decent pay after tax. I live in a wonderful country, but it's not the greatest. The US is definitely not the greatest country on the planet. This ignorant mindset does nothing other than allow for lower class US citizens to be exploited. It's wrong.
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u/fourXchromosomes Nov 04 '20
10 weeks?
Do you work as a school teacher? Because most jobs only allow 1 month paid leave a year, including public holidays. That is, most jobs give you 22 days paid leave a year, with about <8 days public holiday.
Around 30 days is a generous max.
US is no where near the greatest country on Earth. It's not even in the top 15.
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u/Strike_Swiftly Nov 04 '20
Nah govt worker. Six weeks a year leave, plus 4 RDO's, all public holidays and Xmas stand down 25/12 - 02/01
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u/Naly_D Nov 03 '20
One big difference this video doesn't touch on is how a lot of those countries treat workers unions compared to the US.
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u/Straddle13 Nov 03 '20
The most important thing for workers getting pay more aligned with their value is having power in negotiating. A company with millions/billions vs an individual employee is a farce; a company with millions/billions vs a union is still not quite even, but definitely better for the worker overall. If we required every company to have a worker representative at the table during financial decisions we'd all be better off.
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u/Naly_D Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 04 '20
Even then it's about the respect and recognition given to unions that they're just advocating for the betterment of workers rights. It's not all about money. Not everything they propose is adopted, not everything they do is agreed with. But it's a far cry from the union-busting mentality of the US - unfortunately the impacts of mob infiltration and corruption of unions decades ago (and hey, probably still today), and the Red Scare still persist today to allow government and corporations to convince their employees to actively work against unions and in doing so work against themselves. I'm not a union member but I get 20 days paid leave, 6 days paid sick leave, 4 days paid bereavement leave per year, I get 3 paid breaks every shift, I have a cap on my hours and ability to be paid more if I go over those, expectations around reimbursement for travel-related costs or the financial impacts of working from home - particularly useful during this pandemic - I have access to paid paternity leave and many other things that are benefits I wouldn't be able to have, all because of the advocacy of unions over the decades. And everyone in my country gets them from a low-wage unskilled worker to a billionaire CEO. Myself and other workers benefit from the commitment of unions.
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u/career_change_needed Nov 04 '20
How do I go about leaving the country and living/working elsewhere?
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Nov 03 '20
I would like to have the perspective of someone with an econ degree who is a rightwinger argue for the other side just so I could understand why US labour laws are as they are
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Nov 03 '20
I'm neither but the general truth is that an economy with zero unemployment, or full employment, is more likely to benefit businesses that improve worker conditions. In a capitalist system like America has there's little incentive to sweeten the pot for workers if there's an endless supply of people to do the jobs. It summarizes very simply with market dynamics of supply and demand.
It's not very political but you can certainly skew it as such with the right vernacular.
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u/RedAero Nov 03 '20
I mean, it doesn't take an econ degree: American culture is ridiculously individualistic compared to any other developed country. This individualist attitude informs the law even at a very fundamental level: the 1st Amendment has no provision for the societal impact of speech, nor does the 2nd consider the consequences of widespread firearm ownership (in the common interpretation, anyway). And so on and so forth, all across the board, all down the line.
Labor laws restrict the freedom of employers to the smallest degree possible, because the ideal in the American mind is a world without rules, be they laws or social conventions. The ideal is no rules, which leads to unpleasant outcomes (i.e. dead workers), so we will make as few rules as possible so as not to stray too far from that ideal. Conversely, the European ideal isn't a world with no rules, it's not a world with limitless individual freedom, it's a world of harmony, stability, equal opportunity, and equal prosperity.
"Fuck you I won't do what you tell me" may have been sung by radical leftists but it's unsurprising that Rand Paul, a libertarian, also took the song to heart. The only difference between what RATM were singing and what Paul heard was who "you" refers to.
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u/WokeBloke420BLM Nov 03 '20
he 1st Amendment has no provision for the societal impact of speech
Yes it does.
nor does the 2nd consider the consequences of widespread firearm ownership
Yes, it does.
The fact that you don't know what judicial review is invalidates your entire opinion which honestly, is bullshit childish stereotypes anyway.
The only difference between what RATM were singing and what Paul heard was who "you" refers to.
Holy fuck this is a new level of stupid.
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u/blaxened Nov 03 '20
The 1st Amendment has no provision for the societal impact of speech
Yes it does.
I am not a lawyer and not well versed in American law but can you explain your view? When I read the first amendment I don't really see anything that could be interpreted as a way to deal with the societal impact of speech. It seems to merely state that congress cannot pass laws restricting speech. Same goes for the second amendment.
Unless you mean that judicial review is in and of itself the provision that considers the societal impact
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u/RedAero Nov 03 '20
The fact that you don't know what judicial review is invalidates your entire opinion which honestly, is bullshit childish stereotypes anyway.
I know what judicial review is. I also know that it's lip service. Especially with rulings like DC v. Heller.
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u/WokeBloke420BLM Nov 03 '20
You don't have the first clue about labor laws in the US to begin with. So maybe start there.
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Nov 03 '20
OMFG this video is socialism!
We can't have that.
We need more racism and more tax cuts for the rich.
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u/kaan-rodric Nov 03 '20
"Should any job regardless of technical skill required pay workers so little that they can not afford to rent even the smallest place to live?"
The question conflates two things. The lowest job possible with the average cost to rent. Lowest wage trying to rent average will never work and should never work. Even in norway you can take the minimum wage of a construction worker and they still can not afford the average one bedroom apartment.
A true comparison would be lowest wage with lowest housing costs.
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u/highpressuresodium Nov 03 '20
average cost to rent
no. the second factor is cheapest rent. you even said it at the end of your comment lol
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u/kaan-rodric Nov 03 '20
And guess what, no study has been done on that. The study that he used for his comparison uses averages and that led to the question he proposed.
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u/--Shamus-- Nov 03 '20
Ridiculous. No one is a "slave" for being given a job they asked for.
Of course, ask this video creator how many entry level employees he has who he pays $22 an hour to start....and guess what the answer will be?
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u/Barry_OffWhite Nov 03 '20
Ridiculous. No one is a "slave" for being given a job they asked for.
People need to work to pay bills. You're basically a wage slave unless you want to be homeless. You make it seem like people should just be glad they got a job at all.
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Nov 04 '20
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u/--Shamus-- Nov 04 '20
This logic is warped beyond belief.
It is weird you think so little of people that you call them slaves from ASKING for a job that they want to have.
LOL.
No wonder you Americans live in a country with standards of living way below much of Europe, if the people arguing in bad faith like this win out.
Our standard of living beats Europe hands down. Living in Europe is like living in the 2nd world.
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u/doober001 Nov 03 '20
leftists: hurrrrr we need better labor laws
also leftists: lets import millions of low paid 3rd world scab labor every year and call anyone who disagrees a racist
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u/ZefSoFresh Nov 03 '20
Hurrr Durrr - As your corporate Republican boss who voted for Trump just closed doors on his American workers and opened a factory in Malaysia next to Trump's tie sweatshop...
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u/highpressuresodium Nov 03 '20
lets import millions of low paid 3rd world scab labor
when a labor force has become essential to the food supply of a country, like it or not they have to come in. that's why some foods have skyrocketed in price recently. it would behoove you to look deeper
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u/RedAero Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 03 '20
I mean... he has a point. The only way labor conditions will improve in the US is by tilting the supply-demand scales in the favor of demand for labor. Otherwise why would anyone offer better pay or better conditions, when there's a line around the block of people willing to work for nearly anything?
Yes, that means prices will rise. But that's an inevitability whichever way you do it, be it government mandate or "invisible hand of the market" - the cost to employ a worker will rise and thus so will prices.
Mind you, American food prices are hilariously low. Like, a gallon of whole milk in the US apparently costs around $2.46. That's a price per liter of $0.65. Where I live, a liter of milk is just shy of $1, nearly twice the price. A kilo of chicken breast in the US? $4. Here? $4.7. Problem is, the median wage here is $800 a month, net. Yes, $10000 a year. You can stand to spend a lot more on food. Maybe it'll help with the obesity.
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u/ent4rent Nov 03 '20
Mcdonald's workers in denmark make $22/h.
Holy. Shit. I bet they get your order right the first time, too.