What makes a country great?

[Ray From Cleveland]

In my opinion it's freedom and ability.

We are one of the only countries where a poor person can become middle-class, upper middle-class or even wealthy. It's not easy and may require sacrifice and investment, but it can be done.

It amazes me when I see foreign store owners who work from sun up to past sun down seven days a week. Many came here with little to no money, worked their asses off, and used every dime they could afford to open up their own business.

Why can't American born people do this? Because we are spoiled.

If the work is too hard, not the hours you like, takes too much time to learn, has you working overtime, you can just sit home and the working people will take care of you. Our so called poor have cell phones, air conditioning, free medical care, free food, and in some cases, a house or apartment in the suburbs.

However if you can avoid all that spoiling, you can become successful. Of course, when you do, you are castigated by the left, but most people ignore them anyway.

As for those who feel it's the people that make this country great, no foreigners are trying to move and live here because we have great people.

No, I think you're wrong. It can happen elsewhere too.

Just because you don't know about it, doesn't mean it doesn't happen.

Very rare in other places. Here we make a new millionaire every day.

But then the US is much bigger than other countries. Making millionaires isn't what makes a country great, it's making people have enough money for a good life. If you have more millionaires, potentially you have poverty too.

Switzerland has the highest proportion of US dollar millionaires in the world at 82,549 per 100,000.
Sweden is second at 54,167 per 100,000.
The US is third with 49,078 per 100,000
Australia 4th with 41,547 per 100,000
The UK 5th with 36,879 per 100,000

The problem here is the higher your GDP, the more millionaires you'll have, but then a million won't get you very much.

Switzerland is 9th in the world for GDP according to the IMF and 7th according to the World Bank.
"In Geneva, the median asking price was CHF 11,710 (€10,891) per sq. m." for a house.

Swiss house prices are now falling

In China you're going to be looking at far, far, far less for property. So a dollar millionaire in China is rich, massively rich. They could probably buy five decent sized properties in a major city. In Switzerland this might buy you one. A 70 square meter property in Geneva is going to cost you like 1 million dollars, at median asking price.

You have to understand the facts your looking at Ray, otherwise you're not going to understand what's going on.

Yes, but the cost of living is a bigger factor. For instance, a home you can buy here for around the $200,000 area is closer to the $800,000 area in the NE states. Same with California. The median income in Switzerland is in the mid $200,000 area, so your dollar doesn't stretch as far as just about any other country.

Switzerland has the second highest cost of living in the world, and Sweden falls in 15th place. The US (collectively) places 24th in the entire world:

Cost of Living Index by Country 2017 Mid-Year

Which is what I just said Ray.

You said the US was much better, but now you're going to have to compare all countries to find out where the US is, because you don't actually know.

My point is being millionaire here is not like being a millionaire in other places. The higher the cost of living, the more people that will have more money. In that regard, the US is the best place because we rank high on the amount of millionaires we have and lower on the cost of living scale.

I would rather live here in the Northeast Ohio area making $180,000 a year than live in the NYC area making $500,000 a year. My dollar will go a lot further. I mean, look at where the complaints are coming from with the new tax bill which eliminates home interest on loans over 750K. Nobody here is complaining about it because not many have homes worth that much. Those that do are pretty wealthy people.

 

[frigidweirdo]

No, I think you're wrong. It can happen elsewhere too.

Just because you don't know about it, doesn't mean it doesn't happen.

Very rare in other places. Here we make a new millionaire every day.

But then the US is much bigger than other countries. Making millionaires isn't what makes a country great, it's making people have enough money for a good life. If you have more millionaires, potentially you have poverty too.

Switzerland has the highest proportion of US dollar millionaires in the world at 82,549 per 100,000.
Sweden is second at 54,167 per 100,000.
The US is third with 49,078 per 100,000
Australia 4th with 41,547 per 100,000
The UK 5th with 36,879 per 100,000

The problem here is the higher your GDP, the more millionaires you'll have, but then a million won't get you very much.

Switzerland is 9th in the world for GDP according to the IMF and 7th according to the World Bank.
"In Geneva, the median asking price was CHF 11,710 (€10,891) per sq. m." for a house.

Swiss house prices are now falling

In China you're going to be looking at far, far, far less for property. So a dollar millionaire in China is rich, massively rich. They could probably buy five decent sized properties in a major city. In Switzerland this might buy you one. A 70 square meter property in Geneva is going to cost you like 1 million dollars, at median asking price.

You have to understand the facts your looking at Ray, otherwise you're not going to understand what's going on.

Yes, but the cost of living is a bigger factor. For instance, a home you can buy here for around the $200,000 area is closer to the $800,000 area in the NE states. Same with California. The median income in Switzerland is in the mid $200,000 area, so your dollar doesn't stretch as far as just about any other country.

Switzerland has the second highest cost of living in the world, and Sweden falls in 15th place. The US (collectively) places 24th in the entire world:

Cost of Living Index by Country 2017 Mid-Year

Which is what I just said Ray.

You said the US was much better, but now you're going to have to compare all countries to find out where the US is, because you don't actually know.

My point is being millionaire here is not like being a millionaire in other places. The higher the cost of living, the more people that will have more money. In that regard, the US is the best place because we rank high on the amount of millionaires we have and lower on the cost of living scale.

I would rather live here in the Northeast Ohio area making $180,000 a year than live in the NYC area making $500,000 a year. My dollar will go a lot further. I mean, look at where the complaints are coming from with the new tax bill which eliminates home interest on loans over 750K. Nobody here is complaining about it because not many have homes worth that much. Those that do are pretty wealthy people.

Yes, I know this is your point, because this is the point I made before.

You made a claim which was that the US was better because people could move much more rapidly. You haven't proven this. In fact by agreeing with the point I made, you're actually moving away from the claim you made.

Yes, the higher costs of living the more money you have. This is good if you go abroad and buy foreign products. But you said you try and buy American wherever possible, and I doubt you've traveled abroad much. So, for you it doesn't really matter.

So, you're still a very long way away from making the US look like a great place.

 

[TheDude]

A. Democracy
B. Capitalism
C. Recognition of common sense human rights.
D. Military
E. Unity & common culture
F. Honesty and integrity

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

Very rare in other places. Here we make a new millionaire every day.

But then the US is much bigger than other countries. Making millionaires isn't what makes a country great, it's making people have enough money for a good life. If you have more millionaires, potentially you have poverty too.

Switzerland has the highest proportion of US dollar millionaires in the world at 82,549 per 100,000.
Sweden is second at 54,167 per 100,000.
The US is third with 49,078 per 100,000
Australia 4th with 41,547 per 100,000
The UK 5th with 36,879 per 100,000

The problem here is the higher your GDP, the more millionaires you'll have, but then a million won't get you very much.

Switzerland is 9th in the world for GDP according to the IMF and 7th according to the World Bank.
"In Geneva, the median asking price was CHF 11,710 (€10,891) per sq. m." for a house.

Swiss house prices are now falling

In China you're going to be looking at far, far, far less for property. So a dollar millionaire in China is rich, massively rich. They could probably buy five decent sized properties in a major city. In Switzerland this might buy you one. A 70 square meter property in Geneva is going to cost you like 1 million dollars, at median asking price.

You have to understand the facts your looking at Ray, otherwise you're not going to understand what's going on.

Yes, but the cost of living is a bigger factor. For instance, a home you can buy here for around the $200,000 area is closer to the $800,000 area in the NE states. Same with California. The median income in Switzerland is in the mid $200,000 area, so your dollar doesn't stretch as far as just about any other country.

Switzerland has the second highest cost of living in the world, and Sweden falls in 15th place. The US (collectively) places 24th in the entire world:

Cost of Living Index by Country 2017 Mid-Year

Which is what I just said Ray.

You said the US was much better, but now you're going to have to compare all countries to find out where the US is, because you don't actually know.

My point is being millionaire here is not like being a millionaire in other places. The higher the cost of living, the more people that will have more money. In that regard, the US is the best place because we rank high on the amount of millionaires we have and lower on the cost of living scale.

I would rather live here in the Northeast Ohio area making $180,000 a year than live in the NYC area making $500,000 a year. My dollar will go a lot further. I mean, look at where the complaints are coming from with the new tax bill which eliminates home interest on loans over 750K. Nobody here is complaining about it because not many have homes worth that much. Those that do are pretty wealthy people.

Yes, I know this is your point, because this is the point I made before.

You made a claim which was that the US was better because people could move much more rapidly. You haven't proven this. In fact by agreeing with the point I made, you're actually moving away from the claim you made.

Yes, the higher costs of living the more money you have. This is good if you go abroad and buy foreign products. But you said you try and buy American wherever possible, and I doubt you've traveled abroad much. So, for you it doesn't really matter.

So, you're still a very long way away from making the US look like a great place.

Very few leave the US to live somewhere else. Millions are trying to get in our country every single year.

Opportunity is why they come here. And while I've never visited any other country (besides Canada) I wouldn't want to live any other place in the world. I love this country, and I wish to preserve it for future generations. My cousins and I were all born middle-class, several of them are millionaires today. And again, being a millionaire here is much different than being a millionaire in Switzerland. This is the land of opportunity as long as we can keep Democrats out of power.

 

[blackhawk]

High quality beer.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

High quality beer.

You must be kidding. I haven't drank an American beer in over ten years. The stuff is crap. I only drink imported. Those beers actually have alcohol in them.

 

[blackhawk]

High quality beer.

You must be kidding. I haven't drank an American beer in over ten years. The stuff is crap. I only drink imported. Those beers actually have alcohol in them.

Good beer much like the question posed in the OP is subjective and no I was not being serious.

 

[frigidweirdo]

But then the US is much bigger than other countries. Making millionaires isn't what makes a country great, it's making people have enough money for a good life. If you have more millionaires, potentially you have poverty too.

Switzerland has the highest proportion of US dollar millionaires in the world at 82,549 per 100,000.
Sweden is second at 54,167 per 100,000.
The US is third with 49,078 per 100,000
Australia 4th with 41,547 per 100,000
The UK 5th with 36,879 per 100,000

The problem here is the higher your GDP, the more millionaires you'll have, but then a million won't get you very much.

Switzerland is 9th in the world for GDP according to the IMF and 7th according to the World Bank.
"In Geneva, the median asking price was CHF 11,710 (€10,891) per sq. m." for a house.

Swiss house prices are now falling

In China you're going to be looking at far, far, far less for property. So a dollar millionaire in China is rich, massively rich. They could probably buy five decent sized properties in a major city. In Switzerland this might buy you one. A 70 square meter property in Geneva is going to cost you like 1 million dollars, at median asking price.

You have to understand the facts your looking at Ray, otherwise you're not going to understand what's going on.

Yes, but the cost of living is a bigger factor. For instance, a home you can buy here for around the $200,000 area is closer to the $800,000 area in the NE states. Same with California. The median income in Switzerland is in the mid $200,000 area, so your dollar doesn't stretch as far as just about any other country.

Switzerland has the second highest cost of living in the world, and Sweden falls in 15th place. The US (collectively) places 24th in the entire world:

Cost of Living Index by Country 2017 Mid-Year

Which is what I just said Ray.

You said the US was much better, but now you're going to have to compare all countries to find out where the US is, because you don't actually know.

My point is being millionaire here is not like being a millionaire in other places. The higher the cost of living, the more people that will have more money. In that regard, the US is the best place because we rank high on the amount of millionaires we have and lower on the cost of living scale.

I would rather live here in the Northeast Ohio area making $180,000 a year than live in the NYC area making $500,000 a year. My dollar will go a lot further. I mean, look at where the complaints are coming from with the new tax bill which eliminates home interest on loans over 750K. Nobody here is complaining about it because not many have homes worth that much. Those that do are pretty wealthy people.

Yes, I know this is your point, because this is the point I made before.

You made a claim which was that the US was better because people could move much more rapidly. You haven't proven this. In fact by agreeing with the point I made, you're actually moving away from the claim you made.

Yes, the higher costs of living the more money you have. This is good if you go abroad and buy foreign products. But you said you try and buy American wherever possible, and I doubt you've traveled abroad much. So, for you it doesn't really matter.

So, you're still a very long way away from making the US look like a great place.

Very few leave the US to live somewhere else. Millions are trying to get in our country every single year.

Opportunity is why they come here. And while I've never visited any other country (besides Canada) I wouldn't want to live any other place in the world. I love this country, and I wish to preserve it for future generations. My cousins and I were all born middle-class, several of them are millionaires today. And again, being a millionaire here is much different than being a millionaire in Switzerland. This is the land of opportunity as long as we can keep Democrats out of power.

Very few being how many? I mean you're trying to make a comparison or something with no comparison.

Many Americans will leave one part of the US and move to another part.

I personally have met quite a lot of Americans living abroad.

Opportunity exists in the US, but then it exists elsewhere too. Many Chinese are going to Canada, because it offers them opportunity they can't get in the US.

You love the country, well, most people love their country. It doesn't mean much.

You said being a millionaire is different than being a millionaire in Switzerland. Well, how about the other 190 countries?

And you say it's the land of opportunity without the Democrats, however you support the Republicans when they're trying to make it not the land of opportunity by having large multinationals who control everything. I don't get it.

 

[Issa]

I've lived in both a third world country and the US and I'm gonna divide my experience in two and you guys be the judge.

Morocco:

Very family oriented society, everyone helps everyone.
Education is free so is health.
Less jobs than the US, but there will be always a family member taking care of 5 or 6 others.
0 mass shootings and gun crimes.
There is corruption and bureaucracy.
Food generally cheap and fresh. (Taste much better)
Got the Atlantic Ocean, mideterenean sea, the atlas mountains with Switzerland like towns, got the Sahara and its oasis, and lot of history.


USA:

plenty of jobs and opportunities to make money.
Very fast life style and demanding.
Less family values and a very disconnected society....no one cares about no one.
Crimes, gun violence and drug epedemic.
Lot of racial tensions and divide.
People are very cold, fake and judgemental in general.
Beautiful country , but what makes more interesting for me is the diversity of people from other countries.

That been said , once I retire off to Morocco where life has more meaning...the US is more like a big factory where everyone is like slave regardless what car you driving or what house you live in.

 

[OKTexas]

Often Americans will say America is the greatest.
Canadians will say Canada is the greatest.
French will say France is the greatest.
And so on. It's not hard to see why people think their own country is the greatest, they've been indoctrinated into it, or they've just grown up there and are comfortable with it, or they don't know anywhere else... or maybe other reasons.

But, if you're going to give a UNIVERSAL assessment of what makes a country great, what would those things be?

We have illegals here from virtually every country on earth, if their countries are so great why did they leave. Nuff said.


.

 

[Norman]

Let's do it with pictures.

A great country:

The leftist utopia:

(I would prefer to call it a shithole, but each to their own).

 

[Slyhunter]

Often Americans will say America is the greatest.
Canadians will say Canada is the greatest.
French will say France is the greatest.
And so on. It's not hard to see why people think their own country is the greatest, they've been indoctrinated into it, or they've just grown up there and are comfortable with it, or they don't know anywhere else... or maybe other reasons.

But, if you're going to give a UNIVERSAL assessment of what makes a country great, what would those things be?

America isn't great because Liberals have destroyed her greatness.

A strong Military makes a country great.
A strong High Tech education system, and business complex makes a country great.
High Math, Science, Medical, Engineering, makes a country great.

What makes a country weak? Providing for those who can't hack it makes a country weak. Allowing those who can't hack it to hold it back from it's greatness makes a country weak. You kill the weak to provide space for the strong to thrive. You are only as strong as your weakest link.

 

[Norman]

Often Americans will say America is the greatest.
Canadians will say Canada is the greatest.
French will say France is the greatest.
And so on. It's not hard to see why people think their own country is the greatest, they've been indoctrinated into it, or they've just grown up there and are comfortable with it, or they don't know anywhere else... or maybe other reasons.

But, if you're going to give a UNIVERSAL assessment of what makes a country great, what would those things be?

America isn't great because Liberals have destroyed her greatness.

A strong Military makes a country great.
A strong High Tech education system, and business complex makes a country great.
High Math, Science, Medical, Engineering, makes a country great.

What makes a country weak? Providing for those who can't hack it makes a country weak. Allowing those who can't hack it to hold it back from it's greatness makes a country weak. You kill the weak to provide space for the strong to thrive. You are only as strong as your weakest link.

What makes a country weak for the next millennium, is importing over the not great countries (more precisely known as: shitholes).

 

[Tommy Tainant]

Often Americans will say America is the greatest.
Canadians will say Canada is the greatest.
French will say France is the greatest.
And so on. It's not hard to see why people think their own country is the greatest, they've been indoctrinated into it, or they've just grown up there and are comfortable with it, or they don't know anywhere else... or maybe other reasons.

But, if you're going to give a UNIVERSAL assessment of what makes a country great, what would those things be?

America isn't great because Liberals have destroyed her greatness.

A strong Military makes a country great.
A strong High Tech education system, and business complex makes a country great.
High Math, Science, Medical, Engineering, makes a country great.

What makes a country weak? Providing for those who can't hack it makes a country weak. Allowing those who can't hack it to hold it back from it's greatness makes a country weak. You kill the weak to provide space for the strong to thrive. You are only as strong as your weakest link.

Oh dear.You know they put this theory into practice in Europe during the 30s ?

 

[Issa]

Let's do it with pictures.

A great country:

The leftist utopia:

(I would prefer to call it a shithole, but each to their own).

 

[frigidweirdo]

Often Americans will say America is the greatest.
Canadians will say Canada is the greatest.
French will say France is the greatest.
And so on. It's not hard to see why people think their own country is the greatest, they've been indoctrinated into it, or they've just grown up there and are comfortable with it, or they don't know anywhere else... or maybe other reasons.

But, if you're going to give a UNIVERSAL assessment of what makes a country great, what would those things be?

America isn't great because Liberals have destroyed her greatness.

A strong Military makes a country great.
A strong High Tech education system, and business complex makes a country great.
High Math, Science, Medical, Engineering, makes a country great.

What makes a country weak? Providing for those who can't hack it makes a country weak. Allowing those who can't hack it to hold it back from it's greatness makes a country weak. You kill the weak to provide space for the strong to thrive. You are only as strong as your weakest link.

So, how does a strong military make the country better for you?

A strong education system might make a country great, but the right doesn't seem to want such strong education.

Business is great in the US for some, but for all? Some people are fighting against large corporations who have, in recent years, taken control of government.

But smaller businesses are suffering.

https://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/advocacy/United_States.pdf

99.7% of businesses are small businesses, but only 48% of people work for them.

Figure one shows that since 2000 the larger businesses have increased while smaller businesses have decreased.

 

[Norman]

Let's do it with pictures.

A great country:

The leftist utopia:

(I would prefer to call it a shithole, but each to their own).

Are you trying to say that America is as poor as Haiti?

Because in Haiti they earn 400 dollars every year.

Here it's something like 60,000. Yes, they are so poor that we have more income over a year than they have over their lifetimes (and I am not talking about the very short Haitian standard of lifetime, but the real American standard).

Maybe it's because they decided to genocide the whites....

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

I've lived in both a third world country and the US and I'm gonna divide my experience in two and you guys be the judge.

Morocco:

Very family oriented society, everyone helps everyone.
Education is free so is health.
Less jobs than the US, but there will be always a family member taking care of 5 or 6 others.
0 mass shootings and gun crimes.
There is corruption and bureaucracy.
Food generally cheap and fresh. (Taste much better)
Got the Atlantic Ocean, mideterenean sea, the atlas mountains with Switzerland like towns, got the Sahara and its oasis, and lot of history.


USA:

plenty of jobs and opportunities to make money.
Very fast life style and demanding.
Less family values and a very disconnected society....no one cares about no one.
Crimes, gun violence and drug epedemic.
Lot of racial tensions and divide.
People are very cold, fake and judgemental in general.
Beautiful country , but what makes more interesting for me is the diversity of people from other countries.

That been said , once I retire off to Morocco where life has more meaning...the US is more like a big factory where everyone is like slave regardless what car you driving or what house you live in.

So how many millions of people are trying to sneak into Morocco every year?

 

[Norman]

I've lived in both a third world country and the US and I'm gonna divide my experience in two and you guys be the judge.

Morocco:

Very family oriented society, everyone helps everyone.
Education is free so is health.
Less jobs than the US, but there will be always a family member taking care of 5 or 6 others.
0 mass shootings and gun crimes.
There is corruption and bureaucracy.
Food generally cheap and fresh. (Taste much better)
Got the Atlantic Ocean, mideterenean sea, the atlas mountains with Switzerland like towns, got the Sahara and its oasis, and lot of history.


USA:

plenty of jobs and opportunities to make money.
Very fast life style and demanding.
Less family values and a very disconnected society....no one cares about no one.
Crimes, gun violence and drug epedemic.
Lot of racial tensions and divide.
People are very cold, fake and judgemental in general.
Beautiful country , but what makes more interesting for me is the diversity of people from other countries.

That been said , once I retire off to Morocco where life has more meaning...the US is more like a big factory where everyone is like slave regardless what car you driving or what house you live in.

So how many millions of people are trying to sneak into Morocco every year?

If it's such a good place, why is this guy waiting for the retirement?

Just hop on a plane and leave already, I won't miss! And please remember to revoke your citizenship and voting rights so we won't have to witness America turning into Moroccco, where indeed people earn less than 4000 dollars a year on average.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

Yes, but the cost of living is a bigger factor. For instance, a home you can buy here for around the $200,000 area is closer to the $800,000 area in the NE states. Same with California. The median income in Switzerland is in the mid $200,000 area, so your dollar doesn't stretch as far as just about any other country.

Switzerland has the second highest cost of living in the world, and Sweden falls in 15th place. The US (collectively) places 24th in the entire world:

Cost of Living Index by Country 2017 Mid-Year

Which is what I just said Ray.

You said the US was much better, but now you're going to have to compare all countries to find out where the US is, because you don't actually know.

My point is being millionaire here is not like being a millionaire in other places. The higher the cost of living, the more people that will have more money. In that regard, the US is the best place because we rank high on the amount of millionaires we have and lower on the cost of living scale.

I would rather live here in the Northeast Ohio area making $180,000 a year than live in the NYC area making $500,000 a year. My dollar will go a lot further. I mean, look at where the complaints are coming from with the new tax bill which eliminates home interest on loans over 750K. Nobody here is complaining about it because not many have homes worth that much. Those that do are pretty wealthy people.

Yes, I know this is your point, because this is the point I made before.

You made a claim which was that the US was better because people could move much more rapidly. You haven't proven this. In fact by agreeing with the point I made, you're actually moving away from the claim you made.

Yes, the higher costs of living the more money you have. This is good if you go abroad and buy foreign products. But you said you try and buy American wherever possible, and I doubt you've traveled abroad much. So, for you it doesn't really matter.

So, you're still a very long way away from making the US look like a great place.

Very few leave the US to live somewhere else. Millions are trying to get in our country every single year.

Opportunity is why they come here. And while I've never visited any other country (besides Canada) I wouldn't want to live any other place in the world. I love this country, and I wish to preserve it for future generations. My cousins and I were all born middle-class, several of them are millionaires today. And again, being a millionaire here is much different than being a millionaire in Switzerland. This is the land of opportunity as long as we can keep Democrats out of power.

Very few being how many? I mean you're trying to make a comparison or something with no comparison.

Many Americans will leave one part of the US and move to another part.

I personally have met quite a lot of Americans living abroad.

Opportunity exists in the US, but then it exists elsewhere too. Many Chinese are going to Canada, because it offers them opportunity they can't get in the US.

You love the country, well, most people love their country. It doesn't mean much.

You said being a millionaire is different than being a millionaire in Switzerland. Well, how about the other 190 countries?

And you say it's the land of opportunity without the Democrats, however you support the Republicans when they're trying to make it not the land of opportunity by having large multinationals who control everything. I don't get it.

Capitalism is what made this country great. What other countries?

What do you think Mexicans do with their money once they make it here? They ship it back to their families in Mexico because a buck goes a longer way over there.

A late friend of mine was a first generation American. His parents came here from Poland. His mother died and his father later retired from the auto plant. Almost immediately after retirement, he moved back to Poland. One of the main reasons he went back is because he could live like a king in Poland. Between his retirement and Social Security, he was rolling in the dough; not that he couldn't' have lived a good life here, but he lived a better one in Poland at the time.

Exit strategy: More Americans are living abroad


Chinese immigrants are the third-largest foreign-born group in the United States, after Mexicans and Indians. Chinese immigration to the United States has consisted of two waves, the first arriving in the mid-1800s and the second from the late 1970s to the present. The population has grown more than six-fold since 1980, reaching 2.3 million in 2016, or 5 percent of the approximately 44 million immigrant population overall.

Chinese Immigrants in the United States