Patriotism - Has Expat Life Made You More Pro Your "Home" Country?

[King Silk]

Now for a bit of Irony.....

(Re 'Jap Crap')

At the end of the WW2 Japan was beaten. It lost a whole lot of FACE.....
Communism was on the march, and the US was afraid that it would engulf an impoverished Japan.
Soooo it poured millions of Dollars into the country to get it back on it's feet.
The Japs, who had wanted World Domination for years, saw an opportunity to gain it by Economic means.......They realised that if you make a Bomb, and drop it on your adversary,
BOOM! it's a dead loss. BUT if you make something like a TV,PC,Car etc, and drop THAT on your enemy, you can destroy his Economy, and make loads of lovely money.

The irony is that the US helped Japan to destroy their own industrial base!

But Japan didn't stop their. It did the very same thing to Europe.

It lost the War. But cleverly, won the Peace!

Thus FACE was regained..........

[Serendipity2]

Originally Posted by King Silk

Now for a bit of Irony.....

(Re 'Jap Crap')

At the end of the WW2 Japan was beaten. It lost a whole lot of FACE.....
Communism was on the march, and the US was afraid that it would engulf an impoverished Japan.
Soooo it poured millions of Dollars into the country to get it back on it's feet.
The Japs, who had wanted World Domination for years, saw an opportunity to gain it by Economic means.......They realised that if you make a Bomb, and drop it on your adversary,
BOOM! it's a dead loss. BUT if you make something like a TV,PC,Car etc, and drop THAT on your enemy, you can destroy his Economy, and make loads of lovely money.

The irony is that the US helped Japan to destroy their own industrial base!

But Japan didn't stop their. It did the very same thing to Europe.

It lost the War. But cleverly, won the Peace!

Thus FACE was regained..........

King Silk,

You're dead on regarding Japan. We did rebuild their industry to an even higher standard than ours and we've been shipping our jobs overseas ever since. And then along came the Chinese! The future IS China, not Japan or Europe or the US due to our own short sighted policies. We invent most of the technology and then literally give it away or let China steal it. Color us smart!

Serendipity2

[BajaGringo]

I think a lot of it is just a blame game. The natural cycle of advancing technology and communication relative to economics is to eventually lead us to a global economy. This started way back, even before early explorers were looking for trade routes on uncharted seas.

It is where we were ultimately destined to go and really not a whole lot that anyone could do to stop it. Divert it - maybe, but never was a thing anybody could do to keep the planet from reaching this inevitable plateau.

Does this mean we will go to a one world government?

Probably (IMHO). That will take another series of global events/crisis and there are signs of it happening already. That is a process coming that is not quite so obvious.

The bigger question is who is it that really wants it and why?

New technologies? Yes, the USA did have a good run in that arena, but it has been awhile. The education system in the USA is simply not putting out human material that can compete anymore in that arena either. That is why the USA can not compete today in a global economy - a working class base expecting much higher wages than the global mean with much lower academic skills on average than many third world countries. Don't believe me? Pick any high school in an average community in the USA and grab any 20 seniors about to graduate now. Interview them and then compare those interviews with graduating seniors from high schools in Mexico, Brazil, China and India. It isn't even close. Then interview them again when they leave college. It is quite clear, the USA has lost its edge.

Maybe I am wrong. Maybe the USA really is producing superior college grads compared to the rest of the world. So tell me all about these "New Technologies" the USA has created of late??? That is what it really needs to stand any chance of surviving this global economy transformation.

I am going to microwave some popcorn...

YMMV

[Serendipity2]

Originally Posted by BajaGringo

I think a lot of it is just a blame game. The natural cycle of advancing technology and communication relative to economics is to eventually lead us to a global economy. This started way back, even before early explorers were looking for trade routes on uncharted seas.

It is where we were ultimately destined to go and really not a whole lot that anyone could do to stop it. Divert it - maybe, but never was a thing anybody could do to keep the planet from reaching this inevitable plateau.

Does this mean we will go to a one world government?

Probably (IMHO). That will take another series of global events/crisis and there are signs of it happening already. That is a process coming that is not quite so obvious.

The bigger question is who is it that really wants it and why?

New technologies? Yes, the USA did have a good run in that arena, but it has been awhile. The education system in the USA is simply not putting out human material that can compete anymore in that arena either. That is why the USA can not compete today in a global economy - a working class base expecting much higher wages than the global mean with much lower academic skills on average than many third world countries. Don't believe me? Pick any high school in an average community in the USA and grab any 20 seniors about to graduate now. Interview them and then compare those interviews with graduating seniors from high schools in Mexico, Brazil, China and India. It isn't even close. Then interview them again when they leave college. It is quite clear, the USA has lost its edge.

Maybe I am wrong. Maybe the USA really is producing superior college grads compared to the rest of the world. So tell me all about these "New Technologies" the USA has created of late??? That is what it really needs to stand any chance of surviving this global economy transformation.

I am going to microwave some popcorn...

YMMV

BajaGringo,

I would agree with you on our education system. It's a mess and getting worse. Who controls it? Liberals. That said I would also say we still produce most [but not all] of the new technology of the world from microprocessors to nano technology to space flight to - you name it and we're easily number one. That said, more and more of our engineers and scientists are coming to America from abroad.

As for the waxing and waning of empires - yes it's been going on for a long time but I can't think of another civilization that has intentionally destroyed it's own economic base due to the greed and avarice of those who own everything and our corrupt government that allows it. Let's use Mexico as an example since you have a fondness for our southern neighbor. Most of their population are poor but there is a growing middle class - mostly built on narco dollars from the USA and other countries and the remittances from illegals who are in our country. Mexico is pretty much owned by a handful of families including Slim Carlos. Hopefully that's not where we are heading but I think it is - a virtual slave state where we're kept 'pacified' by drugs and entertainment provided by our masters.

Serendipity2

[BajaGringo]

Originally Posted by Serendipity2

BajaGringo,

I would agree with you on our education system. It's a mess and getting worse. Who controls it? Liberals. That said I would also say we still produce most [but not all] of the new technology of the world from microprocessors to nano technology to space flight to - you name it and we're easily number one. That said, more and more of our engineers and scientists are coming to America from abroad.

As for the waxing and waning of empires - yes it's been going on for a long time but I can't think of another civilization that has intentionally destroyed it's own economic base due to the greed and avarice of those who own everything and our corrupt government that allows it. Let's use Mexico as an example since you have a fondness for our southern neighbor. Most of their population are poor but there is a growing middle class - mostly built on narco dollars from the USA and other countries and the remittances from illegals who are in our country. Mexico is pretty much owned by a handful of families including Slim Carlos. Hopefully that's not where we are heading but I think it is - a virtual slave state where we're kept 'pacified' by drugs and entertainment provided by our masters.

Serendipity2

You see my friend? We actually agree on a lot more than you first thought - we just get there via different roads.



Take a deeper look at where that "new" processor technology is really coming from. It might surprise you. Space travel? Our advantage there is based on what happened years before and all that was invested in getting to where we are today. Other countries are catching up. Very quickly...

A friend of mine spent years working at GM corporate and shared with me that they did a study back in the 80's that was very telling. The conclusion of the project was that there was no long term future in manufacturing in the US when looking at the cost of labor, land, regulations, taxes and a few others that slip my mind right now. The last part of the study did a detailed, comparative analysis of the academic competence of future high school and college grads in the USA to other third world countries.

The comment that stood out in his mind was simply the words, "very troubling".

So why do you suppose that almost all of the new, modern, state of the art facilities the big three have built in the last ten years are outside of the USA? They know very well what is coming.

You might want to take a look back on the fall of Rome. There were some parallels with the USA today IMHO...

I even have an idea as to who the new "Nero" is...

[Serendipity2]

Originally Posted by BajaGringo

You see my friend? We actually agree on a lot more than you first thought - we just get there via different roads.



Take a deeper look at where that "new" processor technology is really coming from. It might surprise you. Space travel? Our advantage there is based on what happened years before and all that was invested in getting to where we are today. Other countries are catching up. Very quickly...

A friend of mine spent years working at GM corporate and shared with me that they did a study back in the 80's that was very telling. The conclusion of the project was that there was no long term future in manufacturing in the US when looking at the cost of labor, land, regulations, taxes and a few others that slip my mind right now. The last part of the study did a detailed, comparative analysis of the academic competence of future high school and college grads in the USA to other third world countries.

The comment that stood out in his mind was simply the words, "very troubling".

So why do you suppose that almost all of the new, modern, state of the art facilities the big three have built in the last ten years are outside of the USA? They know very well what is coming.

You might want to take a look back on the fall of Rome. There were some parallels with the USA today IMHO...

I even have an idea as to who the new "Nero" is...

BajaGringo,

America definitely IS a third world country and heading even further into the abyss. We don't make anything anymore as it has become profitable for the GM's and the other manufacturers to move offshore. What is left is steadily eroding. Our geniuses have even exported Customer noService offshore to India and Philippines as they really don't want to talk to us. GM, Chrysler and Ford are under the crushing weight of the UAW which has all but destroyed them as we shovel more and more money at them. Most telling are our financial giants like Goldman Sachs and the boys on Wall Street who, through a combination of stupidity, greed and arrogance run this country's economy into the ground. Or they did it on purpose - I lean in that direction - keeping in mind WE don't even own our own Federal Reservce system. So, slave state here we come - OR a world-wide revolution along the lines of the French Revolution - which I also favor. In the mean time, I would be very careful in Mexico where kidnapping has become a way of life. High on that 'hit' list? Americans Keep a close eye on your 'six' as we are targets overseas. Especially in Mexico. :|

Serendipity2

[BajaGringo]

Originally Posted by Serendipity2

BajaGringo,

America definitely IS a third world country and heading even further into the abyss. We don't make anything anymore as it has become profitable for the GM's and the other manufacturers to move offshore. What is left is steadily eroding. Our geniuses have even exported Customer noService offshore to India and Philippines as they really don't want to talk to us. GM, Chrysler and Ford are under the crushing weight of the UAW which has all but destroyed them as we shovel more and more money at them. Most telling are our financial giants like Goldman Sachs and the boys on Wall Street who, through a combination of stupidity, greed and arrogance run this country's economy into the ground. Or they did it on purpose - I lean in that direction - keeping in mind WE don't even own our own Federal Reservce system. So, slave state here we come - OR a world-wide revolution along the lines of the French Revolution - which I also favor. In the mean time, I would be very careful in Mexico where kidnapping has become a way of life. High on that 'hit' list? Americans Keep a close eye on your 'six' as we are targets overseas. Especially in Mexico. :|

Serendipity2

We just keep moving closer in our views...

As far as living in Mexico and being a target. That is a valid concern and there are some things one can do to limit that exposure. I have made many of those moves and working on a few more. Today I can tell you that I feel safer than when I lived in Long Beach. Admittedly, I may not be your "typical" expat down here.



Still need to be observant and careful. Even in Thailand...

[Serendipity2]

Originally Posted by BajaGringo

We just keep moving closer in our views...

As far as living in Mexico and being a target. That is a valid concern and there are some things one can do to limit that exposure. I have made many of those moves and working on a few more. Today I can tell you that I feel safer than when I lived in Long Beach. Admittedly, I may not be your "typical" expat down here.



Still need to be observant and careful. Even in Thailand...

BajaGringo,

Thanks to our government you need to be vigilant everywhere in the world. That said, I've been to Mexico and sadly it's changed for the worse. Unless you're fluent in Spanish [Mexican] you'll never know what's coming. I seriously doubt I will ever return to Mexico which IS a shame. Most of the Mexicans are decent people and victims in their own country but I can't change that reality. As for expats, we really don't "blend" into our surroundings either. There is always that mistake when we're abroad that surely we're 'invisible' or anonymous. Wrong!

[BajaGringo]

I speak, read and write Spanish with 100% fluency. It is one of the first things most folks down here comment on when they meet me...

[Serendipity2]

Originally Posted by BajaGringo

I speak, read and write Spanish with 100% fluency. It is one of the first things most folks down here comment on when they meet me...

BajaGringo,

But do you dress like and look like a typical Mexican? I'll be you don't. Trust me, even with your proficiency in the language you still will stand out like a sore thumb. Like I said, we "think" we're invisible and "blend". We don't. Mexican know you're not one of them and some of those Mexicans probably make a few Pesos fingering Americans for the kidnapping rings. Watch your 'six'.