What is America Doing Right? (Op-Ed)

America is a wealthy country where 84% of the country is not impoverished. And poverty is the default state of the human condition so kudos to industrialization and technological innovation.

America has Welfare (housing & financial), Medicaid, Foodstamps and charities available for impoverished citizens. Though imperfect these public and private social safety nets provide so much more for our poor than any institutions ever could for the destitute at any time in human history.

America provides for its elderly by way of social security and Medicare.

American communities are very safe by historical standards with violent crimes being cut in half in the last 25 years.

America has socialized public safety, socialized fire fighting and emergency response, socialized schools, and socialized national defense all cooperatively paid for by its citizens and many government controlled public utilities that keep prices reasonable.

America’s University system is second to none and no student is turned away due to inability to pay.

America has a 99.9% literacy rate. Just 2000 years ago, a mere minute in the epoch of humanity, literacy was less that 10%. Writing was only invented 5000 years ago, meaning that >95% of human history was without written communication I.e. everyone was illiterate.

America has electricity, indoor plumbing and heating for nearly everyone. This is without a doubt the most incredible convenience the world has ever known.

America has eliminated famine. Food shortages do not exist. Even the poor can go to the grocery store and get fresh foods from all over the world for incredibly inexpensive prices (often subsidized by the government or using financial assistance from the government). Grocery stores are truly the most incredible convenience ever conceived.

America generated nearly all the vaccines and most antibiotics that drastically reduced the suffering and death from communicable disease. In 1900, most American’s died from communicable disease. That rate has been cut by 95%.

The American Disabilities Act has recreated the living experience for the blind, deaf, physically disabled and special needs. Historically they were ostracized and forgotten (or even exterminated). In America we invest heavily in caring for this population and in designing our physical space to accommodate disabilities. We are a global leader in this effort and have significant architectural fittings that even Western Europe doesn’t provide for.

America is a global leader in the arts, entertainment and cultural spheres. From the NBA to symphony orchestras to museums to 3D movies and Beyoncé, America’s greatest export is its culture and it’s creation and appreciation of the beautiful things in life.

America is the most diverse country in the world. It is a nation of nations. It is fundamentally a nation of immigrants, with the exception of Native Americans, and it is the greatest experiment and testament to multiculturalism so far.

America is doing a lot of things right but it’s not great yet.

Now back to your regularly scheduled fear promoting and outrage inciting mainstream media programming…