The World’s People Are Baffled By the U.S.

Those living outside the United States view America with a blend of pity, contempt, and amusement.  It’s hard to expect anything else, of course, given the events of the previous administration, during which a conman went on a four-year crime spree, culminating in his inciting hundreds of his followers to storm the Capitol so as to “take this country back” after a “stolen election” had removed him from office.

Here’s a piece on another aspect of the U.S. society that those living in other developed countries find it tough to understand, i.e., how it’s possible that the wealthiest nation on Earth believes it cannot afford healthcare for all its citizens.

In Santa Barbara there is a homeless vet with untreated stage three liver cancer.  I know because when I run into him begging at a certain traffic light, and, if I’ve missed the light, I always chat briefly and give him packaged food. He’s dying because he can’t afford medical care. That’s a tragedy.