The Myth of the USA as 'The Land of Opportunity'

@mwmiller said
@Zahlanzi
I was actually not trying to be funny there, pumpkin. I was only trying to be sarcastic.

you were trying to make a witty comment without thinking whether it's actually witty or on topic

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Have you ever lived in any of these poor '$$hitthole' countries, whose inhabitants consider the USA as a land of opportunity for any length of time? If not, then you have no clue what you are talking about.

@sonhouse said
@Duchess64
One indication of this land of opportunity:

In the 1970's, CEO wages were about 30 times the average worker.

Now, 21st century, that wage is now three HUNDRED times the average worker.

What is wrong with this picture?

It might be the case that this results from the investment options that CEOs get, and the trend in investments in general.

We all know that many of the billionaires and multi-millionaires in the world aren't sitting there with a bunch of bank accounts that say <you have a bajillion dollaz.>

My guess is a lot of their money is not liquid.

Just as such, is the majority of even the Middle Class's money liquid? No, it's usually all tied up in their homes and other assets, and it's increasingly common for people to have investment portfolios or crypto.

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This does not change the fact that the US has a lot of upward mobility compared to third world nations where generational poverty is the norm.

Moreover, we are talkign about the bottom 20% moving into the top 20%. I think what would be more relevant would be the bottom quintile moving into any other quintile.

I think your whole argument hinges on the idea that America isn't the only place where people can seek their dreams.

I think it is actually the case that there are many countries where you can do well today, and that's beautiful.

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I actually think people largely migrate to the nearest places they can go if they have no means.

Like, some Indian or Chinese person with an advanced degree making a choice on USA or Europe is quite different than a family from sub-saharan Africa or El Salvador with no other means paying a den of smugglers to get them through the nearest 1st world nation's port of entry.

Of course, the most relevant comparison is how the USA compares to other affluent
societies in economic mobility, and the USA does not come out highly about it.

Sure.

I think the USA still comes off as a good place to live, hence why there are millions who are trying to get in - and do get in every year.

I think the USA also has less control over their situation than Denmark.

I don't think the USA can be compared to Denmark because our situations and governing modes are quite different. But, yes, sure, IDK, maybe it's better to be a refugee going to Denmark than to the USA. In fact, I would guess that is the case.

But why should people say that the USA is not a land of opportunity because there are some countries, harder to get to, and perhaps harder to integrate into, that have better upward mobility in the year 2021?

Does the USA have to rebrand after a century because Denmark is so great? IDK.

I would not mind it, though: maybe we should do our best to resettle Mexican illegals in Denmark.

Would the EU be interested in taking them all in, since we aren't qualified anymore?

Ooh!

What about China?

Aren't you guys a real wonderland these days -- would you like to receive 100,000 illegals this month?