America Has Already Lost Tuesday's Election

[Steeplerot]

So the Land of the Free
and the Home of the Brave
Are your stars still so bright
Does your banner still waves
Oh, the Land of the Free
and the Home of the Brave
Are you heaven on Earth
or the gloom of the grave?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGQCUoafFI8&
^a rather honest view from Slovenia


America is a young and arrogant country still. 2 oceans to protect us and a huge chip on our shoulder. Sometimes deservedly, usually our own hype.

[DCal430]

Originally Posted by randomrogue

A child born in France to foreign parents may acquire French citizenship:

• at birth, if stateless.
• at 18, if resident in France with at least 5 years' residence since age 11.
• at 16 upon request by the child and if resident in France.
• at 13 upon request by the child's parents and if resident in France.
• if born in France of parents born before independence in a colony/territory in the past under French sovereignty.
  • at birth, if born in France before January 1, 1994.
  • at age 18, if born in France on or after January 1, 1994.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_nationality_law

1. It isn't automatic.
2. If the child moves away from France for a few years after the age of 11 they can be denied citizenship.

[DCal430]

Originally Posted by zinfamous

yeah, so you're completely full of shit.

No European country gives automatic citizenship by place of birth.

[WelshBloke]

Originally Posted by Exterous

... I think this is a geography fail by Der Spiegel. Do they not understand how large Sandy was? It covered some 500+ miles of coastline not including its possible landfall. How the hell are we supposed to protect every single important building over that land area? Maybe they don't get it because thats around 1/3 of Germany's total costline

That's the truth, we would be utterly fucked if we got hit by a sizable hurricane in the UK. Hell the country practically shuts down when we get a a few inches of snow in the winter. And we get a few inches of snow every winter.

[randomrogue]

Originally Posted by DCal430

1. It isn't automatic.
2. If the child moves away from France for a few years after the age of 11 they can be denied citizenship.

Are you bitching about filling out some paperwork? Really? You're just whining to whine.

[Broheim]

Originally Posted by DCal430

No European country gives automatic citizenship by place of birth.

well, why the fuck should we?

[DCal430]

Originally Posted by randomrogue

Are you bitching about filling out some paperwork? Really? You're just whining to whine.

It isn't just paper work if the child moves away and returns they also lose the right to citizenship.

[Acanthus]

Originally Posted by CycloWizard

I would argue that his examples prove the exact opposite of his point. All of the grotesque failures are in areas where government has taken over most or all of the market (e.g. healthcare and infrastructure). These outcomes are completely predictable by those of us who have worked closely with federal bureaucracy. The further to the left our economic pendulum swings, the more you will see stuff like this.

Wat, the nations criticizing us also dominate those things with government.

They also beat us at those things.

[randomrogue]

Originally Posted by DCal430

It isn't just paper work if the child moves away and returns they also lose the right to citizenship.

I can't speak on behalf of every country in Europe but generally the way it works is that you have to actually show some ties to your country. Live there, study there, work there, pay taxes there, own property there, etc. If you're living overseas for an extended period of time as a child then your country will ask you to fill in some form of paperwork before you turn a certain age, generally early 20's, indicating that you wish to keep your citizenship.

[werepossum]

Originally Posted by piasabird

I was without power in one single year for 10 days or more not once but twice. Electrical workers or Linemen turn the power back on; not the Red Cross and Not FEMA. I never saw either during this difficult time. Unless you realize this you are avoiding reality. In some places like New Jersey they tried to turn away non-union Power Company workers. It is always the union jerks that are willing to stand up for unions and not the people without power huddled in their own homes starving to death with no water or food.

People need to learn to store a little extra emergency food. Having a Gas Stove helps also.

Very good advice. A simple $10 Stove-In-A-Can camp stove (used outdoors) can properly cook delicious and inexpensive food, even heat water for baths. If your home is still livable and you can't do a week without power, blame yourself, not FEMA or Obama or Bush.

Originally Posted by DCal430

Because their parents were not french citizens. They were born in France. France does not give citizenship to children of non french citizens born there, nor do they get voting rights. This is how most European countries are.

Much as I dislike illegal immigration and even unlimited legal immigration, thank G-d I don't live in a nation that intentionally makes permanent non-citizens of children of legal aliens.

[cwjerome]

Originally Posted by randomrogue

I realize that our patriotic duty is to always defend the USA and strike down any naysayers but honestly we can't do that any longer. We're long overdue for an honest look in the mirror and a revaluation of what once made America great.

I would agree with this statement. That's why books like "That Used to be Us" and "The Post-American World" are generally thoughtful and useful while vapid commentaries like Der Stupid's should be properly ridiculed for its amazing ignorance and dishonesty.

[Broheim]

Originally Posted by randomrogue

I realize that our patriotic duty is to always defend the USA and strike down any naysayers but honestly we can't do that any longer. We're long overdue for an honest look in the mirror and a revaluation of what once made America great.

der spiegel actually means "the mirror"

[halik]

What weapon are they talking about?

[bfdd]

Lol "total capitalism" what garbage. Article has some good points but is mostly crap

Also OP you seem to have a europhile veiw of things. IMO Europe will run red before the USA devolves into civil war.

[Doppel]

Originally Posted by GTaudiophile

DER SPIEGEL is on a roll today!

Notes on the Decline of a Great Nation

Although my initial reaction from the thread was "Another GTAudiophile der spiegel link", and that's still valid, this was a great article.

Truly, I think most people if they actually read it would agree with it. America's heyday is just gone. It's that simple. It doesn't mean it's not the best country to live in. I could move to another country far more easily than most but I just don't want to.

I still see people love politicians telling them how awesome they are, though. They are interested in that more than the truth.

[PowerYoga]

Originally Posted by Blackjack200

lol, I see the problem, you're not a dickbag, just a retard.

"Developing Country" is the same as "3rd World Country"

I grew up during a time where 3rd world means countries that didn't align with USSR and America, and they certainly didn't eat crows and squirrels. So hey, thanks for keeping me up to date with this political correct bullshit circlejerk. So not being PC makes me retarded? Sure, why the hell not. Meanwhile you can't read worth a damn and have the reading comprehension of a 3 year old so I'd say you're worse than retarded but that'd be an insult to all the bright kids out there. You get the point yet?

here's a hint: I don't agree with most of the points in the article and most of it is downright laughable. I disagree with YOU saying the eastern seaboard not looking like a sack of crap after the hurricane and I have serious doubts that the place will recover fully before Christmas.

Riiiiight. The largest hurricane to hit the Eastern Seaboard in a century knocks out power for a couple of weeks and people are "living under conditions comparable to those of a developing nation."

Actually, here's a thought. Have you BEEN to some of the regions affected by the storm? Simple yes/no will suffice. Just wondering if you're just another loudmouth talking armchair general that has no clue what the fuck is going on in the world.

[CycloWizard]

Originally Posted by Acanthus

Wat, the nations criticizing us also dominate those things with government.

They also beat us at those things.

Germany is moving in the opposite direction and doing much better as a result. The others are doing better by spending borrowed money. It's completely myopic to think that they can keep doing those things at the same level indefinitely. I could rob ten banks this week, buy a big house, a couple of Ferraris, and hire a staff of butlers but that wouldn't make what I'm doing sustainable. Eventually, bills must be paid. The middle class will pay the bills. The quicker people do the math and arrive at this realization, the softer the fall will be.

[GTaudiophile]

Oh, look! The Austrians are copying the "German" model and it's working for them too.

The answer lies in a system of economic and employment policies built on a central commitment to social market economics, where individual and corporate prosperity depend on general prosperity in a tapestry of interdependent interests. These assumptions are played out, at least in part, through a "social partnership" system of representatives from labor, industry, government, and often academia, in which job security, wages, pensions, unemployment insurance, and other workplace standards, as well as related legal and policy questions, are discussed and negotiated, leading to recommendations to Parliament and the respective ministries.

The thing with me is that I believe that true, effective change has to start not from government but from an informed, engaged populous that wants change. I respect the German-style social market economy. I do want many aspects of it HERE because I believe it does the best job of creating a strong, free, educated, stable, and politically active middle class. But where I may disagree with most liberals is that the government cannot force this progress. At least not during present times. I suppose in Germany's case the ball got rolling in the 1870s with Bismarck. They were then corrected and honed with the Basic Law in 1949. We could rewrite the US Constitution ten times over; rewriting a culture is entirely more difficult.

[Acanthus]

Originally Posted by CycloWizard

Germany is moving in the opposite direction and doing much better as a result. The others are doing better by spending borrowed money. It's completely myopic to think that they can keep doing those things at the same level indefinitely. I could rob ten banks this week, buy a big house, a couple of Ferraris, and hire a staff of butlers but that wouldn't make what I'm doing sustainable. Eventually, bills must be paid. The middle class will pay the bills. The quicker people do the math and arrive at this realization, the softer the fall will be.

That's a nice story.

Try using numbers.

The only reason i didn't link anything is everyone knows we pay a lot more for inferior care.

[CycloWizard]

Originally Posted by Acanthus

That's a nice story.

Try using numbers.

The only reason i didn't link anything is everyone knows we pay a lot more for inferior care.

The only thing you know is the result of failed policy. Go educate yourself about the wonders of CPT codes (both from the perspective of developing new treatments and reimbursement for existing ones), Medicare/Medicaid reimbursement policies, percent of healthcare dollars spent on satisfying the regulatory burden, and in general why our healthcare is so expensive. You'll quickly learn that the bureaucratic burden on healthcare is a huge driving force for more expensive yet worse care. There are plenty of solutions available. Some of those solutions are financially sound while others are not. However, your claims regarding the problem arise from a place of obviously pure ignorance. You see the symptom but not the underlying disease.

[Pocatello]

The Europeans are good at one thing, start world wars. Yet they always think they're wiser than the rest of the world. The only reason Hitler Germany became so strong because Europeans wanted peace at all cost, yielded Hitler to all his demands as long as he promised not to start a war. Europeans are good at appeasement, as long as they can avoid another war.