The Phenomenology of America

Politics & Current Affairs
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I haven’t been the the US in a long time… decades. I live in Canada. The information I receive about the US is through various sorts of media. Depending on how one judged, even for a Canadian, I think I might qualify as being quite to the left of the spectrum (although by temperament I think most would think of me as a centrist). I try to avoid the sort of extreme media that algorithms inevitably want to feed a person, but no doubt I exists in some form of “left” bubble.

It was always the case, and has been much more so recently, that the state of politics in the US has a surprising effect on my life as a citizen of another country, so I do my best to evaluate that state of affairs the best I can, but I am worried that without a “feet on the ground” view, it is difficult to assess the degree of bias I am getting from my media consumption. I’d like some feedback from people living in the US about what their actual experience is in some specific areas.

  1. The prevalence of gun violence. Canada doesn’t have especially restrictive gun regulations, all things considered, but it does not appear to have the “gun culture” that the US appears to have. Gun ownership appears to be very common, and from my vantage, it looks like gun violence is very frequent. In nearly 60 years of life here, I was once in a situation where I was concerned for my safety because of a gun bearing person (actually 2, but the second involved an undercover cop who apologized profusely for letting his firearm be seen). I think my experience is on the rare side from the conversations I’ve had (or notably haven’t had), as most people around me seem to have not had any such experiences. What are your experiences with gun violence? Is it more common to be in a dangerous situation involving fire arms?

  2. Health Care poverty. It is my understanding that without proper medical insurance, medical debt can easily bankrupt a person. I don’t fully appreciate how onerous good health insurance is to obtain and maintain. I also don’t know how common problematically poor insurance coverage is (you hear a lot about HMO issues on medical drama’s). What is your experience with extreme financial duress due to health insurance concerns?

  3. Policing trust - this is probably going to be trickier to get a good read on. Young men in low socio-economic demographics seem to be more likely to perceive police as a threat, all things equal, regardless of the facts of the matter. If the facts of the matter support the perceived threat, then it’s difficult to judge degree well. So I’m glad to hear from everyone, but am curious to hear from women or people in a mid to high socio-economic demographic what their experience with police are.

Another thing that to my subjective eye seems to be the case that I’d be curious to hear comment on is the general Overton window regarding economic ideology, which seems to have shifted very far right in the last 40 years or so. Do you agree?

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I think gun violence is happening a lot in the US, but I only know of media stories as I don’t get out much anyway. But I wouldn’t want to be a student today in these schools. We did not have shootings like this, as far as I know, back in the 80s through 90s when I was in school.

Health care is atrocious here. Without insurance you could easily be bankrupted. Two Tylenol at a hospital will run you $20 to $30 dollars. That’s two pills. And the care you get is not that good either. Most doctors barely give you 20 minutes. If you don’t make a list of everything you want to discuss, you won’t have time to remember during the visit.

I have not had any issues with authority figures, but I’m a white woman. I do remember going to the store late one night with a friend of mine who was a very big, black guy. The cops stopped us and kept asking him where he was going and his answers were not good enough. I finally got impatient and said, “Oh my god, we are just going to the store.” They literally were like ok have a nice night after that. Seemed pretty racist to me.

I’m not sure how to answer about the Overton window in regard to economic policies. If we are referencing what politicians are able to get away with saying, then I’d say way too much nonsense in general. But I think that is because people aren’t thinking, they are emoting to the tune of whatever identity they’ve chosen.

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  1. Gun violence is notable. I don’t know what to say except schools are vigilant and zero tolerant.
  2. Yes, without your employer bankrolling your health insurance, you’re SOL. Also, high deductible can screw you up.
  3. I don’t have experience with the police. I think this is the least of your worries.

I think the order of dangers, from high anxiety to low, is this:

  1. Healthcare costs
  2. Inflation, especially rent
  3. Gun violence

The percentage of people living in their vehicle has risen by almost 50% since just before COVID-19 .

There is now a resurgence of the word unhoused to include the people living in their vehicle.

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