Chloe Smythe
Jul 25, 2017 · 3 min read

No I don’t believe that my comment that the cult of individualism is what binds Americans together is a self contradictory statement. I believe it is a paradox. However, it does run rampant throughout American culture. It sounds to you like it can’t be so, but it is the defining quality about America compared to China or Europe. Whether it’s the lone cowboy, the outlaw biker, the film noir private detective, the self made millionaire, the hacker, the eccentric inventor like Edison, the Rock star, the list is a long one. Its why you travelled to all those countries and then you came back to America and the things you see perplex you so much. I read this essay from beginning to end. The author goes off in a number of tangents, which makes it difficult to give a succinct rebuttal to it so I have to risk rambling on to effectively try to comment on this essay. The author’s negative comments on the social and economic situation in America give me the image of a gold bug arguing with Warren Buffett or George Soros that gold is the only thing of lasting value. Both men would find the assertion ridiculous even though they may have just made a large profit trading it. The facts right now are America has the largest economy in the world, our military is the largest in the world, the dollar is still the currency world trade is conducted in, our popular culture is still the prevailing one around the world whether you enjoy it or not, we graduate the most PhD students, America’s universities are still the best in the world. When I read this essay it has a provocative title that’s guaranteed to get the attention of the pessimists. Its an easy essay for me to also write. I can cherry pick negative facts and assertions and do a much better job than the author did explaining to you that America is collapsing and in utter ruin. Tossing out throwaway arguments in the essay like America produces hedge fund traders is nonsensical. Its obvious he’s implying that’s all that comes of higher education in America. Nonsense. Its a garbage comment that is casually mentioned with the hope no one challenges it. If someone does comment that it is a bad assertion then it was just a throwaway comment anyway so the rebuttal is quickly accepted. When you mention that you have travelled to all of these countries and been impressed by the progress on the infrastructure this can be done somewhere like China or Singapore because they don’t have decades of promoting the car for transport of individuals. When Nixon visited Peking much of the city’s population was using bicycles for transport. Having centralised planning is good and bad. If the technology is fast changing you will find yourself trapped with old technology. Since you travel you may be aware of examples like France’s early effort at the Internet for everyone, which was their minitel. Its just been phased out because it was cutting edge when introduced, but now is obsolete in our present moment of smartphone use. It takes a long time for an empire like America to lose its competitive advantages even with an incompetent President who doesn’t understand domestic policy or foreign policy and it constantly frustrated because he was never taught about the Executive, Legislative, or Judicial branches of the American government and how they interact. This is why trump frequently has arguments with the Republicans. Americans have come to hate their politicians, but trump is not how you govern a country.

    Chloe Smythe

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