--- Wojtek Sokolowski <sokol at jhu.edu> wrote:
> 1. It is a rather open society with a plenty of
> space for newcomers,
> misfits and freaks. That may come at a price
> (alienation) and varies from
> place to place - but it generally compares favorably
> to Europe or Asia
> (which I also experienced first hand).
> 4. A relatively high level of rational organization
> of the economy -
> manifested inter alia in a fairly open recruitment
> and promotion process,
> effectiveness evaluation and organizations of tasks.
I find these somewhat related. There seems to be (at least in Germany and Czech Rep.) a European fascination with titles and academic degrees particularly in relation to your job -- the Americans there were always bemused by the strings of letters that educated locals were expected to put behind your name. Like your card was supposed to have "Joe Shmoe, BA". I suppose you could say that difference in attitude could be a matter of US anti-intellectualism and the modesty that it engenders in degreed Americans, but it struck me that, aside from cases of very high labor demand (like for teachers and translators of English in 90's CR), paper qualifications carried more weight there. There's more opportunity in the US for somebody who's just good at their job and doesn't have the certification to go along with it.
Now the US, with it's crazed individualism, naturally goes for the obstensible meritocracy. I don't know whether that's always a good or bad thing for the products of a profession -- do a translator's paper qualifications make for better translations? A childcare worker's for better care? But if that's unresolved, then is there a clear argument for paper qualifications being better for the collective? In other words, could a disdane for degrees, born of hyperindividualism, be either harmless or beneficial for the collective?
There is certainly more acceptance of newcomers in the US, at least in social circles. People seem used to being uprooted all the time and having to create new bonds. That works well if you're always uprooted, but I think it comes at a price -- I don't think I have much original to add here.
I'm not so sure about tolerance of freaks, though.... There seems to be less restraint here on your feared lumpens from clobbering a total stranger for having bright red dreadlocks (anybody read _This Band Could Be Your Life_?), throwing piss at cyclists, or inflicting violence on a guy with piercings or tattoos. Not that nonconformity is particularly accepted in Europe, but you seem less likely to get the shit kicked out of you.
> 5. A relatively high level of separation of
> religion and state - this may
> come as surprise given the obnoxious religious
> infestation of a great chunk
> of the US population - but despite the wide spread
> of religious superstition
> among the populace, the institutions - public and
> private - are generally
> well insulated from it.
....
> state sanctioned church tax. France may appear
> secular, but that is mainly
> due to the secular nature of French population. I
> wonder if the French
> institutions could maintain its secular character if
> its population was
> infested with religiosity to the degree that the US
> population is (probably
> yes, due to its republican traditions, but I just
> wonder).
There's also the question of what's more valuable -- state institutions that are (barely) walled off from a superstitious, mostly creationist-tolerating public, or a public which wouldn't dream of inflicting religion on them in the first place.
> Europe or -I imagine - Japan. Another one is health
> care - ridiculously
> overpriced and with criminally inequitable access -
> but otherwise of
> excellent quality - albeit comparable to that in
> other developed countries
> where it is not so ridiculously overpriced and more
> accessible.
Yeah, but that's like Mexico having all those vacation spots of excellent quality, albeit comparable to other places.
Golly, am I more pissed off that you are?
Andy
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