geopolitics & politics

I have 30 days paid vacation. I get paid to study (Ausbildung). I have 3 months notice period at work. I have lots of insurances. I have no credit card debt. I’ve never seen a medical bill in my life. I can visit 5 countries in a weekend road trip. I drink sparkling water. My city has more bike lanes than parking lots. I use public transport because it’s good. I have a recycling system with 4 different bins. I go on paid sick leave for weeks without worrying about getting fired. My grocery store closes on Sundays and I plan my life around it. I judge distances by how many train stops away they are. I separate my glass recycling by color. I carry a Pfand bag full of bottles like it’s treasure.

i live in Munich (mostly social democratic) and “innovation” and “good companies” are not a factor in quality of life of citizens. super safe, super clean, almost zero homeless, free healthcare and education, public transportation is better than private transportation, very very low crime rate, 30 day vacations + holidays. strong employee and tenant protection laws. minimum 3 months notice periods. majority of people don’t have debt or even “credit cards”. this is what 90% of people expect out of a functioning society and nothing more. i can’t imagine living in united states with such a low quality of life compared to Europe.

the biggest lie i used to believe: US is a great place to live any friend traveling from Germany to US comes back with stories about how low the quality of life is for most people - people don’t feel safe in the streets in the evenings - people don’t have much healthy food options - people don’t have proper public transportation infrastructure - too many homeless people on the streets - too many service workers rely on tips - good education seems to belong only to the rich families - too many obese people - too few vacation days in a year - you can get fired in a day with little notice - work life balance non-existent

Funny how different models of capitalism show up in the quality of life of citizens. In Paris, a capitalist liberal democracy, the metro infrastructure including seats are very old, worn and often dirty. But in Munich, a social democracy, the metro infrastructure is well maintained with recurring renovations and metro seats are new and clean. But to be fair to Paris, they get 50 million visitors a year; just not sure what they spend the 18 billion euro revenue on!

Forcing people not to share information only puts people at a disadvantage. If everyone tries to hide information, no one will know what's really happening. Secondly why people should do that for a government that doesn't even warn its people with a simple alarm? because they don't want to look bad at the expense of people's lives?!

As they say in the military strategy: when you lose the airspace, you lose the country

@MichaelAArouet GDP and quality of life are two very different things. People in Europe don’t need to care too much about GDP. Read this:

Something like we have here in Germany at this moment in time. Basically something that results in high quality of life: very safe cities with very low crime rate, almost zero homeless, well connected and nice public transportation, clean air, high quality food standards, universal healthcare system, low to zero debt individuals, free and high quality education, 25-30 day paid vacations, favorable employee and tenant laws, almost unlimited sick leaves, high purchasing power, a lot of job opportunities…

@wstorr accurately depicts the current society’s state of mind in the US and UK and why democrats (the New Left as he puts it) lost in 2016 and arguably now in 2024! Read chapter 27: When Dreams Collide Absolutely brilliant book btw.

@wstorr accurately depicts the current society’s state of mind in the US and UK and why democrats (the New Left as he pu…

After moving to Munich 5 years ago, I finally understood what quality of life means. Then I wondered: why Hollywood and US politicians claim that US is the greatest country in the world even when they don’t have a universal healthcare system, high food quality standards, a well connected and nice transportation infrastructure in most cities, very very low crime rate, free and high quality education system, 25-30 day paid vacations, 1-2 years paid paternity leaves and almost endless paid sick leaves, low to no debt individuals (except for mortgage)… (I can list a lot more…) The answer: here in US you can become a millionaire easier. It’s the land of opportunity! Become a millionaire to be able to afford a higher quality of life like people here in Germany? What are the chances of someone becoming a multi millionaire so they can finally live a healthy, worry-free, and nice life in US?

@sharghzadeh After moving to Munich 5 years ago, I finally understood what quality of life means. Then I wondered: why H…

@MTGrepp Vivek is a clear thinker, super communicator, highly intelligent and a great voice to represent America to the whole world. I love to see him on that job. His words are words of reason.

@farzyness America has benefited from an influx of very talented Iranians

I wish they come to your podcast. I hear a lot of bad things about how Canada is a terrible place to immigrate to because of job market in big cities. I even had friends come to Canada and leave after 1 month because they couldn’t find a job. Also maybe ask them about this picture that Elon posted recently if it’s true.

Just learned Munich has the highest percentage of non-Germans compared to all other major cities in Germany: 30.1% 😳 And Munich is the most expensive city in Germany already! I guess immigrants are thriving here. Next on the list: - Frankfurt 28.6% - Stuttgart 25.5% - Berlin 23.3%

My only takeaway from the US election and all the news around it would be: Will effective political marketing shift from running ads on local networks and legacy news channels to podcasters, YouTubers, and independent journalists? If Kamala wins, the answer would be not yet.

Hugendubel store in Munich is trying to tell me something about US elections… 😀 how @elonmusk “destroyed” Twitter how @realDonaldTrump is a “Loser” and finally how @KamalaHarris represents an “American Life” and an “American journey” 🤔 black and white thinking? bias? ✅✅