[Gil Hamilton]

Originally posted by Captain Kwok:
Gil - Perhaps you should acknowledge the fact that your country's big corporations go into these countries and while paying them next to nothing for well paying jobs here just so you can save a few bucks on your next electronics purchase. Perhaps if these corporations paid the people something they wouldn't keep trying to live your life in your country. Plus - you ever try going through the INS? I couldn't believe what a racist and discriminatory dis-service it was. It's an unfortunate problem but maybe the people in charge can consider a better remedy?

Secondly - I'll take my "BANKRUPT" health care system that doesn't discrimate and gives everyone the equal access to medical treatment over a HMO system that allows people to be treated like second-class citizens because of the amount of money in their wallet or some guy in some office decides that treatment is too expensive. I'm sorry but you can keep spending billions of your tax dollars to drive your economy through your military but I don't think more big ships and a faulty missile defense screen is going to stop terrorism...the old white men in charge keep saying that 9/11 changed "things" but I don't see that it really has. You're hard EARNED dollars dissappear just as easily as ours.

Don't get me wrong - I like the United States. My wife is from there and I lived in the Northwest for a couple of years. It's a great country and has many more positives than negatives, but don't walk around thinking of yourselves as the most "enlightened" people on the Earth because that's just not right.

Here we go again....

American culture is one of the newest on the planet. How is it that it excels, by magnitudes, in almost every conceivable, measurable aspect over cultures hundreds, if not thousands of years older?

Why is it that other cultures/countries envy our robust economy but few do little to emmulate ours or improve their own? Certainly there are countries or regions with equal, if not more, natural resources. Is it poor education, an empty belly, religion, corrupt political system which holds them back? Don't think so... This country's founders faced and overcame all of that. (Well, still polishing up on a few, but...)

Sony, Philips, Panasonic, Aiwa, JVC, Pioneer, Casio....These don't sound very American owned to me. Intel, Motorola, yes, but publically traded. Not sure about other sectors, but what ever the goods produced "over there", I'm sure the people with the jobs are better paid, clothed, fed, housed, educated, medicated and more mobile than their average countrymen and would be unwilling to give up their job. Income is relative to where you live and what your money buys you THERE, not halfway around the world. So what if the employee is not rich by American standards, if he/she is rich by his country's standards?

I guess it is a good testament to the way we do things here, our willingness to constantly examine our systems and methods to see where change and tweaking are needed, that invites so much "helpful criticism" from those living elsewhere. If our treatment of others is so terrible, then don't let our companies build infrastructure and facilities there, don't eat our food, don't depend on our faulty missile systems when you see streaks headed towards your population centers, don't buy our goods, listen to our music, watch our movies and news/entertainment channels, don't ask our blood to shed for your inability to get along with your downtrodden neighbors.

A basic concept is to do it for yourself. Take the mantle of being a responsible individual, TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR OWN LIFE. Good or bad, when they place the pennies on your eyes, you'll truly rest in peace as you'll know what ever successes or failures you had were YOURS. If I get sick, I pay the doctor/hospital- not some HMO or government do-gooders. If I can't afford some treatment/proceedure, then I do without. So what? Who said life is fair?

I gladly pay taxes expecting nothing but the world's finest military. Look at your and other's bitterness towards something you will never understand, appreciate or create for yourselves. My deal is this, America forces no country to trade with us. We constantly maintain trade deficits world-wide. Point to anywhere where there is need and tell me the people living there aren't their own worst enemies.

Its easy to sit and blame us for your troubles, but in the end, you still have to wake up in YOUR neighborhood, not mine. After we get a tougher INS, that is. Your 1st paragraph accuses INS of prejudice- now read your 2nd paragraph. Get my point?