This comment actually perfectly encapsulates how the US has got to the point that it’s at today.

Nor does the US need to make everything.

The US is a service economy. It makes money through capital and intellectual property. Being the first to innovate means also having the opportunity to wedge yourself as a permanent middle man and charge people around the world to pass go.

Think Uber eats for example. If I order food in Toronto from a Toronto based restaurant fulfilled by a courier in Toronto, 30% of my payment is going to them in silicon valley for managing that order.

Similarly, when you purchase an app on Google or Apple store, they are collecting 30%.

If I am in Norway purchasing a game on Steam from a Norwegian developer, you guessed it, 30% is going to Steam.

This is America’s strength now, not making t shirts, shoes or cars entirely domesticallty.

Most of the world was ok with paying the markup for convenience.

Since the US have gone rogue, many are calling for an end for respect to US intellectual property. Perhaps each country should have its own Uber, app store etc so that the cut can stay within our borders.

One case: Uber was charging 30% commission for managing rickshaw rides in India (a country with relatively low purchasing power per capita).

It was only after domestic options like Rapido or Namma Yatri undercut them that they moved to a subscription based model, charging drivers 20 to 40 rupees daily, rather than taking an exorbitant commission of 30% per ride. To India’s credit, it has a robust IT sector located in one of its major cities (Bangalore) which helps promote competition in this case.

Skill issue, was likely overemployed all things considered. Question the qualifications or anyone who would say this.

Thought you were talking about America’s elected government for a second there.

Sure but the scale and recency of European colonialism certainly leaves a bad taste in many people’s mouths, even the descendants of colonists.

Many are also put off by European and its new world colony’s claims of moral supremacy over those victimized by colonization, especially as it was the birthplace of nazi-ism and countless genocides.

We can all agree thar humans have been nafarious for a long time. But, many see the legacy of European colonialism and the Trans Atlantic slave trade as an atrocity at a scale never before commited in human history.

Western tech had a massive head start.

When a country’s tech manufacturing is being developed it’s going to start by making what already exists because… it has to start somewhere.

It didn’t take long for Japanese cars to supersede American cars. China is now doing the same to both American and Japanese cars. Nissan nearly went out of business and is still in trouble. Tesla’s situation isn’t helped by how dislikable its founder is so its value is plumetting.

Most countries don’t know how to deal with the advent Chinese EVs so they’re just slapping massive tariffs on them and hoping they figure something out in the meantime.

It isn’t just going to stop at Japan and China though. Japan was subsidized by the US post WW2 and China built its manufacturing from the ground up. There are many other countries on that path which will lead to significant global competition. The West is going to have to keep its head up if it wants to remain competitive by the end of the century.

The leading Western nation responding to increased global competition with reactionary protectionism is a bad start. It’s squandering all of the soft power the US has cultivated post WW2 leaving a power vacuum for China and other influential nations on the ascension to capitalize on.

It depends on what they’re talking about. I’ll listen to and generally heed a doctors medical opinion, for example. Their political opinion? Eh…

Joe Rogan, who has doesn’t have expertise in anything comparable to a doctors expertise in medicine, no way I’m talking anything he says at face value.

Depends on how the game is optimized. For example I get minimal performance enhancement in GTA 5 enhnaced but in Witcher 3 its a solid 10 to 20 fps improvement on my hardware.

US compartmentalizes based on race. It’s apparent in essentially all of the media they export to the rest of the world.

Historically American society operated based on a race based caste system and the consequences of that echo into the present day.

Eh you can achieve similar or greater privacy on a Android phone simply because it’s not locked down in the way an iPhone is.

Surely that’s not a uniquely American phenomenon.

They used to innovate, no doubt. But their products provide absolutely terrible value now. Great resale, sure. But you’re overpaying 20% for the hardware you’re getting which is not the case on the Android side. The only thing iPhone universally does better is 1) video and 2) ecosystem (if all your products are Apple). The rest is a tomaeto vs tomahto situation.

Not relevant to most basic users but I could not use a phone where I did not have the freedom to sideload apps, especially if I’m overpaying for the hardware.