Is the American Dream Real?
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- čas přidán 17. 03. 2014
- In which John discusses moving to New York, equality of opportunity, socioeconomic mobility in the United States in the 21st century, the American dream, and the underratedness of Slovenia.
A much better exploration of the gender pay gap in the U.S. and elsewhere: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender_p...
ALSO it's interesting that I chose to make a joke about computer programming, because in fact female programmers are paid the same as male programmers in the U.S. according to this study: www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-n...
(That noted, the gender pay gap overall remains real.)
The American Dream is often misinterpreted as "a dream every American has for themselves," when it really is "the dream America has for itself." The American dream isn't about Americans having better lives, it's about America being a better place to live.
I would argue that those two things are deeply connected, and that it is impossible to improve in one of those areas without also improving in the other. The population of America is made up of mostly Americans, after all.
The term "American Dream" was first coined by James Truslow Adams in 1931 book
This is a really good point!
In which John Green discusses moving to New York, equality of opportunity, socioeconomic mobility in the United States in the 21st century, the American dream, and the underratedness of Slovenia.
Is the American Dream Real?
HI JOHN
hi john. hi hank
Mercedes Gonzalez
You forgot Dave.
And gender inequality. The baffling and agonizing truth that is gender inequality in pay scale.
Myka Dassano You should read the comments here and see what's actually up.
I'm all for the Danish dream, especially if it involves, like, Danishes.
ahem pastry.
Those aren't nearly as tasty
In Denmark, Danish pastry is actually named after Wien, the capital of Austria.
I don't believe that the capital of Austria will be as tasty either
I'm gonna give another funky thing, like others: If you're in an elevator an it says 'I fart', don't worry - it just means it's moving ;). In Denmark 'Fart kontrol' means speed check.
I'm danish, so I just want to ad to this
"the danish dream" = greater chance of small success
the american dream = smaller chance of great success
the american dream, the most successful ad campaign in history.
Eh, the American Dream at least has some truth to it, and in fact used to be really true (at least compared to other options). I think the Confederacy is a much more successful ad campaign
@Salamanduh Mann remind me the movie about Mcdonalds where the brothers shows their secrets to a stranger and finally lose everything even the name
@@change_5088 the founder good movie 👍🏽
Clickbait
I agree, all these anecdotes about the "American Dream" really don't reflect the reality. In fact, there are some intellectuals (Noam Chomsky) who argue that the myth of the American Dream is destructive rather than helpful.
He talks about the anti-myth. So, the myth goes:
You go to America and you work hard. Because you work hard, you succeed.
The anti-myth is this:
If you haven't succeeded, it means you don't work hard, and so it follows, you're lazy.
This is in American political discourse a lot. It in effect blames the poor for poverty. It's a common belief among the Right and Libertarians and Free Market Advocates. Which, is an extremely dangerous world view. Poverty, isn't he result of those who are poor, that's absurd. There's a host of environmental, economic, geographic, cultural factors at play. But, the oversimplification has lead, to what some people call "a war on the poor". Not the good kind of "war on..." something, like preventing drugs or cancer. But an actual effort to demonize the poor.
At first, I never gave credence to the anti-myth, I thought it was a stretch, but after following American political discourse for a while, I'm convinced it has had an impact on how Americans view poverty.
Sadly, in other countries here in Europe this belief is also getting more and more popular. Allain de botton ( I hope this was the correct spelling :D) has some great thoughts about this . You can listen to him on TED talk!
Here in the 3rd world we help the Poor and nothing good comes after helping them, our goverments Gives them social plans and they only become lazy, blaming the same things you said, the enviroment, cultural factors, etc, i think the point of view of people like you is really dangerous, Here in my continent the majority of our countries are leftists and socialists and our goverments “helps” the Poor to get him out of poverty and only bring us disgrace.
I work with Social Security claimants. Can’t even tell you how many have begged me to understand that they NEED it, that of COURSE they would do something else if they could, that they’re disgusted with themselves for getting help. Hundreds.
Can we vote these 2 guys to be president and vice president??? Or maybe like the first ever double president. You get the point.
that would be unfair to the rest of the world :)
Joe G.P. Nono, Britain's got Vsauce! And Scotland's got Scott Manley except he lives in California, and the british prime minister both rules Scotland and England (he/she does right, otherwise I'm going to sound so dumb)... well...
AsgerCo
i said the rest of the WORLD, that's a bit bigger than the Ireland, Scotland and Great Brittain
Joe G.P. I was beeing ironic, I'm just not the greatest at making comments that are clearly ironic
AsgerCo
the thing is i don't know who Scott Manley is or the british prime minister, maybe that's why
awww the story of the craigslist furniture mover made me smile.
Coming from a lower-middle-class family, this really hits home. My true hope in life is that I can move myself and my family into an economic position where we can live without surviving disability check to disability check.
This is one reason why I love the internet you know. The stuff I can know if only I want to is immense and when I compare that to the options my grandfather had (who had to move from Ireland (his born country) at the age of 16 for work) I am just astounded by my fortune and compelled not to waste such an opportunity. The amazing welfare system of Britain does help with that though.
Oh, I wish I could have the benefit of Britain healthcare system
Good luck my man.
The problem with the American Dream is that it is based on an idea which is naive in its core. People are not free and equal. Inequality in class can lead to differences in behavior, values, tastes and general survival strategies. So questions about if you take a risk to acquire chances (which does include education in the US system) or if you fit in a group are not entirely your free choice. For people with less money, things like universal health care can mean that they can take risks and not be bound by the expectation to be ruined forever. If higher education just costs time, they will not be as hesitant to risk taking that opportunity.
John: "And in Slovenia..."
Me: "Whhhhhhaaaattt?! HE KNOWS WE EXIST :O! "
The strongest argument in favour of low university and college tuition fees is the upward mobility ceiling for the working poor. Laid across the track of those hoping for more through education, they compound the cultural and social factors that impair upward mobility.
Here in Canada, our tuition fees have risen astronomically, in less than one generation. Scholarships are an imperfect solution.
As a Canadian university student, I couldn't agree more.
I hear you. Tuition fees are a trevesty. Not only because they kneecap social mobility, but also because in the long term, having them is more costly to society than not having them, on account of education not being handed out based on merit.
***** spelunkerd Is this not also the case in America, though?
***** But why are schools businesses? Is that the best model? I don't know personally what the solution to this problem is, but if we don't recognize it as a problem and challenge the whole system from top to bottom, very little will change for the better, and that change will be incredibly slow.
Same in the states. I graduated high school in 2005. In 2005, I could attend the local community college for $54/credit with tuition and fees accounted for. Nine years later, going back for additional education is costing me $96/credit. That is a $42 or 78% jump in just nine years- trust me, my income has not jumped that much in that time, nor has inflation. If cost of college rose at the normal rate of inflation (17% in this time frame), college should cost $65/credit, not $96.
And that is for the 'cheaper' option of community college, not a four year school. I went to a private school for a bachelor's degree and in two years, I saw a $2,400 increase per year cost on the tuition- from $21,300 to $23,700. I had some financial aid and scholarships to help cover it, but believe me- I'm still paying on those student loans. Would have been wiser to go elsewhere, but I can't speak for the wisdom of myself when I was 18.
I could keep going on, but instead I'll just link this page- it's quite sobering.
trends.collegeboard.org/college-pricing/figures-tables/tuition-and-fee-and-room-and-board-charges-over-time-1973-74-through-2013-14-selected-years
I think that's the best re-statement I've ever heard of "The American Dream," insofar as its accuracy.
Anyone who can work, can work- doesn't mean you'll be paid what you believe to be an adequate amount (not yet anyway, but we're working toward that as a society I hope), and it doesn't mean you'll find success in the exact terms you'd prefer, but it does mean you can work.
I grew up in Denmark, and I must urge you to start liking paying high taxes, eating fish for breakfast and cycling everywhere...I miss it so much
"It's called the American Dream because you have to be asleep to believe it." - George Carlin
Jan Cloosterman
And Geroge Carlin is a idiotic, unfunny comedian, trying to look smart. Post something...lets say more original, ok?
@@IkeOkerekeNews He was right though.
@@MazBringsby
Not really. The American Dream is whatever you want it to be.
@@IkeOkerekeNews thats just another way of saying its not real.
@@liberalbias4462
Uhh...no.
Thank you!!! I also think the "American Dream" idea allows people to blame the poor for the inequality they face, which isn't helpful or accurate.
I certainly can see how poverty has affected me. The first week of my life, my family lived in a homeless shelter. My mom got assistance from the government to get a house, get food, go to college, and send us to daycare. When I was young she divorced my biological father (can I just say he was a horrible guy) and she did all this still while raising four of us. My mom did in fact work hard, but without government assistance, I don't think much would of changed for us. Now we are middle class, however this allows people to operate by a lot of assumptions. Like the idea that I have money saved up for college. We didn't have money to save. Every penny was spent on surviving. So that's one way being poor a while ago still affects me now.
My city was also ranked one of the poorest in the nation and I get pissed when people say being poor is the poor's fault.
I love your picture by the way. Luna Love-good my favorite character!
Mine used to be Hermione, but now I relate a lot more to Luna.
I'm from Ireland, BA Honors degree, and I lived in America for about 4 months. I had a job interview nearly every week, and actually found work. Now I've been back in Ireland for about 7 months and I have not had a single interview. On top of that, the jobs I was going for in America were paying anywhere between 12 - 25 dollars per hour. The only jobs here in Ireland now are either 0 hour contracts or unpaid 9 month internships. Part of the American dream is simply the opportunity for a better life. With that in mind, I think it's still around.
I feel like the editing is less about easing the flow of his speech and more about cutting out every time he blinks.
I am a female programmer. Thanks for the shout-out, John.
Dear John,
I am an eight grade at Twin Falls Middle School, North Bend WA. Many of my peers and I love your book The Fault in Our Stars, as well as Hank and your videos on this channel. I have been hoping since the first time I watched Crash Course History that I could meet with you to talk, ask and learn more about the creative process of your writing and what inspired you to do what you do today.
Thank you for your time,
Duncan Harrison
I am a female computer programmer and got offered a job both in the US and in Norway. I'm moving to Norway.
See, this is discouraging to me. (But I don't blame you. Norway is lovely.) -John
*****
Well, she'll experience us, the scandinavians. That's not discouraging if she's taking that back to you at a later time!
It's always good for a country to have people who has worked abroad - at least here it is good for our export. (Or so it is claimed in our media).
+engers
Norway is very nice but very expensive. To give you an idea how expensive it is the Tesla is one of the fast growing cars there and they are not cheap.
Taxation in Norway is very high as well so be prepared for that. Private healthcare is not as easy to find their either.
It' called the American dream because "you have to be asleep to believe it."
What about, "you have to be asleep to DREAM it"- because that's what "a dream" is. You don't necessarily have to believe a dream, you can just dream it. In the case of America's, dreaming is enough because in some countries, people don't even have the opportunity to dream.
Ahh, good old Carlin.
Hey John! Thanks for doing a video on socioeconomic mobility. I've been thinking about this issue for years and it's nice to know someone else is too.
Greetings from Slovenia John Green! Love your books!
John's best video in awhile: Smart, informative, thought-provoking.
Great video John. I really appreciate that you didn't devolve this into the tired old argument of "there ought to be a law". Seriously, super well done. Thanks. Also, I almost forgot to be awesome today, but then I remembered.
Soooooooooooooo, when are you running for Senate?
WOW
You are so witty
It's ridiculous. People are allowed to judge a country or basically ANYTHING without making an initiative to change it. Judgement is a measure of something that is passed by human assessment (whether it is fair or not is another matter).
He doesn't have to be president to rightfully claim that the current president isn't doing his job correctly.
who want to Senate ?? .. it's lobby work
***** I doubt that. It could've been a joke but I think he was accusing John of passing a judgement without working toward a change, thus calling him a hypocrite.
And as you said, this was my interpretation and I might've been wrong. And if I was wrong, I apologize.
But I still gauged some underlying accusation in that comment (or maybe I'm just used to aggressive and accusational comments on youtube).
***** I'm sorry that you happened to stumble towards those comments.
Well, not because of the comments but because of the videos themselves.
Nerdfighter videos tend to have better people, like you for instance, who are civilized enough and less aggressive.
"Do you know why we don't have a dream in this country? In Great Britain? Do you know why there is no British dream mate?
It's because we're fucking awake." -Al Murray
That was a helluva lot of information packed into 3:32, and I think that's one of your most incredible achievements, John (and also Hank, but this wasn't his video, so he's secondary in this comment), the ability to be incredibly economical with video time……there's an analogy to do with national economic efficiency in there somewhere, and I'll let somebody else make it.
Yay, I almost fell out of my chair when you mentioned Slovenia - and the shout out?? Almost passed out...
Love your book!!!
Brilliant video yet again. Thanks for always putting figures and an elegant argument to topics of conversations I have relatively often.
My father moved from the USSR to here when he was 16 (in 1976). He now works for Oracle makes plenty of money and never took any government help. I'm proud to be his son.
He actually did take government help. Unless he somehow never drove on a road or enjoyed the protection of a society governed by law and order. I'm really glad you're proud of your father though, you should be, sounds like he's done a lot to be proud of.
Seamalicous yeah I agree with you.. but i am sure he meant that his dad paid for all of the things you mentioned through tax.. instead of receiving redistributed tax from the government..
This is so weird because I've never thought of the American dream being for Americans. I always thought of it as something that's for foreigners, and as someone who spends a lot of time around first-generation Americans (specifically from Asia) it's definitely alive for them. I'm not rich but I sure as heck won't be complaining about the life I have considering what some of my neighbors have come from.
I think Americans need to be a little more grateful, but that's just me though.
americans are fully aware that america is not the nation it should be.
gabriel h I agree, and it's not. I don't like that there seems to be more people whining than taking action.
***** Yep. We Americans love to cry about how hard life is with full stomachs and a roof over our heads.
It's impossible for an ungrateful heart to be happy.
Anastasia Belle Well tell that to the Fire fighters please. I have a gut feeling that you are:
A. Sweet 16 year old and have mom and dad still pay for your stuff.
B. a college student that has not yet gone out in the work force.
C. You come from a VERY well off family.
D. You have little knowledge what has been going on around you.
Look it is great to be little more grateful and we should, but that does not mean we have room for improvements. I knew other first world foreigners that lived here for a few years and moved back to Europe because they would be happier their, I had family that lived in Germany for Years and had kids their too and moved back here and now they want to go back to Germany.
Look at this fun fat the minimum wage is below poverty levels and today you can't survive with minimum wage. In the 90s with 2 or maybe 3 hour of work could fill up your tank of gas for the week or two and feed for lunch and the rest was gravy money for your self. Today it takes about 4 to 5 times with today's minimum wage to do that.
In other words yes their is a goooood reason why Americans love to cry about how hard life is now a days.
Landsknecht 86 A) wrong B) wrong C) wrong D) wrong. You might want gastric-bypass on that gut LOL.
Who said life is supposed to be easy?
Where did I say we shouldn't try to improve?
Good for the foreigners you knew..?
Vast majority of Americans don't live on minimum wage.
Opportunity doesn't get thrown at [most] people and it sure as hell wasn't thrown at me. It's something people have to find. Don't complain if you're not going to look.
but sure, if you want to cry about how much your life sucks while people run circles around you, that's your prerogative.
omg....can not belive that you talked about Slovenia. When Hank did on the Olimpics topic I was shocked but now I am shaking. No one even knows where it is and here is John Green talking about it.
thank you I guess :)
p.s. I didn't understand a word when you read the title. I didn't even know there is a slovenian version, I'll have to buy it, because I only have the signed english version.
We're starting Gatsby this week in my AP lang class and we've been having this exact discussion for a few days!!!! Always on point and v. helpful. Thanks, John x
So many comments basically saying, "data is for suckers, I have an interpretation based on something I kind of notice sometimes."
Data is great, but in this case in used in the wrong context.
I wish you would revisit this topic now. Since it’s been almost a decade when you made this video. ❤
John omg im so happy you know where slovenia is! we love you so much here and every day i meet new people who love to read your books! we really love you here so you should come here someday :)
Can I just point out that what I love so much about John and Hank and everything here is that we can have good, decent discussions and even admit to mistakes if we've made some? So yeah. Continue being awesome :)
Glad to see people are calling out the $0.77 statistic. It's not discrimination it comes down to choice's women make vs the choices men make.
even if you account alle these choices and only look at men and women same age same experience same job there is still a gap! it is not that big anymore but there still is a gap and that is really bad! also some of the choices women do not make on their own they make choices because society or family tells them to.
Sooooo we get punished monetarily wise for having to bear the children? I'll happily swap it around so you dudes can carry the kids and go through labour so I can instead have the freedom to sleep around without stigma and get more money per hour than you! Go ahead! Bear the fruit of our loins instead of vice versa. We'll see how well you do then.
Amanda Mitro well you see women get pregnant and babys and stuff men don't thats unfair but its only a tiny part or why women get paid less. many women take a year or more off to take care of their children so they have less experience, they often take part time jobs, they are less willing to work far away from home and they often take less risksy jobs.
that are some reasons men can't change, but if a women with the same experience gets paid less for the same job its unfair and we all have to fight against that!
Amanda Mitro
There should be obligatory maternal (and paternal) paid leave...but that doesnt change the fact that the gap is almost entirely, if not completely , based on a womans choice, and not discrimination.
If you want to fight for equal pay, fight for paid parental leave..not some imaginary ghost called discrimination.
bawoman
as i said above there still is a gap! it is not made up!
In my sociology class last semester we talked about the "American Dream" and we talked about what we thought that meant. Most of us said it was the opportunity to get some form of higher education, own a house, have a family if you want, and own a car. Just about all of those things require most people to be in substantial amounts of debt. I found it interesting that to live the American dream, you almost always have to owe someone money. It seems weird to me that that's basically what we work towards because we've been told that's what we should have, even if we can't afford to get their on our own.
John finding out Paper Towns is becoming a movie has made my day SO MUCH BETTER considering I found out I have to get surgery this Friday. I LOVE YOU AND NAT AND THE PEOPLE MAKING FAULT AND I'M SO EXCITED
You had good timing with this video, John. I'm watching this the 19th of March, which is the day of equality in Finland. :)
srsly i'm very thankful i live in Denmark cause there is basically social equality for everyone. if you want to be successful and have a well paid job and so on, all you have to do is do well in school basically, which you get paid for (education support) to go to, we also have paid maternity leave and free healthcare, sure yes we have to pay a bit more taxes but hey it's worth it! cause it ensures that everyone has an equal shot at making it which benefits us all in the end :D
Strangely enough Americans who always harp about "Equality of opportunity not equality of results" usually don't know their country has one of the worst equality of opportunity scores in the western world. Just goes to show how the average American doesn't know much about anything.
You had me until you wrote "the average American doesn't know much about anything." I am fully aware of this issue and am thoroughly disgusted by it, but I have no power here.
ACubed Sure. Of course you know of it but you're not average are you?
Hannu Marijarvi
"Just goes to show how the average American doesn't know much about anything."
Well. That was kind of assholish.
butwhy not In an empire of lies telling the truth is a character flaw.
I love reading the comments of the vlog brothers channel. I never have to worry about my blood pressure rising because there's actual intellectual conversation going on; seems as though the angry part of CZcams stays away from us, here. hahah
We tend to be nicer people.
TheLoreSeeker Doodyhead!
Sorry, it wasn't feeling like the internet and that was freaking me out.
It funny how when you discuss the american dream you speak of jobs and opportunity. When my English class (IB English 11) discussed it when we were reading Gatsby, we spoke of the big house, 2 kids (preferably one girl and one boy), the fancy things etc. etc. All superficial things. I suppose that's what Americans see but outside America the dream is simple opportunity. And truly a beautiful and poetic thing.
Thank you for turning my opinion around about the dream and making it positive. Also thanks for the stats about how it doesn't work.
You're great!
Another great video detailing the facts about the American Dream and equality of opportunity. It's a complicated problem but still one worth talking about and trying to understand.
While not a lot of new information for me, this is simultaneously thought-provoking, depressing, and inspiring (the latter only in that it makes me want to do more to change things).
That stat comparing the income of men & women is wrong as far as i'm aware. If you're referring to the same data I've seen which included similar numbers, it doesn't take into account the actual jobs people are doing.
You're supposed to compare it on a job by job basis, not on overall. Men are more likely to earn danger pay and go into professions that require high levels of commitment, thus extra income.
For example, the retail industry (which has a high proportion of females) is one of the lowest earning industries and that heavily reduces the overall income women make. You also have to take into account that a lot of women only do part time, but that still gets added to women's overall income.
Vlogbrothers yet again showing blind feminism.
This is the one thing they harp on that I truly disagree with.
One thing, though: The reason (besides the stuff about women being the ones that carry children) WHY women take the jobs they do and don't take the jobs that they don't is almost entirely the fault of society and how we raise girls and then treat them when they're in positions of power. I'm not a big supporter of the Ban Bossy thing because I think it misses the mark a bit, but the IDEA is valid, at least.
If you account for occupation, years of experience etc. You find the the wage gap is something like 5 cents in the US, which would only get two penny sweets in the UK.
Also, the ten most remunerative college degrees are over 80% male. Meanwhile, in the ten least remunerative degrees it varies between 60 and 90% female.
I believe from what I've heard before that the 77cents per dollar is average for the same careers, obviously not all careers are the same, so they average the pay discrepancy. But as I said before this is not true for all professions, in fact women who are gynecologists make more on average than men who are gyns.
Thalia Irwin I think I've done enough research to know that's not true, on top of any anecdotal evidence I can give. But this is CZcams comments, and I really feel like the facts speak for themselves. Do a quick Google search.
Thalia Irwin The 77 cents to the dollar is across the board, it adds up all full time adult pay I believe. It doesn't separate by career, experience etc.
It's not an average of pay gaps in various industries, it's an overall paygap by gender. That's why it's stupid.
Great video John, even in comparison to the long line of exceptional videos you and Hank are currently on.
This is awesome! I read "Looking for Alaska" but I never knew that I was watching videos from it's author on youtube :)) Great job John!
The American Dream isn't American, and it's not even a dream, it's a nightmare in reality.
You sound like a writer.
Thespiangoddess I'm a film critic, so that's a kind of writer =)
Holy crap, I've been making the Danish dream argument since elementary school. I never thought I'd hear from a non Dane though. Props.
Jeeeeej John's book in Sloveeeeeeneeee!!! :D Although I'm from Slovenia, I'll read it in English, because I prefer originals to translations, but I shall get it for someone as a gift to support one of the most awesome dudes ever!!! :D Really love your and Hank's work, you guys are great!! :)
I truly admire how optimistic you are. Thanks for restoring, slowly but surely, my faith in humanity. Don't know if you'll see this, but you rock! DFTBA, not that you even need reminding :) John Green *****
"Women make 77 cents for every dollar a man makes." This does not take into account people working in the same field. PLEASE, stop using this statistic.
Yes, but Slovenia's 97.5 female cents for every dude dollar also doesn't take into account people working in the same field. There is clearly a systemic problem.
I feel like it's a thing to say to pander to the tumblr feminist crowd; a really big goddamn crowd right now.
Tyler Graham Ok then. If there is one though, I want to hear an explanation, not blind reasoning and oversimplification.
GreenGearMood I don't know. I'm not familiar with tumblr's demographics since I barely spend time there. Perhaps that's a good thing.
If you have a tumblr, just stay out of the social justice circles. You can do well to ignore them so long as you never, ever begin to cast them glance.
I'm currently reading The Fault in Our Stars, and I love it!
Just finished Paper Towns (loved it) and I'm going to get my hands on The Fault in Our Stars soon. :D
i just finished it, ITS SO GOOD!
Kapilan Bavananthan How much did you cry?
I love how you actually turned to the side to make your side point.
Finaly someone mentions Slovenia! We love your books!
Hi from Slovenia :)
I am a student. Because of that I get many benefits. All students get free medical insurance, pay no tuition, get food around 40% off (because of special founding), get apartments around 30% off and If you are deprivileged you get additional money, just so you can study.
Dreamy huh?
But when you get your degree it is almost impossible to get a job. There is no job opportunitys. Unemployment rate of young people is 24%. So from our standpoint of view America is a place where people if they want to work can.
Yeah, but not before getting that paper from the uni. ;) Beg možganov, ne?
Is there no country on earth where women are statistically paid the same as men? That's pretty depressing.
there are no countries on earth were men and women are statistically the same in any way. The fact that men get paid more compared to woman OVERALL, doesn't prove sexism or misogyni, in the same way that there are 10x more men in prison, compared to women.
None. Not one.
Men and women are fundamentally different.
Adding to what TheGamerArk said, suicide rates are also a lot higher for men.
off topic, but i had to talk about it, i jus finished TFIOS and the part that upset me most is that it ended....you are deffinatly a great idea machine John, :) keep them coming
Thank you for this john green, you inspire me, you are my favorite author, keep up the videos :)
Someone already asked this, but how is our (Canadian) economy weird? Everyone knows how other countries see the US. I would love to know how other countries see Canada, besides the usual "They're so nice!"
Wake up America before the dream becomes a nightmare.
I been subscribe to crash course and here for a few months and now i realize your thee John Green! Well Looking for Alaska is an amazing book i enjoy reading it last year!
Oh my god, I'm from Slovenia.
and i love your book and your (totally off) pronaunciation of Zvezde so krive. :D
im from slovenia and your video has renewed my faith in my country
Kot ponavadi neponosna slovenka, se s tem strinjam! :)
Zanimivo, koliko nas je. Nikoli si nisem mislila, da toliko slovencev in slovenk gleda Vlogbrothers :D
Se bo treba enkrat zbrat! Od vseh ljudi, ki sem jih spoznala (tudi is drugih držav) so ponavadi nerdfighterji najbolj prijazni in zanimivi. :D
I was going to say something very similar but you put in words way better than I could have.
The "what is this, Esther Day?" comment was funny.
You are such an inspiration. You have the most realistic ideas and thoughts.
There is a fun little town in Slovenia called Bled it is on the coast of Lake Bled. It comes highly recommended for anyone thinking about a Slovenia trip after this video.
I've never gotten the "redistribution of wealth limits innovation" argument. I've never had the inclination to think, "Gee, I'd really like to help revolutionize science and technology, but I don't think I will because then my tax rate will go up." Sure, you can argue that there's less available capital, but a well-run country invests money in scientific research and education.
I agree. I think that there is a point at which too much regulation will stifle growth, such as in the Soviet Union. However America is so far away from that I think it is really a non-issue. Its like if I have the best idea in the world that will make billions of dollars, tax rates being five or ten or 15 percent higher is not going to somehow make my idea not profitable enough to pursue.
Quinn Weber yeah, the problem with the USSR was that it was a deeply corrupt country. The US's wealth is almost directly linked to its governmental spending, because despite what certain people who work for wealthy companies like to tell you, the free market actually sucks. Just ask any country without a functioning federal government how great their bussiness oppertunities are in their free-market capilistic dreamland of somalia or kenya..
Quinn Weber And the thing with the USSR is that it had a centralized planned economy, which basically meant your job was what the government told you it was. Though even despite that, there was a great deal of technological innovation in the Soviet Union--at least until their economy fell apart.
Mistran5lation While I see your humanized argument, you're forgetting the important fact that, as a corporation, their job is to make money (see the vlogbrothers video about pharmaceuticals). Not to innovate, not to revolutionize, but to make money.
That is their duty to their employers, employees, and stockholders. That means that if the tax rate goes beyond a certain point in a state or country, they MUST consider finding a lower tax rate, because it is their duty to protect the financial interest of the company.
Whether you like Capitalism or Socialism, remember this: rich people will always keep their money. It just might not be here in the U.S.
TheRealBigMac the job of companies is to sell goods and services for money, not just to chase dollars any way they can. It's a shame this country's government isn't as close-fisted about that distinction as other, better countries are..
I feel privileged to be this quick to this video!
LOL! I was the 70th person to watch this and had the SAME thought. I was like "ooh, it's like early vlogbrothers when there weren't a million of us."
Aaah, thanks John, made my day mentioning Slovenia and you're quite right, it's much too underrated.
Imagine my face when you mentioned Slovenia! (Although it's far from a perfect place, but still!) OHHHH this is my new favorite video!
Being danish, I like this video :)
Being Slovenian, I like this video too haha :)
Back in the 50s and 60s you could raise a family working as a stocker in a grocery store. Today there's all these ridiculous academic expectations, you have to have a fancy degree to get a decent career which is a fortune itself to obtain. Even then your not guaranteed a career in what you want.
I know, and it completely sucks.
Kevin Contreras
Work experience or building up a business is far more productive than just entering college education after school. Well for most people anyway.
bighands69 Depends on the job you want. Technical degrees and specialized fields like medicine and architecture are still only available through formal education.
As a future DDS in my last year, I'm a bit sick of being told education is worthless. I need the skills, knowledge, degree and a license to do what I want.
But yes, going to college just to have a few letters added to you name or “to find yourself” is a bad investment. IMHO everyone should ask themselves if they can succeed in their field when self taught. If the answer is yes, then don't wait for college but pursue it on your own.
- KoperKat
Dentists, Doctors and School teachers are very specialist roles.
And when a person studies these at school they have an intent to enter these fields. I my self have studied medicine in the past and could not have practiced with out having undertaken formal study and registration.
But for the vast majority and I mean 99% of people college is quite useless as most people entering programs do not actually have intent they are winging it and for some people they find a job and career after this.
But for a growing number of people winging it is not working anymore. Now if a person is average academically and they just about pass they are going to struggle in the real world.
You would be surprised at the amount of people I meet that never went to college and just worked became successful and then gained a degree after this.
There is an education bubble forming and people who are not planning carefully will get caught up in it.
Dean M I As an immigrant; I give up on the American dream!
Thank you for this, my mother and I had this argument just a few days ago, where she said anyone could achieve anything in the US while I argued there were limitations and boundaries to this due to underlying social prejudices. I think this video very concisely explained what I was very clumsily tried to argue. But thank you for the statistics, they were very informative.
JOHN MENTIONED SLOVENIA (like a year ago but) THATS SO AWSOME!
I'd really love it if you'd do a full video about the gender pay gap. I've seen a lot of conflicting studies that say it's actually 91 cents to the dollar when you consider the 'choices' women make to not work or work less, and I'd love to hear your thoughts on that.
I'm currently reading a book called 'The 100 Thing Challenge' which talks a lot about the unattainable and unrealistic ideal involved in the 'American dream'.
i'm just one in like a million subscribers and I know this will probably be washed over by thousands of other more brilliant and profound comments but I just wanted to make this my esther day and say how much I love you guys. John, Hank, being part of nerdfighteria is the best thing ever.
i know you both have lives and other important things to do... but i miss you being a part of my everyday. please do daily videos again... even if only for a week or a month. I need more vlogbrothers :)
Oh Craigslist people....
That was a great story at the beginning.
this is so weird... my english teacher loves you and plays your videos for our class and just yesterday we were taking about the american dream..she'll love to see this
John, I just finished your amazing book, The Fault In Our Stars. Let me just say. Powerful. Amazing. GLOURIOUS! Short story short, great book. :D
Most studies into the cause of the wage gender gap indicate that only a small percentage of that is due to discrimination, and the rest is due to how many hours and experience are available to women in different fields. The way you talked about it, you'd think it was only due to discrimination. Remember: correlation doesn't always prove direct causation. The solution to this problem is thus not so simple as fighting sexism, and has more to do with opportunity itself. Like you always say, John, truth defies simplicity.
phillyslasher Actually, while that does play a factor, evidence shows the biggest contributor to the wage gap is due to lack of guaranteed maternity leave.
"The Danish Dream." Love it. Sounds like an indie rock band.
Sounds like a delicious pastry-based dessert
Benedict Allen you due know is not called danish pastry in Denmark
Hey john green, I know there is an extremely remote chance of you reading this but you are such an inspiration to young writers like me. You are really amazing.
Slovenija is fantastic. It's the greatest place I've ever visited. From my limited experiences there, I've gathered that fantastic banter must be a national past time. I could not approve of anything more heartily.
Haha, the Danish dream! Ahh, but you see, that would break the law of Jante, surely, we can't have that. Danish culture is actually pretty antagonistic towards ambition, so...
Also I don't think John understands how excited we get when our country is mentioned.
"There are no places to run to, only places to run away from"
Thank you for mentioning us :)
Greetings from Slovenia
Great video! And I love that you mentioned Denmark, where I'm from. I could honestly not imagine living in a better country than here. Sure we pay quite high taxes but in return all education is completely free and we as students actually get paid to study (yep!) and not to mention free health care as well. So I do believe that the equality those things bring has a lot to do with the fact that we're named the world's happiest nation pretty much ever year :)
A huge thank you for the shout-out. Slovenian language is really weird...
As much as we love being mentioned, economic state of our country is really terrible at the moment... also... welcome to come and see our tiny but beautiful country :)
Ah, Slovenia. I made this quiz on flags and no one could guess Slovenia. Another problem with the United States. We don't teach geography. AT ALL.
Are you being serious? Also, your American so you'll know, is it true that the only maps found in American schools are of America and that your 'world maps' only include America as well or is that just a British joke about how America thinks that it is the centre of the world?
Sarah Geddes It's a joke, but yes, USAmercian schools typically have maps of North America in the elementary grades, but once you start getting in to the higher grades those maps tend to only be in History classes. It's not so much that geography isn't taught as it is not focused on enough.
We pretty much teach states and capitals. That's it. The people who get more are insanely lucky. Just because we have world maps doesn't mean we study them.
Don't know what kind of schools you went to. The geography taught at mine growing up was quite comprehensive and the school would fund trips abroad. Also, no, all the maps included the entire world. That's just silly.
Marauder131 I went to a comprehensive school (I am not joking that is the technical term for the kind of school I went to) in England. I am British and Americans are the butts of many of our jokes, I just wanted to make sure that this joke was really a joke. I never know with America, I thought that someone was joking when they told me that America does not have free health care, but that is definitely not a joke.
PS I love your user name!
Hahaha! I love you talking about data being plural! I just wrote a 2000 word assignment and gave in a draft to be marked and of all the things my lecturer could have said, her main point was about the one time I said the data was.
Good work. I love these things!
I'm so happy that you mentioned Denmark :D #danishnerdfighter