I'm not homesick, because I'm not a sentimental person. But from a practicality standpoint, this country sucks. I'm in the suburbs on the East coast and everything is a 30 minute drive away. I don't drive. Where I came from in Europe, everything could be reach by walking or cycling or taking a train or bus. Here, nothing is reachable unless you're willing to spend half of your day in a massive, expensive, gas-guzzling death machine. The neighbours out here are all boomers who do nothing but mow their lawns and watch CNN or Newsmax all day. I've never felt this level of capitalist alienation before, and I've always been an introvert. It's not only inconvenient here, but gaslighting because everyone else seems not to question this boring concrete hellscape. There is nothing to do or see; only hundreds of fast food restaurants and gas stations. There's a PSL branch downtown, but that's an hour away by bus and the bus stop is a 45 minute walk (I'm not exaggerating). I thought the capitalist society I moved from was bad, but this is so much worse. And this is the bastion of freedom and liberty I've heard so much about? I guess I'm free to eat cheetos and watch Fox but other than that it isn't very liberating. My partner is a yank and really doesn't notice or mind, but I feel like I'll go crazy here. It's just miles and miles of asphalt and paranoid gun owners. I hate it and don't really know what to do. The food in the US costs at least two or three times as much as where I immigrated from, and tastes like garbage (I'm talking about the 'fresh' stuff). Utility bills are also much higher. On every street is a church blasting some religious doctrine at me (Easter was a cringe-fest). How do the rest of you cope???
I've legit thought of travel nursing in the States but I dunno, yeah I could make more money but yall are popping off right now and I dunno if I could handle a health crisis episode even with insurance. Plus, I'm a member of a communist party and I swear there's a law the US has that bars entry of communist party members??? But somehow it excepts Cubans and people from the PRC? Seems like an additional headache on top of the safety stuff.
iirc the citizenship process asks if you are an anarchist or communist. at least thats what my relatives were asked back in their day
I do believe “Are you or have you ever been a member of the communist party” or something similar is still a question in the citizenship process
From the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services:
An immigrant who is or has been a member of or affiliated with the Communist or any other totalitarian party is inadmissible under INA 212(a)(3)(D), unless an exception applies.
Don't ask the US government about harboring nazis, though :side-eye-1:
He did famously "renounce" said citizenship during/after emigrating to the Soviet Union, but never actually went through the legal process of renouncing it at an embassy. He didn't re-naturalize, as it were. I bet his taxes were a mess though :stirner-shocked:
You're correct, I was. A bit excited with the post. Just left the US then returned
it's like living inside Invasion of the Body Snatchers but instead of pod people they're cultists for the mad god of capitalism
and if anybody manages to be effectively anticapitalist the rest of the superstructure points and does that weird scream
At least I'm not the only one who feels this way... I can't imagine what it would have been like to grow up here. Traumatising, and I say that as someone who already experienced childhood trauma.
it’s like living inside Invasion of the Body Snatchers but instead of pod people they’re cultists for the mad god of capitalism
There's a reason that John Carpenter had the aliens in They Live have a red, white, and blue skin-colour palette.
I just realized how well "stay woke" fits into this given that they clone/assimilate you when you sleep
it's really bizarre how much some reactionaries are afraid of a future of being a mechanical drone eating bug meat and living in a tiny room when the basic reality of that premise already exists. Wake up, go to work, go home, eat processed poison food, go to second job, go to sleep. We're already alienated drones, we're just temporarily not killed for complaining about it. Well we're not killed for complaining about it individually, getting organized and doing it well would quickly get us rounded up
if you don't drive this country will essentially write you off as already dead. strike the earth comrade - you and your SO are already 2 people. you should make your own local PSL branch and just host it at the nearest cafe or your backyard. :rat-salute-2:
(I personally cope by having a weed/drug problem :smoking-fish:)
If you don't live in a city, the next best thing is a big college town. You get younger people, actual culture, and walkability. But, it's not as noisy as a city and there's more nature.
But yeah it sucks. The place is designed to make you alienated, and most people don't even realize it.
I don’t drive.
Yeah it is impossible to live in this country without driving outside of like, parts of 3 cities. It sucks shit even if you do drive, but if you don’t drive it’s basically not possible to survive here.
I really don’t have any recommendations besides acquiring the means to drive, or moving. A car is arguably more necessary in the US than a home is.
There are about twelve big cities to live in in America and that's it. A few middle ones like Austin or Portland. The list is quite short. Small towns are hellholes and rural areas are worse.
I feel like I'm the only one on this website that likes it in the sticks, haha. One thing is that my town actually did get rid of its police force. So, we've got that going for us. I imagine the cities are like Judge Dredd levels of police enforcement.
You've really nailed the American way of life. It's comfortable but spirituality empty & extremely isolating. If you don't fit into mindless consumer culture or christian divinity, you're seen as the odd one out and it's a very frustrating, depressing experience.
I do agree with the other posters that you should submit to the driving experience. Otherwise you'll be even more stuck & isolated. I'd say even a bike might be a good idea in the warmer months. Maybe look for some expat groups online in your area.
It’s comfortable but spirituality empty & extremely isolating. If you don’t fit into mindless consumer culture or christian divinity, you’re seen as the odd one out and it’s a very frustrating, depressing experience.
This is exactly it.
How do the rest of you cope???
Venting online helps but yeah outside of that, this place is a mindfuck and I could only imagine how much worse it must feel since coming from Europe to here.
Yeah literally every time I've left the US it's felt like relief, no matter where I've been. I've been to impoverished parts of Latin America, like some places in Bolivia and even they had reliable bus routes that could get you anywhere.
The USA really is built with very specific contours of who you're supposed to be to not feel alienation. You're supposed to be some kind of paranoid middle aged straight white guy in the suburbs with right leaning politics, probably owns real estate or has some kind of parasitic job like car dealership owner. You're supposed to love lawn care, own a few cars you love driving, and you should definitely have at least a few million in the bank. Your entire cultural diet should consist of sitting at home watching TV like Marvel movies and Fox.
If you're anyone else or you want more out of life? Fuck you. You're getting capitalist alienation and you deserve it
At least we have each other though, it's good to know we're not alone in how we feel, because it means we're not delusional and don't have to get stuck inside our own heads. Lots of people feel like we do, but maybe they're not able to articulate what they want. Just gotta be optimistic and believe in people and our ability to change things.
I was born and raised here and I don't fit and I just cry every day and smoke weed until I can't feel anything
I had a depression I could not comprehend from age 10, and then a depression I could comprehend far too well since like 20
this was 100% me until I left the US, best decision I've made. I know that America induced depression too well, I hope you can find your way somewhere you fit in more.
Not for everyone but my escape plan is marriage. Met a foreign national who was here and kind of liked the US, but now they understand what a dead end this country is so no need to stick around, except short term for money.
I'm 20, going to university, I had enough money to move, and am extremely lucky to have dual citizenship. I can't suggest this as a plan in general, it's too specific to my circumstances and it once being cheap has now been blown up by the succdems here (just like Nordstream).
I applied for a 1 year university program in Norway for teaching immigrants the language. Once you finish, you are certified to take classes in Norwegian at any university here. My plan is to get a bachelor's and a real job here over the next couple years.
Studying here was formerly free for everyone in the world, but the goddamn succdems here this year decided to curtail that. Now it is only those from the walled garden of the EU/EEA who are privileged with this (:us-foreign-policy:), so this plan is not accessible to Americans now unfortunately. If you have the money to pay lots in tuition, I am guessing you have another way to leave anyway.
My understanding is that permanent residency is not very hard to get here, so the citizenship issue was not nearly as important before (even if it definitely helped me with moving easily). Now that they are going to charge tuition for international students, I don't see how university here could work as an escape route anymore. I can only still do this free because of my background. It's a damn shame, not only was studying free, rent is cheaper here. I pay the equivalent of like $500 a month; I live in a glorified closet, but still. I am saving a lot of money compared to trying to study in the US.
I really feel this lately with how expensive everything has gotten, and looking at what cost of living is back in my home country im kinda like... maybe i should just fuck out of here lmao
I began noticing that ever since 2018, this isn't to one-up you, but to confirm this isn't just an unfortunate consequence of COVID. I even sarcastically said to myself "why ban something when you can just make it a luxury for the rich?" and that's generally the idea they have for us.
America really is the anti-fun country.
i saw a tiktok yesterday from Germany where apparently you can buy a 6 case of 1.5L sparkling waters for like $3?? that shit would be $30 in the US, like how are we even paying exuberant prices for water… nothing makes sense in this cursed country
we do not cope unless you count stochastic violence and terrorism as an esoteric coping practice
How do the rest of you cope???
I think the issue is... They don't cope. This is why so many of them are going on shooting sprees.
If Europe were as bad as the US we would have the same mental health crises happening every other day where people take it upon themselves to lash out at the society around them that they correctly blame for their deteriorating sanity (but lash out at the soft targets like children).
