(I can say that #7 and #9 did not come as too much of a surprise.)
OK, I read a bit closer, and I will expand on my previous comments. I think the article is ridiculously stupid.
#7 - (We’re Paranoid)I don't think this reflects general paranoia. It is simply the news media trying to sensationalize things. If you want to generalize, how about "Mainstream 'journalism' in the US sucks"? I can buy that one. Is it better in other parts of the world? I would hope so, but here's a sample from the #1 circulation paper in the UK:
Pot calling the kettle black?
#9 - (9. We Are Very Unhealthy) - I'm well aware that we don't score well compared to other industrial nations, and our costs are higher. This was discussed a lot in the run up to the current health care legislation, so many
should be aware of it.
Wait a minute - who was calling us paranoid? From the 'article':
Our food is killing us. I’m not going to go crazy with the details, but we eat chemically-laced crap because it’s cheaper and tastes better (profit, profit).
Hmmm, so where is this evidence that the chemicals in our food are responsible for our health problems?
The author strikes me as a self-righteous, holier-than-thou, uninformed, arrogant, 'my crap doesn't stink', idiot.
Which is not to say that the US does not have faults. We have plenty of them, I can recognize them and I could discuss them for months on end. But not here, I'd be banned way before then.
I'm surprised he didn't use the UK spelling for words, since he has such a low opinion of us. And in the US, you are free to have your own opinion, and I'm free to think he is an idiot. In that way, it's a great Country!
-ERD50