25 Issues That Modern Americans Are Failing To Understand

It’s easy to forget that the world is a huge place. There are differing opinions and unique ways of approaching things based on individual countries. Local laws, customs and traditions affect behaviours and situations in ways that may not always make sense to someone from another nation. So when a Redditor asked, “What’s something current-day America needs to understand?”, people were quick to respond with their opinions, from which we’ve shared a few of the most insightful, in the gallery below.

#1 YOUR OPINIONS AND FEELINGS ARE LITERALLY NOT THE SAME AS ACTUAL ESTABLISHED FACTS. They’re just not. F*****g IRKS me. The pure confidence some of you have saying whatever you feel like, and believing that deserves the same platforms as actual educated experts.

 

Image source: No-Consideration8862, Getty Images/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#2 Once freedoms are lost they are likely gone for good. A democracy is not guaranteed and is fragile. It takes checks and balances to make sure there is no overstep. Unchecked power will destroy this experiment called the United States of America.

Image source: ehrabak, Fred Moon/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#3 We are *very* dependent on what happens in the rest of the world.

Image source: GrinningPariah, Joshua Earle/Pexels (not the actual photo)

Americans seem to want to believe we can put up the walls and forget about the rest of the world. But from the temperature of the ocean to the price of semiconductors, what happens across the world affects us. Instability in countries across the world affects us. We’re the world’s biggest economy, everything we do has international implications and those go both ways.

We do not get to opt out. Any attempt is just surrendering control.

#4 Knowledge is not elitism and not trusting experts will literally k*ll us all.

Image source: Feminizing, Ketut Subiyanto/Pexels (not the actual photo)

#5 Russia is not a friend of Republican nor Democratic party nor the people of that matter. The goal of Russian state is to cause chaos and polarization within US. Well, this goes to anywhere in the world. Divide and conquer.

Image source: LolSumor, Michael Parulava/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#6 The importance of education.

Image source: HippoPebo, Andy Quezada/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#7 You are not temporarily embarrassed millionaires.

Image source: ShaftManlike, Getty Images/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

You are closer to being homeless than to being a millionaire.

A poor white person has more in common with a poor black person than with a rich white person.

Class solidarity above all else.

#8 Social media is not your friend.

Image source: Jfonzy, Nathan Dumlao/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#9 Social media is designed to get you to engage with it and use it. It is not a source of news. It is a source of propaganda.

Image source: AspectTemporary824, Edmond Dantès/Pexels (not the actual photo)

#10 The politicians/party you vote for are not immune to criticism. If anything, you should hold your own politicians to a higher standard. They’re supposed to represent you, not the other way around.

Image source: MrDankSnake, Getty Images/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#11 That those who do not learn from their history are doomed to repeat it.

Image source: illegallysmolkate, Caleb Fisher/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#12 That you need to do your research BEFORE the election, not after.

Image source: SacluxGemini, cottonbro studio/Pexels (not the actual photo)

#13 How government works. How power is divided, how rules are made and enforced, how the court system works, and how each of these institutions can be manipulated to disproportionately benefit one side or another.

Image source: pr0crasturbatin, michael schaffler/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#14 How important it is to follow the global news to understand what can hit home. For example, most economies had high inflation after covid, not just the Biden administration.

Image source: Topbernina, Ono Kosuki/Pexels (not the actual photo)

#15 Voting in your local elections is more important than voting for president. Want that police reform? Education funding spread out? Someone in congress who wants to put on term limits? Local elections.

Image source: Specialist-Ad-6957, Ahmed/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#16 Tariffs.

Image source: Trolling_For_Peace, Mohamed hamdi/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#17 That we no longer live in a country that was established for the people, by the people. It is a business, and has been run into the ground. Good luck everyone, may the odds be ever in your favor.

Image source: fuzzylilbunnies, Nout Gons/Pexels (not the actual photo)

#18 How to listen, and that words mean exactly what they mean not what you feel they mean.

Image source: Volantis009, Nini FromParis/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#19 It can be hard to recognize propaganda and disinformation.

Image source: SurprisedWildebeest, Miguelangel Miquelena/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#20 Just because someone is different doesn’t mean they are an enemy.

Image source: Kyounokaze, Wonderlane/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#21 You can’t vote away economic forces. The post ww2 economy is gone for very explainable reasons. Coal mining and steel plant jobs are going away for very explainable reasons. Nobody is at fault. Nobody has stolen anything. People want to vote away having to adapt to the future and this is simply not the way.

Image source: majinspy, Charlie Harris/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#22 America needs to understand that we’re more divided than ever, and listening to each other, even when we disagree, is the only way forward.

Image source: MayaWright1, Wesley Tingey/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#23 America needs to understand that empathy and open dialogue are key to bridging divides, not just picking sides.

Image source: BellaSmith11, Simon Joseph/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#24 Equality doesn’t mean someone else is getting more or special rights than you. Also that people need to mind their own business and focus on themselves instead and let people live their lives.

Image source: aryn505, Usman Yousaf/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

#25 Tariffs raise consumer prices.

Image source: DickRichman, Felix Fuchs/Unsplash (not the actual photo)