Quora Answer: Would Most Americans be Astounded if They Knew Singapore Has Better Assistance for Homeless People?

The following is my answer to a Quora question: “Would most Americans be astounded if they knew a country like Singapore has better assistance for people who are homeless than America?”

I am quite certain that the average American is aware that the developed world, not just Singapore, has a better social safety net.  But this is not what they want.  They call it “socialism”, and equate it with “Communism”, since that is what their talking heads tell them.  The United States has a great class divide between the privileged and the disenfranchised.  The prevailing opinion is that if the poor are capable enough, they will rise and become rich.  The ignorance of most Americans is in the inherent disadvantages of the poor and the institutionalised debt slavery of their predatory system.

The media feeds them jingoism, a worship of the military, and this opiate they call “freedom”.  They imagine that because there is little social safety net, terrible healthcare, and a failing institutional infrastructure, they are somehow free.  This is not a society that cares for the whole.  It is a divided nation, along religious, racial and class fissures.

Too many Americans proclaim that they do not want to forgive debt, particularly the crushing student debt, because they “paid” their dues.  They claim they do not want to fund the treatment of others, and have a single-payor healthcare.  They are adamant that they see nothing inherently unjust about criminalising poverty and homelessness.  This is a nation that eats its own, and then claims to be a shining city on a hill.  That “shine” is because the place is on fire, and the citizens do not even know it.