Trying something new: America AMA! 

Ask me a question why something is the way it is in the US and I'll try to give you the best answer.

Qualifications: I've been an American my entire life. Other Americans should feel free to chime in.

Dev at ethOS, a mobile OS that is crypto native- nf.td/markus, Technology brother

Dev at ethOS, a mobile OS with native Ethereum support

Founder /kiwi-news, a decentralized Hacker News

cc @markus @timdaub.eth @mme and anyone else

loose federation of states, maximum portability between states, population proportional(-ish) representation at the House, balanced by federation representation at the Senate

I honestly don't know. If I had to guess, US had more trees / paper was cheaper

Why toilet paper and not sprays/bidets? (Not a joke/ legit confused what the path dependence here is)

fractalist. tech lead at cabin.city. founder of LBRY.com, Odysee.com, vibe.camp, @farcon, grin.io

Highway: road with higher speed limit

Freeway / expressway: controlled-access highways

Parkways: freeway / expressway without large trucks

Why do Americans drive on parkways but park in driveways?

Technowatermelon. Elder Millenial. Building Farcaster. 

nf.td/varun

economics -- restaurants can offer 20% lower prices since average consumer behavior is to not think about the post transaction costs of taxes and tips

why is tipping culture in america so different from other WEIRD countries?

Working on something new. davo.wtf | /unjumble

SF still the best place to start a crypto startup?

> generally divided and often dysfunctional

Do you have evidence that any at-scale country (50M+ people) isn't the same?

How has America been so economically successful despite being generally divided and often dysfunctional?

Working or not working?

Family or no family?

US is basically the size of a continent? And if you think of US states like European countries sans language differences... https://i.imgur.com/u0TVxJU.jpg

If my psychiatrist was cheaper, I wouldn't have to resort to Warpcast.

Why only 10% of Americans had a passport and traveled abroad until a few years ago (which is still a low figure)?

founder @ paperchain.com. smoker's club. always was, always will be aboriginal land.

I meet and see incredible people everyday. This is an irrevocably broken place in many ways, with a broken, arrested psyche. And yet wondrous people survive and sometimes thrive.

swap democracy with America and government with country

it's not perfect, but still pretty great https://i.imgur.com/C8LHDg7.png

How do you feel about America today?

Is America still the beacon of individual liberty, free speech, & economic freedom? Or is our country falling into an irreversible state of rapid moral & cultural decay, degeneracy, corruption, & tyranny?

I've always thought Americans and big / loud has to do with space.

Tyler Cowen has a bunch of interesting hypotheses (he's super well traveled outside the US):

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· Irish in Berlin

I've always thought Americans and big / loud has to do with space.

Tyler Cowen has a bunch of interesting hypotheses (he's super well traveled outside the US): https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2018/04/why-are-americans-so-loud.html

Why do you think Americans speak so loudly lol? Generally know if there’s one within a 30 meter radius in Berlin

don't have a great answer. revealed preference from both parties is not a priority (gop worse than dems but both bad imo)

if immigrants make America awesome, how we do get more of them here?

What’s the biggest risk to American cultural and economic dominance?

What are you optimizing for to define "best"?

Do you think American capitalism is the best form of capitalism? If not which type of capitalism (or maybe even alternate system) is best? How does America move there?

Duopoly dynamics post-Civil War, a lot of small changes (ballot access restrictions, public funding, access to important committees in Congress) and then historical norms (winner take all even in a plurality contest). 

Wasn't always the case:

Duopoly dynamics post-Civil War, a lot of small changes (ballot access restrictions, public funding, access to important committees in Congress) and then historical norms (winner take all even in a plurality contest). 

Wasn't always the case:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1860_United_States_presidential_election

This is a politically biased take, but there are some useful stats here:

https://www.shellenbergerforgovernor.com/issues/homelessness

My simple take: homeless services is a big business

Why does San Francisco have such a bad homelessness problem?

Why is stuff sent by car called shipment but stuff sent by ship called cargo?

enzo's dad 🇬🇷 in LA 🌴 eng @ fanatics.live ⚾️ alexloukissas.com

What war are we involved in right now? i.e. American troops on the ground fighting

Is there a chance America won't be involved some war in our lifetimes? We've been (in one way or another) at war for decades.