Being in France

I saw a Pew Research Center poll noting that across 25 countries, Americans were the only ones who believed that a majority of their fellow citizens had bad morals. What a country! To add to that information, regarding education ranking, we are 31st. It doesn’t take much math, where the US falls behind, to see why we are being laughed at across the globe. Higher education has a direct correlation to economy prosperity and a country’s overall health where we seem to be seriously lagging these days.

In Paris, the food is clean, vs loaded with chemicals for shelf stability. Those chemicals aren’t good for anyone except for the pharma companies, who clean up the mess with drugs that we take to make ourselves better. How about just making clean products like bread that has only four ingredients in France.

I love the Metro in Paris, and more streets are being closed to cars. The transportation system works quite well from urban to suburban areas. The country prioritizes infrastructure, which in turn creates jobs and boosts the economy. The country owns 20% of the ground-level real estate, keeping stores open and rents down. No, you can’t make money in real estate in France, but you can own a home or an apartment without going broke.

Am I a capitalist? Absolutely. Do I believe that with financial success comes a responsibility to give back? Absolutely. Yet, every time I go to France, and yes, a socialist system, there is a lot to be said about how they live their lives. Educated, cultured, family oriented, and perhaps not as driven as us in some respects but there are plenty of incredibly successful people in France.

It is times like these, with the insanity happening in America, that it is hard not to be embarrassed to be one right now, and look to other places that have strong leaders and are doing the right thing by their citizens.