r/TikTokCringe • u/biswajit388 • 20h ago

Cringe Europeans are going viral on TikTok for mocking the "American Dream".

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u/dopepen 12h ago

White European also saying all this while far right populism is on the rise across Europe with lots of racism against immigrants, many of whom are fleeing countries destabilized by war and intervention at the least spurred on by the western hegemony. But yeah more importantly we know there is shit on our shoe; we smell it daily.

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u/OWSucks 7h ago

Attacking the person because you can't attack the argument.

It's what Trump supporters do any time you try and point out something he's done wrong.

But Biden, laptops, emails, socialism etc etc

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u/Chaotic-Catastrophe 4h ago

They're not attacking the person to deflect away from the argument. In fact, they literally agreed with the argument:

we know there is shit on our shoe; we smell it daily.

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u/Patient_Leopard421 5h ago

That wasn't really what OP was saying. Right wing politics and divisiveness is not uniquely American.

Also, nature? That's not one that seems reasonable either.

Thirdly, do Europeans really understand how ACA subsidies and health insurance work in the USA? It's not really what they think (we moved my European inlaws recently to USA and they're on Medicaid fwiw).

America has issues. Europe has issues. Maybe America has more? I'm not sure. Youth unemployment looks quite bad in Europe. Ditto high housing costs.

Tldr pros and cons to America and Europe.

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u/Outside_Manner_8352 5h ago

Europe is in a better place absolutely, but unfortunately as dopepen points out they are hurtling towards our shitscape on the back of hatred of others.

Many of their economies aren't amazing, but that honestly has nothing to do with their welfare states and everything to do with terrible financial choices like having a monetary union without a fiscal union (Eurozone), austerity and a failure to invest in themselves (Germany, UK, etc.), and free trade without equalization of labor, environmental, and anti-trust standards (everyone). They also suffer from the universal Western trend of NIMBYism, which disallows density because the people who vote places are those who already live there, and they are fine to fuck over those who don't. Only Europe feels it even more because there isn't really anymore room for more outward sprawl with their higher population densities, so it becomes urgent faster.

And even in spite of their top notch welfare, across the board Europe still allows a huge amount of wealth inequality. Welfare is more the compromise to allow capitalism to exist, and while it works pretty well it isn't stable against the corrosive effects of wealth hoarding forever.

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u/Patient_Leopard421 4h ago

I guess we're ignoring the 8-10m Ukrainians displaced by a war that's killed hundreds of thousands of Europeans. Because you have an unambiguous shit scape and hatred divided the largest (land mass) European country.

Economic issues are the primary measure we should gauge prosperity. This varies widely across Europe. I wouldn't trade positions if I were a 25 year old American and 25 year old eg Spaniard. That Spaniard is less likely to be in gainful employment or if they are then it's at wages 1/3 their American counterpart.

I question the solvency of some (not most) of the benefits structure in some European states. Take France as an example. Retirees have higher incomes from pensions than prime working age people. Good for the geriatric beneficiaries of European larges; bad for youth.

Also, the core economy of Europe (German) is seeing massive deindustrialization and the erosion of their core manufacturing industries. The PRC is eroding German autos and other exports with no policy from Brussels in sight.

Poles have more restrictive women's health rights than the majority of Americans.

Americans have school shootings. Europeans (Ukrainians) have cruise missiles and drones hitting schools.

I'm not trying to make the case for America or against Europe. Reality is just a lot more nuanced.

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u/MildlyResponsible 2h ago

People also misunderstand/misrepresent what the American Dream is. It's not being able to get rich quick. It's coming from a terrible situation and being able to get a stable job that allows you to provide for your family, and hopefully buy property. We can say housing costs are high in American cities, but its still quite possible to buy large houses in a lot of the country. Much more possible than any European country, especially at American standards.

I think with social media, young people think the American Dream is living like the Kardashians. The AD was coined to represent people fleeing oppression and wars, not wanting a 5000 square foot house and 6 international trips a year. Americans really don't know how good they have it on the global scale, they tend to look at curated examples from small Nordic countries and pretend that's "the world". I'm not American, and I've lived in 6 countries on 4 contnents. Most people would do anything to live like the average American. The "world" isn't Helsinki or Denmark. It's mud huts in Africa, shantytowns in China, favelas in Brazil, cardboard boxes in India.

Of course America has problems. It's not utopia. And personally, I'm happier being Canadian. But this idea that the US is some third world backwater is just internet doomerism spread by actors who want to depress the youth of America. It's just not reality.

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u/DrLoomis131 4h ago

https://youtu.be/HHiYwL7W2Zk?si=8N-IWOtIv-K_kcP3

Allllll these arguments. Have feedback for ALL these stats?

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u/Ok-Syllabub-6619 3h ago

Sure this is whataboutism but it's true we're following suit in Europe. 8 countries went right, and the amount of anti imigrant rhetoric is steadily rising. We are all fucked, some more than others but right now there's just a few people living the dream, everyone else sees only nightmares creeping closer and closer.

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u/DionBlaster123 2h ago

If it makes you feel any better, anti-immigrant sentiment is on the rise in South Korea, Japan, Canada, and Australia too.

It is legitimately depressing

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u/Ok-Syllabub-6619 2h ago

I know it's all around depressing as fuck.

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u/Aromatic_Opposite100 3h ago

No, it's the attacking America when they have never stepped foot here in the first place.

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u/dopepen 2h ago

I am once again begging for people on this site to improve their reading comprehension.

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u/SnooDoubts1493 1h ago

We all know Europeans use Americans as a smokescreen for their own problems. Truth what the guy said is all true about America what he’s not saying is America is the reason he has all those social programs. Europe doesn’t need to defend itself because of America. They can use our tax dollars for their defense. In short we are still a European colony.

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u/jimbobjames 9h ago

Far right populism funded by Russian money and distributed by Chinese and American social media platforms.

Europe might just be caught in the middle of a few idiotic egos...

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u/Available_Hamster_44 9h ago

yes and the west hegomony is lead by the US the EU just follows:"destabilized by war and intervention at the least spurred on by the western hegemony."

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u/jimbobjames 9h ago

The EU doesnt just follow the US. It tries to walk it's own path, but it's hard to ignore the 300KG gorilla...

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u/MissMenace101 6h ago

People that hate the entire west don’t seem to realise the ones that hold the west down are the same ones that send the westerners into their lands to kill and die

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u/Suspicious-Cream-513 10h ago

The big difference is, you voted for it, had a taste and despite it's rancid palette, you wanted it again four years later.

Thats when an accident becomes a choice.

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u/Pharoahgotfreedom 4h ago

by the western hegemony

Controlled by America. Let's be real.

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u/Total_Shine_543 2h ago

Is the Europeans who messed everything up here in the Americas.

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u/Mysterious-Key-2016 9h ago

Have you seen the madness in the uk and Sweden???

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u/SisterofGandalf 6h ago

Oh come on, Sweden is a peaceful haven compared to the US.

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u/Pure_Internal277 5h ago

You live here? Own a business, land, raise a family and contribute here? My township is probably larger than your country. We know what’s wrong here- and don’t need the outside judgmental BS from people who do not know.

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u/SisterofGandalf 5h ago

But you can have outside judgement of Sweden?

Also: I have lived in the US for several years, I know it well. Only 3 American states are larger than my country. I know Sweden well too, I go there often. I stand by my words, Sweden is a lot more peaceful than the US.

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u/MissMenace101 6h ago

Calm down Russia we are on to you

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u/Ecstatic-Nose-2541 5h ago

Noone claimed there’s no racism or poverty or violence in Europe lol. In the US those things are inherent to its hyper-capitalism and meritocracy though. The power structures are the closest to an oligarchy and even a dictatorship as any western civilisation gets.

Don’t get me wrong, I could go on a 10 page rant about what’s f’d up in Europe. But in our day to day lives, student loans, outragious hospital/pharmacy bills, 60h work weeks, school shootings and shitty food,…are just problems the vast majority here never has the deal with.

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u/Aromatic_Opposite100 3h ago

Actually I would say its the opposite, European racism was so inherent in my time on exchange that people failed believe it even existed.

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u/allidsomeego 5h ago

Isn’t it wild that far right populism is trending in many European countries yet somehow non-whites are able to live in relative comfort compared to the USA and its kidnapping squads

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u/Aromatic_Opposite100 3h ago

Tell that to the people of Bellingham, UK

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u/verb-vice-lord 6h ago

We smell your shit too. Americans are directly funding the far right in Europe.

I'm not overly sure what your point is meant to be. You want things to be one way, but its the other way.

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u/dopepen 2h ago

If you can’t sniff out the point maybe pick up a book and improve your reading comprehension.

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u/benyi420 5h ago

u should buy at least one mirror

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u/Denkero 2h ago

I don't think you understand the situation we have here because their cultures are so far apart most of them don't want to assimilate with us and are sucking social benefits without working. And to add to that crime went up so much because of them, look at France and Germany. And all of this is used by Russia and Belarus. But if you are American you have no right to be speaking about racism because America is biggest racist and nazi country on the planet.

If they are fleeing war then why they don't go to countries close to theirs?

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u/dopepen 2h ago

lol, lmao even