Comment on America continues to fall behind the rest of the world
Krono@lemmy.today 3 weeks agoAccording to the ACLU, prisoners at the Louisiana State Pen (Angola) pick cotton and sugarcane for $0.02/hr. Many must work for up to 3 years without pay to be eligible for this wage.
Those who “choose” not to work are placed in solitary confinement, a practice that is considered torture in most first world nations.
You can read the full report here Captive Labor: Exploitation of Incarcerated Workers
mechoman444@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
Ok. Louisiana has one of the worst prison systems in America. The judicial system is irrationally racist against black men.
Congratulations on pinpointing one of the horrendous social issues that we have in America.
What country are you from?
Krono@lemmy.today 3 weeks ago
The “horrendous social issue” at hand is forcing people to work without pay. Another word for this is “slavery”. I’m sure you’ve caught on by now that the 13th amendment has a loophole for enslaving convicts.
Not sure how it’s relevant, but I live in the US.
mechoman444@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
I am aware of all of this, and I’ve consistently acknowledged it throughout this entire exchange. I’m not deceiving myself into believing I live in some kind of utopia. I don’t. America has very serious problems.
I asked what country they’re from because it’s relevant to the discussion. There is not a single country on Earth that is free of blemishes, whether in its history or in its present.
Calling America a bad country while living in a country with its own serious flaws is an act of hypocrisy.
We’re all just people living on the same planet, each under whatever political system we happened to be born into.
If you live in America, then you know how good many aspects of life are here. It’s not the best country on Earth, and we absolutely have severe problems that need to be addressed. But it’s still a good place to live, with good people and a culture that has produced an enormous amount of good for the world. Our leadership is often disappointing, and the rise of nationalism is genuinely concerning. Those are problems worth opposing in every lawful way we can.
What I’m not willing to do is join in treating America as though it’s uniquely evil while ignoring the faults of every other nation. I love the United States. I’m a patriot. I love the people who live here, and I have no desire to leave for another country.
Krono@lemmy.today 3 weeks ago
Wait, so now you have “consistently acknowledged” that the US has legalized slavery enshrined in the Constitution? This is very confusing, as we can all scroll up and see your earlier comments.
A real patriot acknowledges their country’s faults, no matter how difficult this may be. A real patriot does not stick their head in the sand and make excuses about “the faults of every other nation”. I get the strong impression that you are not a real patriot.
Nonconfrontational@lemmy.ml 3 weeks ago
Dumbass, your country uses prisoners for slaves even in California. It’s not some niche occurance. Your defense of it is disgusting.
mechoman444@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
Hold on. I’m not defending anything. I am outright stating that we are doing this.
Our prison system is atrocious. It’s third world. It’s absolutely terrible.
What country are you from?
Nonconfrontational@lemmy.ml 3 weeks ago
Yeah, because it uses slavery lol. We aren’t talking about my country, we’re talking about America, which is currently aiding a genocide in the middle east, and starting multiple wars this year alone, all while using slavery for manual labor.