Essential Goods/Services in America

[Krakenguard]

Something I have noticed is that essential goods/services (i/e/ food, housing, clothing and healthcare) are low-quality and/or very expensive in America. Meanwhile, non-essential stuff (e.g. smartphones and other gadgets) tend to be relatively cheaper (compared to other places) in America. Perhaps this is a good example of how America has f***ed up priorities. To be fair though, American housing does tend to be bigger (space-wise) than housing in other places.

These are my observations. What do you guys think about food, housing, clothing and healthcare in other parts of the world?

[Wolfeye]

Yup! Quality essentials are expensive & sometimes it's high-cost or time-consuming to find. Americans don't tend to control much of that, in truth, but that's not really something a lot of them seem to want to change. It's a tricky thing to live here- if you don't have your head just the right amount up your ass, you're seen as up to something or crazy.

P.S.- There are other necessities that are rare. Like how a lot of things are bullshit concepts to begin with (ex: food pyramid & A LOT of exercise info), every other thing is illegal (and, thus, something to be a possible accessory to or simply lied about), trying to make a service perform functionally is reacted to like you're trying to enslave them (not being an enemy, whether it's affirmed as such or not, is being a slave?).

[Boxman]

It seems to be a pattern that in 3rd countries, goods & services based on human labor are relatively cheaper, while everything else is more expensive (in some cases, more expensive than in the west even after accounting for currency exchange). For example an iPad is more expensive in India than the US.

But luckily, most of the important stuff in life is still largely dependent on the cost of labor. Food, housing, transportation, services like maids & gardeners, healthcare, etc. All this stuff is cheaper in the 3rd world (generally). I put this difference down mostly to the much cheaper cost of labor, from the farmer to the taxi driver all the way up to the 3rd world doctor that ends up saving your life for a relative pittance.

[Wolfeye]

Might have to do with the value style- the richer countries seem to focus on acquisitions & holdings more than the rest of life. I remember an observation that the more money someone has, the more they want & the more tight-fisted they generally are about it. I guess it's got a lot to do with points of focus & probably the situation that their being esteemed has to do with being a "moneyed individual." Exceptions exist, but it does seem to frequently be true.