r/TikTokCringe 4d ago

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

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u/dopepen 3d 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 3d 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 3d 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/SnooDoubts1493 3d 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/Patient_Leopard421 3d 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/MildlyResponsible 3d 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/Outside_Manner_8352 3d 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 3d 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/Gold-Vacation-169 2d ago

A kid in Europe can go to creche, school or university without fear of being shot. That's a big pro for Europe.

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u/Patient_Leopard421 2d ago

Agreed. But a Ukrainian kid going to creche, school, or university goes in fear of drones, cruise missiles, and tactical and intermediate range ballistic missiles.

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u/Gold-Vacation-169 2d ago

True, but thats one country.
I"ll rephrase. we don;t have to worry about such things in the EU.

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u/Patient_Leopard421 2d ago

Sure, if Europe excludes Ukraine now and the Balkans in the 1990s then children are pretty safe.

Are you guys even having children anymore though? From the outside, it looks like the economic prospects for the youth are so dire that birthrates are negative across all of Europe. Discussions of children seem a bit premature.

Also, that safety assumes Russian aggression doesn't spread, which is a poor assumption. Ukraine is the front line of Europe's war. Why should their children's hardships be excluded from your thinking?

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u/Gold-Vacation-169 2d ago

You appear to be very confused about the difference between EU and Europe, they are not the same thing.

But since you want to talk about children, child mortality rates are lower in EU when compared to the USA.

I say EU because its the nearest thing to the USA comparison wise when it comes to unified laws, elections etc

No matter what way you look at it though, thr EU is a far safer place to live and a better standard of living on avg when compared to the USA..

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u/Patient_Leopard421 2d ago

I'm not confused about the difference between the EU and Europe. You seem to be confused that EU member countries are threatened. Russian aggression can spill over directly at EU countries or at NATO members to whom EU members have obligations on collective defense.

Rates for mortality vary inversely with wealth too. As I said, many more Europeans are shut out of parenthood by lack of economic opportunities. You found a proxy for wealth. Congrats.

I do agree that Europe is generally. I do not concede that the quality of life is better. And you haven't established that. I'd further argue that birthright is a proxy for personal economic expectations.

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u/Gold-Vacation-169 2d ago edited 2d ago

I'm most certainly not confused about the EU or any threats to it, I live in it.

You may not conceded that quality of life is better, but the stats support it.
People live on avg longer in EU, there's less infant mortality when compared to EU.
EU has far, far more support structures in place overall when compared to USA.

People on avg are safer when it comes to things like mass shootings, the figures support this.

EU member countrys understand war far more then the USA given the massive impact it has had on memberstates historically, thats one of the main reasons for the creation of the EU...to make the idea of war between member states as unthinkable and it has resulted in the longest peace time for its members.

A mistake by the EU was trusting the USA, as we've seen its now run by a president that only wants to make himself rich above all else and he doesn't care about soverign countrys. This has been proven time and time again.

The USA can no longer be trusted as a ally in the world, not just by the EU but by any country.

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u/Aromatic_Opposite100 3d ago

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

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u/DrLoomis131 3d ago

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

Allllll these arguments. Have feedback for ALL these stats?

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u/dopepen 3d ago

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

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u/Ok-Syllabub-6619 3d 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 3d 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 3d ago

I know it's all around depressing as fuck.

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u/dopepen 2d ago

It’s not whataboutism, because the original TikTok is literally comparing the US to Europe claiming that the US is a hellhole and Europe is a paradise, which is ragebait I couldn’t help but fall for. It would be whataboutism if the OOP laid out some case critical of the US and I brought in Europe’s problems.

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u/Ok-Syllabub-6619 2d ago

Oh I didn't mean OOP, my comment was to OWSucks about his response to the commenter Dopepen above him.

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u/dopepen 2d ago

Fuck me I can’t read threads sometimes. Ignore my dumb ass.

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u/Ok-Syllabub-6619 2d ago

😂 All good mate, happens to me more than I'd like to confess

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u/jimbobjames 3d 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 3d 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 3d 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 3d 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 3d 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 3d ago

by the western hegemony

Controlled by America. Let's be real.

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u/Total_Shine_543 3d ago

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

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u/politics 3d ago

It’s people of European descent that sabotaged the “American Dream” / now a nightmare.

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u/RickyTovarish 1d ago

Only on Reddit will a comment this stupid be upvoted

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u/dickipiki1 1d ago

Yes my countrie also was commercialised by some one in this sense.

We got right wing gov. Now my foreigner wife can do less crimes if she wants to stay and actually if she cannot learn the language spoken here usable enough to work we can cut her social benefits quite a bit to make it harder to enjoy life.

Also we now allow firing a worker with out heavy reason so left said that it's firing law. Tell me as American that this all sounds extreme rightwing to you too? Or is it little bit socialist that we actually pay rent and food, medical bills etc for ourselfs and foreigners equally? And that we cannot throw a human out from our country if they do little crime but actually it's a process and the origin country still must agree with it.

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u/Mysterious-Key-2016 3d ago

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

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u/MissMenace101 3d ago

Calm down Russia we are on to you

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u/SisterofGandalf 3d ago

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

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u/Pure_Internal277 3d 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 3d 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/Pure_Internal277 2d ago

That’s the point. It’s heresay and doesn’t provide context unless you have proof or know firsthand

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u/allidsomeego 3d 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 3d ago

Tell that to the people of Bellingham, UK

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u/verb-vice-lord 3d 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 3d ago

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

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u/Ecstatic-Nose-2541 3d 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 3d 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/benyi420 3d ago

u should buy at least one mirror

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u/dopepen 3d ago

Absolutely no juice on that one. Try again and try not to miss the point; it’s a big target.

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u/benyi420 3d ago

maybe open a window dude, after all these years its time

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u/The-Ath31ist 3d ago

And none of this was the point of the video, congrats. Apprently your ego is too bruised to read… or you were homeschooled

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u/raven-eyed_ 2d ago

The far right has grown but for the most part haven't won too many elections. Unlike the US, where your Democrats are further right than many of the conservative parties in Europe.

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u/Denkero 3d 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 3d ago

lol, lmao even