My Triumphs, My Mistakes

The story from Dinoso (youtube user):

I had a similar experience from the other side many years ago and I can agree to everything what you said.
In 1984 I was an exchange student in a small town near Rochester NY. I had the feeling to come into a complete different world. We admired the US culture at that time we knew from all the movies and the music. But there were also a lot of critical opinions.

Already the first day in the high school, I was shocked about the big wall in the entrance hall with pictures of died students. I asked what happened to them? Most have died in car accidents. So many in just one school?
They told me that every year there were about two or three that died mostly in car accidents. The school was about the same size as my school and we didn't have a single death in all the time I went to school. Something seemed to be very different there...

I was lucky to get a good very open minded family. Liberals who had already seen some parts in the world, because they both were in the peace corps before. I learned a lot from them. They were in a similar position like you now. They knew that there are different ways of living in the world and couldn't judge which one is better.

Ronald Reagan was President at that time. In Germany we didn't like him at that time. It was before his effords and success to end the cold. For us he was a confused old man who was implemented by the establishment for their favour. Here, Jimmy Carter was seen as much more competent because he was modern and progressive.
So we asked why did so many vote for Reagan?
The answer was always the same: weapons. The Democrats wanted to forbid the weapons. We were confused. There whole town and surrounding looked pretty much the same like in Germany. Also the people. So why on earth do you need weapons here? Do you have much bears here?
No bears.
But if someone comes we have to protect our families.
Who should come? The indians are in reservation and friendly now, the gangs are in Chicago and you are not Rockefeller.
I have to be prepared to protect my family when bad people come.
Which kind of bad people?
Bad People.
Don't you have any police here? There is even an officer in the high school here (which was also very strange for us).
There is enough police here, but I want to be on the save side.
Is it dangerous here?
No, not at all. We have nearly no crimes here.
But you still need a weapon?
Yes, you never know. We have to protect our children.

Imaginary fears seem to be very strong, I thought.

Another discussion was about public healthcare. I explained the system in Germany and they couldn't believe that it worked. They said it sounds good, but this is socialism and socialism is a bad thing.

I wonder that in more than 40 years since then, there is still no public healthcare in the US and the same discussions are still ongoing.

At that time I realized that everyone lives in his bubble. Things which are normal for us, are strange there and vice versa. The priorities are different.
The most important topic at a vote are the guns, they mostly never need. They want to protect their children from imaginary bad people with guns, but can not protect them from beeing killed in car accidents. A public healthcare, which protects everyone from the risks of a serious deseas is socialism, which is a bad thing by definition.
I never understood why for so much people things were completely ok and normal, which were obviously against there own interests, in my opinion.

And when I look on America now, all the reports we see here, I see that this has become even worse in the last 40 years.

America was for many years one of the best countries to live in for Germans. But that was a long time ago and I know nobody who wants to live in the US anymore. Our American Dream has died finally.