Who would you rather be, an average Chinese citizen in 2019, or an average American citizen in 1919?

American hands down and it’s not even close. We have much better regulation in our financial system (even though it’s not perfect) and much fairer criminal justice system.

Better protections for employees

Better safety codes (i was in China on elevator and worried it was going to malfunction. I also went for a run in China and locked my girlfriend in the apartment house. Due to lack of safety and building codes, there are few escape routes out of a building in the event of a fire).

Also counterfeit crap is everywhere. So much so that people from China love to stop in USA and buy Louis Vuitton, Prada etc if it’s made in USA.

Men in China have a lot of difficulty finding partners. Sausage fests due to 1 child rule and passing on the family last name as man is preferable to giving birth to a female. A white man from USA has a lot more options and is very attractive to female Chinese ...

In China they cut you in line all the time too because they are used to scarce resources

Seriously dude? wrote:

We have much better regulation in our financial system (even though it’s not perfect) and much fairer criminal justice system.

Better protections for employees

Better safety codes (i was in China on elevator and worried it was going to malfunction. I also went for a run in China and locked my girlfriend in the apartment house. Due to lack of safety and building codes, there are few escape routes out of a building in the event of a fire).

How much (if any) of this existed in the US in 1919?

In terms of material goods, the two scenarios are about equal - China's GDP per capita in 2019 and the US's GDP per capita in 1919 are both around $8K/year. But I'm leaning toward picking China in 2019 because medical treatment in 1919 was painful and barbaric compared to today.

Seriously dude? wrote:

A white man from USA has a lot more options and is very attractive to female Chinese ...

An average American in 1919 will not be meeting any female Chinese. In any case, interracial marriage wouldn't be legal for another few decades.

hypothetical wrote:

Assume that your present thoughts will be wiped ...

In 1919 most American did not wipe their do-do with paper. They used stones, clay, corncobs, leaves and sticks tipped a sponge.

Chinese invented TP centuries ago.

Also, American women did not shave their legs and private parts in 1919. Chinese women don't have to shave legs and get bikini waxes.

hypothetical wrote:

Assume that your present thoughts will be wiped out regardless of which option you choose.

The 2019 Chinese citizen has to deal with pollution, corruption, and various problems regarding food safety and sanitation. Internet access and freedom of speech will be limited.

The 1919 American citizen will lack access to modern conveniences, technology, and medical treatment. He/she will have to go through the Great Depression and WW2 in the decades ahead.

Discus.

Are we our current age? I'm 65 now. The average life expectancy for a male in the US in 1919 was 56 so I would likely be dead. The average life expectancy for a male today in China is 75. And you are right, Americans did not have limits on Internet access in 1919 like they do in China now.

And do you really think food safety and sanitation are more a problem today in China than anywhere in the world 100 years ago? In 1918 a flu epidemic killed 50 million people. There were no vaccinations and smallpox, polio, and diphtheria were still common. Air pollution in industrial cities in the early 20th century was worse than it is today in China because of the burning of coal.

old as the hills wrote:

Are we our current age? I'm 65 now. The average life expectancy for a male in the US in 1919 was 56 so I would likely be dead.

That's mainly because of infant and early childhood mortality, though. If you made it to 65, you'd have a good chance of living another 12 or so years, which is not that much different than in China today.

As a someone who actually lived in China, I can tell you first hand that I felt happier and more free in China than I do in the U.S.

Don't believe in propaganda.

My 1919 American self would stand a much better chance of making the Olympics than my 2019 Chinese self

Obviously an American citizen in 1919. I could short the market before it collapses, I could become a national running phenom, I could start the world's first rock band, I could travel to Germany and kill young Hitler, and I could use my wealth, celebrity, and knowledge of the future to shape American policy for the next 500 years.

Hot Tub Time Machine wrote:

Obviously an American citizen in 1919. I could short the market before it collapses, I could become a national running phenom, I could start the world's first rock band, I could travel to Germany and kill young Hitler, and I could use my wealth, celebrity, and knowledge of the future to shape American policy for the next 500 years.

It said that your present thoughts would be wiped out, so you wouldn't be able to do any of that.

Leaving that aside, I doubt you'd be a national running phenom if you had the average American's body at that time. You won't be optimally trained from birth, you'd be an adult onset runner trying to overcome whatever nutritional deficiencies people had at that time. And the times weren't that slow; the fastest Americans were running sub 4:15 miles back then.

And killing Hitler might have unintended consequences. What if someone worse rose to power, didn't make the mistakes Hitler did (such as invading Russia), and ended up winning WW2?

Seriously dude? wrote:

Also counterfeit crap is everywhere. So much so that people from China love to stop in USA and buy Louis Vuitton, Prada etc if it’s made in USA.

At least you have the option of buying counterfeit crap. Forget computers, an American in 1919 would not even be able to buy TVs and microwave ovens.

Really dude? Can you read?

Literally all the benefits of being in the USA did not exist in 1919...lmao

The OP stated USA 1919 (NOT 2019) or China 2019

Would you rather be a randomly-selected Roman citizen in 91 A.D. or a randomly-selected Native American in 1491 A.D.?

I would take the average and be an average Chinese-American in 1969.

The Averagest Averagist wrote:

I would take the average and be an average Chinese-American in 1969.

Sounds like the worst of both worlds. Your standard of living will still suck, you'll be discriminated against, and many of the workplace, food safety, and pollution regulation standards either weren't in place or were poorly enforced.

But you will get to watch the moon landing live, so I guess it's not all bad.

meathead wrote:

The Averagest Averagist wrote:

I would take the average and be an average Chinese-American in 1969.

Sounds like the worst of both worlds. Your standard of living will still suck, you'll be discriminated against, and many of the workplace, food safety, and pollution regulation standards either weren't in place or were poorly enforced.

But you will get to watch the moon landing live, so I guess it's not all bad.

False, We never landed on the moon!! It was faked!

I don’t feel like answering this silly question, so I’ll answer a couple of other silly ones:

- Horse-sized duck

- lemon pez

If your memory is wiped clean, you not going to know about the Great Depression, WW2, the internet, etc so you are not going to know how bad your life actually is.

Americans in 1919 thought they lived on the forefront of innovation and convience. Cars, telephone, electricity, airplanes, movies, prosperous and growing cities and economy.

This is a tough question, damn. If I had my knowledge now, I'd be able to anticipate everything, possibly even stopping some of it? Nah. How about this, an American citizen in 1945 right after the war ended at the tender age of 18, and I got to bring with me 100

pages of paper to write on with my knowledge from the present, plus $100,000? I'd be a silent investor only buying certain amount of stock in each company and making billions of dollars. Give me at least a month, so I'd be able to plan my pursuits and to persuade a younger version of me what to do and what's going on, plus what steps to do with the money. I'd instruct him to avoid certain people, including my family, famous politicians, CEOs, mobsters, etc. Now you got my mind going.