"It doesn’t always work, but it works far more often than it would for someone who is clearly American."
This essay relies heavily on proving this, so it would be better with numeric data. Also, even if this advantage exists, you haven't shown that "being able to reliably escape from a fraction of its regulation is so much of an advantage that it overwhelms advantages like having family, money, and speaking the freakin’ language." I realize either of these would be very hard to get numeric data on. I'm just sayin', you shouldn't phrase hypotheses as being demonstrated when they're just plausible, or even probable, hypotheses.
Dude, 100%. I am about to move to another country again because I’ve felt so trampled by regulatory, legal and academic rules in the various things I’ve been investing time in. I’d add there’s maybe also an “exoticized” element to battling regulatory infrastructure in a country that is not your native country also, that makes it a little bit more “fun” and less resentment-inducing. Or less arduous, with less “expectations.” Something like that. I agree this is a cultural problem…. Thanks, this was one of my favorite substack essays and there’s a lot of good ones. You articulated something that’s been on my mind for a long long time but never took the time, focus or courage to articulate. (I started to notice this after living in South Korea for three years and then returning to the US in the 2010s). There’s a strange power in being a migrant, or at least in another country.
"It doesn’t always work, but it works far more often than it would for someone who is clearly American."
This essay relies heavily on proving this, so it would be better with numeric data. Also, even if this advantage exists, you haven't shown that "being able to reliably escape from a fraction of its regulation is so much of an advantage that it overwhelms advantages like having family, money, and speaking the freakin’ language." I realize either of these would be very hard to get numeric data on. I'm just sayin', you shouldn't phrase hypotheses as being demonstrated when they're just plausible, or even probable, hypotheses.
Great post, and I especially liked the Everything Everywhere example.
Maybe stay in place, and pretend you're an immigrant?
Dude, 100%. I am about to move to another country again because I’ve felt so trampled by regulatory, legal and academic rules in the various things I’ve been investing time in. I’d add there’s maybe also an “exoticized” element to battling regulatory infrastructure in a country that is not your native country also, that makes it a little bit more “fun” and less resentment-inducing. Or less arduous, with less “expectations.” Something like that. I agree this is a cultural problem…. Thanks, this was one of my favorite substack essays and there’s a lot of good ones. You articulated something that’s been on my mind for a long long time but never took the time, focus or courage to articulate. (I started to notice this after living in South Korea for three years and then returning to the US in the 2010s). There’s a strange power in being a migrant, or at least in another country.