Is Corruption Worse in Mexico or the US?

[Indy]

Again, the corruption in the U.S. has been institutionalized as "lobbying" or "campaign contributions." So yes in many respects we are about as corrupt as they come.

The big difference is that somehow the U.S. gov't is still able to deliver (for the most part) vital services and keep it a first world (barely) country where people want to do business and live.

Mexico is not succeeding in that. Too bad, because it has a ton of potential but the corruption there is SO rampant (and was so even before the narcos).

[Precocity]

I guess it all comes down to what people perceive as corruption (what 'is' is). Perception.

[eynon81]

Mexico is much more corrupt. The Dane hit the nail on the head though, in the US officials acting in bad-faith has been condoned, institutionalized and legalized (enjoying levels of legal protection greater than most private sector institutions). What makes it real bad is the (practical) scope of state authority.

China is more corrupt than the US, but evidence of bad-faith wasn't as prevalent day to day because that bad-faith hadn't been as institutionalized and the Chinese had developed practical ways to deal with it.

One wonders who is more at risk of state violence the average Chinese citizen or the average American citizen? I'll concede that when one becomes the target of state violence in China that violence tends to be much more extreme, but the day to day signs of state violence were less visible and a much greater 5 of the US population is "on paper" so to speak.

Anyways I think the US has evolved to the next level of corruption.

[eynon81]

[Indy]

Oh you don't have to convince me about this topic, obviously.

Let me put it this way... if we continue on the path that we are on, eventually, yes, we would probably look like Mexico. I used to say Brazil but they're making quite a comeback these days.

[Mr.Bill]

As was mentioned earlier now we just pass laws or change the wording to legalize corruption.

Bribing a politician(corruption and against the law) is now called lobbying.. Lobbying is legal.

[Indy]

Yup.

Pumping millions into campaign coffers--anonymously--is "freedom of speech."

[eynon81]

[eynon81]

[Indy]