National pride

Finally, the bad news about the United States of America not being in the top tier in stupid things like life expectancy, infant mortality, education of our children, and so forth, just has to give way, because we are among the world’s elite… in the category of surveillance states. (h/t/ U.O.) We join other notables like China, Russia, and the United Kingdom in this elite category.
Yes, the U.K. has a big edge on us in surveillance cameras; we certainly have our work cut out for us to catch up on that one. Further, the U.K.’s “unwritten Constitution” gives that the nation the “flexibility” to do what needs to be done to keep an eye on its citizens and residents getting too uppity. To our nation’s credit, our monitoring of the internet and telephone calls– particularly since, doing so without a warrant violates our Constitution and statutes– helps keep us safely in the first rank, as does our over-the-top information gathering on anyone who dares (legally!) visit here as a tourist or business-person or temporary worker.
Canada, which of late has been kicking our ass in terms of its currency, doesn’t even come close to our nation’s current paranoid obsession with needing to keep tabs on everyone. Hosers, eh?
So, in short… we Americans have much to be proud of. U.! S.! A.! U.! S.! A.! U.! S.! A.!