You should watch the whole Strong Towns series from Not Just Bikes since this video is the third chapter from it. He has a playlist called 'Strong Towns' on his channel so you can watch the whole series in order.

FYI Apple pie was invented before Europeans reached America :D There is an English apple pie recipe from 1381. I've always found the phrase "as American as apple pie" really strange given that it didn't originate in America.

Pretty much sounds like the typical American approach where only short term solutions matter. There also seems to be a clear lack of regulations and supervision. There's all sorts of authorities getting involved with such stuff here in Germany from environmental regulation to building codes to the government controlling public spending. It's by no means always perfect and many cities struggle with their finances as well, but I don't think it is nowhere near as severe.

Jps, hi ... it goes against my nature to respond as I'm about to, but sometimes things need to be said, LOL. You produce, in my opinion, some of the best reaction videos to be enjoyed on UKposts. Whether it be politics, culture, comedy, law, economics .... you respond in a way that is as interesting as the things you review (remember, most people have never seen the videos you review either). You listen, you watch, you absorb ..... BEFORE you speak. And what's most apparent (in my opinion) is the fact that you 'think'. There's much more that I could say, but long responses are not that popular here. And whilst you love your country, I'm sure, I can't help hoping that your future lies outside its boundaries .... Bravo!

This video has an amazing part 2 (part 4 of the strong town series). It's absolutely worth watching

Now I am almost happy for paying taxes (all sort of taxes), high taxes, in Germany. Because the governments pays with it for all sorts of things, like schools, university, hospitals and so forth. If you want to live in a community you have to put in your share. Sadly a lot of our so called leaders (in politics and industry) follow the "american lead" profit at all costs. I am proud to say, that I took the chance and became a share holder of German infrastructur, to help maintenace on the Autobahn, reststops, building new poweroutlets for electrical cars. If we all work together and for each other, we can achieve a lot. The oh so praised "individualism" is a nice word for egomania. You my friend, be safe. Elmar from Germany

The future of the USA is worrying. It is as if Americans do not know how to live, and no one there is willing to be inspired by other models of society that work much better in the world. And I am referring, of course, to what we call advanced democracies. And unfortunately they seem to be at a dead end, because the changes they need seem impossible. The Republicans have managed to shape the country to their convenience and they will never want anything to change. Perhaps it is too late to right the failed course. In order to change, it is essential to have the will to change, and the average American believes that they live in the best country in the world...

I'm a big fan of Not Just Bikes

Respect for American cities being able to go broke despite not even providing healthcare, public transport and a multi-party government.

not just bikes videos are mostly really informative and entertaining. hope you check out more!

Probably what will happen more and more in cities around north america in coming years is changing the zoneing laws to allow middle-rise buildings. That way cities don't have to build and maintain so long road infrastructure. If also allowed in the suburbs the cities could have an influx of new people moving in without having to build any new roads at all. And once population density rises it would be viable to operate businesses like small corner shops, restaurants, etc in the suburbs, provided the zoneing code is changed to allow that also, which they probably will since that also makes cities money while simultaneously reduce the car traffic = stress to repair roads as often. Once those kinds of changes are implemented, it naturally would make sense to build better pedestrian and bike infrastructure in order to people get from their home to a near by shop. And since there would be more people in the suburbs, it would be viable to upgrade the public transport to cover more areas, which again increases ridership even more, which would also reduce the car traffic, which cities want. Before long north american cities would be similar to european cities, or infact cities everywhere else. Since that kind of city planning can sustain itself, the current US system does not. No matter the ideology, when the money runs out you have to change something. They could of course raise taxes, but that alone wouldn't permanently solve the problem (and they had to raise it so high that people would riot). Only real option is to change to more traditional city planning, which has been proved to work, since it has been working for centuries.

after watching this.. the best advice would be: pack up and move to europe :D

Basically the debts of the state is the wealth of people who gave the money. Unforetunately, the money is divided in a very uneven way, too few very rich and too many poor. It is basically the state who has to make regulations, to keep the things in balance, what rich people often don't like.

Govt debt is when govts refuse to tax the rich; instead they borrow from them and pay them interest.

Yay you're on Not Just Bikes now

You may be interested in a documentary called The End of Suburbia (2004). It goes in-depth into post WW2 suburbia's pitfalls. I'm Canadian and I think we're *slightly* better here because as far as I know, the busses run out to the suburbs so always taking a car into town isn't necessary, however many of the other issues probably still apply to us. Also, we're a much smaller country too obviously. The largest city in Canada is about 3M with the GTA (greater Toronto area) being close to 6M. To us this size is getting ridiculous but I'm sure it's not "big" to an American.

The previous video was from Adam Something and not from Not Just Bikes, but he mentioned this video! ✌🏼

When you start exploring the USA debt I think you will be in for some eye openers. As you mentioned the debt is in the trillions but what is often not spoken about is who the debt is owed to. Who holds the bonds for that debt ? And what would happen if those countries called the debt in? Let alone the astronomical amounts that have to be paid each year to support the continuation of that debt. It's a vicious cycle. As Goldwein senior policy director at the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget has said " More debt leads to more interest, and that leads to more debt".

You should watch more not just bikes videos. I work as a analyst in a mobility consulting firm and he's the reason I became interested in this in the first place

No the trillion dollars of debt is federal debt , this is municipal debt , the federal government can just print money but your city can not do that. Its not that the chains are bad in and of themselves but the amount of tax they pay and there workers can afford is bad for the city because its all low density development ( housing , retail , restaurants ) and they all pay low taxes for infrastructure that gets exponentially more expensive to pay the larger the city gets ! Some cites try to just not do the maintenance hoping for a better tomorrow but then the cost just get even larger for what could have been fixed for $200 in 2010 by 2020 its now $4000 or even worse someone is seriously hurt or killed and the city get sued !

Every coin has two sides. I'm living in village of Poland and happened to be that I'm one of village council. There are few councils in the village and we make decisions in democratic way. Thing is that yearly our budget don't even allows us to create intersection with street lights. Not that we need it in such small village but the fact that we don't even have funds to create one is shocking. So yeah - USA system is waste of money and never ending story but Europe has it's own problems as well. It's not perfect - at all. However though even with limited village funds we can always go to county and ask for their funds - and usually they will give us money if project makes sense. But our strict village funds are ridicoulus. For example county payed for new school which costs millions but strictly from our village budget it would be completelly impossible.

Over here we have a thing called,,,Green Field Development,,,,, Brown Field Site ,,,, Brown Field is very highly regarded with tax incentives and positive government encouragement,,,,, brown field is usually a city centre plot that has passed its useful life , and can be repurposed for housing and commercial use,,,,, keeping modern development close to the infrastructure and shopping area and public transport.

we need more people your age in politics. especially if they're as open minded as you are. people with ideal, who want a future for their kids and don't take "we can't just..." for an answer. of course we can just do or make or change whatever we need or want. we did it often enough: pyramids, canals, claim land from sea, ban lead in fuel, ban ozone killers, rebuild Europe after 2WWs...

Your last video was from 'Just Adam' I believe not 'Not Just Bikes' (NJB). If this topic interests you I would advice to watch the entire 'Strong Towns' series, either on the Strong towns channel or from NJB. I wouldn't worry to much about the US debt it is not significant compared to the US national gross product (entirely different topic). The entire premise of this video is to show that American suburban growth/development is unsustainable in the long run. That is a hard pill to swallow for most since it is incorporated into the 'American dream' but it is step 1 into finding a new/better solution.

Here in Italy we have a municipal tax for new buildings and major renovations called "building charges". It is very high, ranging from 5 to 20% of the expected costs for the property, but for the new inhabitants who will enter the building in the future, coverage of the relevant services is provided... To this will be added the taxes on the purchase of the building, which are instead to be paid to the state (range 2-9%)

The zoning laws in Amerca that prohibts mixed housing (one family, multi family, shops etc) makes building a German type suburb almost impossible to build. Also the parking space needed by law for a business does not help this situation.

why would i associate the us with apple pie?

I think King Charle's approch to city planning and building is so well done, Poundbury is built with everything in mind, there are private and social housing side by side, the shops are all within walking distance of your house and no two horses are the same, Parking is central in The Queen Mother's Square, with all the market stalls on either side, he's building another Town in South Wales.

Over here we get a letter each year showing what are taxes have been used for, a complete breakdown. They are also all (mostly) done for you. I've never had to fill out a form or make any kind of enquiries about tax

Joel!! Love your Deutschland tshirt! 🇩🇪❤

In Germany you pay " Anliegerkosten" aka a fee for building the stretch of road/sidewalk in front of your house and for the supply of gas electricity and water. This is a one time cost. You then are responsible for keeping the sidewalk free of leaves in autumn and ice and snow in winter. The further upkeep is the job of the municipality. At least how it is in my town.

The problem in the US is, they invest most the money in the Army and not in the infrastructure, public transportation, education, health care. Countries in Europe invest in infrastructure, public transportation, education, health care and not in the Army. European contries invest what in the people need.

Hello Joel. It sounds like you never saw "Falling Down"? Not anything new, but one for Patreon?

About the depts: as long as the Dollar stays the only worldwide trade currency, the US ist able to serve the annual interests by printing money. All other countries have to produce to gain that amounts firstly. Therefore the US Gouvernement fears a strong Euro as well as a worldwide accepted Chinese currency

I have never understood why in America the front gardens look like a desert landscape. why is that. Isn't anyone interested in adding some greenery to their front yard? There are no trees, too. And your t-shirt is interesting😍

This is a much bigger problem. America rarely pays-its-way. American governments (at all levels) borrow from the start and keep borrowing until they can’t. Add to this the desire for no one to want to pay more taxes. Ultimately the area starts to degrade and a developer builds a new ‘fresh’ area where people flee. I bought a home in an area near a massive university. The growth has been amazing and the university draws in income from everywhere. Like your perspective.

Interesting and frustration

Learning about debt is a good idea. It's a topic that everyone brings up, but it's almost never explained clearly. One thing to say is this, debt isn't debt. It's a misnomer, when a person says debt, they imagine an individual or company owing a certain amount of money, or value in some form, to another person or company. This is debt how most people know it. Government debt is a lot more complicated. First you need to split debt into foreign and domestic debt, then you need to see how much of the foreign debt is held in currencies other than your own. Most debt, at least in western countries, is domestic. Domestic debt is money the government borrows, but where does it borrow from? It borrows from the banks, but not any banks, in the west at least. It borrows either from banks that are allowed to take part in a bidding process for government bonds, so private individuals and companies are not allowed to take part, or in some systems the government borrows directly from the central bank, in the case of the US it's the Federal Reserve. The banks allowed to bid in this system are also strictly bound directly by government regulation, messing with it isn't a good idea, because it means you can easily lose the permission to try and buy government bonds at all. The Federal Reserve will either take the government bonds, or allow the banks who win the bid to pay with money directly from the Federal Reserve. And ultimately the Federal Reserve will buy whatever government bonds to stabilise the debt if it every becomes necessary. The banks are also allowed to sell these government bonds to private individuals, this is how you as a person can invest in government bonds. But no private individual can buy these bonds directly from the government, and you paying for these bonds doesn't mean the government takes the money from you as an individual, by the time you buy the bond, the government long has received it's money from the Federal Reserve via one of the banks who are allowed to bid in the first place. All of this is done with money directly printed by the central bank. Of course, the central bank can never run out of money in this sense, it can always print more, and the government can always issue new government bonds. This is how borrowing happens, essentially, the government borrows from the central bank, and the central bank willl never refuse the government from borrowing money, since it is set up by the government. Problems with inflation or too much money entering the economy have nothing to do with this process yet. These problems can only happen once that money enters the private economy. So once the government borrows, and decides to spend it somewhere, either by giving a subsidy to farmers, or by paying a new construction project, anything works. Once money enters the private economy it behaves more like people normally think about it, you earn it to pay for things, if you owe someone money, you need to earn the money through some form of work or activity to pay it back, and so on. This is why the words "debt" and "borrowing" can be misleading. Because they make you think about it as an individual, but thats not what government debt is, and not what "borrowing" means. The process of borrowing is the process of creating money in the first place, in our current monetary system. To end it, let's do a little thought experiment. Let us imagine a country with no domestic debt. A country with no domestic debt would mean, a country which has not taken any money from it's central bank. Let's assume the country is the only country allowed to print it's own currency, just to simplify things. There are exceptions, like in the EU, where the central bank isn't owned by a single country. But let's use the US for an example. No country in the world, besides the US, is allowed to print US dollars. And the only organisation in the US allowed to print US dollars, is the Federal Reserve. If the Federal Reserve never gives the government any dollars, and the government thus never has any debt, there would be no dollars circulating. The currency would simply not exist, because the Federal Reserve never printed it, because the government never borrowed it. This is a simplified version, it gets more complex, since there are many variables, but generally speaking, all dollars currently in circulation were at some point borrowed by the government, otherwise they wouldn't exist. I will leave this here, since I could talk more in depth about what this can mean for the economy, and how monetary and economnic policy can interact, but I think this should give a good overview for this complicated topic to start with.

This goes beyond infrastructure development. Going into debt has become the biggest problem this country needs to deal with. Public and private debt will become a drag on the economy. We need stop using someone else's money to pay for everyday upkeep and maintenance of our roads and bridges Cities and suburban communities may need to do something very unpopular and is raising taxes

This could start by not allowing developers to build the streets. Have the city build the streets (using much more robust, but much more expensive techniques) instead of the developers using the cheapest possible materials, and the most basic of standards. After all, the developers don’t ever “sell” the streets, only the houses around the streets, and there is absolutely no return on investment for the streets. Streets are nothing more than an inconvenience, and a cost to the developers. Once they walk away with the money they made from selling the houses, they don’t care that the street needs resurfacing in 5 years time. They have their money, and they are gone. The city would lay a street that lasts 20 years, because it’s cheaper for them in the long run. At the end of the day streets are infrastructure and SHOULD be built by the city because at the end of the day they are their responsibility.

Couldn't you save suburbs by changing zoning laws and building Town like centers every few blocks? Maybe narrowing streets and adding sidewalks. So that people could bike to a local coffee show or children can go for ice cream with their bikes or nearby parks (that also would have to be built first)

You look a little tired, hope you are fine. Hugz & kisses from Germany. I like your vids very much, but be sure to watch your own first!

Its much cheaper to get multiple families into one building. This conecpt ist often misunderstood as housing for poor people. But in fact its so efficient, that it makes the people wealthier.

10:25 Looks JUST like a suburb in certain US cities, JP. You need to get out more.

Joel, whom are we all in debt to?? worth pondering over.

like your reactions :) american point of weiv ! :D

When are you going to start making AFL videos again

Just wait 'til the debt bomb goes off, then the owners of that debt could theoretically walk away as owners of the assets of those municipalities. Publicly owned assets will suddenly become privately owned, and then the locals won't have a say anymore in how they are operated. Billionaires and billion dollar corporate hedge funds could wind up owning vast swathes of the institutions that most Americans depend on for their livelihood.

Europe has different problems. By and large Western Europe has kept up with infrastructure maintenance. The exception being the UK. Here we have had a succession of right wing governents that have had two main trends. Privatisation of Utilities and an obsession with not spending money on infrastructure maintenance. The privatisation has generated cash for share holders whilst allowing a bare minimum of spend. The result, a run down of all services. Not maintaining roads and rail has turned roads into a slalom course of pot holes with unreliable rail. The common link with the USA is politicians that see the individual as supreme rather than the needs of society.

? JPS in England we pay car tax appox $200 a year for road maintenance do you pay this?

Love ur channel dude Cheers from Belgium Sub + 1

WHO even thinks about the US and apple pie on the same day? I literally see no connection. When i think apple pie, i think about England (where the apple pie was officially invented, having the oldest recipe from the 1300s) or about China (where the common apple originated from and spread to Europe thousands of years ago) or even Germany where apples are the most popular fruit and apple pie only outnumbered in popularity by cheesecake and Blackforest Cherry gateaux.

Working for a company with shareholders? The grow-or-die rule applies. Even if your branch is doing well, it isn't enough.

i heard that every 100 days the debt is increased by 1 trillion as of now.

In Europe we have also many problems of course, but watching, what is in USA, I never would like to live there. If it's possible, visit Europe and maybe take a decision, where do You want to spend time. Maybe You will fill here better.

6:46 how about let the federal and state stop funding new neighborhoods, instead, fill the holes of established neighborhoods?

The US has the biggest debt of all countries in the world. Right now its at 34,6 trillion $

National debt is completely different to the debt owed by municipalities, businesses or individuals. In fact, it’s the exact opposite. Search for videos on the following topics: * sectorial balances * modern monetary theory * David Graben’s ‘Debt: the first 5000 years’ * Stephanie Kelton’s ‘The Deficit Myth’ * Any commentary and critique on Margaret Thatcher’s ‘kitchen table economics’ * Any commentary or critique on the Regan administration’s ‘Laffer Curve’ This idea that the debt held by a currency issuer is the same as private debt sounds common sense, but it’s not true.

Just start demolishing older houses and build higher density housing to pay fir the infrastructure

Don't be fooled. Many German towns are also broke, lots of schools are badly in need of renovation, there are potholes all over - wherever you live, you usually have at least two building sites on streets you use regularly.

Your (Tax) money isn´t gone , its just somewere else. (Citated from a Rothshield Banker about 1810)

theres good debt and bad debt a good debt is when somebody else pays your debt

not gonna lie. I kinda like your shirt. Grüße aus Bremen

US National debt currently stands at 33.17 Trillion USD or 13 times the Economy of the United Kingdom, and bigger than the economy of the whole European continent (not just EU) which stands currently at $24.22 trillion USD.. in raw numbers US Debt is displayed like this $33,150,000,000,000 its absolutely colossal!!! - US is effectively a Ponzi state run by perpetual debt. debt funds growth with pays for more debt which funds more growth etc etc. eventually it will come crashing down... it will take the world with it.

If most Americans don’t travel and are brainwashed since early childhood (pledge of allegiance l, etc wtf?) then they will never make a change for the better. Why would you change if you thought you were the best anyways? It’s weird mindset in that country. Smart people learn from mistakes of other’s and inspires himself from the other cultures…

Can you please watch Stan Walker from New Zealand.. he’s like the male beyonce…

I hope it is OK to say that but he is very cute 🥰

Word of the Day: ‘Effencies’.

2008 and 2020 were enough of a crash for the suburbs.

The explanation is not that difficult. When you have a road a mile long and there are 10 houses on that road ( US ) who have to bring in the tax for maintenance of the infrastructure compared with a 100 houses in Europe you can imagine the problem in the US .

Cities like San Francisco and New York are witnessing a population decline, with a decrease of 5.3% and 7.5%, respectively, between 2020 and 2022. With major US cities losing population, there will be negative implications for the economy. California cities make up 40% of the top 25 places where the population decreased most. Is it because of the homeless living on the streets?

You look tired man. You should take a rest 🤗

Are you going to move out of the 'burbs Joel?

Joel your country the USA total debt is $34 trillion 590 Billion US Dollars add another $1.8 trillion dollars to it for the US budget of 2024

Pyramiden System? We would say it is a Pyramide System in german. Who is or what is Ponzi? Ok..you forgot to say...Italian american Immigrant.Nobody (EU Citizen) would know who or what a Ponzi is without the word scheme.

German homeowners in residential areas are charged with the costs of maintaining the road, sidewalk, etc. That's why the German home buyer also looks at the condition of the street in front of the door. If it falls apart, he knows that repairs will soon be due there and he will share in the costs. These costs (thousands to tens of thousands) are factored into the home purchase price.

Oh nice, you're wearing a shirt with a German flag on it 👍

Like I already said in that last video: I know the neighborhood he was talking about. It's not a suburb. It's just a part of the city. Like ... is Brooklyn a suburb of New York City? No. It's part of it. We also have real suburbs farther away from the city center.

Dear JP, Germany is not doing it better.

To answer your question about debt: the current US debt can be paid back if each American is charged with a million dollars in additional tax (!). So in short: that will never happen. If the problem is ever going to be resolved, it will probably be because of hyperinflation. It would be a disaster for the entire world economy, but if the dollar collapses, it is virtually worthless and it is much easier to repay the trillions owed.

First

Because You keep voting democrat

Get out of Dodge, we need good people in Europe.

Yes! NotJustBikes is such a good channel! Prepare to be “orange pilled”! 🟧🚲🚋🚇🚊