Then you're only paying attention to the negativism and the disenfranchised American youth on Reddit (and elsewhere). Everybody likes to criticize the USA, because it's very visible and has a number of areas where it certainly is due criticism.

Being poor in America sucks, and there's a much more precarious safety net in place here than elsewhere.

The way the culture is in America promotes individualism. Young adults are sent off on their own to make their own way in life. Young American adults are also the majority of Reddit (and social media in general) users. By a consequence, the discussion is generally biased by people that haven't accomplished much is life yet or begun earning a reasonable income.

I'm somewhat older than the average Redditor, but started out the same way. I grew up in a poor family, in a very poor part of the country. I did what most people here are doing - working hard, investing in myself (higher education) and slowly improving my station. My job is nothing special, and yet I have great health care, a secure job, own my own home, am able to afford some luxuries and nice travel, and generally have a very comfortable life. If I look back at my classmates, I'm pretty much in the middle of achievement spectrum. What I'm trying to say is I'm suuuuper average. I get lost in every crowd, and I really never stand out in any way. I am white, and that's probably the single advantage I've had in my heritage here, though I will admit that it is a significant advantage in this country.

I've never been a victim of a crime, I've never even witnessed anything significant, and I lived in the 'hood for a number of years (I was one of the few white guys in the area). I don't have any immediate friends or family that have ever been incarcerated. I've never been treated unfairly by a police officer (though I have spoken to a few that were a little bristly).

We have the absolute best healthcare in the world - If you can afford it. We have the absolute best education in the world - if you can afford it.

The USA is higher risk/higher reward than Europe. You have a much higher chance at being highly successful here than just about anywhere else in the world, but if you fail... you fail hard and it can be hard to recover.

I'm not really trying to defend anything. We suck at a great many things, and there is a lot of truth to the common criticisms, but when that's all you hear, you miss out on the reality.

And the reality is that most Americans are living relatively happy, fulfilling lives, and things here are still quite comfortable for the significant majority of the population. I think we're currently headed in the wrong direction, and wish we were doing more to reverse course, but soooooo much of the world is worse off. I suspect I've traveled internationally more than the average American, and I can easily say, based on the places I've seen, that there are very, very few places that I'd rather live.