

On Journeys - nan_warrior
http://lcamtuf.blogspot.com/2015/03/on-journeys.html

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ggreer
Just FYI: The owner of this blog is Michał Zalewski, author of afl-fuzz[1].
Lately, his posts have alternated between addressing technical topics and
social topics.

I'm very happy to hear he has accomplished his goal of becoming an American.

1\. [http://lcamtuf.coredump.cx/afl/](http://lcamtuf.coredump.cx/afl/)

~~~
nathell
I first heard of Michał when he won a 1996 contest for a computer-themed sci-
fi short story with an oneiric tale about an astoundingly complex self-
modifying virus. He would have been 15 back then. I was 12, and I thought to
myself "wow, I will never be as smart as this guy."

Fast forward 19 years, and the impression still stands.

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jwr
I could not disagree more with Michał.

When I first read his blog post I added an item to my todo list to write a
lengthy reply. I never did, and now I think it is time to do so — but it will
be in Polish, as it is mostly Polish people who might be interested.

I think Michał has an extreme view of both the United States (which is not the
paradise he paints it to be) and Poland (which isn't nearly as bad as he
describes). As someone who has lived both in Poland and the US, I came to
opposite conclusions: I would much rather live in Poland. I could live
anywhere (I don't have the visa problem like he did), but my choice is to live
in Poland.

I am puzzled by his extremely negative experiences. People all around me get
paid good money for doing extremely interesting work. The money isn't
necessarily the same as in the Silicon Valley, but it goes a long way here:
living in Poland (even in the largest cities) still isn't as expensive as in
Western Europe. All in all, as a young person entering adult life, you will be
_much_ better off here than in the US, assuming you are a highly-skilled
professional (which he is the extreme definition of!).

I also find it disconcerting that he begins with a historical note, describing
Poland's struggle for independence, and then follows with a description of how
he basically said "I don't care" and moved out. It is worth considering what
happens to countries where most people make a similar decision.

But most importantly, I don't understand Michał's negative viewpoint. My
experiences have been very different: my standard of living here in Poland is
really good. I don't want to describe what I dislike about the US, especially
since Michał does not seem to even consider criticism ("no matter how smug the
critics are"), so I'll just say that it can look very, very different from a
different person's point of view.

~~~
striking
The economy in Poland is almost exactly 3x weaker/smaller than the US. Sure,
it means that soda is only $0.66 a can, that you can buy a feast for ~$7, and
that clothes are extremely inexpensive; imported goods, however, carry the
American price. You're not buying an iPhone on your salary. (Hardly anyone
does.)

If you travel to Poland with a pile of money, the living is far from
difficult. It's quite a great place to go on vacation. (Especially if you
already know the language like myself.) But taxes there are high and many
people find themselves in poverty.

I agree that it's worth betting on Poland's future. CD Projekt RED is leading
the pack in bringing new tech industry to Poland, for instance. I can only see
a brighter future.

At the same time, I don't want to live there. Not yet.

~~~
jwr
I don't understand your point of view. The size of the economy has little to
do with your everyday spending.

As for taxes and iPhones, I pay 19% income tax, and when I buy an iPhone I
deduct a) 23% VAT, b) 19%, because that is a business expense. So, I don't see
how one could say "taxes there are high".

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98Windows
I wonder if he ever considered moving to the UK, lots of cutting edge research
and you get free public health care and very little gun crime. Also its in the
EU (for now) so moving from Poland would have been easy.

~~~
happyscrappy
The breadth of opportunities vastly the outweighs the minuscule risk of being
carjacked, despite what Europeans may choose to believe.

~~~
hebdo
I think most Europeans do know that, even if only at some subconscious level.
The rest is just propaganda, which is strong these days in every country.

But to be fair, the risk is not minuscule - for example the murder rate is 4-5
times higher in the US than it is in Europe. The only two times in my life I
was close to being beaten up was during my few months visit to California.

~~~
elliptic
4-5x extremely minuscule is still minuscule.

