Retail theft under $20.00 24 years ago.

Anyone with ANYTHING on their “record” will have a hard time getting jobs, housing, and other basic necessities for the rest of their lives, especially if you’re American. 1 out of 6 American men have been imprisoned or detained by the government at some point in their lives, so you’re not alone. The USA puts more of it’s own citizens in prison than any dictator in the history of the world.

The USA (and countires like it) are rapidly producing new social classes based on background checks. Basically, those who can pass them (or pay off the right people), and those who can’t.

Surprisingly, only a few people are emigrating away from the USA so far, but the numbers are increasing. The people who can’t afford to leave end up doing crime to try to make a living, so all this punishment actually makes crime worse. Hopefully you don’t go down that path.

If you have trouble getting permission to work and rent an apartment, and you can’t get the government to stop blocking you, I recommend leaving. It may sound silly to other people reading this, but I’ve known people who had to move to Canada to get a job because they stole candy when they were in their teens.

The world is a pretty nice place outside the USA. I was shocked at how happy people were when I first went travelling. I was always told in school that the USA was top notch in everything, and the rest of the world isn’t doing nearly as well. That’s just not true, and probably never was.

Most of the “new money” is coming from outside the USA anyway. In fact, the only place you can find the phrase “land of opportunity” is in history books. All the opportunities are out there waiting for you, so don’t let anything keep you from exploring them.