The lack of importance given to human life is one of the most jarring things to me having been born in the US. My wife is from a similar area and tells me childhood stories that make -me- feel traumatized, as if it's just another day. The last one I remember was about a 'careless boy' who was in the road too much on the way to school being run over and killed by a bus, like it's his fault. And they just threw his body out of the road and went to school like it's a normal Tuesday!

I have no idea to reconcile that as a whole, and generally understand how lucky I am. But it just feels like things will never get better when the most basic (to me) of values is missing.