And its not only that you said it, you actually offended me by telling me that I'm blind about conditions in which I live.
I don't think it's quite as black and white as that.
Would you agree that, as a result of taking an active approach to learning and participating (here on this forum, and probably elsewhere) in discussions about geopolitics, you probably know more about the objective situation of politics the United States than SOME Americans?
If so, then doesn't that imply you know about life in the US better than them?
No? Why not? Perhaps you think that conditions of daily life are more important than "politics"? Okay, well, you work and earn your place in society, you take care of your wife and family. Wouldn't you agree that you know more about "living well", objectively, than some criminal heroin addict, ignorant of politics, rotting from the 'inside out'?
So if that heroin addict is living in the United States, doesn't that imply you know more about life in the US better than them?
No? Why not? Do you think that somebody who demonstrates inferiority to your knowledge and behaviour in every significant way is somehow endowed with some 'right to tell you how it is' in some other country, simply because they were born there? That they are endowed with some 'superhuman power' to which you must show deference and respect, the 'power of being born somewhere'? Wow, what a miraculous 'superpower' - everyone on Earth has it!
Okay, so you might say, "well, even a dumb junky can tell me things about that country I don't know". Fair enough. Couldn't your neighbours also tell you unknown things about your own country, though? You may respond with, "Yes, and I show them that respect because of it".
So, you treat some junky in another country with the same respect you treat a neighbour in your own country? "Oh, but only on the subject of 'local knowledge'," is your response. But what exactly is this "local knowledge" that deserves such uncritical and servile 'respect'? Where to buy drugs? What language is spoken? Where are the highest-quality shops and markets located? What pawnbrokers will accept stolen goods? What are the quickest routes to and from work each day? When and how often are elections held?
Well, in some cases, some of this knowledge could be very important. And that's the whole point. You can't say, "IN ALL CASES, they know life there better than me because they live there." That's not recognition of the knowledge or experience of another, that's just blind belief in a stupid rule, probably hammered into your head as a kid by your dad or another male relative.
Now, is it possible to say,
in general, that people who live somewhere can be trusted to have more knowledge and experience of that area than a non-local? I think most of us here would agree this is simply common sense. The problem is in taking a general guideline of common sense and turning it into an absolute. This is something the left hemisphere does par excellence, especially when fuelled by the energy of the emotions.
Perhaps a few things to think about.
As a side note, it's interesting to consider these recent posts in the greater context of what seems to be a worldwide mood of resurgent nationalism, but that would be going way off-topic, and really needs a far more detailed treatment.