France still has One Up on the US

What is it that makes France still so Special?

To make my point I will simply relay a little story that I posted on my facebook timeline.

Yesterday, I took my Mother to her flight back to her Home: France.
She had been living with me for the past 12 years, even became a US citizen. But as she was aging, her life became difficult here. She went every year back to France for a Month to visit my brother, family and her friends.
There is one thing that France has over the US: Local neighborhood shops (Baker, Butcher, Pastry shop, Vegetable stands, etc...).
And that my friends, is what will allow my mother to age graciously. She will be able to get out of her apartment, walk 50 yards to pick-up her daily bread; walk another 50 yards to buy a steak; cross the street to grab a few pastries for desert; another 20 yards for a fresh salad; and back home with a 100 yards walk.
In the mean time she will have socialized with a few dozen people she will meet just about every day.

What I describe above, is the only thing that is missing in this great country of ours. But it is something that defines people interactions.
Yes, I did find a fault to our country, I even understand why it happened so.
Large Corporations tend to gain politicians to favor them, by providing them laws that benefit them, and crush small businesses. This is WHY, we have lost all of our small local businesses, in favor of BIG centralized Malls, or business areas.
The zoning (done by the State) defining Residential and Business areas, is negative to our health and well being, prevents us from interacting with our neighbors daily, and keeps us isolated.
I can understand Zoning for Industrial Areas, for many reasons, but not for splitting Residential and Small Businesses.
Don't get me wrong, I do not dislike Malls & shopping centers, but NOT at the expense of neighborhood Small Businesses.

I have become American to the core. I embrace it's promise of Liberty, and all the Rights and Possibilities my country of adoption provides.
I do however miss the daily interactions in the nearby, walking distance, Small Businesses and Shops. It is sad that America only favors centralized large Malls & Shopping Centers.

Any American that visits France or has visited France will tell you of the charms and quality of life the shops of Small Artisans present.
Yes, they do still somewhat exist in the US, but have become more of tourist attraction in select areas, and show us a remnant of what once was. Or sometimes they model commerce as it is done in such countries as France.

And for this lack of Quality of Life in the US, I only blame Government, and it's officials, who through Lobbying and or financial advantages have favored the powerful corporations that pretty much rule government, and have it make laws in their favor.

As I educate my self on my adoptive country, I recognize the loop holes that allow this Corruption to take place. Congress, the maker of Laws, used to be nominated by their respective States, to represent their respective States. When they strayed from their mission, they were simply recalled (or fired), and another one was sent in their stead.
There is an urgent need to return to this preferred condition, as those 'sent to represent their State' have now embraced the Corruption and favors of Corporate America, and foreign Lobbyists. And in doing so, are bypassing the needs of the American people, and hence have become POLITICIANS with all the filth associated with this denomination.
Elections are funded by Corporations and Lobbyists, and it has all become a money game.

Yes, besides the 3 branches of government meant to be, We now have 2 more branches controlling the American government: Corporations & Foreign Lobbies.
And those Two, are the most powerful branches of US government. They control the Law Makers and Intelligence Agencies.
And I will not even bother to mention the Federal Reserve, which has nothing Federal at all, but is in itself the King of our nation. That King is manipulated and controlled by the richest families in the World: Rothschild; Rockefeller; Walton; etc...

Today just about every country in the World is controlled by a Federal Reserve like Bank, affiliated to the all powerful IMF or International Monetary Fund.