This seems to imply that someone can be "curious about the US, and might like to explore" but that they also already know the value of "what you get as a tourist".
I don't think that is valid. While my monoculture question came of as loaded, judging by the backlash of commenters, and I should haven't asked it, I don't think the OP understands the diversity of the US, and I don't think a judgement on value of travel in the US without experiencing it first can be made; even by US residents.
You're still on the same US-diversity train but there's nothing in that comment to justify it.
There are other many more layers to a tourist's cost/benefit analysis than just culture. Some of those layers will be common to the entire US:
- exchange rate between USD and their home currency
- affordability might vary across the US, but perhaps the consider even the cheaper places to be too pricey (the US is indeed a very pricey destination compared to much of Europe)
- the customs & border people deter tourists from visiting, no matter where in the US they want to go
- the US is a long flight away for many people in the world, whether they're going to Seattle, LA, NY, or Miami.
OP might be absolutely enthralled by US cultural diversity and still make the exact same comment.
But you don't know that. Maybe op has done multiple cross country trips across America. Maybe they've only been to NYC and Disneyworld. You could have asked them, but you didn't!
"do you think the US is a monoculture?" implying that the commenter does think that, and that that thought is ignorant and absurd. Instead of asking what they are referring to so you can discuss the point they're making.
What fear mongering politics? The commenter is obviously talking about the reported cases of people being detained, deported, and harassed for their political views.
> implying that the commenter does think that, and that that thought is ignorant and absurd
It is a widely held view of the US by many foreigners; they don't conceptualize how big and diverse the US is.
I thought a perfectly reasonable and likely interpretation of their comment is that the later sentence, with the "also" does not connect their `value of being a tourism in the US` comment to the political climate. Other commenters here apparently do weigh the cost of travel with the risk the government of the country will detain them.
