Maximilian
Lifer
- Feb 8, 2004
- 12,604
- 15
- 81
Although Britain is part of europe dont count us along with them... mainland europeans are a bunch of friggin weridos (ones ive met anyways). Ive been the the USA and its like britain except everyone was friendlier and guns were allowed and it was really sunny all the time and everyone had a pool and there were random large shopping malls scattered everywhere and everything was nice and modern.... Damn i love florida!! Is the whole of the USA like florida?? That would be awsome.
But yea anyways, BRITAIN KICKS!! WOO!!
Maximilian
Lifer
- Feb 8, 2004
- 12,604
- 15
- 81
Relatively speaking there are some states that are more intollerant than others and more bible thumping than others. California obviously has racists but it's for the most part very diverse, open minded, and tollerant. Minorities inhabit every walk of life here. I like that. I don't like living in an area where all the white people are working in the high end jobs and all the minorities are working the low level service sector jobs.
Bible thumping should speak for itself.
I agree fully with you about the low pay and high taxes. I agree that they should be lowered but I still think a system with health care and education covered by it is a good idea.
But the rest I'm not sure how you got that opinion.
Based on your post
America : Ignorant, fat, no knowledge of other countries, thinks USA is the world
Since my PC is very unstable (I'm going to just rebuild it rather than figure out if the MB or CPU is going south) I'll respond one step at a time.
1. Universal Health care.
It seems awesome at first. You get a health care card and for about $20 you can go to the doctor and get anything from a band-aid to open heart surgery. The problem is that the doctors suck. All the good doctors have left the country or gone into private practice (including those in my family). Being a doctor in Sweden is really stupid since by the time you finish your long hours the taxes are so extreme that you make basically nothing. My uncle loves to tell this story about how he got his paycheck after working all these 12 hour shifts and it was something like $8 (Eight dollars) after taxes. Whether it was $8 or $25 doesn't matter. He left the country. He now makes hundreds of thousands of dollars as a specialist in California.
I go to the doctor and the guy is from India and is very inexperienced. He literally was bringing out books to look up very basic medical procedures. It was very disturbing. I won't go into details.
I go to the dentist and they thought I was strange for wanting to get my teeth cleaned every 6 months. I ended up having to pay for it out of pocket since the state only covers it once a year. When I came back to the states I found out that they had missed 2 cavities and the begining stages of gingivitis.
If you need a hearing aid or something there is a line to wait in. The way it works is the working age adults that are employed go first. Then I think it's small children and finally the elderly. You can expect to wait 6 months to get anything.
What my family does is pay for private health insurance. That works I guess. They of course are still paying the high taxes for the universal health care though that I would never use again or let my children use.
Although I'm not a big fan of our HMO/PPO health care system in the states I do think having the employer pay for your health insurance (or part of it at least) is a far better solution then universal health care. The state can then offer insurance for the retired. In the states if you do not have a job you can most likely get the city you live in to cover your emergency health care costs (I had it done when I was in college to cover a sprained ankle).
2. Free Education
Definitely for this. It was excellent. My only complaint was that they gave me money for going to University even when I didn't need it and didn't ask for it. That's another unnecessary tax burden.
1. Universal Health care.
It seems awesome at first. You get a health care card and for about $20 you can go to the doctor and get anything from a band-aid to open heart surgery. The problem is that the doctors suck. All the good doctors have left the country or gone into private practice (including those in my family). Being a doctor in Sweden is really stupid since by the time you finish your long hours the taxes are so extreme that you make basically nothing. My uncle loves to tell this story about how he got his paycheck after working all these 12 hour shifts and it was something like $8 (Eight dollars) after taxes. Whether it was $8 or $25 doesn't matter. He left the country. He now makes hundreds of thousands of dollars as a specialist in California.
I go to the doctor and the guy is from India and is very inexperienced. He literally was bringing out books to look up very basic medical procedures. It was very disturbing. I won't go into details.
I go to the dentist and they thought I was strange for wanting to get my teeth cleaned every 6 months. I ended up having to pay for it out of pocket since the state only covers it once a year. When I came back to the states I found out that they had missed 2 cavities and the begining stages of gingivitis.
If you need a hearing aid or something there is a line to wait in. The way it works is the working age adults that are employed go first. Then I think it's small children and finally the elderly. You can expect to wait 6 months to get anything.
What my family does is pay for private health insurance. That works I guess. They of course are still paying the high taxes for the universal health care though that I would never use again or let my children use.
Although I'm not a big fan of our HMO/PPO health care system in the states I do think having the employer pay for your health insurance (or part of it at least) is a far better solution then universal health care. The state can then offer insurance for the retired. In the states if you do not have a job you can most likely get the city you live in to cover your emergency health care costs (I had it done when I was in college to cover a sprained ankle).
2. Free Education
Definitely for this. It was excellent. My only complaint was that they gave me money for going to University even when I didn't need it and didn't ask for it. That's another unnecessary tax burden.
Denmark 2years
Japan ~9years
When I am away I miss US in the way that everything is so convinient, one stop shopping at 24hr Walmarts opposed to having to stop by several stores before they close at 5 or 6pm.
The only reason I am in the US right now is because I can't get a visa to go back to Europe
Japan ~9years
When I am away I miss US in the way that everything is so convinient, one stop shopping at 24hr Walmarts opposed to having to stop by several stores before they close at 5 or 6pm.
The only reason I am in the US right now is because I can't get a visa to go back to Europe
Let's shoot fish in a barrel!
Citizens of france earn 40% less than Americans, live in much smaller houses, drive puny European cars, and lose most of their income to pay for welfare. Not to mention a stale growth rate and a parasitic youth that's crippling their economy. I remember a politician there went on a hunger strike because a company wanted to ditch it's french factory. Ironically the only courage we've seen out of them in centuries.
Nice wine though.
Citizens of france earn 40% less than Americans, live in much smaller houses, drive puny European cars, and lose most of their income to pay for welfare. Not to mention a stale growth rate and a parasitic youth that's crippling their economy. I remember a politician there went on a hunger strike because a company wanted to ditch it's french factory. Ironically the only courage we've seen out of them in centuries.
Nice wine though.
3. Taxes
I was making 60 Kronor an hour ($10 an hour at the time). Off the top they took 33%. They then did something really cool which was give me 12% back as a vacation pay. The Swedes value free time and vacation like no other. Unfortionately they then sent me a bill at the end of the year for another 15% iirc. That pissed me off. I was back in the states at the time and like a good citizen I mailed them a check. When my family found out they had me cancel the check. I got a letter stating that they would reposess all my belongings for the next 3 years. Since I wasn't going to be in Sweden for 3 years it didn't make a difference to me. Screw them.
Sales tax was 25%. Alcohol is so expensive that it's cheaper to just take a cruise to Poland or Finland and buy your monthly or yearly supply of booze in international waters. Gas is so expensive that I was freaking out when I had to drive from Malmo to Stockholm. I think it was something like $4 a gallon back when it was hovering around a dollar or 95 cents here. That's not too big a deal though since I lived in Stockholm, didn't own a car, and used mass transit. When I lived in Sweden I had a fake ID that showed I was younger so that I could get the under 18 pass for the subway. I think it was like $60 for 6 months vs $125 a month for adults. Buying luxury goods like computers in Sweden is really expensive. I'm going to guess that's due to taxes as well. It's cheaper to just have someone in the USA mail you what you want. One good thing though was that food was cheaper. Three avocados in Sweden cost $1 while here one avocado cost a bit over a dollar and I can go pick them off the tree.
I was making 60 Kronor an hour ($10 an hour at the time). Off the top they took 33%. They then did something really cool which was give me 12% back as a vacation pay. The Swedes value free time and vacation like no other. Unfortionately they then sent me a bill at the end of the year for another 15% iirc. That pissed me off. I was back in the states at the time and like a good citizen I mailed them a check. When my family found out they had me cancel the check. I got a letter stating that they would reposess all my belongings for the next 3 years. Since I wasn't going to be in Sweden for 3 years it didn't make a difference to me. Screw them.
Sales tax was 25%. Alcohol is so expensive that it's cheaper to just take a cruise to Poland or Finland and buy your monthly or yearly supply of booze in international waters. Gas is so expensive that I was freaking out when I had to drive from Malmo to Stockholm. I think it was something like $4 a gallon back when it was hovering around a dollar or 95 cents here. That's not too big a deal though since I lived in Stockholm, didn't own a car, and used mass transit. When I lived in Sweden I had a fake ID that showed I was younger so that I could get the under 18 pass for the subway. I think it was like $60 for 6 months vs $125 a month for adults. Buying luxury goods like computers in Sweden is really expensive. I'm going to guess that's due to taxes as well. It's cheaper to just have someone in the USA mail you what you want. One good thing though was that food was cheaper. Three avocados in Sweden cost $1 while here one avocado cost a bit over a dollar and I can go pick them off the tree.
Glad you brought this up
World Health Organization Rankings
Sweden was listed at 23 while America was listed all the way down at 37. The WHO thinks you'd be better off in a socialist health care system than our evil capitalist one. Remember America is so evil that we have the highest cancer recovery rates in the world.
So let me ask you, which country would you prefer to receive medical care?
speg
Diamond Member
I've been born and raised in Canada but my roots are from the Netherlands so someday I hope to get over there!
If you honestly believe that you can get better health care in Colombia than in Sweden or the USA you have another thing coming. That list is extremely flawed.
Look at the details. "fairness in financial contribution" Who decides that?!
Look at the details. "fairness in financial contribution" Who decides that?!
LOL, yeah that list is fuxored up beyond belief.
Sorry you had a 'bad' experience and I agree on many points. Healthcare used to be great but it has gone down lately and it could made as good as it was before by reworking a lot of the sometimes weird benefit rules.
I don't get the $8 or $25 paycheck
Minimum 25days vacation rules. I had +30 days when I left. Not sure what the 15% bill by then end of the year was all about. Was that after you had filed your taxes? That would explain it because the company might not have deducted enough.
Gas prices - well welcome to Europe LOL.
You get a small amount of money to study, that's equal for all, but you don't get a student loan unless you qualify for it.
If you're an outdoors person I really hope you took advantage of a very special right everyone has and it's unique. You have the right to hike, walk, bike, camp out so on and so on ANYWHERE. You can basically just stop anywhere and camp out.
Summers are short and can be cold but when it's great it's totally awesome. I thinnk last year or the year before was the warmest and sunniest summer in ages.
Where did you live by the way? I was born and raised in Göteborg (Gothenburg) on the west coast, second largest city in Sweden.
Originally posted by: FrustratedUser
LOL, yeah that list is fuxored up beyond belief.
Sorry you had a 'bad' experience and I agree on many points. Healthcare used to be great but it has gone down lately and it could made as good as it was before by reworking a lot of the sometimes weird benefit rules.
I don't get the $8 or $25 paycheck
Minimum 25days vacation rules. I had +30 days when I left. Not sure what the 15% bill by then end of the year was all about. Was that after you had filed your taxes? That would explain it because the company might not have deducted enough.
Gas prices - well welcome to Europe LOL.
You get a small amount of money to study, that's equal for all, but you don't get a student loan unless you qualify for it.
If you're an outdoors person I really hope you took advantage of a very special right everyone has and it's unique. You have the right to hike, walk, bike, camp out so on and so on ANYWHERE. You can basically just stop anywhere and camp out.
Summers are short and can be cold but when it's great it's totally awesome. I thinnk last year or the year before was the warmest and sunniest summer in ages.
Where did you live by the way? I was born and raised in Göteborg (Gothenburg) on the west coast, second largest city in Sweden.
Overall I love Sweden. I love to visit. I could see myself spending a great deal more time there. However, as a working adult it's just not practical to live there given all the opportunities I have in the USA.
After he worked overtime and paid his taxes he got no money. I don't know exactly how that worked out and you have to keep in mind that this was 25 years ago. I know that in my case when I worked 12 hour shifts I got no overtime and quit. They thought I was crazy for working those extra hours. To me though the job needed to be done. That's a whole rant about work ethic though that I can get into later.
The 15% bill at the end of the year was just extra taxes I needed to pay since I don't think they deducted enough (Swedish: Restskatt). They were supposed to deduct 48% off the top. It might have been 10% though so don't quote me on the exact figure.
I think Sweden's outdoor property rights are great. Of course I had a blast with that. I made one mistake when I was younger though. I built a dam about 8 feet high and 7 feet across a drainage ditch and flooded an entire section of national forrest. My cousin wasn't too thrilled about that one. Took almost two days to drain after I broke the dam and it washed out the road.
I lived for the most part in Stockholm but spent my summers down by Malmo when I was a kid. I lived in Lund for about a month before getting really bored. I wasn't a student and you couldn't go to any parties unless you went to the university and had a student card.
StageLeft
No Lifer
- Sep 29, 2000
- 70,150
- 5
- 0
Some Americans are @*$#ing retards. I hear all too often how people in the US are free, as if everybody else in the world has secret police walking the streets. You're just as free to express yourself in Canada or the UK or France or dozens of other countries. There are many, many places in the world where the media is not government-run and where people elect their own leaders. Legally speaking, I think people in the US are less free than in Canada. There are some stupidly oppressive laws here, like about marijuana use. There is greater economic freedom, though, which is a prime reason why the US' economy is so powerful. I see the general public demanding more services from their government and things may become more socialist, which will give less agility to those who are more interested in determining their own financial future. But that's the fault of lazy people who'd rather have the gov't run things for them and it's unfortunate, but occuring in many countries.
I've opined at length on universal health care and Canada vs the US. Having lived in both countries, my opinion is that the the health care in the US is a key motivator in my staying here. Canada's health care is a travesty and I want no part of it. I can see a specialist for a fairly minor complain in 8 days (I've done it twice). I went in for mild knee pain, told the doc I wanted an MRI, and was in the machine 90 minutes later. In Canada I'd have waited months for the specialist and months again for the MRI. That is nonsense. I have good private health insurance. Poor people get screwed in both countries, but they aren't me or my family, so I'll look out for number one and do it properly down here!
Svnla
Lifer
- Nov 10, 2003
- 17,986
- 1,388
- 126
I live in the US for the last 20 years. I lived and traveled to other countries for a few years and here are some of my own opinions/obervations (so don't bash me if you don't agree):
US Pros:
Opportunities, I don't think there are any other countries that you can be something if you work hard as the US.
Freedom of speech, enough said.
Lots of land and open space, great for travel and you don't have to live like sardines (exceptions to NYC and similar big cities).
24 Hrs stores so you can buy almost everything at 2 a.m.
Cheap foods. I don't think there are any countries have cheaper day to day foods than the US. I think we pay the lowest price for daily foods (I could be wrong).
Guns. I don't think any other places on earth you can buy a gun so easy legally (exception to war torn countries but who wants to live there?).
People are more <generally> open to accept you as friends <exception to dumbass racists of course>.
US Cons:
Expensive healthcare.
Overconsumption, especially foods.
Sue anything/lack of accept responsibilities.
Wastes/throw away metality.
Strange view of sex/nudity. Why we are bother so much about nudity/sex but we have big problems with teenage pregnacy/STD/divorce.
Lack of culture/understand/knowledge of anything outside of the US. I am surprise that the average US citizen <not ATOT member> knows so little about other countries <generally speaking>.
US Pros:
Opportunities, I don't think there are any other countries that you can be something if you work hard as the US.
Freedom of speech, enough said.
Lots of land and open space, great for travel and you don't have to live like sardines (exceptions to NYC and similar big cities).
24 Hrs stores so you can buy almost everything at 2 a.m.
Cheap foods. I don't think there are any countries have cheaper day to day foods than the US. I think we pay the lowest price for daily foods (I could be wrong).
Guns. I don't think any other places on earth you can buy a gun so easy legally (exception to war torn countries but who wants to live there?).
People are more <generally> open to accept you as friends <exception to dumbass racists of course>.
US Cons:
Expensive healthcare.
Overconsumption, especially foods.
Sue anything/lack of accept responsibilities.
Wastes/throw away metality.
Strange view of sex/nudity. Why we are bother so much about nudity/sex but we have big problems with teenage pregnacy/STD/divorce.
Lack of culture/understand/knowledge of anything outside of the US. I am surprise that the average US citizen <not ATOT member> knows so little about other countries <generally speaking>.
TRENDING THREADS
-
Discussion Zen 5 Speculation (EPYC Turin and Strix Point/Granite Ridge - Ryzen 9000)- Started by DisEnchantment
- Replies: 25K
-
Discussion Intel Meteor, Arrow, Lunar & Panther Lakes + WCL Discussion Threads
- Started by Tigerick
- Replies: 22K
-
News NVIDIA and Intel to Develop AI Infrastructure and Personal Computing Products- Started by poke01
- Replies: 388
-
Discussion Intel current and future Lakes & Rapids thread- Started by TheF34RChannel
- Replies: 23K
Facebook
Twitter