What are Brits missing?

I actually think the opposite is true.  While I agree that women miss their families and friends I believe they're much better at seeking out and even forming new support networks(like this forum).  Which is why I think it's much more common for women to make the move and to succeed in living as expats.  I know a lot of multi-cultural families and by and large it's the women who've made the move. 

That could also be because the man had the steady good paying job.  I my case, I had the steady well paying job and my DH came to the US to live with me.  He enjoys being a kept man and is much better at making friends than me.  It all an individual thing.  If things had been different, we would have move to the UK in a heart-beat, I still hope we can move over there someday.

With respect, this is something that particularly bothers me about the US....

Personally, the politics and policies of Mexico are of greater interest to me than those of most European countries.  It's all about what more directly affects you in your day to day life.

One of the US freedoms I'm talking about is to speak out publicly against the government / freedom of speech and freedom to have what is said in the news.

--If I was to be 100% honest, I would say that a major factor, but of course not the only one, of my decision to move here is that I feel that this freedom no longer truly exists in the US. And especially not freedom of the press. And even more especially the freedom of assembly.

I love the US though, mostly for some of the people you meet there, and its sheer beauty. I love its size, its confusion and self-invention. I love the big, messy cities with all their rust and peeling rotten paper. I love the diversity, yet this great national unity under the mass media. I hate the winters in most states I've ever visited or lived in, and I'll be damned if I ever go back to Texas in the summer again. I hate all the litter everywhere.

Here in Britain, even though I've just arrived less than a year ago and work a skanky job and live in a less than ideal flat, I'm as happy as a clam. I'm in love with the UK, having a sort of a whirlwind affair with it at the moment. I don't exactly fit in, but for the most part I feel more welcome here than I ever did 'back home.' I love the amazing physical beauty of the land around here, and I love all the subtle signs that this is an ancient culture. I love seeing the scars of WWII. I love the totally unfettered television.

I love the NHS. Right before Xmas I broke my arm and crushed the nerve that controlled most of its functions, leaving it pretty much paralyzed for 3 months, and the NHS picked me right back up. Never paid a pence, except for my NHS contributions and a nominal fee for some very serious prescription painkillers. Was never asked to produce a single piece of ID, either, throughout the entire 3 month healing process. NHS got me out of work for 11 weeks, for which my job (which I'd only had for 3 months!) paid me twice a month and I never had to worry about not being able to pay rent. The same job has also given me 5 weeks full time holiday pay (which I used for two trips back the US) even though I've been there less than a year. This isn't special treatment, this is the standard, and this is what any British citizen gets. In the States, without a hefty monthly insurance deduction coming out of my paycheck, I would have been in big trouble when I messed up my arm. And I would never get enough vacation pay - or time off work, even - to leave the country and cross the Atlantic twice in one year.

But like in the US, the cities in the UK I know best* (save for central London, which must have legions of cleaners about, or perhaps because of its importance and regality people just might feel like dirty sinners for fouling it) have an appalling amount of litter everywhere. I just don't know how someone can drop that amount of rubbish on the street and still face themselves in the mirror-be they American, British, Mexican or whatever-and still be able to look themselves in the mirror. At least in The States, if someone is a litter-bug, they usually dress the part. But here in the UK, I've seen some quite posh folks unload the most unlikely refuse on the public streets. Mention it, and just as in the US you are told, 'Well, that's someone's job to pick that up (meant to imply that said job would not exist and another person would go hungry if I don't leave my wrappers everywhere; this is how I contribute to society).'

My fantasy is to live in a nation with no litter, no hunger, no racism, and an impenetrable US-style Bill of Rights, that has never in history attacked or invaded another sovereign country. Until I find that place I'll keep living out my happy life right here in the UK!


(sorry to have meandered so, this is a topic that occupies my thoughts for a significant portion of every day!)

--If I was to be 100% honest, I would say that a major factor, but of course not the only one, of my decision to move here is that I feel that this freedom no longer truly exists in the US. And especially not freedom of the press. And even more especially the freedom of assembly.

I love the US though, mostly for some of the people you meet there, and its sheer beauty.

Well said.  I completely agree with all of this (section quoted).  I am still struggling with several aspects of my move to the UK -- fitting in, making friends, etc -- but yes, I definitely feel a lot freer to speak my mind & the press is immeasurably better here.

Extremely well put, Jimfat!!!

It's all about what more directly affects you in your day to day life.

And that still sort of scares me.... I mean look at global warming (we'll pick a subject that's in the news right now to make it easy) - I don't live in the US or China but they are huge contributors to the problem and aren't doing anything about it. That may not truly affect my day to day life but I think people who don't care about it for that reason are foolish. And I'm afraid I can't really say "to each his own" on this particular subject because we all live on the same planet and I for one am quite frightened that people's actions in other countries are destroying it. I don't think it could be any more important to at least try to know what's going on in the world, how other countries operate, and to care about what's happening outside of your own backyard.

I guess at the end of the day, for me where I live is a personal choice to make me happiest, but I've never ever ever thought of the world in terms of solidarity to/within one single country or even two. I'm remembering a hippie bumper sticker back home. Hopster come on, join me in saying it 'cause it was all over the Bay Area: "Think Globally, Act Locally."

Hey Jimfat - good post.  Glad you are enjoying London.

A bit off topic, but the litter problem here really upsets me too.  It's probably worse in London than elsewhere in the UK, but it is amazing how many people here drop litter and leave mess everywhere they go.  I think there are probably lots of reasons why it's so bad:

- the 'me' first selfish attitude of too many people
- the attitude that someone else will pick it up
- the idea that it just doesn't matter
- the lack of respect for public space
- people eating on the go (something you NEVER see in France for example, where to eat on the go is considered very trashy)
- the fear people have of telling someone off for dropping litter
- cutbacks by Councils on street cleaning
- lack of bins
- lack of education on the part of central and local Government

Anyway, whatever the reasons, if you feel like doing something about it, have a look at www.encams.org, which runs the Keep Britain Tidy campaign.

Call your local Council, I did and they installed a new bin at the end of the street and the litter problem has virtually disappeared.

And in that theme -- I get really irritated by people who think it's perfectly acceptable (in the US, UK, or anywhere) to flick their cigarette butts here, there & everywhere.  I live on one of my town's main thoroughfares -- and our front garden is *always* littered with cigarette butts (we don't smoke!) and other random bits of rubbish.  My garden is not a public ashtray!

Where we now live (Canterbury) the council is really good at keeping the city clean.  I have seen their guys outside at all hours picking up debris, even 6am on Sundays! We do pay a lot of council tax here though but I suppose it's worth it to live somwhere that's always clean and tidy.

our front garden is *always* littered with cigarette butts (we don't smoke!) and other random bits of rubbish.  My garden is not a public ashtray!

Ours is the same and it's quite irritating. Our town in general is quite tidy, so I think I've narrowed the problem down to our rubbish collectors, ironically. A foot crew arrives first and piles all of the sacks on the pavement near our house (we live on a close and the big truck can't get down it and turn around). So in between this big pile being made and the truck arriving to collect it, bits from bags that haven't been tightly tied fall out and blow into the garden. It's VERY irritating. The cigarette butts are another huge irritation for us and must come from people walking down the street smoking and then flicking their filters away. 

Ours is the same and it's quite irritating. Our town in general is quite tidy, so I think I've narrowed the problem down to our rubbish collectors, ironically. A foot crew arrives first and piles all of the sacks on the pavement near our house (we live on a close and the big truck can't get down it and turn around). So in between this big pile being made and the truck arriving to collect it, bits from bags that haven't been tightly tied fall out and blow into the garden. It's VERY irritating.

Do you have the same binmen as me???   
I hate coming home from work on a Thursday just to see all the bits of rubbish they left behind.  What makes it worse is when the wind picks up, cause then it's all over our land. 

Our binmen got into a dispute w/Council over pay, and the refuse went uncollected for a fortnight.  Then the Council had to pay extra exterminators b/c the rodent problem got out of control.  Go figure!

He will definitely not miss the shabbiness/dirtiness. In the US there are some horribly trashy parts of the country, but they really are isolated (except for the cig. butt issue which is a problem all over...most people don't think butts and chewed gum are "trash") where as here in the UK I have found the clean areas to be the isolated exceptions. It is really sad, because I am living in the NE of England where many outstanding places of natural beauty are located. In an earlier post some one mentioned that it is not just the "lower-class city dwellers"" who are guilty of littering, and I have found that to be true. I was sitting in a McDonald's looking out the window while my kids were eating happy meals and a Mercedes pulled through the drive thru...they stopped afterwards and threw out onto the ground the remaining coupon book and burger wrappers...apparently didn't want to muck up their interior. Every day the kids and I walk through littered streets on the way to school. At first my twins kept wanting to stop and pick up the trash...after teaching them to not do that (without gloves or something!) I noticed that they now ask if they can throw their wrappers into the bushes etc...it is a struggle. When I see kids throwing wrappers and cans on the ground I ask them to throw them into the nearest bin...and have gotten a few nasty looks from moms standing nearby.

He also won't miss terraced housing (unless he is really frugal like my hubby and like being in the middle of terraced housing for heating purposes!) where everyone can hear your business during the summer and the windows are open. (Or peep out at you in your back garden.)

He won't miss how inefficient the government agencies are set up. Everything takes longer here. Most agencies are not set up logically.

He won't miss the NHS. For minor health problems I have found the NHS to be fine...but, it worries me that breast cancer detection and treatment is so lousy...and they are trying to get treatment start dates for other cancers to start sooner (what is it? treatment to start within 65 days after diagnosis or something?) I just don't understand that at all. Won't get into the lousy dental care I have received...especially the nonexistent care for my just turned 5 year-olds. Their dentist was quite defensive...said that US insurance companies just want to make money on preventative care when it isn't really needed for children...their teeth are going to fall out anyway! And another peeve about NHS is the lack of preventative/early diagnosis in having paps every two years instead of one and starting mammograms at a later age. NHS is NOT "free." I wonder if private insurance in the US really costs much more than our NHS contribution when you factor in the quality of care.

Well...there are many good things here and there, but you asked for some of the things he won't be missing if moving to the US, so I've thrown out a few...(won't get started on the roundabouts...I hate accelerating to cruising speed just to have to stop to go around another roundabout...over and over!)


Most everything else for me is a matter of preference, not life and death. Someone said that home is where you make it (or something like that) and that is perfectly true.

I wonder if private insurance in the US really costs much more than our NHS contribution when you factor in the quality of care.

It absolutely doesn't. Especially if you've had anything even vaguely wrong with you in the past. My brother has had trouble with benign cysts in his ear for several years - not cancer but very painful and affecting his hearing. Because it's been a problem before, he pays an absolute fortune in insurance - thousands - and he's self-employed and doesn't make much money so has to pay the whole thing himself with no employer to help. Then to slap him in the face a bit harder, he needed a catscan recently as they were worried about the ear again and after his insurance's contribution he still owed about $3,000 on top of his insurance premium.

Well...there are many good things here and there, but you asked for some of the things he won't be missing if moving to the US, so I've thrown out a few...(won't get started on the roundabouts...I hate accelerating to cruising speed just to have to stop to go around another roundabout...over and over!

Again, must defend the old roundabout. I thought I'd go insane the last time I was in the US because of constantly stopping in traffic that was backed up because of stop lights - I never really noticed it before since I didn't have a comparison, but now 4-way intersections drive me INSANE.

 Sorry - don't mean to pick Geally - I'm just grumpy and crampy and bored today. 

He won't miss the NHS.

I think he probably will miss this... it will more than likely be what he was brought up with, and what he is used to.  He will be shocked at having to shell out $50 or more (i have no idea how much it costs) for a quick visit to the doctors surgery.

 Sorry - don't mean to pick Geally - I'm just grumpy and crampy and bored today.

I'm very grumpy too...horrid weather!

Sorry to hear about your brother's insurance problems. I mentioned the reasons I thought the NHS is not as good as private insurance from my own point of view (the dental care we have (n't) received here and some frustrating long waits for diagnostic tests for my husband etc. It seems like if we're paying quite a bit in NHS contributions, we ought to have access to health/dental care.) Not that there haven't been horrible insurance problems in the US. To be fair, I have always been in a situation where my employer has picked up all or some of the premiums. My parents are self-employed, they have large premiums for just the two of them...but my dad has had several medical emergencies...I am wondering if he would still be here if not for early diagnosis. Just like my cousin who was diagnosed with breast cancer at an early age and started treatment in just a few days time...what if she had had to wait more than two months? I'm not a physician, so I am not sure if that is horrendously long to wait.

As far as the roundabout...(don't get me started...especially about who should have the right of way etc!) compared to driving daily in a US city with lots of lights (which I have never had to do) perhaps they are preferable? They have been a huge source of irritation to me here. There are definitely places that I've seen where they have been put to good use, but many times they aren't even needed.

And Otterpop...again, I was talking about specifics of major medical care under NHS doctors/hospitals vs. the US. Perhaps I shouldn't have said the NHS itself as an institution, but at the quality of medical/dental care given in outstanding situations.

Extremely well put, Jimfat!!!

Hopster come on, join me in saying it 'cause it was all over the Bay Area: "Think Globally, Act Locally."

Definitely with you there, Anne!   (is our darling Governor helping this at all?)