What are Americans missing - part 2

Ok I read through that thread and decided it needed a bit of levity.  Here's my top 20.

So what do I think Americans are missing?  (some are serious some of humor)

1)   Milk delivered to your door.  (Why can't I get him to deliver to my house?)
2)   The joys of driving on roundabouts and roundabouts with roundabouts.
3)   Shopping centers that close at 5:30.
4)   Target, Walmart, Lowe's and any huge big box retailers.  (But that appears to be changing.)
5)   All the fresh foods at the grocery store!
6)   Multi-culturalism in the sense that you'll interact with many different people from different countries who still hold onto and maintain many/most of their original culture.
7)   Cheap travel to Europe.
   Carrying an umbrella or wearing a raincoat regularly.
9)   Paying horrid prices for everything.
10) Sharing a bathroom with the entire family.
11) Walking as transportation and what wonderful exercise walking is!
12) Walking as in strolling.  (I have to admit I don't walk to the train in the mornings, I stroll, it's a great way to start the day!)
13) The joys of driving on roundabouts and roundabouts with roundabouts.
14) The fact that there is more than one coffee house choice.  Hey Starbucks you've got competition here!
15) No electric outlets in the bathroom.  (If I trip over the cord to my wife's hairdryer one more time...)
16) All the different types of light sockets you have to deal with.  We have 4 in our house.
17) The joy of driving on roundabouts and roundabouts with roundabouts.
18) The joy of a packed train in the summer when it seems like NO ONE except you took a bath in the last 5 days!
19) The pleasure of missing your train as you took too long on your stroll to the train station.
20) The joy of driving on roundabouts and roundabouts with roundabouts.

Part 2. lol

I do have a question...I am the one who started the thread that was "locked" and feel very disappointed that this action was taken.  I felt there was some great information on that thread.  While at times some of the postings were a bit childish and immature, the topic I believe was a very valuable one that was producing some constructive feed back as well as insightful thought.  Not everyone can and does make the transition to another culture with ease and find the pot of gold or rainbows and butterflies they had hoped to find.  It is from these individuals experiences as well as those who do find whatthey want and transition well that aid those of us in that transitioning phase learn.  Many of the things that some posted that they saw as negatives are areas that I wonder about and wonder how I will deal with the transition in acclimating my self into a new culture.  The childish name calling I can do without but I skip over those posts and move on to read what i want and leave out the rest. 
So here is the question...since we are all suppose to be adults here, can someone please tell me why posts are  locked and censored?  I assure you I am not looking for a brew ha ha, I have only been on this forum for a bit over a month and have learned a lot already but really fail to see the point in locking a thread thatwas providing a lot of constructive and insightful information.

Great post, Catamount! I was trying to figure out a way to re-start the topic without any controversy and you've done it for me! Kudos!

Nanaday, why don't you PM Mindy and discuss with her the "lock-out". She can probably give you her reasons better than anyone else can.

What I don't understand is why people can't just LET IT GO! 

If you want to start this topic up again, that's great.  I agree it was an interesting topic.  But if you have a question about the actions of a moderator, please take it up in PMs.

But really, I think I made it pretty clear why the topic was locked.  Despite repeated requests to stop the bickering and stay on topic people insisted on name calling and arguing.  First of all this brings the tone of the entire forum down, second it descends into personal attacks and arguments that go on for months(even years) and thirdly, sometimes as a person I have better things to do and more pressing demands on my time than to have to trawl through three pages of arguments telling grown people to stop being mean to each other.   Because what you don't see is the pm's and the report to mods where people are requesting that I do something!  So, at the end of the day, I sometimes give up and say, well if you can't discuss it without fighting then I'll lock it down.  Especially if it's descended into one person against everybody else and it's a lot of this is what I said and this is what I think you said. 
I don't like shutting topics down any more than you like having them shut down, but if it's nothing but a bicker fest then I will. 

Now, feel free to discuss the original topic, BUT if it strays off into an argument or if it descends into discussing the shut down of the first topic then I will shut it down again.

  I felt there was some great information on that thread. 

The 'great information' is still there.
Anyone who wants to go back and read it, can still do so.

maybe would be best to be moved to Pettifog ??

What I find quite interesting is the fact that no matter how much exorcising you do in a heated post and it gets locked there is still that residual ill contempt (for the lack of a better word) that just will manifests it's self in another thread about I dunno ...rabbits or parallel parking or something.


sorry went off topic there I've nursing a JD hangover....

that just will manifests it's self in another thread about I dunno ...rabbits or parallel parking or something.

I'm pro-rabbit, but strongly anti-parallel parking.

maybe would be best to be moved to Pettifog ??

I would have shut the thread down in Pettifog as well, just as Mindy did.  The discussion had run its course and degenerated.

What I find quite interesting is the fact that no matter how much exorcising you do in a heated post and it gets locked there is still that residual ill contempt (for the lack of a better word) that just will manifests it's self in another thread about I dunno ...rabbits or parallel parking or something.

Yes, it does seem to happen that way.  Even though I'm sure everyone here wishes that it wouldn't.  I guess there are some people who really think it's important to argue with a stranger and hold a grudge.

   The joys of driving on roundabouts and roundabouts with roundabouts.

Catamount, please explain for this American. 

Thanks!

Pettifog was created so that the topics would not turn up in google searches, hence why invisible to guests, and to prevent trolls that join just to flame in the discussions. It is not an "anything goes" board.

Things have gotten a bit out of hand recently with a couple of threads, and moderators requests to stay on topic and keep the insults to PMs were largely ignored.    I'd like to take a moment to remind people of the Moderation Procedures explained fully, as we don't want to have to start issuing warnings.

Catamount, please explain for this American.

Thanks!

Those would be double roundabouts and triple roundabouts. About halfway down the page here: http://www.slowtrav.com/uk/instructions/driving.htm

Mini roundabouts, totally useless!

Aha, traffic circles. Have them where I'm from (New Orleans) and they're an enormous PITA! Thanks for the help, Leah.

What's this about different sockets (4 types in Catamount's house)? Are the prongs different so the appliance/lamp/whatever has to be refitted with a new socket? Can you just buy adaptors? Are they expensive?

You're better off just buying a new lamp/appliance, etc. In my experience, it's too risky using adaptors. My poor dad blew his video camera charger up when he came to visit. Now he's not so keen to return! (I'm sure others though can give better advice...)

The sockets here have 3 prongs, not two like the US.

I'm pro-rabbit, but strongly anti-parallel parking.

LOL!!