What is the point of living in the US?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, you immigrated here. Do you often do "pointless" things?

I immigrated when I was 22 years old. It's not like I was thinking about real estate, kids, schools, etc. If I knew what I know now, I would never come here.

Which country do you believe would be better?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, you immigrated here. Do you often do "pointless" things?

I immigrated when I was 22 years old. It's not like I was thinking about real estate, kids, schools, etc. If I knew what I know now, I would never come here.

At 22 you didn't think about a house and kids in your future? Pretty dumb for a 22 year old.

So you were researching real estate listings and commute times and school ratings at 22? Really?

Who thinks about kids at 22?! Im was trying to get free drinks at the bar.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OMG - please leave if you hate this country so much. Grass ain't greener in these other countries, in many cases.

Don't let the door hit you on the way out!

Sounds about white.

[Anonymous]

Higher earning potential
Cheaper real estate
A lot of land and space
Access to latest and greatest healthcare treatments and technology
Great military protection
Variety in terrain and environment
Solid infrastructure
Less red tape than many other western countries
Government mostly leaving you alone

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am an immigrant, so the question is highly relevant to me. The real estate is so expensive that it entirely negates the point of earning high salaries. Schools are garbage, crime is rampant, nothing is walkable... once upon a time at least you could get a huge house to compensate for that. Not any more. I am now embarrassed to show tiny old houses with low ceilings and vinyl siding that go for million+.

I moved here for my American husband from London. My life is so much better here than had I stayed in London. I love to go visit and love the UK, but it is bloody expensive and job opportunities are not early as good as here. I'm also very grateful for my private health insurance here. My poor mother had to wait 5 years for a knee replacement and could not even walk for the last 3. The NHS is so incredibly broken.

Crickets from DCUM! I’m sorry to hear that, and I hope your mum is doing well now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am an immigrant, so the question is highly relevant to me. The real estate is so expensive that it entirely negates the point of earning high salaries. Schools are garbage, crime is rampant, nothing is walkable... once upon a time at least you could get a huge house to compensate for that. Not any more. I am now embarrassed to show tiny old houses with low ceilings and vinyl siding that go for million+.

I moved here for my American husband from London. My life is so much better here than had I stayed in London. I love to go visit and love the UK, but it is bloody expensive and job opportunities are not early as good as here. I'm also very grateful for my private health insurance here. My poor mother had to wait 5 years for a knee replacement and could not even walk for the last 3. The NHS is so incredibly broken.

Crickets from DCUM! I’m sorry to hear that, and I hope your mum is doing well now.

I'll add that a friend of mine who lives in London recently gave birth and had to share a room with SIX OTHER new moms & their newborns during her hospital stay. SIX. Here we have a hissy fit if you have to share with one other new mom. It sounds so unbelievably awful and unrestful. You're exhausted and dealing with all of the post partum factors that really require some privacy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am an immigrant, so the question is highly relevant to me. The real estate is so expensive that it entirely negates the point of earning high salaries. Schools are garbage, crime is rampant, nothing is walkable... once upon a time at least you could get a huge house to compensate for that. Not any more. I am now embarrassed to show tiny old houses with low ceilings and vinyl siding that go for million+.

I moved here for my American husband from London. My life is so much better here than had I stayed in London. I love to go visit and love the UK, but it is bloody expensive and job opportunities are not early as good as here. I'm also very grateful for my private health insurance here. My poor mother had to wait 5 years for a knee replacement and could not even walk for the last 3. The NHS is so incredibly broken.

Crickets from DCUM! I’m sorry to hear that, and I hope your mum is doing well now.

I'll add that a friend of mine who lives in London recently gave birth and had to share a room with SIX OTHER new moms & their newborns during her hospital stay. SIX. Here we have a hissy fit if you have to share with one other new mom. It sounds so unbelievably awful and unrestful. You're exhausted and dealing with all of the post partum factors that really require some privacy.

Here goes the nationalized healthcare. You get what you pay for. In India or China, women gave birth in the hospital corridor, and you get a tiny hotel for 1m dollars, breathing dirty air drinking polluted water. No thanks!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am an immigrant, so the question is highly relevant to me. The real estate is so expensive that it entirely negates the point of earning high salaries. Schools are garbage, crime is rampant, nothing is walkable... once upon a time at least you could get a huge house to compensate for that. Not any more. I am now embarrassed to show tiny old houses with low ceilings and vinyl siding that go for million+.

I moved here for my American husband from London. My life is so much better here than had I stayed in London. I love to go visit and love the UK, but it is bloody expensive and job opportunities are not early as good as here. I'm also very grateful for my private health insurance here. My poor mother had to wait 5 years for a knee replacement and could not even walk for the last 3. The NHS is so incredibly broken.

Crickets from DCUM! I’m sorry to hear that, and I hope your mum is doing well now.

I'll add that a friend of mine who lives in London recently gave birth and had to share a room with SIX OTHER new moms & their newborns during her hospital stay. SIX. Here we have a hissy fit if you have to share with one other new mom. It sounds so unbelievably awful and unrestful. You're exhausted and dealing with all of the post partum factors that really require some privacy.

Here goes the nationalized healthcare. You get what you pay for. In India or China, women gave birth in the hospital corridor, and you get a tiny hotel for 1m dollars, breathing dirty air drinking polluted water. No thanks!

* tiny apartment

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, you immigrated here. Do you often do "pointless" things?

I immigrated when I was 22 years old. It's not like I was thinking about real estate, kids, schools, etc. If I knew what I know now, I would never come here.

Which country do you believe would be better?

Crickets. Lol.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am an immigrant, so the question is highly relevant to me. The real estate is so expensive that it entirely negates the point of earning high salaries. Schools are garbage, crime is rampant, nothing is walkable... once upon a time at least you could get a huge house to compensate for that. Not any more. I am now embarrassed to show tiny old houses with low ceilings and vinyl siding that go for million+.

I moved here for my American husband from London. My life is so much better here than had I stayed in London. I love to go visit and love the UK, but it is bloody expensive and job opportunities are not early as good as here. I'm also very grateful for my private health insurance here. My poor mother had to wait 5 years for a knee replacement and could not even walk for the last 3. The NHS is so incredibly broken.

Crickets from DCUM! I’m sorry to hear that, and I hope your mum is doing well now.

I'll add that a friend of mine who lives in London recently gave birth and had to share a room with SIX OTHER new moms & their newborns during her hospital stay. SIX. Here we have a hissy fit if you have to share with one other new mom. It sounds so unbelievably awful and unrestful. You're exhausted and dealing with all of the post partum factors that really require some privacy.

Maybe YOU would have a hissy fit, but you're on DCUM so we already knew that.

You ask the average American if they'd rather spend one night in a room with 6 other people or get a $30,000 bill for their private room and I guarantee you I know what most people will answer.

[Anonymous]

The "American Dream" is just a fantasy sold to others abroad and here. The US is really a backwards country

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Look, don't get me wrong - I love this country and everything it ostensibly stands for. This idea that your identity is tied to an idea vs a race, ethnicity, or place of origin really is a beautiful thing. But - we have massive problems. The gun violence is just insane and no developed country with the resources we have should tolerate it. I know almost everyone who posts here would probably support policy changes to help curb it, but that's not the country we live in.
The creeping autocracy is also quite concerning. I follow international politics pretty closely, and while you do see some of this in other western countries - we are much further along. Look at Canada - yes the Conservatives have a wide base of support. But the fascist-adjacent, "Trumpy" part of the Canadian right, the People's Party, still only gets like 5-10% of the vote.

But some of this is also the case elsewhere, particularly the rise in populism.

Here's the reality - the US is a great place to be if you are very ambitious. It's unparalleled if you are smart, an entrepreneur, have a clear and focused goal, and are either already educated or can afford a U.S. college degree. But it is not a great place for everyone else. Content to be type B? Not for you. Want to work just to pay your bills and focus on enjoying your free time? Nope. Happen to get sick or disabled or have a financial crisis of any kind? Nada.

This is the most honest truth about the U.S.

I concur with above being the honest truth and will add that the US is by and large much more accepting of ‘others’ than many other developed countries. I think people would be surprised at how racist Australians can be (not to pick on Australian, but yes, to pick on Australia). Or how strict most other European counties are on immigration. It’s easy and fun to criticize America on the aggregate, but get down to the neighborhood, community level and there’s a lot to like. It’s summertime, and I have basically a model UN of kids hunting fireflies, chasing after the ice cream truck, and making up weird games on their bikes. Are their parents struggling and working long hours? Some of them, absolutely. Are they first and second generation immigrants? Many, yes. Do I use too many rhetorical questions? Probably. You can idolize the pensioner lifestyle in UK or Italy, but take a closer look and you’ll see it’s not all it’s cracked up to be, and also that their fortunes are inextricably tied to the success of America. At least the fate of retirees in America is tied directly to the success of America not to any one other country

Yep. There isn't a perfect country for everyone. Name a country and I'm sure we can all tear it apart.

I think what OP is really lamenting is just that it's not EASY to live in the US. And that is true. But its also true in most other places too, unless you are in the top income bracket.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What's with all the snide xenophobic comments? Gross.

The title of the thread is xenophobic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because no country is perfect or ideal. The US has many flaws. So do many European countries worshipped by self hating Americans.

This. Nobody in this thread is brainwashed. But try moving out of your little bubble to see that there are flaws everywhere. I live in the West Village of NYC. My neighborhood is beautiful, walkable, friendly, has some of the best restaurants in the world, and my kids go to amazing schools. New York City and the US also have a lot of problems like crime, gun violence, republicans, etc.

I also lived in London for 10 years. It had its share of beautiful qualities and a great quality of life and also its share of hardships and imperfections. I wouldn't move if someone offered me a flat in London just as I wouldn't expect someone who established a life in London to move in next door to me.

This is so funny: "New York City and the US also have a lot of problems like crime, gun violence, republicans, etc."
I cant.

The poster would rather be shot in the gut and have her house burned down than say hello to a republican.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am an immigrant, so the question is highly relevant to me. The real estate is so expensive that it entirely negates the point of earning high salaries. Schools are garbage, crime is rampant, nothing is walkable... once upon a time at least you could get a huge house to compensate for that. Not any more. I am now embarrassed to show tiny old houses with low ceilings and vinyl siding that go for million+.

I moved here for my American husband from London. My life is so much better here than had I stayed in London. I love to go visit and love the UK, but it is bloody expensive and job opportunities are not early as good as here. I'm also very grateful for my private health insurance here. My poor mother had to wait 5 years for a knee replacement and could not even walk for the last 3. The NHS is so incredibly broken.

Crickets from DCUM! I’m sorry to hear that, and I hope your mum is doing well now.

I'll add that a friend of mine who lives in London recently gave birth and had to share a room with SIX OTHER new moms & their newborns during her hospital stay. SIX. Here we have a hissy fit if you have to share with one other new mom. It sounds so unbelievably awful and unrestful. You're exhausted and dealing with all of the post partum factors that really require some privacy.

Maybe YOU would have a hissy fit, but you're on DCUM so we already knew that.

You ask the average American if they'd rather spend one night in a room with 6 other people or get a $30,000 bill for their private room and I guarantee you I know what most people will answer.

Most women aren’t receiving $30k bills for the birth of a child. C’mon. Yes, it can be a few thousand dollars but overall taxes are SO much lower here. Sorry but the quality of NHS healthcare is pretty bad. Way better to be on Medicaid in the US.