Posts by expatbrit

That's true. People who tend to dislike encountering different experiences and the unfamiliar will often react negatively to the culture of another place and compare it unfavourably to their own country. Most immigrants I've met (including myself) go through a bit of this to one extent or another because of the magnitude of starting a new life from scratch. ("What the f**** do you mean, retake a driving test? I'm British, damnit!")

On the other hand people who tend to enjoy different experiences will overcome this reaction fairly quickly and "throw themselves into" the new country, as it were, viewing the new experiences as enrichments to their lives rather than threats to their nativity. Again, it depends on the person a lot rather than the country.

Having said that, Celine Dion is still unforgivable.

Expatbrit

78

A question for those who do NOT live in the United States

by logansrun in

jw
friends

i've heard it over and over again in conversations about the us -- "what other country would you rather live in?

" the question is stated in such a fashion as to say that nothing is better than living in the good 'ol us of a.

"what, are you stupid?

expatbrit

I lived in the UK until I was 24, and since then have lived in Canada (ten years this year). The question "do you prefer living in England or Canada?" is one I've been asked many times.

It's an unanswerable question. Despite the British roots of Canada and the shared institutions and values, it's still comparing apples and oranges. The best response I've been able to come up with is that there are many things about Canada I like, and a few I dislike, and that living in the UK was much the same.

This has lead me to the conclusion that if you live in an advanced Western country, whether or not you will like living there depends mostly upon you, and not upon the country. You can dwell excessively upon the negatives and lead yourself to the belief that the US/Canada/UK etc. is a rotten place. You can dwell entirely upon the good things, and delude yourself into thinking that the US/Canada/UK etc. is utopia and that everyone else doesn't know what they are missing, poor suffering devils. Or, you can try and achieve a balanced viewpoint taking into account the good and the bad, and realising that there are many many wonderful things about the US/Canada/UK etc., but that there are failings too, although the good tend to outweigh the bad by a significant proporation.

I was happy living in England. I am happy living in Canada. I could be happy living in the US.

If you are unhappy living in the US/Canada/Uk etc, you are unlikely to be happier somewhere else.

As far as your second question Bradley, I view America as a generally positive influence in the world. It has failed and done bad things, like every other country, but overall the contribution has been siginificantly positive. The world is a better place for the existence of the US.

Expatbrit

132

1 In 3 Britons Think Bush Is Stupid Says Poll

by minimus in

i wonder why???

?

expatbrit

I'd be shocked if GW knows how to turn on a computer!

Smart and successful people have people to do that sort of thing for them.

Expatbrit

32

Good 'ol United States style TERRORISM

by logansrun in

just the tip of the iceburg....

a brief (and partial) history of us sponsored terrorism abroad

1946 - u.s. opens school of the americas in panama.

expatbrit

If someone pokes me because I poked them it makes sense that if I stop poking them they will stop poking me.

Well actually Bradley, if you're involved in a pokefest and you stop poking, it's far more likely that the other party will club you around the head and steal your wallet, regardless of who started the poking first.

This is human nature. We are predatory animals, and conflict is our default state.

Expatbrit

p.s. I'm rather glad you're getting all this naive idealism out of your system in your 20's. There's nothing more pitiful than a 50-something socialist with a grey ponytail.

15

I am just curious... Is there any studies/statistics that back up that Bush

by Country Girl in

is in there for the oil?

i am, unfortunately, a middle of the road libertarian married to a hard core republican.

unfortunately, i am stupid enough that i have nothing to back this up, i just feel it, which is the unfortunate inheritance of sensitive people.

expatbrit

Country Girl:

If oil was the reason for the war, the Americans would have invaded Saudi Arabia, with its far larger reserves and state of the art facilities, not Iraq, with its clapped out facilities and lower potential.

The economics do not support the "war for oil". For good summaries as to why, see The Economist of Sept 12, 2002 "Don't Mention The O-Word" and January 23, 2003 "All About Oil?". Pre-war articles which post-war events have shown to be sensible evaluations. The local library should have copies.

Expatbrit

7

DISCO! . . . . . shake your groove thing, shake your groove thing, oh yeah!

by nicolaou in

jw
friends

below is a cut & paste of a kingdom ministry service meeting outline from 24 years ago.

i swear i can remember this exact meeting.

i was 15 at the time and could not belieeeeve what i was hearing!.

expatbrit

Those articles were written shortly after Freddie Franz' boardroom tabletop rendition of "Love To Love You Baby" met with stony silence from the rest of the GB.

Expatbrit

38

Country Quizzzzzz

by Xena in

jw
friends

what country are you...gonna lmao if simon takes this and is the us

http://bluepyramid.org/ia/cquiz.htm

you're thailand!.

expatbrit

You're Brazil!
You're athletic, charming, and probably a good dancer. Unfortunatley, you don't really mind chopping down the rain forest, and you probably consider homeless people expendable in certain circumstances. Of course, your personality is so diverse that it's hard to track down exactly what you're like. You definitely like Pele, the World Cup, and shouting "gooooal" at the top of your lungs.

20

Am I going insane?

by ballistic in

jw
friends

as some of you know, my main form of transport is a motorbike, and having just got a new one, i'm really enjoying it.

however, i find that in my local supermarket i have no advantage as to speed and maneuverability.

all the trolleys are the same.

expatbrit

Ballistic:

Just steal a trolley from Sainsbury's (better than Tesco's) and strap a 3 litre V6 engine from TVR on the underneath bit. This will give you the desired advantage in speed and manouverability, and there'll be no need for a flak cannon.

Expatbrit