PLEASE NOTE. THIS IS NOT A POST THAT IS JUST BASHING AMERICANS AND AMERICA. THIS IS A POST TO TRY AND GET ACROSS THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN AMERICA AND EUROPE. I'VE NOTICED A LOT OF COMMENTS ON NEWS ARTICLES THAT SEEM REALLY UNEDUCATED AND IT REALLY IRRITATES ME. THIS IS SIMPLY FOR ME TO VENT AND SHOW THE OTHER SIDE TO THE ARGUMENT. PLEASE DO NOT TAKE ANYTHING SAID IN THIS IN OFFENCE.
Okay so I'm reading this article on CNN about how Americans barely have any vacation time and work a lot, and Europeans work but get good vacation time etc. The articles here.
But this one comment really irritated me:
'As people clamor for us to take on a European vacation mentality: Gas, $10.00 US per gallon, homes are much smaller and more expensive, effective tax rates are much higher. Getting full time jobs is much more difficult because of the benefit cost employers incur. But you get more vacation days than the Americans!'
And this one:
'I've traveled Europe, South America and Asia. I take it from your comment that you have not. With respect to standard of living, very very few countries top the U.S.'
It reaaaally annoys me when I read comments from Americans like this on CNN. Don't get me wrong, I know plenty of Americans won't hold this view, but I'm tired of hearing that they view Europe as a socialist almost communistic/fascist (cos that works out ¬_¬), cramped, expensive shitty continent that's always trying to impose its beliefs on America. Saying that we're a continent of poor health care because we pay tax for it, that we're all socialists just because we pay tax etc.
Well shockingly enough, we're not. Yes, I'll admit most of the European countries have socialist sympathies and we have this belief that we need to take care of everyone. And this may outrage some Americans, but I honestly think it's down to the fact that Europe is a very, very old continent with very old countries. We've learnt that this is a better way to gain a high standard of living. I know America has a good standard too, but it's different. In America if you can't afford to pay for it, you're not going to get it.
Yes, fuel in Europe is more expensive because of taxes. Yes we're outraged over it, but the simple fact is, our public transport service is light years ahead of the Americans. From what I've read and seen from my American friends, they have to drive everywhere, whereas our cities and towns have grown over centuries and centuries to be more compact, and the closeness of all the countries has resulted in an excellent public transport system. I'm sure the same can be said for Japan too.
Homes are smaller in Europe, because the countries are not as bloody big as America! According to one website Britain is twice the size of New York state. New York state is NOT that big. And consider this, the US has a population of well over 307,000,000. The UK's population is 61,000,000. A population that is around 20% of the US population, in an area that is 65% smaller than the US. Yes, we have small houses and they're cramped. We've got used to it though, we've had to have these for centuries. We can't have the grand big houses that Americans covet because the simple fact is, there isn't enough room for them in Europe!! We have houses that are considered big, we have stately homes that you can't really live in because they cost too much. Rich folks have mansions, but normal people? A good sized house is probably 3x smaller than an American house. That's what happens with these things.
Houses are expensive, along with other things, because the exchange rate is much higher! If my families ex-council terraced house was sold, it would be equivalent to around $200,000. Things are expensive here because that's just the way things are, inflation and so forth. We're used to it, but evidently Americans seem to view it as the end of the earth!
Taxes are high in Europe yes, because we have a much, much better welfare system than America does. Healthcare, unemployment benefits, incapacity benefits, the list goes on. I don't understand the American mentality that helping other people is on par with a criminal offence pretty much. The debate over health care was ridiculous over there, and it left so many Europeans baffled. Why the hatred over something that would benefit the people of their nation? Why is it just because someone earns money and can be helped if they get ill, then someone who is not as fortunate or who has a life threatening disease should be denied healthcare, just because the people paying taxes felt it was wrong? You'd be hard pressed to find a European who'd willingly not pay taxes to go towards healthcare, because as I've said many times before, you never know when you need it!
It may not be as good as American health care, but it's there and that's what matters! I never understand people here who complain about the health service. I feel like screaming at them that there are poor people in America who will never get surgery or go to the doctors when they're ill because they're afraid of how much it will cost or whether it will put them in debt! It makes me laugh when we complain about prescription charges here because I just think about Americans and feel humbled by it.
My mum and dad both get regular prescriptions, and if we had a system like America then we'd be in so much debt right now. My mum had glaucoma in her eye and had to have it removed, she has severe back problems that also requires medication and my dad also requires medication. My grandma had lymph node cancer and managed to recover, my grandma and granddad have angina and my granddad has had heart attacks before. My granddad who died had a brain tumour and lung cancer. And throughout it all, we got the best care we could get for completely free. Yes, free. We may pay much higher taxes for it, but if you just think of the sheer cost this would have been in America, we may as well have committed familial suicide.
Getting jobs is difficult? I don't know what this guy was on about but that's just a pile of crap. In a country of 61 million people we have around 2.05 million unemployed. That's not that bad. End of argument. And I don't know what he's on about benefit costs employers have to pay. Employers don't have to do anything, except for redundancy deals, sick pay etc. Not exactly back breaking and most employers don't really mind it. It's not that ridiculous.
Not many countries top the US in standards of living. Admittedly yes in 2010 at least. Only Norway, Australia and New Zealand topped them. But in the overall top 10, how many were European? 6. And in 2009? 8, the USA wasn't even in the top 10. Don't get me wrong by the way, because neither was the United Kingdom, but sometimes arrogance really irritates me.
The United States is NOT the best country in the world. Neither are the European countries. Whatever country you live in, that's what you view to be the best, but for goodness sakes at least do research before you slag off an entire continent! I love the USA, I love Americans. Everytime I hear one I get excited, I'm going to the USA for my academic year next year and I can't wait, but I really, really hate some of the pig headed, stubborn and arrogant Americans who comment on news websites and completely put down Europe. Please, if you're going to bitch about us, kindly come and visit us first!
We are not a bad continent, we are not all Stalin liberal, we are not mean spirited. We are European, we are proud of our heritage and we really, really do not like being constantly put down.
Just like Americans hate their stereotypes, so do we.
