Best place to live?

[Polythinia]

Switzerland or Germany.

[Alsium]

I don't believe in America, either.

Your loss. Really.

I do beleive in America and the American dream . . . with good reason. Family members of mine have lived it and really made it from nothing. It is no myth, and it re-enforces my admiration for the American way that the way these people suceeded could not have happend elsewhere.

The days of the American Dream are long gone. It's absoulte bullshit now.

[Virtud Tierra]

Finland is up on that list and it is the per-capita suicide capital of the world.

Finnish people, from my experiences in Europe, are just fucking weird enough to make this fact completely solid and obvious from what I've seen with Finnish people. I dunno about Norway, but I've heard it is has the welfare-state-self destruction cycle coupled with the Scandinavian tendency for heavy alcohol consumption and long hikes through the woods in overcast skies and that sort of mental imagery.

Yah. But they killed more Russians that smallpox tho'. That has to stand in their favor.

The Finnish? They are the only people in the world that are like Finns. Of course they killed untold hoards of Russians thats the only thing I can imagine happening with them. Kill a bunch of Russian, get conquored anyways.

This thing a Finnish guy said to me in a bar in Hamburg when I asked him about Finland's mandatory concription, when he was in the Army.

"Oh, that is the government's plan, the (reserve army) is just there so when the major cities are vaporized in some nuclear war and most people die, there is still one million people left to go and die in the swamps and forests."

That somehow summerized the cynical... Finn-Thought that these people have. They are nothing like other nations in Europe.

[Dazchan]

Australia is awesome.

That is all.

[Czardas]

I don't believe in America, either.

Your loss. Really.

I do beleive in America and the American dream . . . with good reason. Family members of mine have lived it and really made it from nothing. It is no myth, and it re-enforces my admiration for the American way that the way these people suceeded could not have happend elsewhere.

The days of the American Dream are long gone. It's absoulte bullshit now.

Well, no. The dream still exists.

[Callisdrun]

And yet, if a Canadian or a Mexican claimed to be "American", the same people who decry the use of the phrase "USian" - which I loathe on an aesthetic base, and prefer the term "US citizen" - would similarly jump on those people for 'insulting' their entitlement to it.

I'm going to go with no here. I can think of plenty of people who just detest USian because it is awkward and ugly yet who are quite happy for Mexicans to claim that they are also American.

That's my main objection to it. Aesthetically it's just awkward and silly sounding to say. American sounds much nicer and flows off the tongue. If other people from the continents of North America and South America want to use it to describe themselves, too, then whatever. I prefer the term Yankee/Yank or even Americunt to "USian."

[Peisandros]

Cabra how secure is your job in Ireland? I'm assuming considering you're still pretty happy with the country it must be pretty good. My Dad is from/lives in Ireland but is probably going to have to head ashore because jobs drying up, and he's in academia. With the economic recession hitting Ireland have you noticed a considerable difference?

[Cabra West]

Sorry to interrupt here, but the topic of the thread is "best place to live", not "what would you like people to call you".
We've had discussions about USian and not USian, it's been done to death if you ask me, but if you want to discuss it again, please make a thread for it. Thanks.

[Cabra West]

Cabra how secure is your job in Ireland? I'm assuming considering you're still pretty happy with the country it must be pretty good. My Dad is from/lives in Ireland but is probably going to have to head ashore because jobs drying up, and he's in academia. With the economic recession hitting Ireland have you noticed a considerable difference?

Couldn't be more secure... my company is moving to bigger premisses in November to accommodate newhires. We've had very good sales results last quarter, the income is up over 10% on the same quarter last year.

The thing about the Irish economy is that you tend to be most secure on the middle levels. The fiance of a colleague of mine is extremely highly qualified and can't for the life of him find a job at the moment, while I keep getting at least 2 calls a month from employment agencies wanting to know if I'm still looking for a job and making offers.
So I can't say I've personally felt a negative impact from the recession, but I know some people definitely have.

[Barringtonia]

I just come back to Hong Kong again - it's certainly up there and it's also winning a CNN survey as 'Most Amazing City in the World' poll.

Easy to set up business, very low taxes, very high broadband penetration, mostly dual-language, 70% of land is natural park reserves, since the recession closed some 100, 000 factories in Guangzhou pollution is better - we have world class beaches, an amazing public transport system - actually, I just learned there's only 400, 000 private cars in HK, out of a population of 7 million, not bad and, genuinely testament to such a good public transport system.

Ultimately, even for HKs detractions, I'm just a big believer in city states, I just think they're very effective. So that brings me down, to be fair, to Singapore - which can be a bit Stepford Wives - Monaco - which is what it is - and Vatican City.

Ultimately I just think more of the world should be city states - the only issue is common defense.

[Callisdrun]

My home used to be a great place to live.

[Polythinia]

I just come back to Hong Kong again - it's certainly up there and it's also winning a CNN survey as 'Most Amazing City in the World' poll.

Easy to set up business, very low taxes, very high broadband penetration, mostly dual-language, 70% of land is natural park reserves, since the recession closed some 100, 000 factories in Guangzhou pollution is better - we have world class beaches, an amazing public transport system - actually, I just learned there's only 400, 000 private cars in HK, out of a population of 7 million, not bad and, genuinely testament to such a good public transport system.

Ultimately, even for HKs detractions, I'm just a big believer in city states, I just think they're very effective. So that brings me down, to be fair, to Singapore - which can be a bit Stepford Wives - Monaco - which is what it is - and Vatican City.

Ultimately I just think more of the world should be city states - the only issue is common defense.

Yeah, that's why I lived there for seven years.

[Cabra West]

Another question related to this topic : How can you determine which is the best place to live if you've only ever lived in one place?

[The Isle of Biscay]

I don't really think that index denotes a good indication of best place to live, it's too generalised. The best place to live can depend heavily on your socio-economic status as well, so being poor in the USA is much worse than being poor in Sweden, but being rich in the US is far better than being rich in Sweden (speaking very generally here).

I firmly believe you should judge a country by its worst-off citizens. Hence America sucks compared to many other developed nations.

[Callisdrun]

Another question related to this topic : How can you determine which is the best place to live if you've only ever lived in one place?

Traveling.

[Cabra West]

Another question related to this topic : How can you determine which is the best place to live if you've only ever lived in one place?

Traveling.

Well, yes and no. I've traveled quite a bit, and I've lived in several countries. I think traveling makes for great experiences and memories, but it doesn't really give you an idea on what a place is like to live in.

[Alexlantis]

I live in the USA and I'm damn well proud. I'd love to leave the country to visit, but America's my homeland. I grew up being taught all about the American revolution and Abe Lincoln. Plus, whenever I didn't eat my vegetables, my mom would give me the "starving kids in some faraway country" speech. Since I was four and had not yet developed a way for me to ship the food all the way to the faroff land I couldn't see on the family globe, I was forced to eat vegetables. Even at that age, I could tell I was well off compared to alot of people in the world. So, um, yeah. Go USA!

Not meaning to criticise or anything, but you do know that mums all over the world will use that phrase to feed their kids?

Considering that my mom had to use that phrase to get me to eat them instead of me begging for any morsel of food I could get, I'm pretty happy I at least have that. Plus, America has some of the best in music (with the UK coming in real close)

[Bottle]

Which country do you think is the best place to live at the moment?
I recently stumbled upon this : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_Human_Development_Index, and it made me wonder. Apparently, I made a very good choice by living in Ireland.
Do you agree with the ranking your place of residence received? Would you consider moving to a better country?

I would (and have) considered living in another country, but what mainly stops me is the desire to be close to my family. I already feel like I live too far from my parents and I'm only a three hour flight from them.

Of course, I could live far closer to them if I moved to the right area of Canada...

[Cabra West]

...Plus, America has some of the best in music (with the UK coming in real close)

That's a matter of taste, I would say. You couldn't pay me enough to listen to some of the things US Americans call "music".

[Cabra West]

I would (and have) considered living in another country, but what mainly stops me is the desire to be close to my family. I already feel like I live too far from my parents and I'm only a three hour flight from them.

Of course, I could live far closer to them if I moved to the right area of Canada...

Hehe... I acutally regard it as an additional plus, having a bit of ocean between me and what passes as my family

[Alexlantis]

...Plus, America has some of the best in music (with the UK coming in real close)

That's a matter of taste, I would say. You couldn't pay me enough to listen to some of the things US Americans call "music".

Like what? Can I have a few examples?

[Halluci Bunny]

Sorry if i sound pompous or anything but isn't the definition of best is an individual viewpoint that varies from one person to another.

Though, out of all the countries i have lived in i definitely prefer Thailand over all others.

[Aelosia]

I live in the USA and I'm damn well proud. I'd love to leave the country to visit, but America's my homeland. I grew up being taught all about the American revolution and Abe Lincoln. Plus, whenever I didn't eat my vegetables, my mom would give me the "starving kids in some faraway country" speech. Since I was four and had not yet developed a way for me to ship the food all the way to the faroff land I couldn't see on the family globe, I was forced to eat vegetables. Even at that age, I could tell I was well off compared to alot of people in the world. So, um, yeah. Go USA!

Not meaning to criticise or anything, but you do know that mums all over the world will use that phrase to feed their kids?

Considering that my mom had to use that phrase to get me to eat them instead of me begging for any morsel of food I could get, I'm pretty happy I at least have that. Plus, America has some of the best in music (with the UK coming in real close)

In english, that is. Of course. Amirite?

[Skylar Alina]

I have to say Hawaii.

[Alexlantis]

In english, that is. Of course. Amirite?

Well, considering the only non-English language music I've listened to are a few songs in Spanish in Spanish class and a whole bunch of things in Latin, that'd be an unknown. Although the guy who made "Carlito" was pretty good, I don't recall his name though.