Originally Posted by Mrs Danvers

I haven't seen much input from the OP on culture in the USA and thoughts on that.

Obviously the USA is a large diverse nation, but the original Puritan attitudes along with American Individualism prevail. Some people like that. It's just not for me.

These attitudes allow for a lot of enormous social problems that can be swept under the carpet. The individualism allows for high gun ownership and when a Sandy Hook massacre occurs it can be written off as the work of a lone gun man until the next one happens.

Prosperity preaching allows the God Squad to believe that poverty is the fault of the impoverished. During the 2008 financial crisis I couldn't believe how many ordinary people lost their jobs and homes and received no help at all, yet there was help available for those who caused the crisis. Though the God Squad mainly reside in the Deep South you will find them in all 50 states.

There is an incessant drive to cut any and all funding for social programs including food stamps which apparently 1 in 7 Americans now need due to wages being ever driven down. Ordinary people do have to declare bankruptcy over medical bills in the five or six figure price range

Any minor infraction, including drug possession crimes will never be forgotten. If that had happened here you may have lost your eligibility to vote. Such crimes will never be erased from a persons criminal record. Most jobs on the lower end of the spectrum demand criminal background checks and drug testing. The USA has the highest incarceration rate in the world

There is never a day that goes by in the media where some moral bully is not spouting off about abortion and demanding that women have no control over their own reproduction.

That said, I do not associate with people who think like this. I have some absolutely wonderful neighbors, friends and coworkers. It's been great to be able to spend a day hiking in a national park that is only an hours drive away. I've loved all the trips I've been able to take to the Grand Canyon Yellowstone, southern Utah and Colorado. Yes I have a bigger house than I would have been able to afford in the UK.

I think I may have thought a little harder about moving to the USA if I knew then what I know now.

Originally Posted by Sally Redux

You have to be able to compartmentalise in order to live in the US successfully. .....

Originally Posted by Pulaski

Only if you don't like it the way it is! I knew what I was "buying into" and have no wish to see much change.

Originally Posted by Jerseygirl

I thought I knew what I was buying into. Truth is until you actually live here you don't know.

Originally Posted by Sally Redux

Someone with a path to get here can come and try it out for themselves. OP is going to expend a great deal of energy (and money) chasing a combination of Big Country and Baywatch, both of which are works of fiction.

Originally Posted by Hotscot

Maybe Miami Vice or given his previous "interests" Breaking Bad?

Originally Posted by andrewlohnes

My dream about America is; after a hard day at work if I want to get home and have a BBQ and jump into my own pool any day of the year I can. Working on American trucks/lorries. Driving around in my 4.8 litre V8 pick-up. Being able to watch NFL, NASCAR, NBA, NHL etc at normal times of the day or even live at the arena. Being able to jump into my car and go hiking in places like Sedona and the Grand Canyon at the weekend. The food. Being close to the mountains so I can go snowboarding in the winter even just for the weekend.

I know I've got the easy route in but that's just some of the reasons I want to call America (Arizona) home.

Originally Posted by Hotscot

Maybe Miami Vice or given his previous "interests" Breaking Bad?

Originally Posted by andrewlohnes

My dream about America is; after a hard day at work if I want to get home and have a BBQ and jump into my own pool any day of the year I can. Working on American trucks/lorries. Driving around in my 4.8 litre V8 pick-up. Being able to watch NFL, NASCAR, NBA, NHL etc at normal times of the day or even live at the arena. Being able to jump into my car and go hiking in places like Sedona and the Grand Canyon at the weekend. The food. Being close to the mountains so I can go snowboarding in the winter even just for the weekend.

I know I've got the easy route in but that's just some of the reasons I want to call America (Arizona) home.

Originally Posted by BanePage

[I]..... Come to Texas if you have the attitude. <<<snip>>>. Everyone here is from somewhere else. (if you're single, the girls will love you for your accent)