windsong

Nor me!

Derrygal

Just wondering Celtic Spirit - when did you actually leave N Ireland? Late 60s or early 70s? I left in 1977 - I suppose it was at the height of "The Troubles". I didn't leave because of the trouble there - although I suppose it indirectly was the cause of my leaving - I married an Englishman who didn't want to stay in NI and we moved to England. Little did I know, that I would end up on this side of the Pond!! N Ireland is so much better now (although you still hear about the occasional isolated incident - a rookie policeman was killed in Omagh just last week) Unfortunately there are some people that just don't want peace. On the whole though - it is a very different country to what it was when I left. I was back in 2009 - the place was teeming with tourists speaking various languages, lots of new bars and restaurants open. It was so nice to see my beloved homeland finally at peace (even it it is a fragile peace).

cliff1961

My mother was IRISH and i have travelled back and for to Ireland for 30 years visiting family, friends and going sea fishing, one sad thing due to a lack of knowledge years ago about the trouble in N.Ireland people tend to be put off going to visit Ireland thinking the whole of Ireland is the same but it is not!
N. Irelad has become very quiet over the past years even though the odd little incident may arise.

You compare the size of N.Ireland to the US and you compare the Murders & Crime that occur in the US there people are afraid to walk the streets in some states.
many murders occur due to drug deals gone wrong, Husbands murdering wives for insurance policies and wives doing the same to husbands.

Since i have been back and for to US i am shocked the crime that occurs every week something occurs hitting news headlines only a few weeks ago when i was over there, two boys come into a church and murders the priest for $20.00. Mother kills herself and 3 children, it can be very Scary!

anne55

NOT TEXAS BUT.

My husband and I were invited out about a month ago with a lady I work with her husband,nephew and his wife. We have a motorcycle and enjoy going for a ride on a nice day so it seemed a nice idea to have someone that knew the area and able to show us around and were pleased that maybe we would start making friends at last. But WTF about half way through our ride we find out that the lady I work with and her nephew were both, in their words
"Packing" why on earth would you need to be "Packing" a gun on a Sunday afternoon for a quiet ride through the country side is beyond me. Maybe they thought they would be having some problem with a gun wielding possum

Needless to say we will not be taking them up on any further offers of joining them on a ride.

Why do the Americans feel it is right to carry a gun. Is it for protection? or just for the show of it? The people we were with dont even drink so there was no chance of ending up in some raunchy biker bar, in fact we ended up at Starbucks

windsong

In my opinion, it's nothing more than ego and show (i.e. insecurity) - makes them think they are "big". if only they knew that in certain people's eyes they are seen as next to worthless when they do things like that.

What an example for children! Oh my lord!

RChappo

It's the old "right to bear arms" isn't it! *stands up and salutes the stars and stripes*

It's ridiculous. There was a guy on NPR radio this morning being interviewed in a piece regarding the Virginia Tech massacre, I think he used to be something to do with the NRA. He said something like "I'm not walking to the front door without my friends Mr Smith & Mr Wesson" - how paranoid can you get? He lives in New Hampshire by the way - that never struck me as a particularly violent place to be honest, but maybe it is?

I've seen the odd gun flashed around here and there in Rochester and heard of people carrying "heat" in their handbags and briefcases. My brother in law (who's a very nice guy actually) is 25 and quite keen on his firearms. He and his friend went to a gun show a few weekends ago. His friend is a complete jerk and I wouldn't trust him with a gun. It's a little disconcerting really. I don't see the attraction in them myself but then I've long ago given up trying to understand people over here.

It's like with the shooting of Representative Gifford in Arizona - everyone was appalled that such a thing could happen and there was lots of hand-wringing on the news and updates on her progress (bet she was nicely insured btw!). But in none of the discussions about the causes of the incident that I saw was there ever a mention of the possibility that the gun culture here could have been the issue. It's complete denial and a blind spot.

I've tried to argue a contrary view about the need for guns with acquaintances but you're wasting your breath. I find the best thing to do is go with the old Elvis Costello lyrics "I used to be disgusted, but now I try and be amused" . It's hard sometimes though because there is nothing amusing about it.

anne55

[QUOTE=RChappo;9304120]It's the old "right to bear arms" isn't it! *stands up and salutes the stars and stripes*


I've seen the odd gun flashed around here and there in Rochester and heard of people carrying "heat" in their handbags and briefcases. My brother in law (who's a very nice guy actually) is 25 and quite keen on his firearms. He and his friend went to a gun show a few weekends ago. His friend is a complete jerk and I wouldn't trust him with a gun. It's a little disconcerting really. I don't see the attraction in them myself but then I've long ago given up trying to understand people over here.

We have a friend in Florida who is a member of a gun club, but that I believe is for the sport of it.... costs big money to be a member and then there is the traveling to different competitions and entry fee. That IMOP is the place for boys and their toys and not the streets were there is a chance of someone totally innocent being hit by a stray bullet. And if you think about just being there with someone who uses their gun can implicate by association.

Fish n Chips 56

I think for some its that Fear based mentality, for others its all about having the right, we will never understand.

Mummy in the foothills

Well you never know when the zombie Apocalypse may happen
I don't get the gun thing either, I've given up trying.

Englishman43

You may well need it there - was in one ( starbucks ) in Arizona a few years back and the person stood in front of me had a gun belt on with a gun in each holster, wearing cowboy boots & one of those bloody 10 gallon hats on.

Was going to ask if he'd worked up a thirst while trying to track down Billy the kid but as he had the gun , not me, I decided not to.

Rusty Chainsaw

Do I regret moving to the US? No, not "regret" exactly. It's been a great experience which has definitely broadened my horizons, but I think the time is upon us for us to move back.

Why? It was all well and good when me and my (USC) missus were newlyweds, but now, 5 years on, we have a little 5-month-old boy, and a few recent events have made us reassess our priorities. Firstly, that old chestnut, healthcare. I broke my ankle slipping on ice a couple of months ago, and, despite having insurance, the insurance company wouldn't authorise the operation the orthopedic surgeon said I needed to bolt the bone back together, so I've just had to let it heal on its own, with the possibility of early onset arthritis and possibly a permanent limp. I'm furious, but I can handle this if it's just me, but what if my son got ill and an insurance company wouldn't pay out? I don't want my son to grow up somewhere where that would be a possibility.

Secondly, under no circumstances do I want my son to have to say a pledge of allegience at school. It's flat-out brainwashing and there's not much you can do about it. I never had to sing "God Save The Queen" at school, and I think it's wrong to instill a superiority complex in kids based purely on where you come from.

So, we're doing a recce back in the UK next month, and we're going to go from there.

dunroving

Now, the health care I can understand.

But personally, I wouldn't let the pledge of allegiance get to you. Any kid with sense won't get "brainwashed" just by citing the pledge any more than saying the Lord's Prayer in assembly every day (which we did in my school) will make a kid want to go off on a crusade or become a priest.

When I was young, we had to stand up at the end of every movie in the cinema until the National Anthem finished. Didn't make me want to become a royalist. Crowds of thousands stand up at Murrayfield and bellow a song that glorifies killing the English but I feel pretty safe here in Glasgow. No sign of blue-faced Mel Gibson lookalikes.

It's all part of living in another country. Living in the middle east brings a much greater need for attitude adjustment and culture shift. Compared to places like Libya your personal freedoms in the States are pretty good.

sallysimmons

Wow, I'm so sorry this happened to you. How awful.

Health care is one of the main reasons my husband has agreed to return home, although I had different reasons. The latest Republican plan to basically eliminate Medicare for anyone under 55 has been the straw that broke the came's back for him. We know President Obama won't sign it, but the next Republican President would, and we simply can't retire in a country where we can't get health coverage.

Our recce last year went amazingly well and convinced us that moving back was the right thing. I hope yours goes as well - good luck!

windsong

Rusty Chainsaw, I understand completely. I have also been a victim of the healthcare system here. I badly needed surgery and could not have it (no insurance - sick, unemployed) and as a result developed two blood clots, one in each lung at the same time - a long, long story. This country almost cost me my health.

I am making plans to return as soon as I have the money together to do so.

Mummy in the foothills

Dd has to stand and recite the pledge daily at school as did the boys, It is followed by a couple of rousing songs, a la Yankee doodle dandy or This land is my land etc. It does make me laugh, but she has to live with us, and we temper the patriotism with doses of the UK in great form, she has finally got the idea she is a dual national, has two passports, is British as well as American and is becoming proud of that fact.
Her first month in Kindergarten, she was really gung ho about the USA being #1 and got quite upset when I told her she was also British, so unless the parents temper the constant onslaught at school it is quite easy to convince the kids of how USA#1 is the one and only. It creeps into many of the school lessons, music time, history, holidays, and whatever else they are learning that week. It is a very different experience to what the have in the UK.
We only save god save the Queen occasionally, and also sang the Welsh national Anthem a couple times a month, and that was about it.