snowbunny

wow, that's quite a stretch....

It's entirely possible that an American could move to another country and NOT want to return to the US. I think this is somehow impossible for some Americans to grasp, because ain't this the greatest country on earth?

Tracym

Interesting thought.

I could certainly understand preferring another country, but to seem so frantic to avoid the US...

Tegwyn

"dramatic music in the background* .....the soap opera begins......... This is what happens when you are awake in the middle of the night and everyone is snoring their heads off. The mind wonders...........

Bob

usually the case, but the USC has to have lived in the US for x amount of years before age 14 and some other small requirements to pass it on.

Tracym

She's only lived in the UK for the last five years. I think she lived in the U.S. up to then.

Jerseygirl

She has.

Bob

I know in this specifically, but you made it sound as if only being a USC was the only requirement to passing on citizenship, when that isn't the case.

Jerseygirl

I thought we were talking about this particular case.

Bob

aye, but someone reads that and might think it across the board as it were.

goldcrown

Nah. But that makes for a better story than my issues about moving to U.S.

Kurt Vonnegut's death has reminded me there are free thinkers in the U.S., even in the South.

And we're looking at places other than Charlotte, so I think that would help (but still in NC). Charlotte is crazy about their churches...and tele evangelism.

goldcrown

Maybe I come across as 'frantic'.

But another reminder of why I do not want to live in the U.S. came to me this week in the form of a friend passing from brain cancer (super sudden sort of thing). His wife got THREE DAYS bereavement leave from her job. Three ****ing days. They both have stellar health insurance via their respective employers, so no worries there in terms of his care, her options for psychotherapy and drugs (sleeping pills, anti-anxiety meds, etc). But three days?!

The family leave policies in the U.S. absolutely suck and I do not see this evolving any time soon. My children will possibly be exposed to this in their lifetime, if we remain in the U.S. and that gets me very down. Have a baby? Get six weeks. No wonder U.S. has shit breastfeeding rates.

I hate the corporate mentality in the U.S. and again, I lived there for thirty-three years, I worked for major corporations (and non profits), I get it. I also am a product of U.S. education and prevailing culture, and I know how hard it is for a parent to counter that.

Tracym

Sorry, but that's goofy. Family Medical Leave act guarantees 3 months. And if she's that distressed (understandably) she could get medical leave based on depression.

Now if you expect all leave to be paid - well that may not happen. Like it or not, the "American Way" is to save up for emergencies, not expect the company or governent to step in immediately.

If you hate the U.S. so much, maybe you should just refuse to come. As others have said, you will certainly prejudice your kids against it.

penguinsix

My wife got five months in the US, 4 paid and 1 unpaid. That was atop of her being given 2 months for 'bed rest' (paid) though she technically 'worked from home' during that time. She now works flextime 2 days at home and 3 days at the office.

It all depends on what sort of job you find. If you don't like the policies, you can always vote with your feet. Not sure if finding another job is easier in the US or the UK if it comes to that.

goldcrown

Okay, I'll refuse to come. Sounds like a good option.

snowbunny

Can we have a reality check here?

Most of us on this site are by self-selection more highly educated and paid than the average worker in ANY country. Our personal experiences are likely to be the *best* a country has to offer rather than the average or the worst.

For those lucky (and yes, I said *lucky*) enough to have been born into a family and a culture that provided them with all the necessities and many of the luxuries, including health care and education that has enabled us to thrive.

However, in the US, there are MILLIONS of people who work from dawn til dusk and beyond who are living at or below the poverty level. They do not get any sick time, holiday time, or maternity leave. They cannot afford to save for a rainy day -- every day is a rainy day. They can't get a better job -- they don't have the necessary skills and they can't pay to acquire them.

FMLA provides for twelve weeks of *unpaid* leave but it does not apply to workers who work at companies with less than 50 workers. This is the ONLY federally mandated leave and it isn't even available to all workers. During this time, in addition to not being paid, the worker must PAY his/her health insurance premiums -- a hefty cost with no income.

Tracy -- your complacency about all of this is typical of Americans, not atypical. That's why, however, you're feeling the heat from people who believe that there are some very minimal but fundamental rights that residents of a wealthy country should have. We are the ONLY developed nation to not offer universal health care. We are at the bottom of all tables when it comes to infant mortality and maternity leave. This is abominable. It's one level above slavery; it's non-agricultural sharecropping. To the rest of the civilised world we look like uncaring heartless screw-the-poor bastards.

Instead of asking "why should we provide decent social benefits to all residents" ask "why shouldn't we"?