To think the USA and UK should become 1 country

[FortyDoorsToNowhere]

As the title says.

I think it should happen, not sure why exactly other than to pool out resources.

The standard work week by federal law in the US is 40 hrs. per week for non-exempt (hourly) workers. Any hours over 40 have to be paid time and a half.

The uptick at the end of sentences is only in a few American accents. The majority of Americans do not speak this way. One of the reasons that this feature is perceived as very common is that some of the accents that have it are from California and thus find their way into media more.

Pet ownership ....when I lived in the US (Pennsylvania) I hardly ever saw dogs being taken for a walk. But there were puppies in glass boxes in the shopping malls. Dogs kept on their own land by having some sort of wire round the perimeter and a collar which gave them a shock if they came too close. 'Indoor' cats scared to go outside which were declawed.

Animal cruelty certainly exists in the UK but these were things associated with nice, middle class, 'animal lovers'.

Oh, I see. Most pet shops are out of business now thankfully! As far as walks go I know a lot of people who just let their dogs run around in their yards and think it's good enough.

Also I don't know anyone who has pet health insurance.

But yeah invisible fences are common. Usually doesn't shock anymore though. Gives a buzz noise and a vibration.

And the cream in tea thing. Yes, this is definitely a cultural issue in the US, just as it is a problem for Americans to get cream, instead of milk, for their coffee in the UK.

I don't know anyone who DOESN'T have pet insurance! Dogs are walked on the trails in the woods rather than in the neighbourhoods here,but the vast majority are definitely walked. There is a huge, booming dog walking industry to prove it!

Re invisible fences. As much as I was horrified when I first saw them, I can understand them now. They are much, much cheaper than physically fencing in 1, 2, 3+ acre plots. And the dogs still have plenty of room to play outside. Our back garden is fenced in, but the last owners did it and that was a big plus for us when we bought the house.

Oh, and way back someone said they had trouble finding vegetables in Florida. I live in Florida (where it is damned cold today, btw). We have vegetables. Many vegetables. And also fruit. Most of it locally grown.

The uptick at the end of sentences is only in a few American accents. The majority of Americans do not speak this way. One of the reasons that this feature is perceived as very common is that some of the accents that have it are from California and thus find their way into media more.

A lot of people I grew up with speak this way and did not ten years ago. In my experience, it's pervasive.

I'm seen as cruel by some of my friends with indoor cats because I do let my cats go outside. There are bears, coyotes and fisher cats out there so it is a risk.

However I think it's better to let them out and take the risk than to keep them in which just seems wrong.

My BIL and SIL in the UK have an invisible fence - it's not just a US thing but they're more common here because fewer people have actual fences. I have no fences or walls at all round my house lot, just woodland... with deer wander through at the moment :-)

We had an electric fence for our dog when I was little. Is this considered cruel?

The uptick at the end of sentences is only in a few American accents. The majority of Americans do not speak this way. One of the reasons that this feature is perceived as very common is that some of the accents that have it are from California and thus find their way into media more.

Yes I agree - I don't hear people talking like that much, and I work with Americans from all over the country.

What I DO love is when I get on a call and it sounds like Elvis is on the call :-)

Crowler you may be interpreting it differently than I do. But ending a declaratory sentence with a question mark is definitely not pervasive in US accents.

Having just walked my dog in - 22 degree centigrade weather I really wish people here didn't walk there dogs. But we do. Before anyone accuses me of being cruel to the dog for walking him in the cold, I am not - he loves it.

I have lived in the US for over ten years and rarely recognize the country when it is discussed on MN. It is such a huge and varied country that it is impossible to generalize.

Wobbly we still get the deer in the garden. They jump the fence! They come in, eat my flowers and the birdseed, and then tease the dogs leaving it right up to the moment the bulldog is almost there and then leap off through the end of the garden and jump back into the woods! It's hours of entertainment!

Theplumpduke I agree re the generalisations on here. And the dog walking tbh. I'm impressed. My dogs went out for a pee this morning and have shown absolutely no interest in leaving the sofa ever since!

It was -30 this morning so I had 6 year old DS let the dog out. Every man for himself :o

Ha Cheerful I've been meaning to ask how you're holding up in the cold! I think you have it worse than we do. -10 this morning here. Yesterday was appalling. Our dog is all stressed out b/c she desperately needs her exercise we walk her about 2 hours/day but she's old and it's not safe to walk her when it's this cold. She keeps going outside and rushing back in and going back out.

So re: dogs in the UK vs. the US: is it that people in the UK walk them more? I feel like it really runs the gamut in the US. (runs the gamut? Can that be right?) When I lived in cities everyone walked their dogs constantly, it seemed. Suburbs, fewer walks b/c everyone had a yard, but still a fair amount of dog-walking visible. In the country now, we still walk ours, but a lot of neighbors just let theirs run around loose. The thing I really hate is when people tie the dog out and call it good.

There is a lot of dog walking where I live in North Florida. We are near a golf course, and DH takes our dog on long walks where she hunts and retrieves golf balls from the surrounding area.

Not sure where all these dogs live that are not being walked, but that is how we met most of our neighbors. We have tons of trails in our neighborhood, poo bins and free bags. We also have a 200 acre nature area that belongs to our housing association, which is fantastic for walking the dog. Our only big frustration is the lack of "right to roam", which is definitely a jewel in the UK crown. We make up for it by going to the state and National parks, but it is not quite the same.

I have a 40 hour work week (although I work more hours, like I did in the UK), I have 20 days vacation, and more long weekends than I ever had in the UK.

Before you bash the USA for everything, you should know your facts. I lived in the UK for 14 years, and loved so much about it. But I now live in the US, and there is lots to love about it too. The most important thing to remember is that it is such a diverse country. I can fly to the UK faster than I can fly to California, which is like another country altogether.

I do not get small minded people who bash another country just because they have prejudices based on one holiday somewhere. I am doing my best to be an excellent ambassador for Brits here in the USA and that includes trying to learn as much as possible about this diverse culture.

This thread reminds me of another thing I like about the US. When we arrived I didn't know a soul.

I took my kids to the park and people said things like 'Hello, are you new here? Nice to meet you. Can I help in any way? Here's my number. Are you free for coffee tomorrow?'

Within a couple of weeks I had a whole social circle. It was lovely.

I've lived all over the US and the only place that wasn't really like that was Seattle.

TheZeeTeam - sounds lovely! My cats occasionally stalk the deer, always makes me giggle :-)

wobbly I lived in Seattle for a while and found it surprisingly hard to make friends there! Everyone is so laid back and the city is so nice that I thought it would be easy, but people really seemed not very interested in making new connections. I was really lonely there my first year.

What is the right to roam?

Not sure where all these dogs live that are not being walked
I said - Pennsylvania. But to be fair, you didn't see many humans walking either, other than in the state parks and the shopping malls.

Whereas for instance CA, plenty of dogs and people out and about. Probably down to the climate. The USA is oddly homogenous in some ways (McDonalds etc) but hugely heterogenous in others!

Americans are without question friendlier than Brits.

I'm not "bashing" Americans or the US. Does it count for anything that I'm American, by the way? So my view is not based on a brief holiday.

Sadly, the country has gone downhill, it's being run by morons, there's a lot of morons who have let this happen, their news is a joke, it's terribly insular, and they've just let Homeland Security run roughshod over the country.

I remember commercials on the radio about getting the general public to be aware of suspicious activity.

Bins in the UK - I've seen plenty - might be different in London - didn't take enough notice last time I was there.

Dogs - I wish the UK had similar leash laws to the USA and dog owners seem to be more considerate in the USA too though I do not miss the constant barking in both the neighbourhoods I lived in - drove me nuts.

I miss deer in my garden! We had 7 all at once on day and spookily they all looked around at me looking through the window at the exact same time!

My cat got out and I didn't notice in time - I found his head and shoulders on the field :(

People are very friendly but I never got a chance to truly settle in one place and make really good friends. Having said that I also found drivers generally more aggressive and on occasions obnoxious and intimidating - and I am not easily intimidated when behind the wheel.

All being said and done though the two countries would not mix - at all. I really don't think it would work.