What do you dislike about your country's culture?

[WomenHour]

I would say the binge drinking culture of the UK

To all the people complaining about this thread: why don't you make a thread about things you love about your country's culture?

But then they will get accused of being xenophobic, or God forbid being overly patriotic or 'exceptionakism' or some other wabkery woke word of the month.

The litter that is absolutely everywhere and our inability to drink alcohol in a civilised way.
Obv these things are both done by a minority but it brings the whole country down

Cultural cringe. Oooooh, look, we got mentioned in the overseas press, oooh look, a celeb' has said what a lovely country and people we are. . . it's embarrassing. . .

I think that particular kind of inferiority complex is a hangover from colonialism. Ireland is EXACTLY the same. If an Irish person gets bad publicity internationally the entire country seems to cringe with shame - as if it's some sort of reflection on the rest of the 6million plus people who live here. It's daft but deeply ingrained.

The obsession with “celebrity” and considering WAGS to be celebrities. Not just this country, I know, but it’s an annoying first world trait.

Male and female mutilation😢😢 is still legal.

@likeamillpond

To all the people complaining about this thread: why don't you make a thread about things you love about your country's culture?

But then they will get accused of being xenophobic, or God forbid being overly patriotic or 'exceptionakism' or some other wabkery woke word of the month.

Yes! God forbid you ever start a thread admitting you like where you live

I’m British and live in France. To be fair I have 2 point about each 😊

So, what I dislike most about British culture is the trashy tabloid press.
Also the ridiculous superiority complex with regards everywhere else in the world!

What I dislike about French culture is the elitist school system. Also the horrendous customer service. (My children can’t get over how NICE shop and restaurant employees are in the UK!)

@likeamillpond

Uk - the food, I wish ours was healthier and less stodgy

You do realise you can buy and cook healthy food in the UK.
Nobody is forcing you to eat Stodgy Food

Plus, you do realise culturally our food is "stodgy" because for 100s of years we didn't have central heating and most of the year it's cold and damp outside?!

@Gustsoffthecoast

If you don't like it then leave‘ is a perfect example of the kind of arrogant, Daily Mail attitude that pisses me off. You might meet this attitude on MN or on social media but do people really come up against all this awfulness in daily life. Honestly?

Yes this awfulness regularly came up on the Brexit threads around the time of the referendum.

And if ,God forbid, you do actually leave then within the first five minutes of touching down in another country (even if you are living there solely for work or because you happened to fall in love and marry someone from a different country) you cease to be British, you no longer deserve to hold an opinion about anything concerning the UK, your British identify is null and void. You are presumed to hate your country if you have dared to "turn" your back on it and live elsewhere. This applies even if you still have lots of family back in the UK, you visit it regularly, you watch the BBC news, listen to Radio 4, have HP sauce on the dinner table and read The Times, queue, and chat about the weather Ike a pro! People are so narrow-minded that they view living in another country as some sort of "betrayal" of your country of birth.

Do you not think most countries are like this to a certain extent

The gun culture. -USA

@GoneEffinCrazy

The lazy, entitled, and neurotic attitude coming from people of all ages.

This....

Do you not think most countries are like this to a certain extent?

No Woodhill I genuinely don't! A lot of countries whose inhabitants have traditionally left to seek work elsewhere still consider their citizens to be very much "of that country" eg Ireland or Turkey. And citizens of some EU countries (eg Spain) are still.allowed to vote in general.elections no matter how long they have been out of the country , and many regard the ability to live elsewhere in the EU as a very welcome opportunity in the first place, rather than an abandonment of Queen and country.

I have relatives that live abroad and don't think this anyway

Who live

Hmm... been some good points. I agree with most. To elaborate For me, the UK education system is archaic and a waste of our kids time (I am not a home edder btw) and the way teachers are treated and how much responsibility lays at their feet when a lot of parents are just crap. Which, leads into my second point- It's always someone else's fault their life/kids are terrible and take no responsibility for their choices.

I was a teacher in an alternative secondary provision (behavioural unit) and feel 90% of the parents were responsible for their kids failings as they really did not give a flying F about their children and blamed all and sundry before they would ever check their own behaviour- so sad :-(

@likeamillpond

To all the people complaining about this thread: why don't you make a thread about things you love about your country's culture?

But then they will get accused of being xenophobic, or God forbid being overly patriotic or 'exceptionakism' or some other wabkery woke word of the month.

So? You can like things about your country without being racist.

And why is Mumsnet obsessed with calling everything ‘woke’ regardless of whether it has anything to do with racism? Because that is what ‘wokeness’ is about, it’s a specific black American experience, it’s irrelevant to me as a white Brit.

I’m happy to start a thread since this thread upsets people so much.

Binge drinking and the right wing nationalism that has swept this country with all the fallout from it

@Frokni

Hmm... been some good points. I agree with most. To elaborate For me, the UK education system is archaic and a waste of our kids time (I am not a home edder btw) and the way teachers are treated and how much responsibility lays at their feet when a lot of parents are just crap. Which, leads into my second point- It's always someone else's fault their life/kids are terrible and take no responsibility for their choices.

I was a teacher in an alternative secondary provision (behavioural unit) and feel 90% of the parents were responsible for their kids failings as they really did not give a flying F about their children and blamed all and sundry before they would ever check their own behaviour- so sad :-(

Totally agree. It links to the pet peeve I listed quite a few pages back. We put adults’ feelings before the well-being of children. Instead of telling adults to pull themselves together for the sake of their kids we completely pander to them and tiptoe around so as not to cause offence. It results in all manner of neglect, from not feeding their children nutritious meals or paying them enough attention or teaching them to use the toilet or reading with them. It’s so backwards and creates generation after generation of failed children becoming parents of failed children.

UK:

• the 'up yours delors' attitude of 50% of the population (Brexit voters) who have ensured the country will lose years' of potential growth in the next few years and caused the threat of shortages at the end of this year that we could really do without during a pandemic. And deprived millions and millions of young people of freedom of movement and freedom of employment and freedom to study within Europe.
• binge drinking, dog obsession that means countryside and parks are ruined by crazy dogs off their leads, dog mess all over the countryside

Dual national here, so I am going to weigh in on two;

Britain - agree with others re drinking culture, but would also add general fatalism and attitude of "what can you do?"

USA - guns and openly expressed racism.

• The cost of childcare
• The impossibility to try & balance childcare hours with actual working hours
• Brits abroad in Spain
• The entitled attitude of many of the public sector
• The lack of decent grass roots sports

OK most aren’t cultural per se, but they’re still annoying!

Blame culture.
There’s always someone to blame.

Ooooh and also

Walking around with no t-shirt on
The lack of public transport in the north

The Monarchy

@Tillygetsit

The obsession with immigrants especially from people who refer to themselves as ex pats.

Definitely this !! I am shocked at the lack of humanity.