Strange comments about the U.K.

[Lessando]

I often just read threads without posting. But I read one thread on here recently that made me think, and I wanted to start a new thread about it.

There was a thread on here a while ago, it was titled "Do you feel lucky in life".

About one hundred posters came on and wrote a similiar thing, they all wrote

"Oh yes I am so lucky to have been born in the U.K." and they wrote things like

"I won the lottery of life by being born in the UK"

I was surprised at the fawning over the top comments, because they are in stark contrast to how I have experienced living in other countries. Living conditions in many other countries seem to me to be a lot better than living conditions in the UK.

I have lived in other countries and right now I am living in the UK for a year . Don't get me wrong , there are things that are nice about the UK.

What I really wanted to discuss is why do some people in the UK seem to think it is the best country in the world.
But, if you go outside of the UK, a lot of media outlets talk about the UK in a very negative way. Do people know this happesn?

So many other countries are doing better economically than the UK is. Living conditions are better. The last EU country that i lived in, i barely saw a homeless person.

In my current city in the UK, homeless people come up to me and ask me for money all the time. Every single day.

I lived in an EU country last year. The media outside of the UK always reports negatively about the UK. They usually say that the UK is a very bad place to live, especially after Brexit.

Im not really saying if I personally think the UK is good or bad, obviously I am just one person.

I more wanted to discuss the discrepancy between many people in the UK thinking it is the best country in the world and they are lucky to live there, and the media outside the UK who report that the UK is a terrible place to live in.
Any thoughts on it?

I think a lot of people (UK people), often ‘talk’ the UK down, if you listen to an Australian, they often ‘talk’ Australia up. In my experience the truth is somewhere in between. It’s very subjective and often down to your income, background, type of family and social circle. There is a hell of a lot worse than most places in the UK.

Im still quite amaused at the posters on page 8 insisting that I must reply to them NOW. It is a bit immature. Patience is a virtue.
I went back to the start of the thread, so I can reply to people in the right order. I am still on page 3 of the thread. I am replying to posters on that page at the moment.

Also OP, if you’re hearing EU countries grumble about the UK it’s probably a Maslows Heirachy of Needs thing except for countries.

If you live in poverty in an African country, the UK looks like Utopia because it has so many things your country may not have - food, clean water, healthcare, sanitation, infrastructure, women’s rights, no wars etc.

If you live an mid to affluent life in a developed European country thats similar to ours so has all those things, you start to compare more intricate points between the countries as all your basic needs have been met. People can then start comparing/grumbling about things like differences in retirement age, pensions, mental health care, working hours, property prices taxes etc. and comparing countries on those metrics instead of basic needs metrics.

Don’t waste time. Please tell us where this European utopia with no homeless people is…

It would have been quicker to answer the question than typing all of that

I agree that people living in the UK are lucky. Not being bombed every day , free healthcare, education benefits system , etc that compared to some it's very lucky.
I also agree with you that Brits have a rose tinted view , I no longer live there and have lived in various countries at times.
I would never willingly swap my life in a different EU country to go and live in the UK again
Here our state healthcare is far superior, we have subsidised travel (often free) cost of living is lower , quality of life is better

Don’t forget to answer the question about specific criticisms as that’s on page 3..

I am not on minimum wage, I have a good job. I do know people and I don't live in a shithole in the UK.

I still had better living conditions in other countries, in my opinion.

Before anyone tells me to just leave the U.K. then, I will be leaving the U.K.

You're floundering OP. You've lost your audience are now you're looking rather silly. 😂

What's with all these "Britain is shit" posts?

Why are you on here whining about British people for liking being British? Why do you think it's strange that people like their home country?

It's as bad as this post the other day whining about Britain, claiming it's the ONLY country on the planet that gives you a choice if you want a receipt (it's not).

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5382825-do-you-want-a-receipt

If you don't like Britain and British people, and you're not from here, then maybe you'd be happier if you went somewhere else.

You wrote: "why are all these other countries' papers devoting so much space to writing about how good/bad life in the UK is anyway?"

Most countries report on international news. That is why they are writing about the U.K.

It is the same as how the U.K media write about electrical blackouts in Spain/ news in the U.S.A/ anywhere

Because compared to many places, the UK is a nice place to live. I have countryside on my doorstep, and a city with plenty to do 30 mins away. I feel safe, I earn a good salary, and I generally feel like I have freedom of speech and the law will protect me. Like many Brits, i’ve never lived anywhere else. When people say they feel lucky to live here, they are comparing to other countries where you don’t have freedom like here, or a benefit system to ensure you still get fed and a roof over your head. Most people feel grateful for those things, and rightly so. You’ve only got to switch the news on to see how life can be elsewhere. Not everyone is like you with many counties to compare

And she missed out answering the question at 14.53 on page three…it’s almost as if she’s avoiding certain questions.

I love living in the UK and have no plans to live anywhere else. I don’t believe it is the ‘best’ country in the world because I don’t believe there is such a thing- how can there be when we all like different things and different ways of life?

It doesn’t really matter to me what people outside of the UK say about it. If they don’t actually live here then their opinion on what it’s like to live here isn’t of any interest.

Is the UK the ‘best country in the world’? No. Do I feel lucky to have been born here as opposed to on a literal garbage dump in Africa? Yes.

So frustrating! The op said we must show patience and she would answer them in order. I just feel let down and lied to.

Or I am answering posts in chronological order

Which I have already written.

I am on page 4 at the moment

Also I’d say it’s pretty obviously better to have been born in the UK than in Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Colombia, Cambodia (80s), Haiti etc.

War, famine, corruption etc and still very much present across the globe and the UK has been mostly at peace.

You missed out giving examples of specific criticisms of the uk from international media. It’s on page three.

But people aren't responding to OP saying "Are you aware the UK isn't everyone's cup of tea?" because that's not what she wrote. It was more along the lines of "How can anyone say they feel lucky to live in the UK, other countries all slag it off." Which is a bit different. Is the only acceptable response to you "Yeah, it's crap here. We're so unlucky!"

Where in the eu do you not find homeless people? Would love to know