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Author Topic: Anyone here ever seriously consider moving or move out the the USA?  (Read 16442 times)

oggsmash

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   I know it sounds hyperbolic, but I have had a notion around this idea for a decade or so.  The past 10 years have done nothing but make me realize its a better deal to just leave and go elsewhere.  Anyone here who has left the USA and moved to another nation and what did you find out on both positive and negative sides that were hard to figure out from research before hand.  I know the Pundit himself has some connection to Canada and now resides in (I think Uraguay) another country.  Those would be interesting to hear as Canada and the USA have enough similarities to be comparable. 

    I always see people in other discussions and media rolling out a "fight" sort of line, and I do think there is going to be some sort of fight.  But having never been very bothered with politics till around 2012 (shortly after my second child was born, odd how being a father can drag you into politics), I find the USA to be a horrific mess.  Corporations and special interests control too much, way too much military spending, and way too many bombs dropping on people that offers me and my family nothing but liability.  I am done.  I have been mostly done for a while, but its still a process to sell the idea fully to the family.

   I would also welcome input from people who have moved from other nations to the USA, as I think that perspective can be just as valuable.

Trond

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Re: Anyone here ever seriously consider moving or move out the the USA?
« Reply #1 on: March 07, 2021, 10:53:35 AM »
I have lived in Norway, Canada, and USA. All three are OK places to live. Some random observations:
-Norway always felt very safe, almost boring, but perhaps this is why people were so shocked when something horrible actually did happen (like the Breivik massacre). Politics used to be too far to the left decades ago (seriously my father had to apply to the government to get a phone) but has largely corrected itself (thank you democracy. you will see some communist-inspired art here and there, a remnant from when the Labour Party tried to control everything)
-Canada was also fairly secure and nice. A bit more like USA of course, but both my wife and I found their health care to be the worst of the three. We lived in Quebec which has some pretty insane language laws, driving English speakers out.
-USA has many things going for it. My wife and I both love the nature and natural parks here. People are generally easier to get to know than in Norway. Since we have good health insurance our care is actually the best of the three but YMMV. But USA also sometimes feels less safe, and you seriously have to get over the race hysteria. Many news outlets will turn any news story into a conflict about race. WTF America?

Ghostmaker

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Re: Anyone here ever seriously consider moving or move out the the USA?
« Reply #2 on: March 07, 2021, 11:38:24 AM »
I figure I might as well move to Singapore if things continue moving away from liberty here in the U.S.

I mean, if I'm going to live under autocrats, I want to live in someplace that doesn't fuck around with street crime.

HappyDaze

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Re: Anyone here ever seriously consider moving or move out the the USA?
« Reply #3 on: March 07, 2021, 02:11:25 PM »
Came close to taking a job in Germany,  but it was for the DOD.and most of the community I would have been serving would have been Americans, so probably not a fair comparison. Would have taken it if it had been a permanent position,  but it was a GWOT special (that, as predicted, didn't get extended).

Shasarak

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Re: Anyone here ever seriously consider moving or move out the the USA?
« Reply #4 on: March 07, 2021, 03:00:03 PM »
I figure I might as well move to Singapore if things continue moving away from liberty here in the U.S.

I mean, if I'm going to live under autocrats, I want to live in someplace that doesn't fuck around with street crime.

As the joke goes, Singapore is a "Fine" country.
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Samsquantch

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Re: Anyone here ever seriously consider moving or move out the the USA?
« Reply #5 on: March 09, 2021, 12:57:29 PM »
I am considering leaving Canada. Under Trudeau things have gotten quiet bad and he's done a great deal of damage to the country.

I hear Idaho is rather nice...

RPGPundit

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Re: Anyone here ever seriously consider moving or move out the the USA?
« Reply #6 on: March 10, 2021, 06:32:58 PM »
Well, Uruguay has some disadvantages (a terrible bureaucracy, high prices on imports, regulations make it almost impossible to start a profitable small business), but on the whole it keeps getting better and better. A new Conservative government that refused (against huge pressure from the communists, the WHO, the UN, and media) to institute a lockdown, increasingly cosmopolitan, good internet connections (including for business), real estate is still very cheap, and of course all the things that it always had that were good (the people, semi-decent weather with about 6 months of serious warmth and only about 2 of real cold, the MEAT and all the food in general, a culture that is relatively educated and european in style but very culturally-libertarian and tolerant, beaches if you're into that, etc). Plus, lots of gamers!

As long as you don't need to try to get a job or start a local business here (but rather can work online internationally, or live on a fixed income, or you plan to engage in real estate as your business),  this is a great place to live.
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Samsquantch

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Re: Anyone here ever seriously consider moving or move out the the USA?
« Reply #7 on: March 10, 2021, 06:58:09 PM »
Well, Uruguay has some disadvantages (a terrible bureaucracy, high prices on imports, regulations make it almost impossible to start a profitable small business), but on the whole it keeps getting better and better. A new Conservative government that refused (against huge pressure from the communists, the WHO, the UN, and media) to institute a lockdown, increasingly cosmopolitan, good internet connections (including for business), real estate is still very cheap, and of course all the things that it always had that were good (the people, semi-decent weather with about 6 months of serious warmth and only about 2 of real cold, the MEAT and all the food in general, a culture that is relatively educated and european in style but very culturally-libertarian and tolerant, beaches if you're into that, etc). Plus, lots of gamers!

As long as you don't need to try to get a job or start a local business here (but rather can work online internationally, or live on a fixed income, or you plan to engage in real estate as your business),  this is a great place to live.

Very interesting information, Pundit. Thanks.

danskmacabre

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Re: Anyone here ever seriously consider moving or move out the the USA?
« Reply #8 on: March 10, 2021, 07:58:34 PM »
Never been to the USA and have no desire to go there for an extended visit anyway.
Would love to go on a holiday there to check out the native American sites and natural beauty.
Visiting cities doesn't interest me at all.
The USA seems to be to be a great place to live if you're wealthy, otherwise forget it.

I've lived or stayed for an extended period in many European countries, UK, Ireland, Scandinavia.
Visited many Asian countries and some North African and Middle Eastern countries.

For me, nothing comes close to the lifestyle, quality of life that Australia has to offer if you're rich or not rich at all.
Lots of jobs, strong economy, great weather, Natural beauty, overall safe country, a Government that stands up to external pressure. 

spon

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Re: Anyone here ever seriously consider moving or move out the the USA?
« Reply #9 on: March 11, 2021, 05:34:02 AM »
Well, Uruguay has some disadvantages (a terrible bureaucracy, high prices on imports, regulations make it almost impossible to start a profitable small business), but on the whole it keeps getting better and better. A new Conservative government that refused (against huge pressure from the communists, the WHO, the UN, and media) to institute a lockdown, increasingly cosmopolitan, good internet connections (including for business), real estate is still very cheap, and of course all the things that it always had that were good (the people, semi-decent weather with about 6 months of serious warmth and only about 2 of real cold, the MEAT and all the food in general, a culture that is relatively educated and european in style but very culturally-libertarian and tolerant, beaches if you're into that, etc). Plus, lots of gamers!

As long as you don't need to try to get a job or start a local business here (but rather can work online internationally, or live on a fixed income, or you plan to engage in real estate as your business),  this is a great place to live.

Thanks for the info - looks like Uruguay dodged a bullet by sensible restrictions and having their own testing regime based on locally-sourced equipment and methods.  (more info here: https://www.bmj.com/content/370/bmj.m3575)
 

Ghostmaker

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Re: Anyone here ever seriously consider moving or move out the the USA?
« Reply #10 on: March 11, 2021, 08:26:43 AM »
Well, Uruguay has some disadvantages (a terrible bureaucracy, high prices on imports, regulations make it almost impossible to start a profitable small business), but on the whole it keeps getting better and better. A new Conservative government that refused (against huge pressure from the communists, the WHO, the UN, and media) to institute a lockdown, increasingly cosmopolitan, good internet connections (including for business), real estate is still very cheap, and of course all the things that it always had that were good (the people, semi-decent weather with about 6 months of serious warmth and only about 2 of real cold, the MEAT and all the food in general, a culture that is relatively educated and european in style but very culturally-libertarian and tolerant, beaches if you're into that, etc). Plus, lots of gamers!

As long as you don't need to try to get a job or start a local business here (but rather can work online internationally, or live on a fixed income, or you plan to engage in real estate as your business),  this is a great place to live.
*makes a note*

How is Uruguay in terms of crime and self-defense?

zircher

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Re: Anyone here ever seriously consider moving or move out the the USA?
« Reply #11 on: March 11, 2021, 10:41:15 AM »
I play around with the idea of retiring in the Philippines from time to time.  My wife is from there and the cost of living is great for a retiree.  Also, we would have family to fall back on for elder care (if needed.) It is a very diverse country so there is something nice there for just about everyone.  And economically, the dollar is still strong.  You can find enclaves of ex-pats from Australia and the US if that is your thing.  Down sides include crap internet (everyone uses cell phone hotspots), crime, and the language barrier.  Language is an odd duck in the PI.  Dozens of dialects but broadcast television is trilingual.  No, not three language tracks, but mixing Spanish, English, and Tagalog words together in the same sentence.  Oh, and the weather, typhoons and volcanoes are still a thing.
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Brad

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Re: Anyone here ever seriously consider moving or move out the the USA?
« Reply #12 on: March 11, 2021, 11:03:13 AM »
Before I got married I contemplated moving to Hong Kong for a variety of reasons; glad I did not...just waiting for secession at this point.
It takes considerable knowledge just to realize the extent of your own ignorance.

RPGPundit

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Re: Anyone here ever seriously consider moving or move out the the USA?
« Reply #13 on: March 11, 2021, 08:38:57 PM »
Well, Uruguay has some disadvantages (a terrible bureaucracy, high prices on imports, regulations make it almost impossible to start a profitable small business), but on the whole it keeps getting better and better. A new Conservative government that refused (against huge pressure from the communists, the WHO, the UN, and media) to institute a lockdown, increasingly cosmopolitan, good internet connections (including for business), real estate is still very cheap, and of course all the things that it always had that were good (the people, semi-decent weather with about 6 months of serious warmth and only about 2 of real cold, the MEAT and all the food in general, a culture that is relatively educated and european in style but very culturally-libertarian and tolerant, beaches if you're into that, etc). Plus, lots of gamers!

As long as you don't need to try to get a job or start a local business here (but rather can work online internationally, or live on a fixed income, or you plan to engage in real estate as your business),  this is a great place to live.
*makes a note*

How is Uruguay in terms of crime and self-defense?

Its got a low crime rate by latin american standards; most big (and these days, a lot of medium) US cities have much worse crime rates than Montevideo.

You can own guns here if that's what you mean by self-defense, but there's a bit of rigmarole and expenses involved, you have to register them, etc.
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The Spaniard

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Re: Anyone here ever seriously consider moving or move out the the USA?
« Reply #14 on: March 15, 2021, 06:39:24 PM »
I've considered Uruguay and Belize recently.  I've backed off from Uruguay do to what seems to be the high cost of living.  I need to work for another decade at least.