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How The SAFETY I Felt in Europe BROKE MY HEART For America...
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- Published on Apr 18, 2026
- Just an American trying to learn more about and Germany and the rest of Europe.
Today we're gonna check out How The SAFETY I Felt in Europe BROKE MY HEART For America...
Just my own personal experience at the end of the day. But do you guys see where I’m coming from? What were your observations about America?🇺🇸
Edit: I’m fully aware that Europe (and pretty much the rest of the world at this point) has been going through A LOT recently and some of the issues in America I highlighted in this video exist elsewhere too. I just want the world to finally heal and America’s perception to change for the better (sooner rather than later lol). There’s work to be done on all sides for sure, and hopefully we as a global people can make that change happen little by little!
A country wich is mostly full of brainwashed people, witch spend an enourmous quantity of money to subsidize their military base around the world; as well full of stubborn peoples that doesn't know what's a ''human'' or ''civil'' rights but as well insist on the ''right to carryy' or to have a weapon. At least you put in charge a real arrogant bully with no kind of education wich, sadly, reflect mostly the people that lives in your country and voted for him.
Cheers from italy, from the new fascist regime mirroring,sadly again, with yours.
America is the only first world country where people think and act like they're in a third world country, and they're proud of it.
I would like to slightly alter something you said. It's not that our govs value our lives better. Every right we have we had to fight for. Believe me, our institutions are trying to bring us to the same point where you are, just slowly.
The thing is, our history is not the same. The generation that fought in WWII is dying out and the rest of the population have all lived with paid vacations, paid sick leaves, proper unemployment compensation, disability benefits, maternity leaves... So it's kind of hard for them to pry it all out of our hands in one fell swoop. So they're taking it away crumb by crumb. You never had those rights in the first place, so your fight is harder.
But people in Europe are getting more and more tired of being left with scraps when the super-rich and corporations are ruining our solidarity systems by not paying their fair share.
Stay tuned, things are seriously going to be rocked here in France starting monday but especially wednesday!
Sooo you Americans should be happy with Trump and RFK , MAHA, same topics , healthcare, processed food etc , alot off these videos are insinuating that this is caused by the current Admin off the usa...what are your thoughts on the crackdown in DC? And soon in your town Chicago? Knowing where u from i understand that you feel safe in Germany ,but for us its not anymore,france same thing , thats why you see every where "right wing" winning ,even in Germany now.
Been a load of times - it’s a very polarised - weight, money, housing, safety from the cops, and now ICE. My bros kids had to do regular ‘shooter drills’
My kids never ever had one.
French here... Those who say that healthcare isn't free because you have to pay social security contributions don't understand what universal healthcare is. As long as we are healthy, we pay for those less fortunate who are sick; if one day we ourselves need expensive treatment, we know that it won't ruin us financially. I had cancer and underwent surgery and chemotherapy. I am still being monitored and don't have to pay anything. Americans who oppose this system call it socialism. They would rather die than pay for someone else's care. It's insane!
Dane here…I agree! 👍🏼
Solidarity!!!
Anyone who thinks they don’t pay for someone else’s care hasn’t understood the concept of insurance at all.
I was watching a US true crime video last week and the police told the young lady who was attacked that they'd call an ambulance. She asked them not to, as she said she couldn't afford to pay for the ambulance journey. One of the police officers knew she needed hospital treatment and brought her in his police car. She would have paid anything from $1,000 to $3,000 just for the ambulance never mind the hospital treatment. Just heartbreaking
I agree with you, in Portugal is the same...
I wish you strength and courage to surpass your cancer, I know what it is to have cancer, not because I got cancer but my stepfather got cancer...
And lost the battle and it hurt a lot to my family and his family... So I say that you need to be strong and never lose hope!
Breaking Bad in Germany:
Walter White gets cancer.
Health insurance pays for the treatment.
End.
So true!!!!!!!
Breaking Bad UK.
Walter White gets cancer.
The government pays for his treatment.
End.
Breaking Bad in Poland:
Walter White gets cancer.
Public health insurance pays for the treatment, but Walter has to wait 3 years for his first chemo.
He dies waiting.
End.
@Min_Mei_Lin a good trick is to get an appointment for a check-up instead of a treatment even if you know you have cancer. when they find that out by themselves they are going to boost you for a more favorable date for some reason and you won't wait for so long. trust me, I'm Polish and my grandpa had cancer and he survived it just like this
@herstoryanimated No we all do collectively through National Health Insurance. It's not free, but its a deduction we accept for the NHS.
When you're born in a warzone you don't realise you're in a warzone until you leave it.
Europe is closer to multiple warzones and stil feels safer than the US... kinda insane
and they still defende guns and NOT gun control... Because people are killed by drooping rocks or something... Insane
The brainwashing and patriotism over nothing, the fundamental Christianity without Jesus' "loving your neighbor as yourself" etc... It's Murica, end level capitatalism and the people are brainwashed into thinking they're the best. Psychology used 100 percent.
Anyways, I'm absolutely grateful not to be born, raised and living in the borderline 3rd world country named Murica and so glad to have free health insurance and free biology college.
@frea2191cuz Murica is the street everyday life warzone. So it's closer there...
I call BS in the name of all the people in Gaza.
My biggest fear when I go to do groceries is that I might forget something
😂
yeah being at the checkout and realizing i forgot my wallet is the worst case outcome.
When I’m in Denmark yea, me too.
When I were in Florida, i was most afraid that a serial shooter rapist killer would go berserk in the mall with a rifle.
Fear goes away, if you embrace the underlying cause... I KNOW, I will forget something, so, I fear not...
or like you go to the self check out, pay you groceries and once you're home you realise that you forgot an item you bought (happened to me too many times)
"Would you get into trouble for sleeping in your car in Europe?" In Sweden you're straight up encouraged to stop by the road and sleep for a bit if you're dangerously sleepy behind the wheel at least.
Same in Germany, to prevent accidents because people fell asleep at the wheel.
Same in Portugal.
Taking a nap, so you can continue your trip safely will not be an issue. Staying overnight will differ from location to location.
Yup, a 20 min power nap, will leave you fresh for another 3-5 hours! Please do stop and take one, as it might save your life and someone elses as well.
Same in the UK. Only issue with that is if you're drunk...if caught, you're still drunk in control of a vehicle so will be charged.
Visiting Manhattan from London a few years ago, I asked a woman on a bus for directions. She noted my accent and we started talking. She had just been to hospital for a check up as she had cancer. She told me she’d had to sell her house to pay for treatment, and asked how much it would cost in the UK. I said all healthcare was free at the point of use, paid from taxes. She couldn’t believe it. The thought of having to deal with the stress of cancer, and to have to worry about money as well must be unbearable. That’s no way to treat your citizens.
Civil rights lawyer posted a video earlier today, poor guy got arrested for jaywalking. Despite not making any resistance, he got beaten so bad by the cops arresting him that he broke 3 ribs and had to go to the hospital, probably with bills higher than Hunter Biden, and while in there the cop came in to give him the ticket for jaywalking. This is the scariest part about Murica, you can end up with life ruining debt, even when it's not even your fault.
@John8087 For jaywalking???
@LondonEve24 Yes, and to add insult to the injury, he literally lived across the street from the vending machines were he got arrested. Crossed a two lane street with no traffic. Cops were waiting for anyone to cross there.
@John8087 Ffs! I’ve spent a lot of time in the US and jaywalked all the time. Everyone does it in London as there's no such law. Meanwhile, there’s a felon in the White House. Make it make sense.
@LondonEve24 Sounds like you've been to California or New York, the only states that doesn't enforce it. It's a real thing in Murica. Especially in the more car dependent parts.
I'm grateful for being European
Join the club! ☺
second that,... we shall count our blessings
The USA has attracted many of our bright and talented individuals with its alluring dream-life propaganda, individuals who could have contributed to making Europe stronger and better.
From France : agreed, dear neighbour! ❤️🇪🇺❤️
Well lets not take it for granted. We should be vigilant and always fight to keep it that way. Always stand up for democracy and freedom, never take it for granted.
When you're constantly told and telling yourself that you're the best, you never improve.
Quote Bernie "You are living in the richest country in the world, do you feel it?"
Ohhhh that´s a good one!!!
Correction: the country with the richest oligarchs.
I'm French. My dad is a police officer who's only a couple of years away from retiring. And not once, in 25 years, has he ever had to use his gun. Not once. He's pull it out a couple time, yes, but Never use it. And he told me he's actually Very glad of it.
Salute to your pa 👍🏻
you won't believe it but the stats are not that much different in the US. Not every US policy officer shot somebody while on duty.
Police here in N.Macedonia is unfortunately very corrupt. They'll do anything to try to arrest or fine you (of course not all of them). But you won't lose your life at least because police here aren't "shoot first, ask questions later". Corrupt police, but I rather have them than the American police.
Un bon flic est toujours apprécié !
Et contrairement à ce que disent beaucoup de personne en France, la plupart sont en effet de bon flics, qui essayent simplement de faire leur taf. Alors quand des fou furieux leurs balance des pierres à la tête, juste parce qu'ils traversent un quartier. Qu'ils se font embusquer lorsqu'ils répondent à un voiture en feu (ou autre chose), ils font ce que toute personnes en état de se défendre fait : se défendre.
Malheureusement, ça mène aussi pas mal de flics a tourner aigris, méfiant, et haineux d'une "certaine démographie". Parce que soyons honnête, cette même démographie et souvent celle a faire des problèmes (en ville principalement. En campagne c'est les chasseurs, bien blanc, les plus gros coupables. Et les jeunes qui s’ennuient à en crever, ainsi que les petites brutes d’extrême droite qui veulent "prouver d'être des vrais mecs"). Résultat on a des flics qui deviennent plus méfiant, réagissent plus vite agressivement, et parfois même tournent racistes. Du coup, la "démographie" en question tourne encore plus défensive, encore plus agressive, et commet encore plus d’agression envers les flics. Un vrais cercle infernal.
Mais comme tu le dis si bien : c'est PAS la majorité.
Et ce serait pas mal que l'état s'en rende compte, et les média tentent la désescalade, plutôt que de monter en graine des événements cherry picked, et dire "c'est la même chose partout ! c'est la preuve de *intéresser la tendance politique du moment*". Un peu de positivité ferait pas de mal en France. Ça et rappeler aux gens d'accepter qu'égalité, fraternité, liberté ça fonctionne dans les deux sens. Pas juste celui qui les arrangent sur le moment.
@TheTpointerThe statistics definitely say otherwise.
And of course not every US police officer has shot citizens but there's a lot more use of firearms in the US compared to France.
In the UK we have a police SERVICE the US has a police FORCE. In the UK the police do their job by public content, in the US police enforce....
Long post: apologies up front.
I grew up in a small town in Midwest USA and lived in New York City for a year. After university, I married a man in North Germany [Moin!]. We lived in a small German city for over 30 years.
Humorous side note: my family and friends were VERY worried about me moving to Europe. No, I wasn’t told that I’d lose a kidney, but my parents supplied me with tons of antibiotics to take along…. *huh…??*
When it came time to retire, my husband wanted to move to a large city such as Hamburg, Munich or Vienna, stating that it would be more comfortable for us as senior citizens.
Immediately, I felt the old, imprinted fear of large cities which I had learned growing up in the US raise its ugly head: I literally heard the warning bells and whistles going off in my brain. I said NO, absolutely not.
My husband is the most wonderful, patient German dude in the world. He didn’t try to convince me with logic. Instead, he took me on a week-long trip to Vienna. He rented a holiday apartment deep in a residential area of Vienna for us and just let things happen.
I have to admit that I spent most of the time with my shields up and literally spying on the world around me - Did the neighbors in the surrounding apts scream at each other over breakfast? Were kids crying uncontrollably? Were shady people peeking out from dark alleys? All things I experienced in NYC by the way.
The penny finally dropped for me as we were walking back to the apartment late one evening towards the end of our stay. We exited the subway and passed through an area where teens gathered for skateboarding. I had trouble processing the fact that they were respectful of our space and took care not to skate in our direction.
As we got into the darker, residential neighborhood, I saw a lone woman walking home by herself. Alone. She paused briefly near a street light to dig around in her bag: to me, that was like breaking a cardinal safety rule - a “come and mug me.” But her body language was just so totally relaxed and chill; absolutely at ease. I just stared. Literally. After she moved on, I remember saying, “Huh….” Hubby just smiled and let me dwell on the experience.
We are now retired and living in the middle of Vienna. I go out at night alone whenever I want to: I attend evening classes, meet friends, go to concerts and travel the subways alone - all the way up to shutdown time! And I’m not afraid. I feel so much more - me.
And yes, I go up to the police here and ask for directions, no problem.
That was an interesting story, I too am retired and I travel alone. Apart from avoiding dark alleys, I go where I want, when I want. I live in the south of England and love going to London, Paris, (and other French cities), Munich, and various other favourite haunts. I can't imagine living in fear every time you go out
A few years back I moved from a village to a more urban area, for convenience, and although I loved my former home, it's fantastic to have lots of public transport, and stores, on my doorstep. I can still drive to my old village, or go by bus, if I wish which is lovely.
I'm so happy that you are enjoying your new life in Vienna, another city I love, along with Salzburg. The list is endless for places to visit, if you can live your life without fear. 🙋♀️🤗
Vienna is a beautiful, civilised city, and small enough to get around easily. Definitely one of my favourites. How wonderful to be able to live there. I'm an envious Londoner!
As a Brit that has lived and worked around Europe over the last 30 years (and having worked in the New York City and Atlanta as well as upstate New York) I could feel a smile forming as I was reading your post. I understand exactly what you mean. I've also spent time working in Mumbai in India, which is a huge cultural shock when it comes to this sort of thing.
Part of my smile is that as somebody who grew up in the 1970s in the UK, I was amused by an American couple who, while travelling on the London Underground (subway) were impressed that nobody on the tube train was stealing a bag that had been left at the end of one carriage. It didn't occur to them that many of the other passengers - far from being exceptionally honest - were looking at that bag as a bomb threat... 🙂... which wasn't something that they ever worried about in the US at that time. This was at a time when the Irish Republican Army (IRA) were active in London.
Another similar experience was me when working in Lisbon and going to see a colleague (my future wife) at her apartment for the first time. The area was full of graffiti on the buildings and garbage all over the place. It looked really rough. I thought that if I left my hire car there for an hour I would find it jacked up on bricks and without wheels when I came back. Nothing could have been further from the truth. I later lived in that apartment for four years. It was one of the most friendly and safe neighbourhoods you could imagine. The culture of graffiti on buildings came from the era of dictatorship in Portugal when this was the only way to have public free speech. And the indifference to throwing garbage down on the street was rooted in a culture of rebellion against authority after dictatorship ended and people honestly felt liberated by "breaking all the rules" without fear of punishment.
I was merely looking at that area through British eyes and fearing leaving my car there because to me it looked such a rough neighbourhood.
The point is that the culture and environment that you've been brought up in most definitely moulds the way you perceive things elsewhere.
Are you telling me you are free to buy antibiotics in the USA without prescription?
Thanks for sharing. Hard to believe.
As a European, I never quite understood the American fear around shootings on the street, until I traveled to SF ten years ago with my bf, and a couple got shot right in their car down to the to the block, really close to the place where we were staying. We were so shoked that we stayed at the apartment during the whole next day. In Europe, when something like this happens, it's either a terr0rist attack, or a shooting related to drug trafficking in deprived areas (not to minimize such events), but in Europe, you don't see people on the streets with guns, including the police, and you don't expect being shot while hanging around with your gf.
True that, although depends where you live in Europe. In my city of Eastern European origins 2 gangs of *certain ethnic group* started shooting each other in front of a police station. Couple of people got injured, I think 1 dead and no arrests made.
In whole E.europe and balkans nothing criminally goes without local governments knowledge and their cut.
@ivanmatusic5540hello from Finland. Bullshit.
@grenada-frbn You missed the point to throw out a racist dog whisle? The OP said there are gang related shootings in Europe. In the UK, gun crime is almost exclusively gang crime where they kill each other and not random citizens. In England it's largely minority gang members from poor backgrounds. In Scotland it's largely white Scottish gangs from poor backgrounds - so what's your point? There are poor criminals shooting each other everywhere. You are highly unlikely to be a victim of this. In the US, it's not just gangs shooting each other. It's random nut-jobs with access to firearms and no healthcare for their mental issues. That was the point.
@newblor Yeah, they are so poor that they live in castles and have the latest Porsche cars. If you don't know what I am talking about, better keep out of it. Criminals don't need mental institutions after 14 prior arrests, they need to be locked up for life and the judges that release them with no bail to share their sentence. Don't try to frame gang crimes with your boohoo racism dog whistle boohoo, the poor criminals, we should let them in our homes and give them free mental issues, no matter how many people they've killed. Poor criminals, here, take my money, buy yourself more coke to numb your pain.
I know that you are illiterate and missed the "Eastern Europe" part, so you had to bring out UK, for some reason. Shooting each other in the front of the POLICE station and none of them being ARRESTED, while it's illegal to OWN firearms (unless they got that gun licence, but I doubt it) is the problem I was presenting. But sure, bring out racism, cuz that's the problem, not the fact that maniac criminals don't care what the law says and will do whatever they want with no repercussions. You are part of the problem, with this mentality is why 'Muricans are where they are right now. "Bu-bu-but, muh racism card that gets muh internet brownie points", shut up, just shut up, you make me sick.
German woman here (59)... Seeing videos like this honestly makes me sad. I feel real compassion for everyone who has to live with this constant sense of insecurity. And in a country like the USA, which for so long was seen as a role model around the world... As a German, and as a European, I can truly say: I have never once in my life felt unsafe or threatened.
As a child, I always walked to school alone - and was proud of it. As a teenager, constantly out clubbing, I never worried that something might happen. As an adult, I never had a single experience that felt even remotely threatening. Not once! Even today, I still walk through the city at night alone - sometimes in short skirts and high heels after a party - without fear.
And it’s not only about the feeling that my life isn’t constantly in danger. I also know I won’t end up in lifelong debt just because I get sick. If I lose my job, the social system will catch me before I fall into homelessness. Restrictions: yes. Losing everything: no. My son studies without drowning in student debt. I live in an environment where people actually care for one another - we are neighbors, not enemies. Nobody fears being shot for holding a different opinion. Nobody worries that someone might suddenly put a gun in their face.
And all this is possible because I live in a society where the government works for the people, not against them. Where the police are known as “friends and helpers,” not as a corrupt and violent force (this is very true for Germany - I can’t speak for every other European country, gg).
In short: I am lucky enough to live in a society that values cooperation over conflict and sees its citizens not as exploitable capital, but as human beings. And for that, I am not just happy - I am deeply grateful.
I admire the strength of German ladies. . Greetings from the south, the friendship of always from Portugal.
Well said! I as a german woman your age agree.
Currently in vacation in Croatia and Venice. 😊
I am so glad to be born in Europe, where i can hop on a nighttrain and be in two different beautiful countries!
Thank you for your opinion, I really liked it 😍 Many Germans are constantly complaining and don't really realize how good they have it in this country or in the EU in general. But most people appreciate it and enjoy living in this country and/or in Europe - and that's just great!. Best regards from Northern Germany.
Ich bin mittlerweile 64 Jahre alt. Mir ist im ganzen Leben keine Gewalt angetan worden. Ich war als kleines Kind den ganzen Tag mit Freunden auf dem Spielplatz oder später unterwegs. Ich bin als Jugendliche getrampt und habe auch selbst Tramper mitgenommen.
Ich lebe in Deutschland und in der USA möchte ich nicht tot über dem Zaun hängen.
Das Sozialsystem ist auch ein Grund, warum Deutschland besser zum Leben geeignet ist.
Wer Deutschland ständig schlecht macht, soll doch mal zur Probe in den USA leben und arbeiten.
Ich bin hier sehr glücklich mit meinem Leben und dankbar.
@alida1410 Ich hacke schon gerne ein wenig auf Deutschland rum, aber ich bin in der Schweiz beheimatet. :D
Nachbarn dürfen das. Wir werden von der Deutschen Presse ja auch gerne ein "wenig" beleidigt. 😅
Spass beiseite, Deutschland ist ein schönes Land. vVr anderthalb Jahren war ich in Dresden, dann Berlin und zum Schluss Köln. (Hatten leider nur so viel Zeit)
Dresden und Köln waren wunderschön. Berlin war eindrücklich insofern, dass es absolut gigantisch ist und natürlich der ganze historische Aspekt. Aber mir persönlich ein wenig zu schmuddelig und grau. (Und die Batscherei am Bahnhof hat auch nicht sein müssen..)
Auch die Leute (abgesehen von Berlin) sind freundlich und offen. Wir hatten definitiv Spass und fühlten uns gut aufgehoben.
French, here.
I have a brain and muscle disease and therefore cannot work, since I'm in constant pain/muscle fatigue.
In the US, I would have killed myself a long time ago, but here I have some help and can live ALMOST decently.
It's not perfect yet, but I am grateful to have been born in France for this.
Jag lever i Sverige, och hade en stor tumör i ryggmärgen. Operationen var svår och komplicerad. Jag låg på intensiven 6 veckor. Och fick efter det lära mig allt, som ett barn. Sitta, äta, gå, bajsa ...och allt kostade mig cirka 300 dollar. Själv klart har jag betalat skat hela mitt liv, men ..Jag är så lycklig att jag föddes här o inte i USA, eller i nån utvecklings land.
My 80 year old mam had heart surgery, and a pacemaker every complication in the book. She stayed in ICU for 3 weeks , than moved to another ward and a week later in an ambulance to another hospital , closer to her home so my dad could visit . 500 Euro/year max is what people with low income have to pay for everything. treatment; transport , medication etc.
As a firearms owner in Germany as much as regulations can frustrating here, i would rather endure the beurocracy and restrictions than live in constant fear of being shot for the slightest disagreement with another person. My firearms at home are in a secure safe. I do not feel the need to keep one on my bedtime table or carry one for break-ins or other perceived threats. Firearms here are only available to commited sport shooters or those who need them professionally and are prepared to invest time ,money and patience in obtaining the various permits. Gun ownership is sold to Americans as freedom and liberty when it is actually based on paranoia and fear.
The original reason for every American having the right to have a firearm was so that the young colony could quickly mobilze militias in the early days of the US. What started out as a security feature has devolved into a paranoid nation where gun sales spikes everytime the news report about gun voilence and mass shootings. I would also argue that allowing a nations citizens to arm themselves in case they need to form a militia have proven to be impotent to protect USA's democracy from being taken over by a dictator. I have nothing against civilans owning firearms for sport, hobby or even self defence provided that they pass a couple of courses and tests to prove that they're responsible adults. Stricter gun laws in the US would also reduce the amounts of firearms smuggled from the US into Mexico arming the criminals causing so much chaos in South America that the US southern border is flooded by refugees fearing for their safety.
@Sungamtonmany thanks for your reply. I enjoy your content and find the exchange of attitudes and ideas informative, and entertaining. Enjoy your stay in Europe! 👍
It's the same in the UK, I needed firearms for my job , we have a extensive vetting process where medical and criminal record information is collected on the applicant , as well as family members. The Firearms team visit your house , check your security etc, and advise you that gun ownership is a privilege.
German hunter here. I had to have police background check and some sort of psychological evaluation besides the obvious weapons competency tests. Then an official inspected where my gun would be kept in the house. I found this eminently reasonable. There's basically next to no gun crime in my country BECAUSE restrictions are this tight.
The trouble is the problem is self-perpetuating in the US. If any random nutjob can buy a gun at a supermarket, if I suspect half my neighbours have guns, then of course I feel I NEED a gun as well to feel safe. 🤷
Don't understand why you need to keep your guns at your home, there should be a safe facility at the sports club, just my opinion
Dear people in America,
This is not meant as mockery but as sincere advice. Please, set aside the ideas that have been pumped into you.
I am Belgian, with only a low level of formal education. I have always worked minimum-wage jobs. Yet in Belgium that was enough for me to travel every year. I have visited several countries in Asia as a backpacker - India, Sri Lanka, Thailand - as well as parts of South America such as Mexico, Guatemala, and El Salvador. I also traveled across Europe, and even visited the United States twice.
Today I live simply but comfortably. I am retired now. I own a small car, an electric bicycle, and I use public transportation. I live above an Aldi store and have the choice of 54 supermarkets within walking distance. All hospital costs in my entire life have been free.
We call our society a socio-capitalist system.
Please, take your head out of the flag and vote for humanity.
BTW, Mexico is considered part of North America, while Guatemala and El Salvador are in Central America. Just so you know.
-🍁
@SlickBubblesIt's actually taught a little differently in different countries. It's not written in stone.
Let's not forget they barely get vacation.
You guys are being conquered by Arabs what are you talking about
@thatsalt1560it aaactuallleeee is. Meso America is Middle America. It is not North America. It's not South America. What you call it, doesn't change that. End off.
if you need a gun to feel safe you are not free
As an german i need to feel one. Make your own conclusions.
@DrEcKiGeRDaN88no your just a psychopath.. I’m British
As an amurican I have SIGNIFICANTLY more freedoms than in Europe.
@Jillian-c5u No you don't. You're confusing liberty with license. Freedom without boundaries isn't freedom; it's the law of the jungle. True freedom is about balancing competing rights. Guns infringe on others' right to safety; being LGBT infringes on no one. USA is less free than Europe.
@Jillian-c5u😂😂😂😂
That's hilarious.
You can't even cross a road wherever you want without getting a criminal charge.
So tell me how free you are again.
In the US, “freedom” often gets twisted. any regulation, even if it protects people, is seen as a threat. In the end, that version of freedom mostly benefits the rich.
In Sweden if you are sleeping in your car and someone calls cops, the police will ask you if you are allright or need medical help.
In Scandinavia no one is forced to live in a car. Stupid.
@erikfaber1995The post said sleeping, not living. So no need to be rude.
@slake9727 I think erik just projected his thoughts on somebody else, silly goose erik
America lost its compassion for the poor. Capitalism sucks
If i see someone sleeping in his car, especially if it‘s someone young i‘ll just assume he is too drunk to drive. Havent met anyone living in his car, ever.
Pickpocketing is terrible here, but it's mostly in touristy places. Consider that when an American feels unsafe in Europe, they feel like a tourist, unfamiliar with the rules. When they feel unsafe in America, they feel unsafe as a citizen who knows their way around. A tourist in America will feel even less safe.
I have never ever been pickpocketed or worried about it in Germany
@ThomasIsBored and were you a turist in a very touristic and crowled city in Germany?
And the threat of a pickpocket is not the same threat that being killed
US will not pickpocket you, they will robb you at the point of their gun 😆🥲
I was pickpocketed as a tourist in Germany, didn't get my phone back by the police was great, they eventually caught the people who did it and wrote to me about the sentences they got.
I live in middle europe and my only worries are bike thieves honestly.
Never got anything stolen besides a bike in a city.
Rich do not get richer by helping the poor. They get richer by leaching from the poor.
In the end it leads to a new form of nobility, which leads to uprisings as history has shown
"We will tax the poor more, they are not rich but they are numerous !" - Coluche, French comedian
It's worse ... there's workers and talkers. The workers make society work and the talkers leach off the workers.
The talkers convince themselves and others that they're the important cog in the machine that makes things work but in the end, all they do is talk and get bonusses.
The workers create, grow, build, serve and help. The talkers just talk and calculate how to satisfy their greed.
A problem? Let's have 20 meetings with lunch and them a few weeks off to rest! The solution is always that anyone but them needs to solve the problem and get their hands dirty.
The world would do well with less talkers and more workers ... and leaders that don't fear joining the workers, leaders who would join the front lines, leaders who know what it's like to do real work.
Yep. It's not the rich that should decide where the money goes but the state, taking it from the rich, empowering the poor. In the German constitution it's written as "Property obligates." [own translation]. When you can do more for your fellow countrymen, you should do so.
but it's usually the poor who make companies and become rich. How does that calculate into your little equation there boy?
as a european it sounds funny to me that us citizens are afraid of pickpocketing while thier are ok with geting shot by a police officer who had a bad day. this comparison blows my mind every time i hear it.
Also funny how they seem to think that guns would solve the pickpocketing problem. Whole point of pickpocketing is that you won't notice until the thief is far away. Seems like a huge risk that someone innocent gets shot, and if not through assumption it would be by a stray bullet.
Money is worth more to a rich American than a human being
You are watching way too many movies.
Police shootings are actually quite low and 99% of the violence according to the literal camera footage are just cause, instigated by the criminal, not the police.
@CursedImagesEverydayOh wow, what an edgy hottake. Yeah, if criminals where just allowed to do whatever they want, it would get better.
Wait, that has been tried in DC, you know, the murder capitol in the world?
@hallarious506 Not sure what you mean by that but just by looking at the bigger picture you realise it's true. Just looking at the healthcare alone is enough...
I am an American and glad I live in Europe.
Dutchie here, its very common to have a chat with police, if you behave there absolute chill and nothing to worry about
Yeah, we used to have a chat with the police on a night out (UK)
Same in Australia
Police are just ppl, DOING A JOB after all!... not some clone army, made to beat obidience into the public!
they arent particularly liked here in germany either, but in the end they are just neighbours, working....
I was smoking hash in a park in oslo 2 days ago when a civilian dressed officer came to me. He asked if I had more on me, I said no.
He asked for my ID. He also asked me a few questions about if I work, and stuff like that. Very casual conversation, and a very chill dude.
He asked if he could check my bag. It was empty. He did not check my pockets or phone. Then he told me to enjoy my day since I am not bothering anyone. He left me with my spliff, and told me to have fun with it.
Mind you, smoking weed here is illegal. I did not feel unsafe around him for one second. And I am black.
Yup in Norway to, ust stop have a talk to the officers after some beers . Is people behaving uniform boys and girls ?.👍
English bloke here, I had the chance of living and working in the USA and turned it down ,paying for health care is incredibly frighting, losing your house because you got cancer seems normal over there. That is unbelievable for over 90% of the rest of the world ,kids getting shot at school is insane. Every American I've met is good people-you need to make a change, and I believe you can-good luck
Same here - back in 1999 I was offered a 300% salary hike to relocate to Denver, but on US terms for leave/sick leave, etc.
Flat "No". Even if I did it for just a few years, lived cheaply and banked a house before coming home, "No."
And that was nearly 30 years ago, I wouldn't even consider a vacation today.
Specially if you consider that nowadays, half of the people will experience cancer during their lifetime !!
And perhaps a bit more in the US with their crappy food.
no they obviously cant
they voted for trump
My boyfriend was offered the opportunity to do a work experience program in USA for two or three months. He also turned it down, preferring Poland instead. And funny how he said the conversation went, with his boss already assuming he wouldn't.
Also the only other place that I would associate with a school shooting would be some third world country where some extremist group can't handle girls getting an education. And even those stories I haven't heard of in like the last 10 years. I don't think many in the USA realise how absurdly abnormal that is.
The Americans I’ve met have always been really friendly and outgoing.
Americans are nice, America is a propaganda machine burgeoning into a fascist state.
Please cousins, don’t allow it to happen, fight for your country.
The reason Europeans “look down” on America is because were constantly told how great America is by Americans but we actually have critical thinking skills and look at your country for what it is, the worlds largest third world country, education is horrific crime rates that are close to Brazil, loving your country of the lives of the people living in it, I’m from England I fucking hate my country but I’m so glad I was born here over being born in America
It's a pity you fucking hate England. But, I know what you mean. There's plenty to hate (or at least dislike intensely) about England but, get the right mind set and there's plenty to like as well. A tip - one Englishman to another. Do something that gains you nothing but puts something into other people's lives. I gave up my Saturday afternoons to work on a helpline for people in despair about their addictions. It taught me more about life and being grateful what I have. How about trying to round up some donations for your local foodbank - find some source of donation that hasn't been thought of in your locality? The best thing: do something positive for people you hate or despise - immigrants for example. Pray that they have good luck, do something that improves their miserable lives. But, don't ever tell anyone what you did. Tell nobody. Otherwise, the magic doesn't work.
When "Fu*king hate it" is a blessing. I laughed so hard, brilliant 🙂
Brazil has a higher murder rate but as an normal civilian brazil isnt more dangerous as the US. In brazil most murders are gang related and most gangs dont want that tourist feel unsafe so in some areas the gangs protect the normal people. And for americans: a brazilian gang isnt like an american gang its way bigger and organized it goes more in the direction of a mafia or cartel
I'm one of a number of US citizens who know the ridiculous claims of my country being the best in the world is utter shite. My country serves only the wealthy, some of the medication prices in this video seem a bit off but my meds are thousands of dollars a month. The cost of my health insurance is disgustingly high. I'm not sure where I'll be in 3 years.
You're right. Americans are taught from a very young age that they live in the greatest country in the world.... The sad reality is that their country is so backward and they just can't see it. Sad.
Belgian who lives in Spain, mother of a mixed race child with autism and i can confirm that we feel very safe in Europe on many aspects. You must come to Spain, it is on another level❤ stay safe.
I am customs officer in Germany. Work in the port of Hamburg as a customs patrol officer. Some years ago, we came across a rental car in te port area, which raised our suspicion. We stopped the car and asked the persons in the car to step out to do a search of the car (instead of most police services customs officers a permitted by law to do so in border areas without any suspicion). What stayed in my mind was, the co-driver, a 19 y/o stepped out and put his hands on the motor hood and brought himself in a search position. The German driver smiled and said, he is from the US because we looked a bit confused. Then we smiled and told the boy to stood at ease. He had real problems to get comfy in contrast to his German friend. At the end, everything was fine. But this weired impression about the US and law enforcement stayed until today.
That is because in civilized countries the police are public servants. In the USA, they are an army of occupation.
@donmac7780how had that happened? There must had been a point where it switched or had the police always been that way. I mean, in the last decades police services, also in Europe. Had been harder, but there was a development. But not in the US. Yes, there is not only preventing crime and solving cases, there is also public order to be uphold, but there must be a balance. Well yeah, checks and balance. What was the trigger that lead to the situation of the last decades? Irvin’s it simply the reason that police officers in Europe have 2-3 years of intense training and the US only a couple of weeks, that they do not learn different approaches to situations? Here the gun is always the Ultima Ratio, never the first or second choice, unless you are already gotten attacked by a gunner.
@dirkmahler5830 For decades, the US has stoked fears of 'radical' elements in their society. Civil rights activists, communists, hippies, gangs, terrorists, immigrants. In that chronological order. Now, I'm not saying that terrorism for example isn't a legitimate threat, but that American media blew these dangers out of proportion and presented up-arming the police with numbers, gear and authority as the only possible counter measure. Every time the fearful masses demand to feel safer, police forces are expanded, and quite often with lower requirements to meet the target number of the expansion.
@donmac7780 not realy if there was a larger daily chance someone could shoot a police officer just so... in europe, they would behave the same.
@dirkmahler5830 It comes from the different origins of police forces in Europe and the USA.
European policing originates from town watches.
American policing originated from fugitive slave patrols.
Was travelling from Munich yesterday. Here we have a Permanent Police presence on every bigger Train station for security since last year. Saw them talking to a black woman. Was wondering why they talked to her because she did not seem dangerous (though we have somewhat regularly the topic of racial profiling in the news) and then the Police picked up that womans bags and just carried them to the platform for her since she was completely overloaded and had kids with her.
I think it says quite a lot about the actual danger level when the armed Police stationed there to stop people attacking others with knifes and stuff start helping people getting their luggage to the platform.
You were racially profiling. The police officers were not. You immediately made assumptions about the black woman. Harmless but still kinda racist. I'm glad you saw that the rest of the world does things differently. Saddened that your first thought was a racially profiling one. I'm black. And im so glad i was born in the EU and not in the US. Even non racist americans think in racial segregation. 😢
@DeReguenne if anything, he was racially profiling the cops, assuming that every cop is motivated on a racist level when speaking to a black person, lmao.
@profane-667 it was a bit of both tbh
Thinking the person must be in trouble because the police are talking to them AND thinking that the police are talking to them because they were black
@DeReguenne Very strong and true comment. Thank you from France, dear neighbour !
@profane-667no.you were racially profiling her. You mentioned her colour but not the officers. Unconscious bias. Look it up.
In May, I brought my daughter and granddaughter over to Germany. I'm a 5yr expat. Just today my granddaughter pops her head into the room and Asks "Is there crime in Germany?" Yes, Honey there is crime in Germany. Why do you ask? "Because I never see cops at neighbor's houses, or in town."
That's a child that is here 4 months, never seen interaction with police....and they are in public housing in an industry city, with MANY foreigners too.
Imagine every American child today could ask her question. That question let us know we did the right thing by leaving the US.
Thank you for sharing this. I think we Germans never appreciate how good things are here compared to other countries.
I saw an online thread a couple of days ago saying that women always keep a weapon at their bed. I was mortified! People answered „that’s such an American thing to do“. I cannot imagine living in this constant fear. Must be so exhausting. :(
You're not an expat. You're an immigrant. It's not a dirty word.
You are a migrant btw you are not different to a person from turkey and the way it’s going you might as well be a refugee… and you are welcome here!
Expat is a made up word.
@90elpp Expat looks at the foreigner from the perspective of the country that the person came from. Nothing more, nothing less. No fuzz about it. Turkey and the US are different countries.
Thank you for sharing. Though you made me curious, since you said that you are an expat: when and why do you plan to go back to the US? (Sorry, if that is a too personal quastion and if it is then don't feel pressured to answer)
With the advent of the internet I have learned that most Americans don't want a world view. as its A) Un American and B) destroys the idea that they are the best and most free country in the world
As a person who was raised in the US, Schools are absolutely terrifying. When we were in the third grade we had 'armed intruder' drills. We hid in the back of the room with the lights off while cops banged on the door from outside. I distinctly remember 'we know you're in there! There's no use hiding~' being said. Eventually they'd leave, and our teachers would escort us out of the building- past teachers who lay on the floor with fake blood pooling on the floor beneath them. As a third grader I was trained by my teacher how to breathe without making any noise or visible movements. We were told if one of our fellow students were to go down- we should drop to the ground, pull their body over your own and play dead. Hell there was a secret trapdoor in my fifth grade classroom! I hate pep rallies, I hate parades, I hate dances, because I know that one of my fellow students could stand up and kill me. I know all it takes is one f'ed up kid or adult to end my life. How in the hell can people defend gun violence! How in the hell can you subject other children to the same horror I was? Guns are only useful for killing, that's the only reason they were created.
Oh my, I knew that you have drills in schools in the US, but this blows my mind. The only time we talked about these things in school was when there were terrorist attacks in Paris 10 years ago. And it was just a 15 minute talk about what to do. We didn't even have drills. I doubt that kids nowadays (in the Netherlands at least) had that talk at all. I'm so sorry you had to go through that, and that you have to fear for your life so very often. Hopefully, when Trump's second term is over (fingers crossed), there will be a chance to start ending gun violence.
In Europe when I started the first grade (I was maybe 7-8 years old?), my grandpa escorted me to school once to show me where it is, followed me from a distance the second day to make sure i remembered, and by the third day I was walking 25 minutes to school every day as a 8 year old kid.
Crazy, I'm 55, UK citizen, and other than armed police in airports and London I have NEVER seen a gun (I've seen antiques obv), never heard a gun shot, never considered the chance of being shot at.
Obv I know it does happen, but one person every 10 days for the entire country. Not one a day in every big city.
@fontyyy yeah- living in Chicago was something else . . .
What?? That is so traumatizing for a childs brain. I feel so sorry for you!
Since 1925 we had four school attacks in Poland. In total ten people died in schools attacks in the last century.
And the more recent... probably inspired by america?
@mffmoniz2948 fk r u saying? The last school attack in Poland took place in 2001, hardly can be called recent innit?
i have a heart condition. i am now at a hospital. i dont need to worry about a hospital bill. thats nice.
I live in the UK. All my life I've regarded police as people who are there to help me. A uniformed officer on the street is the go-to guy if I'm a stranger in town, looking for directions, if I've lost something, or even if I haven't got a watch and I need to know the time (seriously!) They act as a sort of general information help and advice service, apart from their obvious role in protecting and helping victims of crime.
It was a real shock when I travelled abroad for the first time and encountered police who acted hostile and arrogant as if they resented being spoken to. They treated me as a potential criminal rather than someone to protect.
Dutchie with American partner here :) I'm grateful every day we decided to build our family in the Netherlands, and not in the US. It's not just the physical safety, but also the work culture and being able to live and relax more. There is less focus on "winning", the best education, the most money. It's more about finding joy & purpose.
It’s great i am a child of a dutch and american couple never could be happier and good schools good everything
Yes, unfortunately things are going downhill here as well
.
@savioartwork no it isnt compared to america we just fine bro
This is the result of the post WW2 direction the US and Europe went.
US: unscathed. World at it's feet because it's the only place available for other countries to borrow money to rebuild. Money and making money was no issue whatsoever. So the focus was every man for himself and money is god.
Europe: destroyed. Came out with an attitude of never again, and to look after it's people. The European Coal and Steel Community was created to prevent further war and promote trade between countries who were previously at each others throats throughout history. This then gave birth to the EU, whose underlying principle is still the good of the people.
They went down completely different paths. Right now the US is trying to break Europe's sense of community and togetherness.
The key things with cops is that they are trained in de-escalation. They are also not constantly terrified that the person they want to arrest is going to shoot at them.
True. Having seen a lot of bodycam videos from the U.S., it would seem the cops over there are trained in escalation. They can turn a completely peaceful interaction into a fight in 2 seconds.
The police in the US have the main purpose of maintaining order, not protecting the attacked from the attackers, this is why it happens that the police shoot the victim who called the police
👍👍👍
the hugest difference is the "training"... here ingermany Police is like any other profession & has a 3.5 year Ausbildung(training) and then you get specialized courses, for alll "directions"!
in the former USA its like 4-6 weeks & you get a badge+gun and are allowed to brutalize citizens!
I don't know in other countries, but in Spain? The police is and laws in general are utterly useless, someone steals? Meh, file a report or something.
You get pickpocketed? File a report.
You neighbors threaten you with death? File a report
Someone breaks into your house and you hit them with a blunt object? You're going to jail
A security guard tackles someone that was stealing something? Whoopsie, assault!
We in Europe treat our fellow citizens like humans,..Even if you flipping burgers or work in a supermarket you get a living wage, payed vacation, maternety leave, pensionplan.. ect. No European senior is packing your groceries...All that and your Big Mac in Denmark( one of the most expensive countries in Europe) is just a dime more expensive than in the US.. Now that is FREEDOM, not toting around with guns or driving idiots size trucks that you can't pay anyhow...We call it "humanity" ...
There is no NRA in France… moved back to Europe from the US… so much more relaxed. More walking. Less car. Less fat and more energy
I have moved to Finland from Kazakhstan almost a year ago. I live in a small village. We dont have any kind of police station. There is a police car patrolling somewhere nearby, but I've only seen it once. People feel safe to walk around at any time of the day, they aren't afraid to leave their stuff outside in their yards without fences or guard dogs, there are no security guards in supermarkets. I feel safer here than I have ever felt in my entire life, including naive childhood.
l've been to Kazakhstan many times - mostly Shymkent and always felt safe there
@francescafoot9739 living and visiting is a big difference
I remember a few years ago some magazine went through a bunch of large cities around the world and left 10 wallets unattended to see what happens. in helsinki, finland, people returned 10/10 of them, and I think none of the cash was taken.
I sometimes joke that if you pass out drunk in a park in finland after throwing all your money around you, in the morning you'd find out someone collected them, put it all back in your wallet and left a you a blanket so you're not cold. -now, it's not really THAT safe, but I can totally see that happening. and in fact I've had a friend wake up on the stairs of an apartment building after passing out drunk, no memory of how he got there, and someone had brought him a pillow and a blanket while he was sleeping.
@babstra55 2013, 11/12 for Helsinki. =)
Dane here. I wish tell a story about the Danish police. A few years ago when it was hot summer some kids went bathing in the harbour of Århus (Aarhus). It's the second biggest city in Denmark.
Two police officers saw that and had an idea. They slowly parked their car right on the edge on the harbour front first. Then they called for the children so they could use the hood of the car as a slide.
It went all over the news! One of the officers said that him and his colleague just wanted the kids to have fun. 😄😄😄
I watched it on the news. The look of the kids was priceless. The officers was smiling widely.
The police in the US have the main purpose of maintaining order, not protecting the attacked from the attackers, this is why it happens that the police shoot the victim who called the police
Hey bro, you're talking straight facts right there!
I'm german and I lived in the States for some years. And no, not in a fancy place like California or NY. I lived in NC outskirts of Appalachia. Where people live of Mc Donald's, cigarettes, beer, moonshine, gunpowder and quite a lot of them of some meth.
There were so many situations I didn't feel comfortable and I learned to use my spider sensors really quick!
I worked there for a german company under a german contract and German healthcare, so I didn't have to worry about that. When they asked me to stay permanently and offered me a US-contract in a position and payment I could never get in germany, I smiled and said "thanks, no thanks" and left the country.
Now looking back, I'm sooo glad I came back to germany for so many reasons!
I don't think i would like to be there for travel let alone to live i US. It just sounds like nightmare. I live in Poland and it's super safe here. Last time i've seen a news with guns involved was about a year ago and it was one criminal shooting another criminal in the apartment.
The only thing i don't like is speeding and in general reckless driving. I would love to take example from countries like Sweden where road regulations are taken more seriously.
Life expectation in the US is much lower that in Europe. No wonder.
Spanish woman here. My dad is a policeman and the most amazing man in the world, kind and approachable. Our police make us feel completely safe. I have never for half a second felt threatened by a policeman, and you can definitely talk to them without worry. I live in the UK and the same applies here.
Had a tumor in my skull growing towards my brain when i was 18. I got surgery from Germany‘s best neurologists at Charite Berlin. Our total medical bill was 40€ (room fees i believe)
Moved to Europe 12 years ago.
Around Covid when visiting family someone asked me if i would ever move back to the US.
I laughed directly in their face.
I immigrated to Sweden, and I will NEVER go back to the US, not even on holiday
Brit here: "53 shot over the weekend"... over the weekend? Wow!! Gaza is safer! You have laugh, are you Yanks for real?! We have about 10 shootings a year. What do you do, walk out your door and go BLAM on anything that moves?
It's weird though, cause there are only 3 countries I can choose.
- The US and it's terrible governance and extreme spending, but more individual rights and
- The EU/UK (it's not a country in theory, but in practice most laws are passed by directive and most countries are carbon copies) where you get high taxes, low freedom and extreme regulations up to telling you how to paint your house, outlawing glitter or fun cars.
- And Canada (my favorite) has public healthcare which is... annoying, some provinces consider the internet to be a utility, which means it's state controled, and you can get your bank account frozen for protesting, but VAT is easily avoidable, taxes are decent, and there's a ton of wilderness
@LAP-bd7oi About the EU, High taxes? Yes, but what do you get for those taxes... thats the point. You get more for your high taxes, than what an american gets with their "not payed" tax money.
Also what do you mean by low freedom? What freedoms do we not have here that americans have?
Also what extreme regulations? The government doesnt tell us what color our house should be... what are you even talking about?
What fun cars are outlawed?
@LAP-bd7oi high taxes and low freedom? 😂😂😂 regulations about what?? are you serious? You clearly know nothing about Europe, you just probably repeat something you read online by some of those calling "europoors" countries they have never been to. I bet you have never been to Europe either if you write something like this.
Let that sink in. An American feels safer being in foreign country than when he is back home. "This is the best country in the world" - well you cannot even protect your own people in there.
If you look up the list of school shootings in Germany on Wikipedia you'll find 6 events with the first one being dated back to 1913 and the last one to 2009. Just to give an idea about the difference to the US.
US have had 91 this year.
USA has ramped up, then. They usually have "only" about one per week.
@joelceda3500 " they arent all schools" 🥴🫣😂
En España jamas ha habido un tiroteo en escuelas
School shootings have never happened in Italy
USA people always say that we pay so much for our healthcare from our tax. Meanwhile, they pay double for their insurance premiums and even after a pay out they still need thousands of dollars to pay for the hospital. Make it make sense.
And what do their taxes do? I mean, sure our taxes do pay healthcare and education, but it's not that they don't pay taxes...
That's true, but it's important to note that in a socialized system, it's contributions, not taxes, that finance healthcare. You pay according to your income, regardless of your risks or family composition. In a fully private system, you pay for each family member based on your risks and history, regardless of your income, and when you need care, you are charged a co-payment that could ruin you. The only winner are the compagny owners.
@Lilly05-g9s even when you pay, the insurance company can say "no" to paying for your treatment, if you die because of them you cant sue them since you are dead
@daviddieudonne7829 build golden ballrooms and give Boeing -bailouts- military contracts, I guess.
I saw a strange video online showing American school kids getting ready for school. It started off as a typical "back to school" advert showing off schoolbags, binders etc. but it rapidly descended into a horror as it showed some kids hiding in the toilets.
That's when it dawned on me that Americans have to face this reality of not seeing their kids again once they're dropped off at school! That's not right.
When you start putting the right to own a gun above the lives of children there's something really really wrong. The fact they have invented bulletproof backpacks is messed up and that they are well known enough and not just a tiny little niche thing, that I in a another country on the other side of the world has seen them on things a number of times is a whole other level of messed up
@Lea-bw9wj bulletproof backpacks!? Yeah if that's not a sign to actually do something about guns then I don't know what is. I live in the UK and yeah my country has it's problems for sure, but needing bulletproof school bags ain't one of them.
It's not just the gun lobby that don't want gun restrictions in USA, I saw something that said there is a multi billion Dollar a year industry in USA built around equipment for use during active shooter lockdowns in schools, and that industry is siding with the gun lobby. So these are people who manufacture equipment to try and stop kids getting hurt when there is an active shooter in a school, but they lobby state and national government not to enact gun restrictions which could help prevent active shooters. They are putting their own profits over the lives of kids.
@Lea-bw9wj They are not even bullet proof, they are bullet resistant. Will probably stop a 9mm pistol round, but if your local all American school shooter rocks up with a semi auto in 5.56 or Deity forbid 7.62 then all bets are off. Read the small print.
Charlie Kirk would be very disappointed by such a opinions.
I think the feeling of being able to be whoever you want comes from the fact that you wasn’t home.
On the safety issue, another difference is you are comparing living in the US vs being a Tourist in European countries. It usually feels even safer living in a European country than being a Tourist there. As things you mention like pickpockets, target tourists at a higher rate than those native/local to that country/area.
So if you feel safer as a tourist, that's elevated even more once you have lived somewhere for some time.
When you spoke about medical bills and said "does that makes you feel more, or less safe?"
I would add "does that make you feel more, or less free?" Freedom from medical debt is a big deal.
I don't think many Americans who haven't experienced anything any different, realise what a big deal it is, and how much difference it would make to their lives.
No-one should fear going to the hospital for financial reasons.
I am 38 years old and got a cancer diagnosis a few months ago.
Chances of surviving were 40% under the older treatment method and 80% with the latest/newest immunotherapy.
My therapy costs around 40.000 - 50.000€ and I don't have to compare the cost of the older treatment option vs. the new therapy nor do I have to consider the cost at all.
I can't imagine despite all the pain and weakness, frustration and fear, have to worry about being in dept for the next decade, if I am lucky enough to recover and work again.
Plus: in the USA the price was much higher than the 40-50k here in Germany.
True, living in Berlin I've never once been afraid of getting pickpocketed
Yeah, I think it's a tourist thing. I've never had anything stolen or pickpocketed. (43 yrs, Vienna)
We had a murder in the Netherlands recently of a young girl. Yes, we have crime in Europe. We even sometimes have school stabbings or shootings, although those are rare.
Every single country on earth has crime and murder. Even "super safe" countries like Japan and South Korea.
But ofcourse we should prevent crime as much as we can. I think a great first step to achieve that is not handing out guns.
I know plenty of people who would be very problematic if they could buy a gun at the supermarket. A knife is not the same. Getting close to people and stabbing them with a knife requires a lot more courage than pulling a trigger from a distance.
And you can't kill 20/30 people at speed with a knife - not like assault rifles.
@corkscrewcurly And not from a distance ... and not from a hiding place .... and not independent of your physics and age.
Basically one or tow people can "control" a stabber, worn other people and thus can other people prevent to get hurt.
Let´s imagine they had a simple tool like a fisher´s net.
Now imagine the same situation with a person having a gun.
Nothing is perfect - I think it's more a matter about the frequency, reaction and scale of the issues that plays signifigance when talking about these sort of things.
Guns and knives exist in my country aswell (denmark) but there's regulations and laws to minimize issues such as those contineously struggled with by countries like usa.
@klaus2t703 without having to control a stabber, one stabber can't attack and kill a group of 20 people without 19 of them running away successfully.
And that's if they don't think to mob said stabber.
Also knife injuries are a lot less grievous and a fair less easy to give to someone, by this I mean you have to know what you're doing to give someone that's defending themselves a lethal injury with a knife, all while making sure you don't take a knee in the nuts.
Lisa.
The thing is, it’s made national news. Headlines, even.
One non-mass shooting would never make the news in America. At best local. It’s become so normalized there…
9:30 European police forces are much better trained to protect and serve than in the US (3 years average). They're also not historically based on the desire to capture runaway slaves but on the desire to look after the community.
Man, european here. We literally brought future american slaves there from Africa
@BusiMimmoabsolutely, which is horrific, but not the basic of our police forces. The first American police forces were literally created to catch runaway slaves, and built up and out from there. Gives a different outlook on the whole institution, than in Europe, where protecting the population is the original directive.
So the show Copper was a myth?
US police = en"FORCE" the law.
EURO police =uphold the law.
Ok, so this difference might be simple semantics, but the application is profound.
@BusiMimmo we did but the difference is that he US police force started to catch runaway slaves where in Europe it's not the case
It’s still insane to me that the country is just giving everyone a kill switch that fits into your pocket. As if life itself isn’t the most important thing you should try to protect. Theres a big red button you‘re not allowed to press and yet they still give it you, just inches away from your hand at any time.
As someone who lives in the EU I’m happy that I don’t have to think about getting shot 😂😂 or mugged on the street
German here… during the Oktoberfest the police has a party bus between the festivities and the next train station. They play loud music and in between songs remind people of safety stuff, like keep your wallet in sight. Over all a good vibe, which actually makes people listen and also showing presence keeps people from acting out.
In Vienna they have employees of the public transport company with megaphones doing crowd work after concerts and sports events, to make sure everyone gets on the trains safely without pushing or shoving. They are mostly middle aged to older women who have the thousands of people trying to get into the stations do chants and dances while dividing them into groups and telling them how many more minutes until their groups' designated train will arrive. There must be a whole psychological concept behind it - evevryone has fun and the mood stays positive.
@annaf3915 remember rapid vs austria last year?
@fcmeilo955they are a different story 😒
Yes saw that on Rheinkirmes in Düsseldorf too or when its Karneval in every city in Ruhrgebiet and Rheinland
We had an american tourist on our pharmacy in Greece last year, they wanted to buy something prescribed for them from the local (public and free) hospital, they had a face on as if someone was about to die or something. They couldnt believe it costed around 4 dollars to buy.
7 years bosstransformation from reactor to completely based advocate of political ideas. love this!
Best “American take on Europe” I’ve seen. Good video dude. I love the fact that you don’t try to lift Europe to some picture perfect level and highlight that we have issues as well.
living in Vienna. Got a bit of an ache in my wrist either from too much excercise or a fall, dunno. But after several days of pain that didn't recede just woke up and thought let's go for a quick check up just to be sure it's a sprain and nothing more serious. Went to my doctor and had a chat, got an X-ray and came back to check the results. All good just nothing major, just need to go easy and let it heal itself. Now I have clarity and don't have to worry. All that took me literally 1 hour total. Don't have to worry about any bill, there are no additional costs involved. Just happy I can go on with peace of mind. That's what its like having universal healthcare.
Americans have to fight for their right !!! get on to the streets and fight for the rights you are entitled to... that is what we did in Europe.. we had to fight for those rights... it will not happen when no one does anything... Americans have it all in their own hands
Yes! I hope everyone reading this will be able to attend one of the thousands of No Kings protests (peaceful!) on Sat Oct 18, 2025.
I have no experience with fear in public. I have never been attacked or harassed in 45 years. thank you switzerland
I am from Germany. For prescription drugs you have to pay 5% co-payment, min 5€, max 10€.
Yup! Can confirm.
But when you suffer from a chronical disease, you have to pay only 1% from your yearly income. Without chronical disease you have to pay only 2% from yearly income. Included are all addtional costs. Poor people are often free for a year after paying under 100 Euros . This seems very fair for me.
Similar in Italy.
Still a fraction of full price, and if one has a chronical disease the pill for that it's free.
Here was introduced because with new laws in the 70s meds and exams became free and people annoyed doctors to have more pills and blood works for every feeling and imaginary diseases because "it's free" - the symbolic price cut that 'everything goes'
My son died of cancer last year. It was ok. For extra comfort we paid. In US not a chance to cover all this.
Irish teen here, I love my country and I would feel safe enough in it though recently there has been so many stabbings happening. infact my village had a stabbing not to long ago that I saw, so when I’m in the city alone I’m very on edge. Though I know I don’t have as much risk as say an immigrant because there is so many racist attacks happening. However I’m not a boy but a teenage girl which does make it slightly more dangerous. Theres also a lot of drug activity near where I live. But I can’t begin to imagine how worse that would be if there were guns involved and a police force that attacks people.
To be honest it feels crazy that my fears are so minuscule compared to some people’s daily life
I'm from Italy and I sleep in my car when i travel across the peninsula, never had a problem with it
America's greatest marketing ploy: the lie about American superiority.
Even here in the Balkans is very safe. I'm from N.Macedonia, and I feel very safe to walk outside at night in the city. Guns aren't prevalent here, so don't need to worry about shootings. Only some areas can be dangerous, but those are still safer than in America.
In Yugoslavia times people could sleep in peace and bliss in the public benches because nobody will bother them.
I'm British and visited Albania last year. Before I went, everyone was telling me to be very careful, it's dangerous there, etc. Well it was nothing like that in my experience. I never felt even slightly unsafe and I was out late at night. Everyone I met there was so friendly and helpful. Also the mountains in the north are unbelievably beautiful.
I grew up behind the Iron Curtain, and our cops ("People's Militia") were almost as bad, corrupt, aggressive and unaccountable as in the US (see "qualified immunity") - only they used rubber truncheons instead of small bits of lead thinly clad with copper. It took literally decades, but now they are a resepected part of the society - someone to turn to when you are in trouble, and not someone you need to guard yourself against.
It really hurts me, but from my post-communist perspective, USA is a police state right now, not the shining beacon of freedom and democracy as we saw it in my childhood.
a youngster once asked me, "what your generation has done?" (im born 1981 in italy), i answered, "we put europe together", all these americans appreciating how good is europe today bring tears of happyness in my eyes every time, thank you 💝
...I'm going to start using that, now...
I love it to live in Germany
The thing is for example in Germany you not only need to be fit to be a cop you need to be very intelligent too.
In usa you need to use a gun and are a bit above average fitness.
Years of training and regular additional training.
And you get trained 2.5 years, not a couple of weeks.
"Von 240 Nachwuchskräften der Berliner Polizei, die ihre Ausbildung im Frühjahr 2025 begonnen haben, benötigen 132 Deutsch-Förderunterricht".
@racecruiser Obwohl sie in Deutschland geboren sind.🙄
@desperadox7565 Correct
Now that you mention it about cops... I remember hearing from a mate about a friend of his, a fellow Aussie who was in America. Got pulled over for some reason. And this Aussie dude just got out of his car and casually walked up to the cop's car because, you know, Australians don't really think about fearing cops. We might not always trust them but fear them? Nope. And we don't think at ALL about how a cop might be AFRAID of someone walking up to his car.
Luckily he didn't get shot. But that was a hell of a lesson.
Damn he was lucky. An Aussie lady Justine Damond was shot by an American cop while trying to report an assault.
I was thinking at this possiblity in the last days... We must be careful.. But we are not going there so...😮💨
👋🏻🇮🇹👋🏻
Interesting. In Poland we are taught in driving school about proper procedure during road stop. Stay in the car, turn off engine, roll down window and on officer's request provide driving license and car papers if you have them on you. Leave the car only if police requests it - for example to show that you have all required safety equipment in the trunk (health kit, extinguisher, triangle, visibility vest etc.)
@FrikInCasualMode It also does depeend on location. No one would get out of the car in the city or suburbs... but in the country? Much more common. This guy was just born and raised in the country so he just acted on habit.
I travelled all over the world but I've never felt more uncomfortable and unsafe than having to catch a train in Seattle at 6 am. Getting out of the house at 5:15 am and walking to the railway station was a horrible experience. I was so relieved when I got there and saw security guards. In Germany where I lived before that I wouldn't ever bother going out at any time even middle in the night.
Im so grateful for being Aussie. Even before Trump, you couldnt pay me to go to the US. It was too dangerous. Now im just praying that my US online friends escape in time.
The only things i ever worried about when seeing a cop in Austria was if i was getting a speeding or parking ticket. Police training takes WAY longer than in the US and there is a focus on deescalation. I do get that cops in the US are way more on edge since pretty much anyone could potentially carry a gun, which isn't a thing here in Europe, but even then it seems a lot of cops in the US sign up to live out a power fantasy instead of serving regular citizens and keeping them safe.
They do that here where I am in switzerland too, and I bet in many other civilised nations. The profession attracts these types magically.
The law in France States that you can sleep in your car but there are some rules to follow. 1. Your car needs to be in a proper parking spot. 2. You can't be drunk because law states that you have to remain the master of your vehicle at tall times, even when it's parked. 3. You can't have loud music of make noise that would bother the neighborhood. 4. You can't do prolonged parking. Also there are places where you can't stay at night like beaches, especially in summer. Country side is mostly ok as long as you don't bother anyone or traffic. City centers it depends on local regulation, as for big cities like Paris, Lyon Marseille, it's much less tolerated and you can find yourself with a fine. But that's it.
That’s good to know. Once I went on a road trip with friends, mainly in France but we didn’t have a set itinerary. We slept in the car in central Paris, while there were surfboards both on top and underneath the car. The police came to investigate us in the morning according to one friend who was awake at the time. They looked at us, then the surfboards, said good morning and left. I guess harmless tourists are ok as long as the parking is paid for.
When i was young, we travelled a lot by car with my parent, and we sleep so many time in the car, from few hour to all night, (we sleep several time on the port dock in Corsica, even in Italy) some time cops come to us, to check their is no problems, but they never bothered us, sleeping in car are not really illegal, as long as you stay quiet and in place that dont bother other people. on other hand in Camper-van and vehicule like that, you can't sleep outsite of area made for that, if you do you will end with some fine tickets.
I love the last line in the video. "I don't hate America. I'm critical of America because I want it to be better."
Perfect way to summarize the feelings of many Americans and non-Americans alike.
Criticizing something isn't the same as hating it. In many cases, it's the exact opposite. Many people who criticize the US's *myriad* of systemic and structural problems want those problems to be addressed and solved. They want the US to be better. If they hated it, they wouldn't be trying to improve it.
Plenty of Europeans feel the same way. That’s where their criticism of the US comes from - wanting you to have free healthcare because it’s proven to work in plenty of countries, and expanding regulations to protect consumers instead of companies the way we have it here in the EU. It’s heartbreaking to see Americans working their asses off and having to live on credit cards.
It’s not hate, it’s a desire to see a friend do better.
Unfortunately Trumps politics and the poison of social media has amplified the worst comments and the worst people which makes the criticism look like a stream of insults, but that’s the algorithm.
I guess the important thing to remember is that Americans are Europes cousins. We are all the one team, even though we are decided by borders.
USA*
But is the land of the Natives.......
Hell, I'm critical of my own cooking - even if I've done well, I think "how could I improve this next time?" or "that was good, remember to do it again". Some American's have a knee-jerk reaction to any criticism, but it's the whole indoctrination, salute the flag, "we're the best" thing and it's multi-problematic on several levels. It looks really bad right now, the parallels between USA and 1930s Germany should be obvious to most folk and it's easy to see the sheer amount of residents leaving and coming here (Europe).
I think that is the tragedy of the rally-around-the-flag indoctrination, by selling the idea that the US is already the best and having a knee-jerk reaction to any complaints it stops real criticism and demands for reform.
@ilen.9902 Fixed except for the direct quote at the beginning.
Just imagine this. I am 30+, from Germany, have lived in Johannesburg and Cape Town for two years. I heard my first gunshot, that wasn't a ceremonial shot, in 2022. I arrived for a three day bender vacation in Amsterdam and walked to my hotel and I heard a small pop, it didn't even register as a shot, but suddenly people started to walk towards me and away from a store. Turns out I arrived just as there was someone trying to take a hostage inside an Apple store. No one got hurt, not even the hostage taker by the way. So I went almost 30 years and even lived in the supposedely most dangerous city in Africa without hearing a single gun shot. Truly surreal to think about, made my first joint taste so much better that night.
wait, american kids can't go to school by foot? Kidnapped ? What the actual fuck.
... to go to schools that are set up like prisons, large fences around, security at entrances... 🙁
Their cities arent like ours the residentail area and the school area may be very far apart. also. kids alone are easy prey. in europe as much as in america. it's just that america has a higher crime rate and there is much more people around walking in europe. so its harder to do.
@simonenoli4418 That's wild, i walked about 5km back from school each day, same for a lot of kids close to me, i don't think i ever heard about anyone being kidnapped.
@IMIv2 same
Decades ago I heard of a mother in USA not allowing her kids to play in the front yard due to the risk of kidnapping. Sounded insane to me. Also sounds insane that things haven't improved. Is it just mainstream media scaring the bejeesus out of people, or is the risk really that high? Is it the ruling elite PDFs that are hungry for fresh meat, and USA has the best opportunities and the most desperate traffickers?
I have enjoyed universal health care all my life (Germany, Belgium, Italy, UK) In my 67 years of life and in the 32 years of my so 's life we ne er once worried about medical bills. For him and myself we may have spent a few thousand Euros out of pocket including dental care and hospital stays for sports accidents, illness, childbirth.
My university was free. My son's Bachelor's was free....childcare was cheap and pegged to income..
Nice to see one more American who is open his eyes 🫡
America is crazy. Last weekend a woman (Cecilia Simpson) was shot and killed, in front of her daughter, by another woman (Keona Hampton) who allegedly felt disrespected because the other woman didn’t thank her for opening the door as they left the store! That is insane!
Sorry your home is going through all of this. I've enjoyed your content for a long time now and think you are one very best expat channels out there. Love your perspective and your commentary.
In Europe, people do not carry guns on them. Therefore if you are a cop, you can generally chill out. In US everybody is a potential mortal threat and this just creates a violence spiral with the general public and its safety being a victim.
The Swiss have about as many guns per capita as most American states, and yet their country is just as safe as other European countries.
@obrnenydrevokocur9344You are wring. Swiss require a permit to own a gun and even if they have permit, are not allowed to carry it in public.
Take your pro gun rhetoric backed by made up facts somewhere else.
@leonardmilcin7798 I am not wrong, the most populous american states such as California, New York or Illinois all require permits for all handguns.
Not just Switzerland, but also all the EU countries ,except for four, issue conceal carry licenses, so you are flat out lying about the subject.
In Germany, this brainwashing works the other way around. The right-wing Nazi party AfD spreads rumors that everything in Germany is bad. The economy, the problem with foreigners who take jobs (but at the same time don't work and live off the state, wtf?), and unfortunately, it works. The AfD are genuine Nazis and are gaining more and more power because the "good" parties have failed to show people that there is so much good. Since the coronavirus pandemic, there has been an incredible amount of hate in Germany :( I just hope so much that it won't turn out like it did in the United States, even though many AfD supporters unfortunately want that here too.
I Have zero faith Germany (or any other European nation) will avoid the trend of incompetent, callous right wing nationalist governments. Italy is already controlled by them, Germany and France are teetering on the edge, 110k right wing nationalists of varying extremes were marching in Britain just the other day, even people in the usually peaceful and prosperous Scandinavian countries are starting to fall to this trend. The only thing that separates the Eu and UK from America is that the fascist will have walkable cities. The social safety nets, the healthcare? I’ll be surprised if yall still have that in 5-10 years.
i have actually never encountered a bad Turk or Arabian its the oposite those were some of the kindest mother lovers ever
I've lived in 3 european contries, amounting to 38 years. I've NEVER had my phone pickpocketed or know anyone who has.
Im from Mainz in Germany which is a city but by no means a big one and I went to Chicago with a travelgroup for one night before heading to wisconsin around 10 years ago. Since I wanted to experience the night life a little and everyone else was too jetlagged I decided to go alone. I walked around and decided to ask a couple of strangers what i could do that night. They were completely flabbergasted and told me I should never just approach random people like that and i was very lucky that I ran into them because I could easily get hurt or worse by doing that. At that time I didnt really think much of it but nowadays when I think about it, it blows my mind that people walk around in their hometown with that kind of mindset, scared that they could die just by approaching someone.
We were on a coach trip once returning from Carmel in California. We stopped for a break in a Burger King car park in San Hose because the driver said it was 'safe' there. It always made me think about what the rest of the city was like.
I'm sitting here in a literal warzone and I'm less scared than the average American popping to the shops to get some milk.
Yeah, being from Czechia more specifically from South Bohemia considering how safe the whole region is. When I was a young adult all traveling I have done so far was in the region with family or some 1st travels I did with my friends - Germany, Austria, north of Italy for skiing, Slovakia, Poland. Then I was was in the US for the 1st time there I found out that the concept of feeling unsafe somewhere in a city was totally knew to me. Of course I knew about the situation in the US but when I was actually there. LA for instance was kinda ok during the day. But after the sunset ... omg. We had to take our rental to buy something from In n Out burger that was just like 1km away from us because walking was absolutely impossible. Homeless all totally high lying everywhere on the side walks. Weird people everywhere. The best thing about it is that those who at least know that some country called Czechia exists will still ask you whether its safe there because Eastern Europe :D
To anyone who seriously believes the phrase "America is the greatest country of the world!", i say this:
I wouldn't go live in the U.S.A., even if I would get free citizenship tomorrow.
I wouldn't migrate there if i was persecutated in my own country and I won't even visit it probably ever again.
I wouldn't feel safe in public. I would have serious concerns about the food. I had to start worrying about medical bills, just like Americans normally do.
American public transports are awful and roads are not bicycle and pedestrian friendly.
Trump reversed climate friendly programs, which future generations will have to pay dearly.
His stupid secretary of health and human services is doing such a great job that diseases, who were perfectly in check thanks to vaccines, like the measles, are having an incredible comeback.
Trump killed so many safety regulations that you basically have to fear everything around you could potentially harm or even kill you now..
Thanks, but no thanks!
I hope what i call normality can be integrated into U.S. culture, but right now, hope is rather low, if i am being fully honest..
Me too. And I live in China😂
@luboinchina3013 I would not move there either.
I would not step foot in the US even if someone offered me to pay for the trip all inclusive.
I wouldn’t travel nor move to the US if they paid me 100.000€ annually to do so
@luboinchina3013
Question: if you live in China? can you say Bad stuff about your country in this commentary section without fearing persecution?
As someone looking from the outside(Nordics) at the _culture_ of the US, it really is one of extremes. Wealth, power, status; Poverty, destitution, hopelessness.
One thing I never quite understood for a _looong_ time was the way US tourists(or even immigrants) got very hostile and defensive when they made mistakes or didn't "get" the local customs.
*But now I get it:* It's that crippling _Fear._
Fear of social and public embarrassment, fear of being ostracized, being the stupid one, fear of judgment, etc. That kind of all permeating fear is utter poison for a society. My hope is that the issues and problems in Europe and in the EU can be worked out in a humane and constructive way, before the rot becomes too foundational.
Despite everything I still find the ideals and principles the US was founded upon to be revolutionary. Just like so many times before in history, _it is we the people_ who have to bend the moral ark of history towards justice, because we hold those truths to be self-evident: *Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.*
I'm Dutch and lived in Montana for a while. I would often casually talk with police officers there and felt safer there than in Rotterdam.
I know pickpocketing does obviously happen on metros. But I have travelled on all the hotspots (London underground, Paris, Rome and Barcelona metro) hundreds if not thousands of times and never had an issue. None of my friends have either, even the ones who commute every day on these lines. And we are not careful. No knife proof bags, wallets just in open pockets, headphones on etc. I don't know exactly why, but it seems likely they target people who look like wealthy tourists. It's pretty insensitive I know to say "don't make yourself look like a target" but there is maybe some truth to it. Pickpocketing isn't, in my experience, a regular part of life for locals.
I'm from Ukraine. And I walked to school. It was like 30 min walk though several different steets of private houses and a parking slot. When I was older (like 12) I took a 30 bus ride +15 min walk to art school
One funny story about police in germany I had was;
I was sitting in a waiting room for an appointment, when a cop walked in and asked for a certain person. The man got up, obviously confused, until the cop told him; "Mister, you can't just block my car with yours. Please, come with me for a moment." and they went out together. No hostility, no threat, just matter of factly, with a kind of chipper attitude like the cop was actually amused that someone dared to block in a police car.
Two years ago I slipped on dry leaves and broke my ankle while walking the dog in a forrest. After having called my son to pick up my dog and waiting for him I sat there in the forrest and thought about what will come next: ambulance and firebrigade (to carry me out of the forrest to the next road), hospital, at least eight weeks no driving, cancel my holidays, some weeks of rehab, alltogether propably three months no working. But it never crossed my mind how much that would cost! Until today I don´t know how much it did cost. (I myself paid about 100 €). I´m so happy to live in Europe and don´t have to worry about such accidents happening. I´d call that "freedom".
Cops are chill I always feel safer when they are around. Nothing has ever happened to me and my country is very safe but as a woman I sometimes feel worried nowadays. When I see cops around, I feel so much better and honestly, would want to see even more of them, especially as we have had more female cops recently. I think it is a good combo to have a female-male pair as a patrol team.
Thank you for your honesty. I have lived in Europe fo 80 years and I have never been confronted with any life threatening situation for myself and my family.
What Americans don’t understand is they pay their insurance premiums into a big pot to give out to people who need it. The rest of the world pay their tax money into a big pot to give out to people who need it. The SAME (socialist?) method. The difference is the US pot has to pay the fat cats in the Insurance companies mega salaries whereas other countries have minimum costs for administration.
"Minimum costs" is a stretch. Germany has almost a hundred (and there used to be way more) statutory health insurers that essentially do the same thing - each one with its own bureaucratic overhead, of course.
It's still no comparison to the US. Nothing is more expensive than a managerial class with full access to their customers' money.
In the Beveridge system, you pay taxes based on your income; in the US, you pay insurance based on your health, your deductible, and your coverage. The average citizen makes no money under the American system.
Single-payer system does not work that well either, the British NHS is a great example of it not working. The best systems (like those in most of Europe) are a combination of both, there are insurance comapnies that you can choose from, but they are all strictly controlled by the government, so they can't ripp you off.
@obrnenydrevokocur9344 The reason the NHS is fucked is because the Tories made it so, so that their donors can then profit when the time comes when everything is privatised. Have you not paid attention the past 20 years? And they already managed to corrupt the system with all kind of private contractors for the NHS.
@greentoby26 No, its not, only that minimum cost is the wrong phrasing. Overhead in Germany can be a maximum of 5% and with that it does not matter how many HIC there are. That max. 5% is directly tied to how many people pay into your HIC! Is it the best system? No! Why? Because everything and anything can always be improved upon! But it does it job and is fantastic compared to the one in the US. Same with everything else all over the world.