# Ask the person who lives in a tiny country **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 8, 2012, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240 "2012-02-08T22:50:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![spankthecrumpet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a87d85/32.png) [@spankthecrumpet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spankthecrumpet)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2012, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/1 "2012-02-08T22:50:51Z")
My country has less than 100 000 folks in it. More than half of us, including me, are immigrants. What do you want to ask? P.S. I’m cheating a bit because it’s the [Isle of Man](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isle_of_man) - YCDMV (Your country definition may vary) ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2012, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/2 "2012-02-08T22:53:24Z")
I was gonna come in here and be all beat 1.4 million pop in an area smaller than many major cities, but you beat me! 😛 ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2012, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/3 "2012-02-08T23:08:54Z")
I live in an island nation also. We’re several times larger than yours, but we have the distinction of being an island that is not totally surrounded by water. But I do have questions. How is your cost of living compared to the mainland? What do you do for electricity, do you have a large power plant? What do people do to make a living there? ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2012, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/4 "2012-02-08T23:29:19Z")
Admittely, when I think of countries with small populations, I think of Iceland (~250 000). 🙂 > [@spankthecrumpet](#): > > My country has less than 100 000 folks in it. More than half of us, including me, are immigrants. > > What do you want to ask? > > P.S. I’m cheating a bit because it’s the [Isle of Man](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isle_of_man) - YCDMV (Your country definition may vary) I used to work with a woman from the Isle of Man. She had one of the most beautiful accents I have ever heard. She moved back to the island to get married… :: sigh :: ---
**Author:** ![spankthecrumpet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a87d85/32.png) [@spankthecrumpet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spankthecrumpet)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2012, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/5 "2012-02-08T23:31:14Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > How is your cost of living compared to the mainland? In general, MARGINALLY higher, but not substantially. Petrol (gasoline) is about 5p/litre more - so say (round number) 130p/litre would be 135p/litre here. That, by the way, equates to instead of $7.77 a US gallon, $8.07 - assuming google isn’t lying to me. And of course, while you don’t need to drive long distances, the roads are not exactly motorways so fuel consumption is high\*. About five per cent higher for most consumer goods is probably the right kind of ballpark. Phone lines and utilities are considerably more than the UK - utilities are nationalised still, as are landlines, and there are two (count em) choices for mobile phones - and similarly for consumer broadband. Having said that, I live in a hamlet and am getting forty megabits per second so the quality isn’t rubbish. Duties on everything (which includes our equivilant to a sales tax, save that it is twenty per cent) are tied to the UK since the crown assumed the rights of the Lord of Mann from the Duke of Atholl (iirc) as our smuggling was getting out of hand. Ah yes, our smuggling. Thing is, we’re bang in the middle of the British Isles, but a seperate country - and while duty is the same as the UK now, there’s an important difference about our cost of living. Our capital gains tax is 0%. Our inheritance tax is 0%. Our corporation tax is 0%. Our highest rate of income tax is 20% - and it is capped at roughly £150 000 - that is to say if Warren Buffet lived here he’d pay a bit over $200k a year in tax. Assuming he didn’t buy anything. This has minor consequences - we have universal healthcare but in general it isn’t as, er, competent as the UK - although how much that is to do with lower taxes and how much that is to do with general practicalties of being a tiny nation I’m not sure. It also leads to very weird signage, for want of a better way of putting it - you can walk past a cottage here and it’ll say “Bank of America” on it. I have considered making a tumblr or similar on this theme. > [@TriPolar](#): > > What do you do for electricity, do you have a large power plant? As mentioned, electricity is nationalised. There is electricity generated on the Island and electricity piped through on a cable. I’m not sure of the exact percentages. > [@TriPolar](#): > > What do people do to make a living there? All kinds of things. The weird thing is, while they account for a lot of wealth, and they are major employers, the offshore businesses (mostly financial - banks and insurance - but there is also gambling. For example Pokerstars is based here) do not totally dominate. There is also a large tourist sector, an agricultural sector, even a reasonably large government sector - basically it’s like a micro-UK. Heck, we even have three state owned railways here! (And a couple of private ones) \*By the way most roads here don’t have a speed limit. And there are a couple where the quality of them is such that this means you can drive at well over 150mph legally. Nevertheless, the average driver doesn’t drive very quickly, probably because there is not much reason to other than for fun, given how close things are. That also reminds me that the entire island shuts down for a fortnight during TT week, where we are the motorbike centre of the universe, I’m not sure how I forgot to mention that! Oh and our cars pay less road tax (naturally) and we don’t have to get an MOT every year - I understand that you don’t in most US states that are not California either, but you do in the UK - it’s a test of vehicle raodworthiness, basically. ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/6 "2012-02-09T00:03:58Z")
What are the rules for immigration? I assume you are a citizen of the UK - do you have an automatic right to residency in the Isle of Man, or do you have to apply for residency and possibly be rejected? Could you be deported if you got into trouble? ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/7 "2012-02-09T00:13:07Z")
I’ve always wondered this about the IoM so thanks for giving me a platform to ask it. It’s so small. Don’t you get bored out of your fucking mind? Claustrophobic? I could imagine that even though you couldn’t know them all, there’s a high likelihood of having seen at least once pretty much everyone who lives on the island. Does everyone know everyone else’s business? Is there a worse than usual level of gossip and intrigue? Great username by the way. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/8 "2012-02-09T00:30:08Z")
How are the women? I will be a multimillionaire in a about a decade once my trust is open to me. Give me 5 reasons why I wouldn’t want to live there. Seriously. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/9 "2012-02-09T00:36:23Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > How are the women? I will be a multimillionaire in a about a decade once my trust is open to me. Give me 5 reasons why I wouldn’t want to live there. Seriously. I already know one: the weather. It’s in the middle of the Irish sea. At least the Channel Islands are nearer France. ---
**Author:** ![Toucanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3bc359/32.png) [@Toucanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toucanna)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/10 "2012-02-09T00:41:31Z")
Do some folks avoid the high cost of petrol (gasoline) by using horse-drawn wagons or carriages? I’d love to be able to do that here, but go figure, I’m in the land of the cowboy and there’s nary a hitchin’ post in sight downtown. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/11 "2012-02-09T01:53:07Z")
Is it true that the Manx have no tails? > [@Shagnasty](#): > > How are the women? They don’t call it the Isle of Man for nothing. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/12 "2012-02-09T02:23:18Z")
How much Manx do you speak? (I know it’s not a language in daily use except by a dedicated minority, but I figure even the incomers learn a few phrases.) ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/13 "2012-02-09T02:28:46Z")
My family’s from there, we have a street named after us and the Malew parish church graveyard is full of my descendants. What’s happening at The Nunnery these days? If my father had been a more astute businessman we would have bought it back into the family in, oh, the 70s or so (the Robert Sangster era). ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/14 "2012-02-09T02:58:26Z")
Do you know my friend Pete? He lives there too. ---
**Author:** ![LavenderBlue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e95f7d/32.png) [@LavenderBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LavenderBlue)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/15 "2012-02-09T03:16:36Z")
Do you own a Manx cat? If you don’t, do you see them a lot? ---
**Author:** ![shijinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@shijinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shijinn)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/16 "2012-02-09T03:27:43Z")
i thought for sure you’re talking about my island, but i see that we’re a quarter bigger than you in area. (and 50 times your population :eek:) ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/17 "2012-02-09T05:10:04Z")
Arthur: They recently had the whole country carpeted. This is _not_ a big place. ---
**Author:** ![Celyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@Celyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Celyn)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/18 "2012-02-09T05:33:52Z")
> [@Askance](#): > > My family’s from there, we have a street named after us and the Malew parish church graveyard is full of my descendants… Oh I doubt that it is, you know. :dubious: Full of ancestors, possibly. Actually I’m only posting that slightly snarky point because I’m amused to be looking askance at **Askance**. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/19 "2012-02-09T05:38:16Z")
> [@Celyn](#): > > Oh I doubt that it is, you know. :dubious: Full of ancestors, possibly. Actually I’m only posting that slightly snarky point because I’m amused to be looking askance at **Askance**. 🙂 This is the UK we’re talking about, has a blue phone booth been sighted in the area? ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240/20 "2012-02-09T05:47:54Z")
Do you have three legs? I have a cousin-by-marriage who lived on the Isle of Man for a while. She worked for some multi-bajillionaire of some kind. I think she regretted leaving. In fact, perhaps she’s returned. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-person-who-lives-in-a-tiny-country/612240.md?page=2)