# What's wrong with YOUR country? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 14, 2003, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452 "2003-07-14T19:32:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![elf6c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c57346/32.png) [@elf6c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elf6c)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/41 "2003-07-15T13:25:28Z")
U.S.A. = George W. Bush, traffic jams, poor national cycling program, and can be a bit too prudish regarding sex at times. Still, home sweet home for me. Have to take the good with the bad. ---
**Author:** ![Tarantula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e274bd/32.png) [@Tarantula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tarantula)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/42 "2003-07-15T13:29:21Z")
Some things that Ruadh & jjimm forgot about Ireland. - All anyone does is drink - Anyone outside Dublin thinks Dubliners are shite - Anyone inside Dublin thinks country-people are shite - The weather is shite - The weather is shite - The weather is shite - The weather is shite - The weather is shite - And the weather is shite That is all. ---
**Author:** ![Hot\_Buttered\_Toast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b38774/32.png) [@Hot\_Buttered\_Toast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hot_Buttered_Toast)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/43 "2003-07-15T13:40:51Z")
I’m from Singapore. Here’s why. - We have the SARS rap, a horrible blight on the face of the earth. - The government actually grades public toilets. But besides that, it’s okay. ---
**Author:** ![TwistofFate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@TwistofFate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TwistofFate)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/44 "2003-07-15T13:42:29Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ruadh \* > \*\*jjimm forgot a couple of things: > > [ul] > [li] The Progressive Democrats. Enough fucking said.[/li][/ul] > \*\* you got everything I was going to say, except for 1. Public transport. We have the makings of a great system (if we can ever finish it), but the mismanagement of it is startling. I dread qwhat will happen if it gets privatised. One more note on the PD’s. I think they actually are the PNAC, run by Thatcher. ---
**Author:** ![kingpengvin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9dc877/32.png) [@kingpengvin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kingpengvin)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/45 "2003-07-15T13:53:47Z")
Summers that are too hot winters that are too cold. A lack of any decent form of opposition in Parliment means we have to keep electing the same yahoos… oh by the way None of your prime ministers come close to Creepy [Uncle Jean](http://www.lookupalliance.com/images-liberals/chretien_jean_sept0902.jpg) and his inability to speak coherantly in both official languages. I submit his wonderful answer to what constitutes the type of proof required for Canada to back an attack on Iraq back in Sept > [@](#): > > A proof is a proof. What kind of proof ? It’s a proof. A proof is proof. And when you have a good proof, it’s because it is proven. High Taxation A neglected military Too much regional infighting Not enough Holidays… Really lackluster attempts at home grown entertainment (Stomping Tom excluded from this grousse of course) Not having a Stanley cup winning team in almost a decade!!! Having to live with THOSE people south of us… 😉 ---
**Author:** ![croakdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b77776/32.png) [@croakdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/croakdale)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/46 "2003-07-15T15:53:44Z")
more about ireland… we’re making it sound like a shithole… Protectionism in various industries (particularly pubs) leading to profiteering The way that the road distances are posted in km, but speed limits are posted in mph Superpubs… And as above, corruption among elected representatives, crap public transport, the weather etc. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/47 "2003-07-15T16:02:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by kingpengvin \* > \*\* > Having to live with THOSE people south of us… 😉 \*\* The Tierra Del Fuegans? ---
**Author:** ![Diane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/2acd7d/32.png) [@Diane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diane)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/48 "2003-07-15T16:54:19Z")
I can’t run to the local 7-11 for [Kinder Eggs](http://www.kinder-eggs.com/) or [Stroopwafels.](http://www.caramelcookiewaffles.com/) ---
**Author:** ![Grey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grey)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/49 "2003-07-15T16:58:56Z")
Another Canadian view… Unelected Senate No effective opposition Corruption throughout the bureaucracy (Immigration review board judges bribed etc.) No effective government No effective parliament Policy and appointments (Supreme Court, Senate, crown corporations, embassies, etc.) doled out by the PM or his office (PMO) RCMP appear to by tied far too closely with the PMO Massive mismanagement of public funds (+1 Billion on a gun registry that was suppose to cost 2 million, 1 Billion lost through a human resources department, etc.) Rust out issues with military hardware Rust out issues with Healthcare Excessive taxes for supplied services Rampant self image crisis that can only be relieve by a beer commercial Smug moral superiority to everyone else No actual proof of smug moral superiority to everyone else Knee jerk anti-Americanism The long hot humid bit of the too short summer The long slushy grey damp bit of the too long winter Regional misunderstanding Regional bitching Undervalued dollar Whole federal departments dedicated to “Canadian Cultural Encouragement” Continual threat of Quebec separation No Canadian Stanley cup for more than 10 years Complete bi-polar disorder when the Canadian Hockey teams play internationally Excessive dependency on the US for economic livelihood That’s about it for right now. Thanks. I needed that. 😛 ---
**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:** [July 15, 2003, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/50 "2003-07-15T17:09:33Z")
More stuff that sucks about Canada, Ontario, and Toronto: A climate where: - people die of heat stroke during the summer. - other people freeze to death in the streets during the winter. - sucky wet weather in between - about a month total of really decent weather. Mosquitoes the size of chihuahuas, and the further north you go, the bigger they get. Too many beggars on the streets, and no coherent idea what to do about it. Enough levels of government to enable infighting and collective aviodance of responsibility until Doomsday. A provincial government that has consistently underfunded the cities, yet refuses to give then the tools to do the job themselves. As a result, the cities are falling apart and tourism is down. This same provincial governemnt repealed electricity-conservation efforts, did not build new power plants, brought in a botched privatisation scheme, and as a result, our electricity supply is strained to the limit and we maty have blackouts this summer! This in the provice that made Hydro (-electricity) a household word! A goofball mayor who puts his foot in his mouth and embarasses the city. (Shaking hands in public with the Hells Angels was the least of it…) A provincial governmnet that spoke of decentralisation and personal responsibility, but then promptly centralised all political power over education in the Ministry of Education, resulting in underfunded schools and eternal warfare between teachers and the Ministry. A provincial government that “downloaded” of the responsibility for many provincial highways to municipalities. Not such a bad idea theoretically, perhaps, but as part of this, highways were renumbered to reflect the change of “ownership”. As a result, a decades-old system of consistent route numbering bewteen population centres was destroyed, we had to redo all the maps, and more people get lost than ever before. A provincial government that cut back the Ministry of the Envirinment’s water-quality controls and instituted industry self-regulation, and, as a result, people died from water contaminated by pig-farm runoff at Walkerton. Thank the Goddess there are municipal and provincial elections in the fall… ---
**Author:** ![gex\_gex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/94ad74/32.png) [@gex\_gex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gex_gex)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/51 "2003-07-15T17:32:16Z")
Australia. Let’s go: We’re falling back into an intolerant, scared culture that hates the outside world, doesn’t think about the future and is forgetting its mistakes. Australia has some ugly features to its history - poor treatment of Aboriginals and the White Australia policy heading the list, but for a while there, things were looking really great. Australia didn’t just say that we were a tolerant, accepting melting pot of cultures, we also went a long way towards showing it. We celebrated our diversity, we began important steps toward reconciliation with the Aboriginal people and, with the republican movement, we were becoming a completely independent country. Then at the end of the '90s, we started regressing. The government adopted “wedge” policies, dividing the community and fostering hatred for their own electoral purposes. Intolerance grew rapidly, conservative wowsers began imposing prudish censorship on the media we were allowed to consume (things could be shown on Australian TV in the '70s that networks are not allowed to show today) and we adopted US brown nosing as foreign policy. We rejected multilateralism and international law by invading a foreign country. We’re nowhere near as laid-back as we once were, or are portrayed. We have a government intent on destroying a reasonably successful health system, making worse an average educational system and locking up 14 year olds who haven’t committed a crime. We have an Australian who has been imprisoned by a foreign country without being charged for the past 18 months, who is finally being given a trial in a kangaroo court where he will not be able to choose his own legal representation, will not be able to privately converse with his lawyer and could be sentenced to death if found guilty. Even if found not guilty, there is the possibility that he will not be freed. Our government won’t assist him or even support his right to a fair trial. We have an opposition too incompetent to oppose the government. We give ridiculous subsidies to farmers too stupid to realise that dry, dusty areas that commonly suffer drought aren’t good places to try and farm. Our economy relies far too much on mineral resources and farming when we could be focussing on things that really make a lot of money. Did you know that we used to send rockets up in to space? Now we only dig stuff out of the ground, send it to other places where other countries work out how to make it useful, then sell it back to us at a substantially hgher price. What’s more, it’s expensive to get to other countries because they’re so far away and it’s expensive to get to other cities because they’re so far away. In most places we don’t have proper seasons, resulting in a yearly cycle of summer, really hot summer, summer and dull and rainy with intermittent summer. Summer’s really great and all, but I think I’d really appreciate it if I had time to miss it. Sure, there are a few places where a reasonable winter can be found, but these tend to not be very populated. Because it’s so hard to get here, many cool bands pass us by. It’s 5 or 6 years since Radiohead were last here! U2 missed us on their last tour. > [@](#): > > _originally posted by Narrad_ > It’s quite irrelevant to the day-to-day lives of most Australians that our head of state (there is, incidentally, some constitutional argument whether the Queen is in fact Australia’s HoS or whether the Governor-General is HoS) I have to clear this up. While the HoS is irrelevent to the day-to-day lives of your average Australian, the identity of that head of state is only argued by rampant Monarchists who find that their support of Australia remaining subservient to another country is unplatable to the general community. So they pretend that the Queen isn’t really our Head of State, she just approves her representative to be. ---
**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:** [July 15, 2003, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/52 "2003-07-15T18:20:33Z")
Even more sucky stuff about Canada: A non-completed metric conversion. A former Conservative federal government halted the 80%-complete metric conversion, just before a number of importent items were to change: paper sizes and real estate, for example. As a result, I went to an architecture school where we dimensioned all our plans in millimetres, but all the lumber was sized in Imperial. Floor area is still advertised in square feet, but highway distances are in kilometres, and god help you if you have to read a lot plan. We’ve taught our people metric for thirty years, but there’s still enough Imperial to confuse, and don’t mention the differences between Imperial and US Customary… Finish the \*&^%%$ conversion! ---
**Author:** ![burundi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3ec8ea/32.png) [@burundi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burundi)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/53 "2003-07-15T19:00:42Z")
> [@](#): > > _originally posted by Morrigoon_ > > Our culture actually encourages rebellion and unpatriotic acts. You do remember that the U.S. was founded by a bunch of British colonists who unpatriotically rebelled against the Mother Country, right? I’d have to say it’s in our blood. The one thing that drives me absolutely crazy about the U.S. is the general apathy about politics, both domestic and foreign. Everybody bitches, but nobody votes. ---
**Author:** ![gum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bbe5ce/32.png) [@gum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gum)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/54 "2003-07-15T19:17:24Z")
More awful stuff about the Netherlands: People don’t drive on _bicycles_ as much as they used to. **Diane** I’d be happy to send you ‘stroopwafels’ and - what the heck- kindereggs [though these are German ;)] No, I’m not begging for your address. P.O. box or addy of your great-aunt will be fine. ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/55 "2003-07-15T20:24:08Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jjimm \* > \*\*Part of that is caused by the (almost) total crapness of the Irish TV stations, and the ease with which the British ones can be picked up. RTE is a creative-free zone, run by a bunch of timid, set-in-their-ways, scareded-to-bite-the-hand-that-feeds-them civil servants who should be fucked out onto the street and replaced with _real_ media creatives. \*\* That’s true but I wasn’t just talking about everyone here watching British TV. I also meant things like greater coverage being given to EPL games than to League of Ireland games, stuff like that. ---
**Author:** ![Morrigoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/858c86/32.png) [@Morrigoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morrigoon)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/56 "2003-07-15T22:03:24Z")
Thought of another one: we don’t get enough international tv shows. It’s improving a bit with BBC America, but even that channel’s usually taken up with those stupid home improvement shows, of which we’ve already created American counterparts on TLC (Trading Spaces/Changing Rooms anyone?) When I lived in England we saw British, American and Aussie programs in a fairly good mixture. Here in the US though, we get American, American, and American tv. Oh, and most of our tv sucks. ---
**Author:** ![Pedro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/919ad9/32.png) [@Pedro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pedro)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/57 "2003-07-15T22:37:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jjimm \* > \*\ ***Pedro** , I just came back from Portugal last week, and I’d like to add to your list of positives: the food, the women, and the cheap cigarettes and beer. And the architecture. But not the drivers…! \*\* You’re right, I neglected the positive factors. I sincerely hope you enjoyed your stay. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![bagkitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7ab992/32.png) [@bagkitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bagkitty)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/58 "2003-07-15T23:29:03Z")
**CANADA** The worst thing about Canada… we are in a real bad neighbourhood… the Ozzie who was complaining about not bordering another country should be counting his/her blessings. Now, there are a LOT of annoying things about Canada, but the worst is definitely the neighbours… maybe we should build a spite fence.😃 ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2003, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/59 "2003-07-15T23:49:55Z")
ditto just about everything said about the U.S. And: Outdated currency/coinage system, with the coins worth too little. Also the monochrome paper currency, though that’s due to start [changing.](http://www.moneyfactory.com/newmoney/#) ---
**Author:** ![Ryan\_Liam](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ryan_liam/32/3965_2.png) [@Ryan\_Liam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ryan_Liam)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2003, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452/60 "2003-07-16T00:03:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by London\_Calling \* > \*\*I tend to think in terms of one a day. Keeps me sane. Today: > > People who imply some kind of cultural superiority over, say, Americans because we have such a high passport-holding rate compared with the dreadful US level of lees than 10%. > > Thing is, you stupid, arrogant, intellectually Neanderthal-like half-wits, 94% of Brits hold passports only so they can go all the fucking way to the fucking Costa de Sol and share the cultural experience of; > > A) Sunshine, > B) Throwing up for two weeks, and > C) Beating up anyone who hasn’t the same regional fucking accent. > > The other 5% are happy little sheep on their ‘gap year’ following each other around the world sitting on the same Asian beaches, in the same Asian resorts, on the same Asian islands as every other mindless fucking student. > > That leaves about 280 people in the country who know how to use a fucking passport. > > Thank you. \*\* So where would you suggest then? Jeez if thats what we want give us a fucking break will ya? Oh and not all of us want to visit cultural hotspots or museums, maybe us students wanna go get smashed in the hot sunshine not too far away from home… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-your-country/188452.md?page=4)