4 ms·

it's not too hard to see the cons - poor, rainy weather, which can be depressing in itself. Old, mouldy houses with poor thermal insulation and generally high c

it's not too hard to see the cons - poor, rainy weather, which can be depressing in itself. Old, mouldy houses with poor thermal insulation and generally high cost of living. Traffic in towns and cities. Uptight, insular, class based society that is not exactly welcoming to foreigners. Now if you swap UK with London, a lot of these cons go out of the window as your neighbour is probably also a migrant. You still get very high cost of living, very bad car traffic, but relatively decent public transport. Wages, given the cost of rent are not that impressive and the weather in London is a bit better than the rest of the UK, but could be better, of course.

sandworm101 8y ago
And, London = pollution. Things like weather and even an insular society can be circumvented or avoided. Nobody can escape unhealthy air. London isn't unique in this regard, but pollution is a factor when picking any of the larger European cities.
joering2 8y ago
Entire UK has very limited freedom and they do not stop to finding new ways to it even more. Guns are totally banned, only criminals have them. You also cannot and should not defend yourself because you can go to jail for hurting your oppressor. There is blanket ban on carrying knifes, and recently they pass a law that buying knives you need to show ID. Next on the list if you buy baseball bats or corkscrew, you also will need to have ID. Most cities require you to show ID to use internet. Don't have to mention biggest number of surveillance cameras per square inch and per capita. You really don't want to live or rise your children in such oppressionist country, trust me. Source: few friends living in UK for way too long.
- coffeedoughnuts 8y ago
  > Most cities require you to show ID to use internet. Complete nonsense; aside from cities in the UK not having any powers to control a thing like that (they are no way near as devolved as big cities in the US, for example) there is no legal obligation to provide ID to access the internet. I think you might be referring to a recent proposal to legislate online activity through access cards; but that was a proposal that has no backing at the moment. Source: I'm writing this from an internet connection for which I have not shown any ID or registered in any way, and I live in a major UK city
  - simonbyrne 8y ago
    You technically don't even need to have your licence on you when driving (though you can be required to show it within 7 days).
- detritus 8y ago
  It's rare that I ever want to downvote someone on HN, and can't anyway as I'm too n00b, but your post here? I'd love to. - I have friends with guns - they have licenses. Many farmers have shotguns. - You don't get arrested for acceptable self-defence - a pensioner killed a home-invader on his property recently and has not only not been arrested, has in fact been under police protection against retribution. - ID required to buy a knife? Sure, if you look like you're under 18 or a nutter. - Cities require ID to use use the internet? Wut? - Surveillance cameras... so? Do you think there are a pair of eyes on each one, beadily analysing every citizen's movements... or do you think they're more used in retrospect, to pick apart unwanted activity, after the event? Most CCTV is actually privately-owned - my local corner shop has an array of about 12 in there. Bulks up the average. - Oppressionist? Wut? Most such laws in this country aren't absolutist - they're generally guidance to live within - common sense writ in black and white for people who need that sort of thing. Most of us don't. Stop talking out of your arse.
- pjc50 8y ago
  Guns are banned, which is a benefit, yet I was taught to shoot at school. The few cases of people being jailed for attacking their attackers have generally involved pursuing them, or otherwise continuing to attack when not actually in danger. There is no national ID system, although non-Brits have to have biometric residence permits.
- pwm 8y ago
  I, for one, am perfectly fine with people not carrying weapons here. I’ve been living in the UK for 13 years and as long as i’m here i’d like the weapon situation to stay as-is.
- SmellyGeekBoy 8y ago
  Your points have been thoroughly debunked in sibling comments so no need to go over them again, I'm just wondering why your friends have chosen to live here "way too long" if the situation is as dire as you say it is?

sandworm101 8y ago

And, London = pollution. Things like weather and even an insular society can be circumvented or avoided. Nobody can escape unhealthy air. London isn't unique in this regard, but pollution is a factor when picking any of the larger European cities.

joering2 8y ago

Entire UK has very limited freedom and they do not stop to finding new ways to it even more. Guns are totally banned, only criminals have them. You also cannot and should not defend yourself because you can go to jail for hurting your oppressor. There is blanket ban on carrying knifes, and recently they pass a law that buying knives you need to show ID. Next on the list if you buy baseball bats or corkscrew, you also will need to have ID. Most cities require you to show ID to use internet. Don't have to mention biggest number of surveillance cameras per square inch and per capita. You really don't want to live or rise your children in such oppressionist country, trust me. Source: few friends living in UK for way too long.

coffeedoughnuts 8y ago
> Most cities require you to show ID to use internet. Complete nonsense; aside from cities in the UK not having any powers to control a thing like that (they are no way near as devolved as big cities in the US, for example) there is no legal obligation to provide ID to access the internet. I think you might be referring to a recent proposal to legislate online activity through access cards; but that was a proposal that has no backing at the moment. Source: I'm writing this from an internet connection for which I have not shown any ID or registered in any way, and I live in a major UK city
- simonbyrne 8y ago
  You technically don't even need to have your licence on you when driving (though you can be required to show it within 7 days).
detritus 8y ago
It's rare that I ever want to downvote someone on HN, and can't anyway as I'm too n00b, but your post here? I'd love to. - I have friends with guns - they have licenses. Many farmers have shotguns. - You don't get arrested for acceptable self-defence - a pensioner killed a home-invader on his property recently and has not only not been arrested, has in fact been under police protection against retribution. - ID required to buy a knife? Sure, if you look like you're under 18 or a nutter. - Cities require ID to use use the internet? Wut? - Surveillance cameras... so? Do you think there are a pair of eyes on each one, beadily analysing every citizen's movements... or do you think they're more used in retrospect, to pick apart unwanted activity, after the event? Most CCTV is actually privately-owned - my local corner shop has an array of about 12 in there. Bulks up the average. - Oppressionist? Wut? Most such laws in this country aren't absolutist - they're generally guidance to live within - common sense writ in black and white for people who need that sort of thing. Most of us don't. Stop talking out of your arse.
pjc50 8y ago
Guns are banned, which is a benefit, yet I was taught to shoot at school. The few cases of people being jailed for attacking their attackers have generally involved pursuing them, or otherwise continuing to attack when not actually in danger. There is no national ID system, although non-Brits have to have biometric residence permits.
pwm 8y ago
I, for one, am perfectly fine with people not carrying weapons here. I’ve been living in the UK for 13 years and as long as i’m here i’d like the weapon situation to stay as-is.
SmellyGeekBoy 8y ago
Your points have been thoroughly debunked in sibling comments so no need to go over them again, I'm just wondering why your friends have chosen to live here "way too long" if the situation is as dire as you say it is?