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The crazy thing with smoking is that now organized crime have taken over selling cigarettes causing more crime. God forbid they actually help people by doing t

The crazy thing with smoking is that now organized crime have taken over selling cigarettes causing more crime. God forbid they actually help people by doing things like providing affordable living accommodation! Though I think Australians only have themselves to blame as they do tend to worship the self proclaimed experts, and look down on the US for our tendency not to.

PrimeMcFly 3y ago
Funny thing to me is how so many Australians insist it's the best country in the world to live in, when most have barely traveled anywhere.
- rstuart4133 3y ago
  > Australians insist it's the best country in the world to live in, when most have barely traveled anywhere. Australian here. A couple of international trips ago I visited Berlin and went on one of those free walking tours. I was the only Australian in the tour from what I could tell. The tour took in the Bundestag (German Federal Parliament). The guide proudly pointed out its glass roof as to demonstration the Germany's post Nazi commitment to a transparent democracy. He said that a staircase spirals up the roof. He then joked that in practice, this means when the federal parliamentarians look up, what they see is a bunch of Australian's gazing down on them. I thought it was funny. It had a eery ring of truth to it as no matter where you go, you meet fellow Australians. To put this in perspective, Australia has 0.3% of the worlds population and most of us, as you say, are home. So it's downright weird to keep hearing Australian accents no matter where you go. BTW, have you travelled anywhere, or is this "most have never travelled anywhere" just something you've heard?
  - PrimeMcFly 3y ago
    > So it's downright weird to keep hearing Australian accents no matter where you go. No stranger than hearing English or French accents IMO. Or Canadian. etc. > BTW, have you travelled anywhere, or is this "most have never travelled anywhere" just something you've heard? I've been to just over 60 countries so far, and spent about 7 years basically backpacking straight, and plenty at hostels. That's what colored my cynicism of "Australians travel so prolifically" - most of the time they just had short stops in a city and were there to get drunk. Maybe doing some guided tours as you point out, but rarely going off-road or actually traveling, meeting locals, learning about the culture, etc. You could say many Australians are tourists few are actually 'travelers', if that makes sense.
- matt_trentini 3y ago
  I'm an Aussie, have travelled pretty widely, am aware of Australia's flaws but, despite them, still think it's one of the best countries to live in.
  - PrimeMcFly 3y ago
    One of the best, sure. It's still a first world country that's safe and has good resources and opportunities. It's different from claiming it's the best country to live in, as so many claim while grilling and nursing a beer.
- threeseed 3y ago
  In 2019, 26.5% of Australia had travelled overseas with the percentage growing y/y: https://www.roymorgan.com/findings/australian-population-growth-powers-travel-industry# https://www.roymorgan.com/findings/australian-population-gro... And the reputation of being the best country in the world comes from city/country rankings which routinely have our cities in the top ten: https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurabegleybloom/2023/06/21/ranked-20-best-cities-to-live-in-the-world-according-to-a-new-report/?sh=3eebe66b225b https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurabegleybloom/2023/06/21/ran...
  - PrimeMcFly 3y ago
    > In 2019, 26.5% of Australia had travelled overseas with the percentage growing y/y: Yeah, that doesn't matter. Most of that percentage is young Australians who buy a $2000 'round the world' ticket with 8 stops or whatever, and they just get drunk in every place. Most of them are not really bothering to explore the countries or cultures, and have no context to claim Australia is 'the best country in the world to live in'. > And the reputation of being the best country in the world comes from city/country rankings which routinely have our cities in the top ten: There are plenty of different lists, but sure, Australian cities often make it into the top 10. But not 1st place, sometimes not even the top 5. Which means Australia is among the best, but certainly not the best, which is the claim many Australians insist upon. Hell, there are plenty of countries with all the same advantages but less censorship and less jacked up prices, so that disqualifies Australia right there IMO.
- seattle_spring 3y ago
  Sounds exactly like the USA?
  - PrimeMcFly 3y ago
    It's certainly common behavior to citizens of both countries. The difference is Americans who bother to travel are normally self-aware enough not to claim it, while the Australians that do, are not.
    - defrost 3y ago
      You seem to have a very selective memory on this. Out and proud USA #1 folk aren't hard to come by, abroad or at home in the US, the notion of American Exceptionalism is championed proportionally just as much (likely more) than a blind adherance to Australia the Lucky Country. On those two phrases alone the pro American Exceptionalism crowd do seem at their core to be true believers while the majority of those flying the flag of Australia the Lucky Country are all too aware that Horne coined the phrase with a sneer as a back handed complement.
      - PrimeMcFly 3y ago
        > You seem to have a very selective memory on this. I wouldn't say it's selective. Just the result of spending extensive time in both countries. Is it not just as possible you're being defensive? > Out and proud USA #1 folk aren't hard to come by, abroad or at home in the US, Right, and my point was the minority of Americans who travel tend to learn the world is a bigger place and their country has a lot of issues. > while the majority of those flying the flag of Australia the Lucky Country are all too aware that Horne coined the phrase with a sneer as a back handed complement. Not my experience at all. They say it just as seriously as the Out and proud USA #1 folk you refer to, maybe with a little more awareness and less zealotry, but not that much less.

PrimeMcFly 3y ago

Funny thing to me is how so many Australians insist it's the best country in the world to live in, when most have barely traveled anywhere.

rstuart4133 3y ago
> Australians insist it's the best country in the world to live in, when most have barely traveled anywhere. Australian here. A couple of international trips ago I visited Berlin and went on one of those free walking tours. I was the only Australian in the tour from what I could tell. The tour took in the Bundestag (German Federal Parliament). The guide proudly pointed out its glass roof as to demonstration the Germany's post Nazi commitment to a transparent democracy. He said that a staircase spirals up the roof. He then joked that in practice, this means when the federal parliamentarians look up, what they see is a bunch of Australian's gazing down on them. I thought it was funny. It had a eery ring of truth to it as no matter where you go, you meet fellow Australians. To put this in perspective, Australia has 0.3% of the worlds population and most of us, as you say, are home. So it's downright weird to keep hearing Australian accents no matter where you go. BTW, have you travelled anywhere, or is this "most have never travelled anywhere" just something you've heard?
- PrimeMcFly 3y ago
  > So it's downright weird to keep hearing Australian accents no matter where you go. No stranger than hearing English or French accents IMO. Or Canadian. etc. > BTW, have you travelled anywhere, or is this "most have never travelled anywhere" just something you've heard? I've been to just over 60 countries so far, and spent about 7 years basically backpacking straight, and plenty at hostels. That's what colored my cynicism of "Australians travel so prolifically" - most of the time they just had short stops in a city and were there to get drunk. Maybe doing some guided tours as you point out, but rarely going off-road or actually traveling, meeting locals, learning about the culture, etc. You could say many Australians are tourists few are actually 'travelers', if that makes sense.
matt_trentini 3y ago
I'm an Aussie, have travelled pretty widely, am aware of Australia's flaws but, despite them, still think it's one of the best countries to live in.
- PrimeMcFly 3y ago
  One of the best, sure. It's still a first world country that's safe and has good resources and opportunities. It's different from claiming it's the best country to live in, as so many claim while grilling and nursing a beer.
threeseed 3y ago
In 2019, 26.5% of Australia had travelled overseas with the percentage growing y/y: https://www.roymorgan.com/findings/australian-population-growth-powers-travel-industry# https://www.roymorgan.com/findings/australian-population-gro... And the reputation of being the best country in the world comes from city/country rankings which routinely have our cities in the top ten: https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurabegleybloom/2023/06/21/ranked-20-best-cities-to-live-in-the-world-according-to-a-new-report/?sh=3eebe66b225b https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurabegleybloom/2023/06/21/ran...
- PrimeMcFly 3y ago
  > In 2019, 26.5% of Australia had travelled overseas with the percentage growing y/y: Yeah, that doesn't matter. Most of that percentage is young Australians who buy a $2000 'round the world' ticket with 8 stops or whatever, and they just get drunk in every place. Most of them are not really bothering to explore the countries or cultures, and have no context to claim Australia is 'the best country in the world to live in'. > And the reputation of being the best country in the world comes from city/country rankings which routinely have our cities in the top ten: There are plenty of different lists, but sure, Australian cities often make it into the top 10. But not 1st place, sometimes not even the top 5. Which means Australia is among the best, but certainly not the best, which is the claim many Australians insist upon. Hell, there are plenty of countries with all the same advantages but less censorship and less jacked up prices, so that disqualifies Australia right there IMO.
seattle_spring 3y ago
Sounds exactly like the USA?
- PrimeMcFly 3y ago
  It's certainly common behavior to citizens of both countries. The difference is Americans who bother to travel are normally self-aware enough not to claim it, while the Australians that do, are not.
  - defrost 3y ago
    You seem to have a very selective memory on this. Out and proud USA #1 folk aren't hard to come by, abroad or at home in the US, the notion of American Exceptionalism is championed proportionally just as much (likely more) than a blind adherance to Australia the Lucky Country. On those two phrases alone the pro American Exceptionalism crowd do seem at their core to be true believers while the majority of those flying the flag of Australia the Lucky Country are all too aware that Horne coined the phrase with a sneer as a back handed complement.
    - PrimeMcFly 3y ago
      > You seem to have a very selective memory on this. I wouldn't say it's selective. Just the result of spending extensive time in both countries. Is it not just as possible you're being defensive? > Out and proud USA #1 folk aren't hard to come by, abroad or at home in the US, Right, and my point was the minority of Americans who travel tend to learn the world is a bigger place and their country has a lot of issues. > while the majority of those flying the flag of Australia the Lucky Country are all too aware that Horne coined the phrase with a sneer as a back handed complement. Not my experience at all. They say it just as seriously as the Out and proud USA #1 folk you refer to, maybe with a little more awareness and less zealotry, but not that much less.