Absolutely. Others are still living in their parents box room, and their world travel defined by the curent ethnic mcdonald’s wrap.
I got chastised by a neighbour the other week for refering to myself as a immigrant, he said that I wasn’t I was a good friend and a Scottish honorary Frenchman as I had chosen to live the rest of my life here 
3 Likes
Geof. Apart from surname, I’m a bit like you, having lived and worked in most countries in Asia plus a few in Europe and in Africa. Through lack of use, I have forgotten a lot of my Japanese, Chinese and Bahasa but am very good at charades 
(and can order a beer and say thank you and sorry in 12 languages). Worst one I had was trying to explain to an apothecary in Kalimantan via sign language and charades that my sick friend was suffering from explosive diarrhoea . Not my finest hour
3 Likes
@Susannah You have almost perfectly described my wife’s life! Born in Luxembourg, educated in England, worked mainly in Belgium and Netherlands, married to this particular Brit, and now lives in France.
I suspect this pattern is probably more common than some would think, given the numbers of children of diplomats, military, career expatriates of multinational companies etc etc.
4 Likes
Ditto! Only we were in Japan. Four of us trying to obtain medication for our sick friend, miming the ailment quite dramatically. In Japan it is not considered polite for folk to laugh at strangers but we had a little audience rolling in the aisles.
Clearly, there’s a lot of it about.
2 Likes
Perhaps what you say concerns UK but is not quite accurate in EU countries.
Young people throughout Europe learn early about the neighbouring countries and cultures. They learn more than one language. Shared foods, customs and ease of travel bind European youth cultures together. When they are old enough, the freedom of movement enables them to cross borders for work and further education. All this is not only restricted to the wealthy, nor do they regard that as a reason not to explore.
The ‘island mentality’ within UK begins with inadequate state teaching about other countries and cultures. This, over generations leading to xenophobia at its most extreme.
Brexit has done a huge disservice in preventing young British residents from freedom to discover Europe. Perhaps some are not the least curious to leave ‘their parent’s box room’ but whose fault is this? And that is by no means the majority of young people, whose curiosity and wanderlust should be lauded. They are citizens of the world.
This old SF thread is interesting and reflects the reality of many parents today
1 Like
Seems to me that younger generations go to more exotic places than “just” Europe. When I went abroad for the first time in the mid sixties Yugoslavia was another world. These days, friends’ grandchildren know China, New Zealand, South America, the US. Europe seems very tame. I’m always amazed on University Challenge how these teams in their early 20s know so much about China.
1 Like
My neighbours kids (now 16 through to mid 20’s) have never even been to Paris. Sons of the farmer adjoining our land have - but only to the agricultural show. None have been outside France apart from the girl who went to Ibiza… They may have learnt about them in school but have zero interest. Again you are talking about a sub-set of young people who are mor privileged - which may be a sizeable chunk of the young population but no means all of them. The disparity among populations is something I find alarming. The haves and the have-not are hardly in the same spectrum.
This is very true!,
3 Likes
I believe that this is the greatest challenge we face: solve this and many other matters could be resolved successfully.
1 Like
Communism tried. Doesn’t work.
Not everyone truly wants to be equal, just have equal opportunity to achieve advantage. This can be effected in many ways, assuming the will. ‘Trickle down economics’ is definitely not one of them.
Perhaps we are using the wrong model? There tends to be a knee jerk defence of democracy but maybe it is time for a new system?
I know a joke about trickle-down economics.
But 99% of people don’t get it.
7 Likes
Yes, like democracy. So many of us don’t have it and have never experienced it.
Huh!? Not everyone wants to be a president, doctor, poet etc. Or even achieve any special advantage. But are there really people who wish to have sub-standard health care, education, housing and disposable income? I don’t think so.
3 Likes
Yes. Everyone wants to be wealthy and have privilege. What if levelling wasn’t ‘up’?
Would everyone be happy living in state assigned accommodation, on basic healthcare and age 69 retirement?
That would be an equal society. Or isn’t that the equal you were thinking?
Interesting tangents here.
I am an immigrant, the son of an immigrant and a British person, but have never thought of myself using that word even though I’m quite aware of my non-Britishness.
Regarding travelling and working elsewhere, as much as anything that’s a state of mind far, far more than money. But for many, learning another language enough to get by seems to be a really hard slog for most people of British origin. It may also help those who are not British, that the world of entertainment is dominated by English-speaking material, giving peoples of other nations opportunity to pick up some language that has passed by Brits because of their privileged position in the language hierarchy.
Inequality is an interesting thing. I’m happy for there to be extreme inequality provided those at the bottom can have somewhere safe and suitable to live, to stay warm and enough decent food that they aren’t hungry. It doesn’t have to be easy but it also shouldn’t be desperate. People are made unequal - some are able and some are not, some energetic and some slow or lazy, some determined and some laid back. Some are guileless and innocent while others instinctively know how to manipulate and coerce their fellow men as we even see occasionally in the forum and is normal in those countries we call ‘communist’. I’m not at all sure humans can really live at a single level of existence together for any length of time.
Whether inequality is just is quite another matter, but I’m not at all sure it is ‘unjust’.
2 Likes
I agree with your comment, but I use the term ‘get by’ in response to people who ask if I speak French. I do speak French every day, and have conversations in French, with French friends. But I am by no way fluent, so I think it is appropriate to say ‘I get by’.
It is not always an excuse…
4 Likes
I agree with that, and it describes me too with the added disadvantage that I have a hearing problem which means I can’t be sure that I have got exactly what has been said. I also have that problem in English but, as it is my birth language I can interpret and read the language much easier.
Have you booked new appt with ORL David?
ORL? Not sure what that is but no, I was hoping the doctor would give me a contact name and number but just an ordonnance.
Have replied on relevant thread…