Europe is cheap (contractors, standard of living, zoned)

[drro]

Originally Posted by NOLA101

Mississippi has the same median income as Germany.

No way.

Mississippi has no economic activity and many people are living on welfare in shacks without electricity, running water or a sewer. I posted a video of a documentary on that in the Mississippi forums recently. Germany and the rest of western europe is far richer than the US and far more developed. If there is a statistic that claims otherwise, it is just lies, damned lies, and statistics.

[Ultrarunner]

NOLA said median income... nothing more or less.

Median household income - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Davy-040]

You should compare average individual income instead of household income.
Mississippi households are larger than German households.

[Bonjour185]

I was not impressed. Too much of racism, xenophobia, bad economies, unemployment, backwards mentalities and rude angry peoples. Cost of living is so high so inhabitants live in little homes and need government help for necessities. It is not cheap it is like a robbery. In North America you get what you pay, in Europe we add 50% on this. I never warmed up to Europe. They call Québec "european" but it is night and day difference. There are pockets of good parts but most of west europe the living is poor in comparison. I am glad to live in North America right now.

[AmFest]

Originally Posted by ipaper

Yeah, people love to compare USA to Europe all the time. The US is only one country and like you said here, Europe is made up of many countries. It would be better to compare all of North America to Europe since North America is made up of more than just the USA. But, it's always USA vs Europe, almost like us against the world seems like.

I don't even know if the USA is one country in the traditional sense. It is really an association of close territories that want to stick together, as the name, the United States of America, indicates. Though English is the common official language, one state varies from another economically, culturally, geographically, and politically.

[Ariete]

Originally Posted by Ultrarunner

My friends and family in Austria all have good lives... ask any of the men and they are content... they love the homes they built and the lifestyle... the women are not quite on the same page... although also content... several of the older women have regrets... it is not uncommon to hear had they been born a man the opportunities would have been greater... even in their own families.

About half have government jobs with lots of time off and the others are self employed in various trades... electrician, plumber, cabinet maker, mason with a mechanic thrown into the mix...

Still remember taking a group out to sail on the bay in a sailboat I had restored... they couldn't believe I did not need a License to captain a sail boat... they found it unbelievable... just as I find it unbelievable I would need to study if I wanted to open a flower shop in Austria!

Please elaborate.

I can smell the BS miles away...

[Ultrarunner]

Originally Posted by Ariete

Please elaborate...

Not sure... that I have friends and family in Austria or my time working in Austria?

Austria is highly regulated... if you want to open a flower shop... you need to be a florist... if you want to be a plumber... you need to be a plumber... just about everything requires a course of study and satisfactory completion.

I picked florist because I have several in my family... it all required business and specialized schooling in Austria to be able to own a florist shop...

In contrast... there is zero education requirement in California to open a florist shop... you need to pick a place zoned for business and pay for a business license... you don't even need a High School Diploma...

In Austria to be a tool and die maker requires years of study under a master tool and die maker... again, no such requirement in California...

The sailboat references came about because I wanted to rent a sailboat on the Mondsee and this was not possible without a sailboat license...

I regularly rented sailboats and sailed the San Francisco Bay and have never taken a single sailing class and no license is required...

I have a cousin that was in a cabinet maker apprenticeship... it did not go well for him and he quit... He and his parents said it was costly decision... without finishing an apprenticeship... he can only receive helper wages...

Here is another example... a very good friend is a licensed contractor for building... she is president of the corporation and very successful... she has never built anything with her hands... never swung a hammer or demolished a building... what she does have is a State of California Contractors license, passed the background check, bought a bond along with all the necessary required insurance... workers comp, liability, etc...

The system is very different... the quality of work is more uniform in Austria because behind every plumbing company is a person (Man) that is a master plumber...

In California this is not necessarily so...

Even driving a vehicle is very different...

It is popular for my colleagues to holiday in America with a motorhome and visit National Parks... I have several every year that do this...

Did you know in California they can rent a huge 10 meter motor home with just the personal car driver's license from Austria? Funny thing is in Austria they would need a Truck License with hours of professional training to drive the same Motorhome...

One more example that comes to mind.

If I want to own a store/shop in California and keep it open 7 days a week, 365 days a year and never close... this is OK. If I tried this for a normal shop/store in Austria, the penalties would quickly put me out of business... just another example of how business regulations vary.

Large Transport Trucks are not even allowed to drive on Sunday or Holidays in Austria... unless they carry very specific perishable products... came as shock one day when I saw miles of trucks on the border in Germany waiting to drive into Austria... it was a church holiday and so the trucks had to wait... honest story... no BS

[Ariete]

Having a florist's licence is a good thing I presume. At least you know what you're getting.

About the sailing licence, that is ridiculous! Austria must be the outlier, as in most of Europe you definitely DON'T need a licence to steer a BOAT! Quite funny actually.

[Ultrarunner]

Originally Posted by Ariete

Having a florist's licence is a good thing I presume. At least you know what you're getting.

About the sailing licence, that is ridiculous! Austria must be the outlier, as in most of Europe you definitely DON'T need a licence to steer a BOAT! Quite funny actually.

This is what I found in practice when I tried to rent a 7m sailboat... much smaller than what I sail San Francisco Bay...

If you want to rent a boat or windsurfing equipment, you might have to show a certificate. Sailing a dinghy does not require any certificates, unless the owner requires you to prove that you can handle the boat you want to rent (if any at all, then usually the non-official "Segelgrundschein"). For bigger vessels you usually have to have a certificate, but only the most basic grade, a certificate for coastal or even offshore sailing is not required.

Windsurfing & Sailing in Austria : Watersports on Austrian Lakes

[Ariete]

Originally Posted by Ultrarunner

This is what I found in practice when I tried to rent a 7m sailboat... much smaller than what I sail San Francisco Bay...

If you want to rent a boat or windsurfing equipment, you might have to show a certificate. Sailing a dinghy does not require any certificates, unless the owner requires you to prove that you can handle the boat you want to rent (if any at all, then usually the non-official "Segelgrundschein"). For bigger vessels you usually have to have a certificate, but only the most basic grade, a certificate for coastal or even offshore sailing is not required.

Windsurfing & Sailing in Austria : Watersports on Austrian Lakes

Sucks to be a landlocked country then...