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Ive been to a few countries in Europe where the Churches are emptying out and are becoming relics of a time gone by. Ireland is a good example. Beautiful and less violent now that it was a few years ago when they were having issues between the IRA and the Protestants.
Most of these countries are very nice! The argument that religion is needed for morality to exist is apparently false.
I've been to Sweden, Denmark, Scotland, Spain, France, Crete, and Italy. I think I'll choose Sweden or Denmark. I've spoken to many people about controversial topics there, and there seems to be a nice, liberal community view there. Although this may be because it is a more homogenous society.
Even if America was liberal and more socialist with higher taxes and free healthcare, there's still too much diversity, and someone will have a problem paying taxes for someone they can't identity with. This is not me saying I'm against diversity, by the way. I'm stating that diversity is a problem for many others. The size of the population also matters.
Denmark and Sweden are small, more homogenous communities. I don't think what they have would work in the United States for various reasons.
Darn, I really wish I could just pack up and move.
I find England so different and more tolerant than the U.S. in some ways. Their ex Prime Minister Blair, a liberal, converts to Catholicism; and their new guy, Cameron, a conservative, proclaims himself agnostic.
I cannot feature that there could be a President nor a conservative politician in the U.S. who would have the guts to announce that he's agnostic or a non believer.
The Global Peace Index rates Norway the most peaceful country in the world. The Human Development Index, a comparative measure of life expectancy, literacy, education and standard of living, has ranked Norway No. 1 every year for the last five years.
Norway has the second highest GDP per capita in the world, an unemployment rate below 2 percent, and average hourly wages among the world's highest.
I haven't been to the Nordic countries, and I suspect those would be my first choice. But I've spent quite a bit of time in the Netherlands, Germany and England. The Netherlands were a most civilized place, IMHO. And this is not just imaginative thinking. I really was impressed with their everyday view toward other people. It didn't smack of condescension or judgement, though I know that is never far away from reality since we are all just human... But the Dutch seemed to realize that all of us are in the same boat, so to speak.
They have had a reasonable society for the better part of a millennium. It would be wise to research why that is...
I haven't been to the Nordic countries, and I suspect those would be my first choice. But I've spent quite a bit of time in the Netherlands, Germany and England. The Netherlands were a most civilized place, IMHO. And this is not just imaginative thinking. I really was impressed with their everyday view toward other people. It didn't smack of condescension or judgement, though I know that is never far away from reality since we are all just human... But the Dutch seemed to realize that all of us are in the same boat, so to speak.
They have had a reasonable society for the better part of a millennium. It would be wise to research why that is...
Probably because they know they are going to sink into the North Sea any day now.
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