Ben@Forest wrote:
I think it's true that people do come back from a holiday and from their experiences in the nicest, safest, best-dressed and best housed/historical parts of the country compare it to their mundane suburb or life. Every country has problems with infrastructure, or political extremism, or terrorism (people were still worried about the Red Army Faction when I was in Germany in the 1990s). A lot of people on this forum do extol virtues about countries such as Germany, which, having lived there I know are unrealistic, or half-truths or frankly made-up.
Political extremism is here, not on your door step, but inside your parliament.
Gove, Fox, Davies, Johnson, Rees-Mogg(Agincourt and Waterloo indeed, good grief!! The man's a fruitcake)
As for "made up stuff" about Germany and the EU in general, I have travelled though it, and lived and worked within it for nearly 40 years.
I speak very passable German too.
I am just a simple building worker. Not "clever sophisticated" etc, but an ordinary Joe who went through life trying to live it in a tolerant way; keep my eyes and mind open to people and ideas.
I learned a bit through that too!
I am not a political expert or indeed not that much of a political animal (until a bunch of demonstrable liars got us to this very day).
I have tried to confine myself to observable facts and not over quote from newspapers or tv. Unlike some!!
And, with the exception of one contributor, be polite to all (but he had it coming!).
So, the observable (by me personally) facts here in West Wales are;
That the EU has helped to insulate, re-roof and update old dilapidated housing stock.
Offer agriculture a good deal assistance to diversify, and plant trees, repair stone walls.
Has helped to build new transport infrastructure, always with the cyclist and walker considered.
Help put in some questionable civic art!
Has improved water quality both drinking and bathing.
Tried to improve wastage in electricity usage and supply.
Supported carbon neural electricity generation.
Westminster would, IMHO, not have done much of this.
The observable facts by me are that in France and Germany public transport is cleaner, greener and in a better state of repair than those bits I observe in the UK.
Cycling provision is often better too.
And just for good measure people are often happier, politer and more helpful- though that is a recent phenomenon.
We, in the UK, used to be more fun loving.
