Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Gregor Basić on February 21, 2011 at 4:55pm

I wouldn't trade Croatia for any other country in the world, and I wanted to show it's beauty with pictures but I couldn't find any without churches on it and this answers all your questions. (You maybe though islands don't have churches, but they have crosses, on every f*cking one).

So if it bothers me why do I stay? I hope it will be better one day, we did have socialism once so this made religion weaker but not in a political sense. Croatia gives to vatican around 370 million dollars every five years! But because of world crisis and our own crisis we are thinking of cutting this money. Don't know how much.

All people know about Croatia is either the islands of Dalmatia or Dubrovnik or our achievements in sport.

I wanted to live in Singapore for some strange reason once and then I heard that Family guy is banned there and I changed my mind :P 

 

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Permalink Reply by Heather Spoonheim on February 21, 2011 at 11:18pm

I live in Canada because I was born here but I have lived in many different parts of the country.  Currently I live in Québec City, Québec, because I wanted to simulate emigration to another country without losing my cherished Canadian health care.  Although a lot of people here have at least a working knowledge of English and I've been picking up a lot of French, I still have some marvelous experiences of being hopelessly unable to communicate in situations where I really really need to do so.  Religion really doesn't enter into my life at all because I really can't have significantly meaningful conversations - not that I ever had significantly meaningful conversations with theists but at least now when they knock on my door I can just pretend that I don't understand a single word that they are saying.

 

For the most part I've become acquainted with a number of immigrants (from outside of Canada altogether) and we share stories of our frustrations using whatever common words we can find.  From these kind people I've managed to collate a list of restaurants where you can get a dish-washing job within days even if you don't speak a word of French and perhaps especially if you don't speak a word of French - ha ha!  I love it!

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Permalink Reply by Ben on February 22, 2011 at 1:01pm

I moved to the Houston area because of a job a few years ago. Even though I have changed jobs since then, I stay here because of family. My kids have grandparents nearby and my wife has a sister that is close. Once they move off to college I plan to move.

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Permalink Reply by Mathew Ourkind on March 17, 2011 at 6:17pm

I live in Finland where 80% is lutheran.. I recently resigned from the church and no one seems to care. If someone has a problem about it I don't care. I realized I don't believe in God so why fake it.

 

+Finland is safe,

+ welfare is good...

- Harder to get rich (if you want to, I don't)

- harder to get drugs

- It's cold sometimes and DARK in the winter time so you want to kill yourself. It can be a problem for some veggies.

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Permalink Reply by William C. Walker on April 1, 2011 at 6:36pm

Many thanks for the good news on the impending demise of the RCC in Ireland. While it's 'very sick' here in America, it will hang on long after I am gone. Congrats on exposing those pedophile monsters. "Mother Church did lose millions of Catholics here as a result of that same problem, but there are still a great many millions 'hanging on'.. I am a loong since 'escaped' Catholic myself.

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Permalink Reply by Arcus on April 1, 2011 at 5:13pm

• Is your community open to your atheism (or other philosophy if not atheist)?

Yes. I am originally from one of the most secular countries in the world and currently live in a former communist republic where atheism permeates society to a substantial degree.

• If so, is that a factor in why you remain?

Not really. I moved here quite randomly due to a job offer.

• What other aspects, positive or negative, affect the livability of your current location?

Cheap country to live in. By far the best beer in the world. Excellent public transport system. The heart of Europe. Decriminalized drugs. Negative aspects include no comprehension of service, limited selection, completely different language group, no concept of efficiency.

I think the quest in my life, coming from the dark and cold North, is to live somewhere which never sees snow and palm trees grow naturally. I don't mind religiousity around me, I have a tendency to find atheist/agnostic/secular friends no matter where I am. As I know a some religious people take offense, I 'come out' quickly and accept that it causes some people to be unable to be my friends.

Oh, and the staggering beauty of a mixture of gothic, medieval, neo-gothic, art nouveau, and art deco architecture baffles my mind. Seriously, just look at this citiscape:

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Permalink Reply by Kris Feenstra on April 2, 2011 at 9:40pm

Fortunately, many countries offer temporary work visas which afford you the opportunity to try living in different areas without all of the complications and stipulations of immigration. An ex-coworker just left the company to spend a year working in Germany. She said the paperwork was pretty easy to complete, and you don't need to have a job lined up before applying. There's generally an age restriction for these things, but I think in this case it is thirty-five, which probably gives you a fair bit of time if you ever want to go that route.

You could hop countries for a bit, or if you find one you like, try to work out the immigration process while you're there.

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Permalink Reply by William C. Walker on April 4, 2011 at 7:16pm

If I wasn't so goddam old, (85) I would not be living in Altoona, Pa. Go for it Cass, you're only young once.

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Permalink Reply by Steven Broka on May 17, 2011 at 9:23pm

I live in the liberal part of Las Vegas, NV. In general though, we have lots of mormons and catholics in this city. I meet more jackasses than open-minded religious folk.

 

I stay because I can't afford out of state College tuition.

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Permalink Reply by Niki Liu on May 21, 2011 at 2:38am

I live in a small town in South Carolina.  I would say they are NOT open to atheism.  They barely acknowledge evolution.  I stay because living with my parents is rent-free while I go to a technical school on scholarship.  I plan to stay maybe three more years after I get my degree if I can get a reasonably good job.  If I can get a job at the projected salary for my current degree program (this area is supposed to see a lot of retirees in the next few years in this field) I should be able to pay off the student loan from my BA degree.  After that I will either move to a city with a heavy dose of multi-cultural peoples and reasonably decent public transportation, or I will return to Asia, maybe for work in my field, maybe to teach English again, or may be to study Chinese.  I lived in China for five years and I really liked it there.  I would love to give it another go, or hit up another Asian country.  I've also thought about going to the Netherlands for a year or so.  My grandfather was Dutch and I have never had a chance to meet his side of the family.  So I have also thought about that as well.  I like to keep my options open.     

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Permalink Reply by William C. Walker on May 21, 2011 at 3:54pm

My best wishes, Niki, on the realization of your 'game plan'. There are some small-minded bigots just about everywhere, don't let them get you down. You have a good life ahead of you no matter where you go.

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Permalink Reply by William C. Walker on May 21, 2011 at 3:55pm

My best wishes, Niki, on the realization of your 'game plan'. There are some small-minded bigots just about everywhere, don't let them get you down. You have a good life ahead of you no matter where you go.

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