It really depends on the water system. I live in Maryland. When I was on the Baltimore water system I would drink the water from the tap but not water from the DC water system.
The tap water in Keizer, Oregon (just north of Salem), was very good when I grew up. The tap water in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where I went to college, was not as good. It could have been the old pipes in my dorm though; it was built during WW I. In the Seattle area, the tap water isn't bad, but I still prefer to filter it for taste.
Bad water is often from high mineral content in ground water, and hard to filter. Some of the worst water in the country is in the Silicon Valley (San Jose, CA). Looks bad, tastes bad, and will ruin your toilet in 5 years.
My father got a water cooler for his home in Las Vegas, Nevada. He took the plastic tank to the grocery store to fill at the water distiller. He said that the ground water percolated through a layer of clay known as caliche. It makes the water alkaline. My local Walmart has a similar machine, but I use a pitcher filter. I use it to remove a metallic taste to my water - which I think are from the 1944 pipes in my house and not from the Portland water system - which is one of the best in America.
I’ve lived in America my whole life and I think it’s strange to use disposable plates in situations other than a picnic or maybe an open house. The thought of using paper plates at a holiday meal is just weird.
I think it seems a bit weird as well, but I have been to parties at peoples houses that have used paper plates - especially if it's barbeque. It may have more to due with ease of clean up after the party in that case. I personally don't have that much dinner ware, so I'd have to purchase paper plates if more then 3 guests arrived. :-)
Used them all the time growing up no one wanted to do dishes. So after cooking it was like a buffet line grab a plate then throw it all out no muss no fuss.
@@seandelevan why not? When you have the whole family there it’s easier to just use paper plates so once it’s all done throw it way same with paper table cloth and napkins. Remember not everyone grew up with a dishwasher and not everyone had a stepford wife to clean up everything.
I do my grocery shopping around 9-10pm on Sunday. Few people, it’s quite and quick at checkout. Used to do checks all the time, but I was first on board with PayPal to ApplePay. I drink the filter water from the fridge, but no problem drinking tap water. It really depends where you live. Sone is better than others. The east coast area I hear was not the best water compared to the west coast. It all has to be safe and legal to drink. But some states have more minerals and other things that can give water a strange taste. It’s not unsafe to drink, but still taste funny. A water filter will help with that. I don’t have a dishwasher, it’s just easier to use paper plates. Toss out, done!
I did have a checkbook back when I was living in Dubai, fortunately, I never had to use it. Still have it lying around somewhere. The only checks I ever used were written by the bank itself and intended for a car dealership to pay for the car.
Writing checks are the only reason I still have for learning to write English in cursive. I have trouble remembering how to write a capital Q, and have to practice a few before writing a check to someone or some company who's name begins with q.😆
One of the most striking differences from Europe (I’m from Italy) is the price tags. I remember how dumbfounded I felt when I took an item labelled 1 dollar, went to the cashier with my 1 dollar bill in my hand and I was asked 1 dollar something. Here in Europe the first law of consumers right is “the final price of an item must be clearly stated on the price tag”. All prices in Italy include all applicable taxes (since one cannot not pay them, might as well include them in the price tag…) so if it’s written 1 €, well, that’s what the cashier will ask you to pay.
I agree it can be confusing sometimes but less of an issue now that we don't use cash as often. I could be wrong but as an American I wonder if we do this for a couple reasons- one is that sales taxes are different in different states so if an item comes with a price on it, then it can be sold to any state. Another reason is our view towards taxes here is a little different and we want the tax pointed out and obvious so we don't forget we pay taxes to fund things. I once went on vacation to another state and was shocked by how high the taxes were, including a hotel tax, and had they just included it, I would be ignorant to that. The hotel wants you to know that they are not that expensive, it's the state's fault for adding that tax on. If money was tighter, I may not be as likely to go back to that state, I mean people literally move to other states sometimes because of the difference in taxes. Another reason is itemized receipts. Some people who pay a lot in sales or hotel (or other) taxes because they bought a lot and traveled a lot, can do this thing at tax reporting time to show how much they paid to get money back. I don't know if that's a thing in Europe.
Another reason is that when sales taxes change you don't have to update prices. In some areas school supplies or other items can be tax-free only during certain times.
@@kellypat125 I figured something like that. Still, we in Europe consider way more important to know how much we are going to pay for an item BEFORE we decide to buy it, and this is only possible if the price tag shows the final price. We too pay taxes, and they are different for different categories of merchandise (beauty products vs. hardware vs. food etc.) but since we cannot escape paying taxes, we don’t really care how much they are. Anything that shows up only at checkout which was not shown on the price tag is frown upon and seen with a lot of suspicion, because we start wondering if the seller is trying to rip us off. This is the reason why tipping is not a thing in Italy (and in Europe in general): first, because waiters are considered normal workers who are hired for a pre-agreed remuneration, and second, because if I order a $20 steak and a $5 coke I expect to pay 25 dollars. Hell, if you want 35 dollars for a 25 dollar meal, just raise the steak’ and coke’s price, instead of putting me through the annoyance of having to decide whether the service was worth 10 or 22%. Just a little insight on the average European Italian customer. ;)
@@giuliobernacchia1848 fair enough, I see a reason to do it that way of course. I remember being about 9 years old and buying ice cream by myself and I did not consider tax and was short a few cents. Luckily the adult behind me in line pulled out some change and came to my rescue. Never happened again! However, about tipping- I have only been to two European countries, England and Croatia, and was kind of bummed to find out tipping is still a thing there at restaurants, although a smaller amount. The internet had me fooled with all the complaining about tipping in America!
@@kellypat125 it’s all your fault, dear American friends! Many places where tipping was not a thing got “americanized” with time. After all, nobody will refuse some extra money… Here in Italy, I NEVER tip or ever have I seen other Italians tip. Usually we just round up the change, so we talk about 50 cents or one Euro at the most. And nobody ever complains, because as I said, the prices everywhere in Italy include all service charges and taxes. Obviously if the waiter is dealing with a tourist, he/she will behave as if tipping is compulsory, especially if the customer is American… So, caveat emptor, as Latins would say! Nice chatting with you, by the way, civility is indeed possible in the cyberworld!
The reason checks are still used here in the U.S. is that many small family businesses still prefer checks is to avoid service fees that credit cards incur.
And they will never get my business. I don't carry checks on me. As someone who has worked retail - it's really a gamble whether a check with actually go through. It's much safer for business to use plastic or cash as pay methods. Tons of options exist to pay through apps now.
I hate the situation at the gasoline pumps. They add 10 cents a gallon to use a credit card. I could see adding a quarter to the entire transaction like some fast food places do. I don't like to use my debit car to avoid my bank account being drained, there are more safeguards for fraud with the credit card.
@@Anon54387 If you use 'tap to pay' (Samsung, Apple or Google Pay) with your phone, that is by far the safest way to pay. The retailer and network never actually get your real card number because the phone only sends out a one time use 'token' card number. And most gas pumps are now equipped for tap to pay.
The US are in the dark ages when it comes to banking. I might write 2 cheque a year for some obscure transaction. The last time I purchased cheques was 2002. They often have you sign credit card receipts! A totally useless exercise. I sign George Bush but still get the bill.
When I was in the US for the first time I found out that I didn't have a pain in my back after sleeping in a "boxspring bed" as they are normal in big hotels. At home in Germany it was a big problem for me, because in the morning I usually woke up with a pain in my back. So I bought a "boxspring bed" for me at home, and since then it feels like sleeping on a cloud and I don't have a pain in my back anymore when I wake up in the morning.
When I first visited my boyfriend in America (I am also from Germany/Munich) I walked around like a kid in a candy store, even in the supermarkets. I can relate to every point on that list😂😂😂
@PeakApex On the first vacation drastically but even like premade food on the supermarket I was just like wow, but now not so much I prefer to cook fresh stuff at home😂😂😂
@@kevincryan7220 I usually go to most places with boyfriend so for that reason I'd say it hasn't happened that much to me. I am more bothered by random people wanting to talk to me everywhere especially the supermarket, you can barely grab a product with someone commenting or starting a conversation and sometimes I just want to be left alone😂😂😂
@@littlebutterfly4512 if you give short answers people will get the hint... but sometimes Small Talk can help you with local food, where to find things, or you could meet somebody random who knows some of your friends. Did you meet your boyfriend in Germany ? Army?
In Canada we typically use disposable plates when having a picnic or perhaps when hosting a garden party, but they are not generally intended for every day use.
I moved to Germany in 2016 and for a short time had a car (before I knew about the reliability and accessibility of the public transportation system)....I was turning right at red lights for like MONTHS and eventually noticed people were always staring me down and giving me the stink eye when I did it so I googled it and realised the law is totally different here
Fun fact. In France cheques are pretty common, too and you pay the monthly bill for kindergarden or your electricity bill via cheque. Very strange as a German....
Do they still use cheques in stores in France? That was quite common here in the Netherlands before about 2000. Cheques for payments like electricity bills were not common here, one used bank transfers either manual or automatic (direct debit).
@@Rob2 AFAIK (German), no - France is plastic card country. But they use cheques to pay something on a distance, where we (both NL and DE) would use direct banc transfer, because this seems to be complicated in France. I visit a yearly meeting with friends in France (100 people) with a dinner that has to be prepaid. They ask to do it by cheque mailed to them (until 2019). I get a special permission to pay on site ;)
@@Rob2 Yes they do n France. For us, Dutch, it's very strange to see. We pay with our debit card and Apple Pay everywhere, but when you do groceries in France and you want to be quick, big chance someone in front of you is paying with a cheque. Raar he?
Almost never use checks in the U.S. anymore. Though I admit 5 or so years ago I was still using them for bills. But now even though my supply of checks is almost run out, I never write checks anymore, so they haven't run out. Trump and Biden's silly briber... I mean stimulus checks don't come by check either. They go right to my bank account. I'd say it's been well over a year since I used one. Maybe multiple years. I pay everything online now, preferably with credit card.
Well, Cheques (first the "bank cheque" and later "eurocheque" which does not mean it is in EURO, it was a system accepted across europe) were common for store purchaces here, but they never were common for other purposes as formally they were only valid when presented in-person. Still, sometimes they were mailed, but not to reputable companies like electricity companies. They silently went out of use when payment terminals appeared everywhere.
I lived in a rural area in Connecticut, US and we had a well - no treated city water - and it was delicious, but when I moved to Florida, US we've only had City water and most of the time the chlorine is overwhelming.
I live in a kinda rural place in CT. Note to others, CT rural is not rural as you know anywhere else in the US. It is that place where suburbs give up until the next suburb. It is not “100s of miles from nowhere”. It is less a hundred & fifty miles from Boston or NYC. And a lot closer to smaller cities. It is great because you do have wells and quiet without the remoteness of the really rural.
About tap water: When I stayed in the US as an exchange student in the early nineties, the first time I tried drinking tap water, I did not think of any harm. But as soon as I swallowed the first mouthful, it felt like I was suffocating and I had to gasp for air. That was due to the enormous chlorine content that I was absolutely not prepared for. I drank tap water a few times thereafter, and it got a bit better, but I tried to avoid it as much as i could. I will not forget this experience.
Please do a second part. I lived and went to highschool in the US for two years and can relate to almost all of your experiences. It's always nice watching your videos!
@@FelifromGermany Another thing. I've seen a few people say they are done watching your channel over your lack of support of our Bill of Rights, and it IS a lack of support of our rights. Gun ownership is so common here and people feel very strongly about it. And for everyone saying they will no longer watch your channel there are more who won't even though they aren't saying it. The same person who has been watching your channel and saying no more is also someone who might've bought some of your merchandise but now definitely will not.
@@Anon54387 Then they can go watch something else. I own over 20 myself but I'll say straight out that If their entire universe is defined by guns they are defective human beings.
I work at a dmv in the u.s. and any card transactions have an additional fee. Its a percentage, so if your total is 2000 dollars, you'd pay an extra 50 bucks or so just to use the card. We have a lot of people write checks to avoid this fee.
The same occurs with the credit card fee when paying property tax in my state. Property tax is one of the very few times I ever write a check. I only write two or three checks in a year.
In Belgium we had to pay an additional fee when you used checks because it required manual processing. All card transactions are free even credit cards payments in stores, you will pay only a small monthly administrative fee that's automatically deducted from your bank account and is about 5 dollars when you have a regular bank account.
Same in Germany. If you use online banking and tranfer money via your online account, it's free. Anything that needs to go through the hands of an actual person at a bank is costly.
I very, very rarely write checks. I pay my mortgage online, car tags online, use debit or credit cards for gasoline, groceries, almost everything. I don't even know which presidents are on what denominations. The only things I write checks for usually are my house insurance and my property tax, and the only reason I do that with my property tax is that they charge 3% extra for use of a credit or debit card on that. I can do a direct bank transfer e check on my property tax, but that's one thing I like to make sure it's done and get the receipt in hand in case of error. I go to the court house once a year to pay the property tax. My auto insurance premium is automatically taken out of my checking account every month. So basically I write two or three checks in a year.
I still write one or two checks a month. I have bills, usually landlords or storage unit rentals, that won't take an electronic payment like a credit card or debit card. It is ether cash or check or a postal money order!
I think many grocery stores allow shopping late at night because they have people working there restocking anyway, so they might as well let a few people buy things.
It's crazy how much America varies. I grew up in Oregon (west coast), moved to Arkansas (part of the south), and now live in Germany. In my experience Germany and oregon are way more similar than oregon and arkansas were even tho they were both in the US.
I was just thinking exactly the same thing, until we got to the "turn right on red" item. But then again I'm from Melbourne where we do hook turns... ;-) I mean, using cheques? What the hell? And drive through ATMs? American banking seems weird.
@@juthan0 NSW has right turn on red when there's a sign permitting it, like Germany. I think they've taken the fun out of hook turns with all their extra signs now! :-)
@@NadaEspamo It's to keep cross-turning traffic clear of tram tracks that run down the middle of the road. Keep in mind we drive on the left. To make a right turn, you pull all the way over to the left (!) and wait there until the lights on the road you're turning into go green. Then you make your right turn from the extreme left side of the road. Here's a short video: th-cam.com/video/Yh92LirlCf8/w-d-xo.html I've seen motorbikes do something similar in Taiwan, so they don't get knocked over in the middle of frantic intersections.
The one about the right turns made me laugh. I spent 4 years in Germany while in the Army (Baumholder) in the 1990's and got use to the no turn on red. When I came home I would stop at a red light and everyone would start honking their horn at me, and my family was always asking why I don't just turn. Love your Channel though you do make me miss Germany a lot.
I was in baumholder 84-86.. with 293rd engineers .. was weird seeing people eating Burgers with knife and fork, but getting beer at McDonald's was cool.. I really do miss Germany.. especially the bier😊
The taste of water in the US can vary quite a lot from place to place. As you mentioned, the chemicals used in water treatment can also taste bad. If you are lucky enough to live in a place with great tasting water it’s probably more common to drink water that comes directly from the tap. 50 years ago, that’s what everyone did, but filters have gotten much more popular over the years.
I grew up always drinking water out of taps in NH and when I traveled some place as a teen I went to another city or some places can’t remember and they had to tell us not to drink the tap water because we where not used to that.
This story goes back to 2001. I was going to attend a conference in Melbourne, Australia, and stay in university housing. They would only accept payment by check. I had to find the one bank in my area that offered foreign bank drafts. This means that they wrote a check for me from an Australian bank, denominated in Aussie dollars. I had to bring in enough cash to cover the amount of the check plus a fee. Then I had to put enough postage on an envelope to mail the check to Australia. A credit card would have been much easier.
@Brent Lofgren: twenty years on you would find it very different in Australia. I haven’t written a cheque (sorry, I have to spell it this way) in a decade. It’s all direct debit, automatic payment, B-Pay (like PayPal for banks) etc. You’re actually more likely to find that rental payments are only acceptable in some form of electronic transfer, not cash or cheques.
I still think you're calling is in diplomatic service. You are committed to building warm and sincere relationships among people which the world is in great need of.
This is so interesting. We were actually scheduled to take our first trip to Europe early in 2020 when Covid canceled the whole trip. We are still anxious to experience different cultures ASAP.
I stumbled across this video channel over the weekend. And I have to say, I’m really enjoying these videos. My mom side of the family is from Germany. I’ve never been there myself but I am enjoying learning about the differences between Germany and the United States. Yes, the United States is convenient. I don’t do a lot of my shopping in the middle of the night but I have done a little bit of it. Personally, I have a checking account but I do not write out checks anymore. I am now totally blind. And that is something that is really hard to do with your blind. You can but it can be complicated. Are use a debit card for all transactions. And paying my rent I just do a transfer from my bank account using bill pay. I also find that writing checks might be a generational thing. My parents who are in their late 60s early 70s use a lot of checks. With younger people depending on the situation do not.
Love how you tackle every topic without fear! Gun laws and tampons in one vid 😂😂 I can see people fainting! Austrian here, who was taking his mom to a New York City long weekend for her 60th birthday. The hotel we stayed in was in the upper price range (ok no Kempinski, but still..). The look on my mom's face when he had breakfast from paper plates with plastic cutlery - priceless 🤣🤣🤣
I agree. We have way too many "hot-button" topics here in America that people are afraid to talk about or if they do, they get bombarded with hateful comments. I am glad that she freely and openly shared her opinions and that should never be a bad thing whether someone agrees with them or not!
Paper plates and plastic utensils, *at a hotel*? I'm older, and I've *never* seen that in the US. I'd be absolutely shocked if I did. Even in the worst of hotels, and I've been in some pretty bad ones.
Having a steak in a high class restaurant, one waiter per table, best wines, Argentinian steak ... and Ketchup on the table in plastic bottles, that's America, too.
Water filters depend on where you live. Some places have good tasting water, others are more heavily filled with minetals, etc. Also chlorine processing varies.
@Badatallthis Stuff the east coast varies a lot. For example NYC water comes from the Catskills and the only treatment that is done to it is disinfecting it. They go to alot of work to protect their water sources. Syracuse, NY is another one like that. They control what you can do close to Skaneatles Lake which is Thier source going as far as forbidding trucks carrying hazzardous material on certain roads near the lake.
9: The family a friend of mine stayed at in the US would get take out food, put it on a one-time use tablecloth (paper), add some plastic cutlery and then eat. Afterwards, grab the 4 corners of the paper, bundle everything up (often including leftovers), and just throw this whole thing into the bin. Every freaking day. And it was 100% normal to them. This REALLY freaked me out! And I'm not even some hardcore environmentalist, just casually aware as you are. Or so I thought.
@@fonkbadonk2957 I don't think so. It has been more expensive to use disposable dinnerware for as long as I can recall (at least 30yrs). It just takes less effort to clean up, so of your live a life in a hurry or are lazy and have the money I guess spend the extra. Most only use it when it would be inconvenient to use normal ware, like when traveling, camping, a picnic, when away from home, having large parties where you might not have enough normal ware, etc.. I believe the US does use it more than others though. It's just not the normal everyday method for most people.
The gun issue i kinda agree but you have to take into account that pretty much every crime committed with a gun, the guns themselves were acquired illegally that’s why you call them criminal. I’m from the Philippines who is now residing in the US, and i wish we have the same gun culture as the US because no matter how “strict” gun control we have in the Philippines it doesn’t deter criminals from committing said crime.
If that is true, how come countries that used to have relaxed gun control laws, but later changed them, like for example Australia, saw a massive decrease in then umber of gun related violence and most importanly deaths after they got strict on guns?
There is no flood in or around Munich. We have a bit more rain than usual, but nothing to worry about. The disaster is happening in a few spots in the mountains. Please pray for the people there.
It's funny... This is international. My parents have called me once to see if I am OK in Atlanta after a several tornados in Kansas. Apart from that.... Flash floods are rare. I only ever experienced this once and it swept away some cars and flooded basements to the ceiling. One old lady in a basement died. But that was once about 30 years ago. Lets hope this is a one time thing too but I fear it is not.
@@roncenti Until now 159 fatalities in Germany; this number may still rise. But the problem is in a few spots only, where small rivers grew within a very short time to large torrents. Sometimes their level was 6 ft higher than ever before (and we measure since at least 100 years). In one place they had to open the exit of a reservoir to avoid damage to the dam, and this caused the flood. - The big rivers like Mosel, Rhine have high level but no danger of flooding. Where I live - 150 miles south of the damage area - we had nice sunshine the whole Sunday, and just some heavier rain on Thursday, but nothing uncommon.
@@DarthG3nesis Baden-Württemberg? - there was some minor damage in the area close to Lörrach on Thursaday, but noone injured. Today was sunshine. - While in Bavaria (Berchtesgadener Land) there is rain now, a lot more will follow tomorrow, major damage including at least one fatality.
The little green arrow sign for German traffic lights, that makes you turn right on red is much more common in East Germany. It didn't exist in West Germany before the reunification of Germany happened in 1990 and was adapted to the Germany traffic law. This sign does exactly work like in the US. You are supposed to drive to the stop line, wait a few seconds and check visually, if you can go and nobody is on that path with priority. If everything is clear, you are allowed to drive. I wonder if Feli knows that, because of her strange comment on how you are supposed to deal with it in the US. Did make it sound for me, like you can just turn right on red in Germany without stopping. That wouldn't be the case.
Can you turn left on red in Germany? Here in some areas if the red arrow is flashing you come to a complete stop, and if the intersection is clear you can turn left just like you would making a right turn on red.
Having lived in Germany, I can attest to their remarkable, and often very innovative construction.. This applies not only to homes, they build their roads with the same thoroughness. That's why their roads last.
I used to work for an ATM maker. It's a standard feature on all machines. And it's by law regulated that they have to have it. You can walk up to them and use them. They get fined if the audio guide is not working.
There was a news story here in Louisville about people who had statutory blindness but kept renewing driver licenses to use as a photo ID The DMV didn't seem to care.
What’s funny is my dad has a German Mauser and every time I hold that gun I think about where this gun has been we believe it was produced in the 1800s in Germany for the German army!
It depends on when it was made. The Karabiner 98 kurz was adopted as the standard German Armed Forces rifle in 1935. Mauser is the manufacturer who made the 98 system. That 98 means 1898. German Empire is up to the end of WWI. Gewehr 1888 was the previous Mauser rifle and the initial rifle Germany used in WWI, slowly replacing them with the 98. So it depends on with variant you have. Again 98K was mid 1930s and used during WWII. 98b was used post WWI. The 98 is the rifle they adopted during WWI as they replaced the 88s they went to war with.
Feli - I think people could interpret there aren't "sporting" firearms present in Germany. In 1999, I had the opportunity to take the train between Ulm and Munich several days in a row. I was amazed at the number of deer stands - for hunting deer. I may not have seen them while driving due to speeds at which I drive keeping focus on the road. My friends in Ulm told me yes, hunting is very popular. Same thing where I lived in France - hunting popular but sporting firearms.
_Very popular_ is definitely not true. And in Germany you need a licence not just for your weapons, but also for the hunt itself. On the other hand hunting deer and boar is necessity to regulate the population.
@@mariokringsIn every state in the United States a permit or (Hunting license) is also required. Each states regulations may differ as to what is required to obtain this license but they are still needed to hunt. Just like a concealed carry permit in most states is required to carry a concealed firearm. Again regulations from state to state differ, however these concealed carry permits (licenses) all require filling out paperwork and a criminal background check before those are granted.
The around the clock supermarkets thing is actually pretty common in a lot of places in Eastern Europe too, especially in big cities, the whole no Sundays, no work at night mentality is really just a German peculiarity
Actually Poland is starting (if it hasn't finished already) to close its shops on Sundays. But when shopping centres are open 09:00-21:00 every other day, how much shopping do you really need to do?
I lived in Belgium from 1998 to 2006, and they closed most of their smaller neighborhood shops at 6 or 7 pm, and the bigger supermarkets at 10pm. There were night stores that opened at 10pm, so you could still get some basic things if you needed them, but they explicitly were not open at the same time as the regular shops.
I think you may have misunderstood the reason behind people saying "let me take you to the gun range." It was not likely meant to insinuate you're incapable of going to a range to go shooting. (Anyone who follows you ought to know someone strong enough to move across the world and start a life in a foreign country can certainly figure out how and where to do shoot a gun.) Within the gun community, at least in the shooting sports community, we prefer to introduce someone to shooting in a very controlled manner and environment stressing safety, proper grip, trigger discipline, stance, etc... We like to teach about gun safety and responsible use of firearms as part of the introduction. Just going to a range, picking up and shooting a gun, while legal, isn't a proper introduction to responsible use of firearms. That being said, even if we don't see eye to eye on gun control, I am glad you were open minded about it and went an experienced it firsthand. I just wish you had done so with an experienced firearms person or instructor to have a proper introduction.
@@enfynet I think we assign this to the Police or other officially body, how right war one and make everything that thy are not use it. We want not that it be a contest who have the big, the most or shoot first.
@@enfynet I think it is sort of a chicken/egg problem ... the more access to guns is restricted the harder it is for criminals to get their hands on them either => less armed criminals lowers the need to carry defensive arms. The challenge would be to find a way to break this cycle since criminals probably won't be the first ones dropping their guns just because of possible new restrictions ;) From an non-US perspective the whole debate about gun control seems to be taken way too personal and emotional in the US - I recall some weird discussion about why assault rifles are called assault rifles since they are mainly used for defensive purposes while hand guns are used by criminals for real assaults ... as if renaming things would solve any problems ... completely ignoring the facts that perfoming any crime needs some level of concealment where rifles are just impractical and defense benefits from having something to show off :D ...
Also, some parts of the U.S. the only gun ranges that are nearby are private clubs (must be accompanied by a club member to go there, and be sponsored by a current club member to join). Or there may not even be any sanctioned range nearby at all, so sometimes "going to the gun range" means going to someone's ranch (private property, so by invitation only) or to some informally designated location out in the public woodlands that is "open secret" to the locals, but otherwise doesn't have any public information on how to get there.
Here in The Netherlands I’ve been to many catered BbQ’s where we had real dishes, silverware and glasses. No plastic or paper… it was a BBQ for 100 people… And that’s pretty normal here.
@@ekim049 even bbq’s with 20 people that wasn’t catered. Here it’s completely normal using paper (or worse, plastic) plates and utensils. Either use real plates and silverware, or don’t throw a BBQ, parry or whatever! Not when you’re around here.
Ich komme aus einem Dorf in Deutschland. Die Läden schließen hier alle schon zwischen 18 und 19:30 Uhr. Samstags haben die oft nur den halben Tag offen, also schließen die dann meistens zwischen 12 und 14 Uhr. An Sonn- und Feiertagen sind die Läden komplett geschlossen 😅
Ja, als ich ein Kind war, war das bei mir zuhause auch noch so. Aber die Zeiten haben sich geändert und in den Städten ist es doch eher normal das die großen Supermärkte und Diskounter bis 20 Uhr offen haben. In Kärnten (Österreich) hab ich es sogar erlebt, das in den Sommermonaten die Supermärkte auch an Sonn- und Feiertagen offen haben. Wenn es ein Touristengebiet ist. Aber wer 24/7 haben will, braucht eigentlich nur nach "Osteuropa", dort gibt es die UK-Kette Tesco. Ich war 2005 zum ersten mal mitten in der Nacht in Ungarn einkaufen. Und 2008 in Tschechien. Es sind aber nicht viele Kunden um die Uhrzeit unterwegs und in manchen Bereichen ist kein Personal anzutreffen zB. bei der Theke und Umkreidekabinen waren damals auch abgesperrt.
@@petergarber1423 ich habe mein ganzes Leben lang nur auf dem Dorf gewohnt, deswegen kenne ich das gar nicht, dass Läden abends oder Nachts noch so lange offen haben
I just watched a video of yours where you answered questions in German with English sub titles..loved hearing you speak your native language!!!! I hope you will again soon...hooked on your videos !!
@@charlestaylor9424 22 caliber. However, you should be responsible and know what is in the direction you are shooting like parks, houses, stores, etc because the 22 can travel up to a mile if you miss.
As a senior citizen I notice a lot of little things you describe more attributable to generational differences than being from another country. The checks and check writing is one of them. My generation used checks constantly and by the hundreds each month. I like it much better now and don't write hardly any checks ever anymore.
I'm from the same generation. I'm gradually switching over to electronic payment. The postal service is so poor, I've had bills get lost in the mail and incurred late fees. I've had a payment check get lost in the mail and payed to stop payment and a late fee. .
"still water" - something that Americans don't say. It's just "water." Filtering water is entirely dependent upon location. Some places have great water, other places it will have a very high mineral content. Whole-house filters are a thing.
There is an issue of ignorance though. People think filters make their water pure, but don't understand that dissolved minerals cannot be filtered. The whole bottled water craze led to people questioning their water quality and the purchase of filtering systems is the outcome. Cities are required to make their water quality data public, and most have good (safe, it still might taste off due to various minerals) water already.
Still or sparkling is a thing. But I noticed on a drive west to Yellowstone that sparkling water became harder and harder to find in convenience stores and restaurants. In St Louis, it was everywhere. In Sioux City, I couldn't find it anywhere.
I'm 37, and I still have my original checkbooks from when I got my account when I was 16. They are the only checks that I've ever used. So it's not like using checks is super common here either, at least not everywhere. The guy next to you at the range may have been military. His haircut certainly seemed to fit, and he was firing what looked to be an assault rifle at a human-shaped target. If he was indeed military, he's got a good reason for doing it.
Exactly...it is way less common today for people in the US to use checks. It depends on where you live. They are some small Southern states (in particular) that are behind.
Hello Ms. Feli. Your videos are indeed refreshing in content, and your willingness to explore things you do not understand is admirable. I do feel you’re missing some context regarding American “gun culture”. Firearms have been an integral part of Americana since the days of the Declaration of Independence. The vast and overwhelming majority of people who own guns in the US, are law abiding and perfectly safe. Your fears arise from criminals. Changing laws and/or adding regulations today or in the future will only remove access and availability from law abiding citizens. Criminals, by their very nature, will simply ignore any laws or regulations enacted. Does it make you feel safer, to know that only criminals will have guns?
Well. Criminals. And lots of people who don‘t secure the guns and get shot by their kids as an accident. Or people who just shoot other people to „protect their property“. That is in fact absolutely unsafe.
People killed by Guns per Year USA: ~20.000 People killed by Guns per Year Germany: ~ 100-120 Yes, the majority of People in the USA is perfectly safe. 🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️
@@a.w.1906 that’s an untrue statement of figures. You already seem to have your mind made up, so I won’t push further. Just remember, that facts matter. Emotional responses lead to problems, not solutions.
@@robs4193 These are official Numbers. What is untrue about them? When they are untrue, just tell me the right Numbers. I am very curious. Following your logic, it would be the best, everyone runs around with a Gun at his belt. Then you are Super Super Safe, and every criminal would be killed immediately. I will tell you something: No, that would not be the case. Then you would have 50.000 killed Persons or more per year. Your big Problem is FEAR. Everyboby may be a criminal, you fear even your neighbors. Maybe in the Countryside this is different, but in the Big Cities this is true.Yes, you are Right, the US was a Frontier Country, the Land was often won with brutal Force. I don't condemn this, it was a time you had to act like this to survive. Nature and often also natives made this necessary. But the Frontier Time is long ago, isn't it? I also like weapons, and I own some, but I think, there are way to much of them in the wrong Hands. And the Situation will not get better in my opinion, when everybody with the "right Hands" will own guns also.
In Switzerland guns are also a lot more common and every swiss person has one at home ( but not the ammo which is kinda weird and funny ). The difference is : They learned it in the army and learned how dangerous guns areafter the army they are allowed to keep them. Not every idiot can buy one.
And when was Switzerland last invaded or oppressed by a dictator? That is why the US has the 2nd amendment and that there are more guns than people in the US. Enough for every man, woman, child and baby.
Not everyone in Switzerland, but people who serve in the Swiss army are required to store their gun at home, in a locked closet, without the ammo. And there have been several attempts at banning these weapons from homes.
No ammo makes sense. You'll be issued it if you need it. I get the sense that Swiss feel more comfortable if someone brings a fully automatic rifle onto the city tram because they know that person is trained - as opposed to me if someone were to bring one on to the Portland MAX city train. I would be very nervous because of the crazy gun culture in America and lack of universal mandatory gun safety training. I am speaking as someone who served in the US Military for 5 years, had a mandatory hunter safety course at 14 in Oregon, and earned a Marksmanship ribbon. I don't own a gun - I don't see a reason for it.
"what's more american than shooting?!" well I see our gun culture precedes us. Depending on where you are in the US, people can love their guns more than literally anything. Hope your family and friends are safe in the terrible German floods ♥️
What's more American then mass shootings ?? I get why she is reacting about guns that way.....in Europe there is a much stricter law about guns....so you can see in mass shootings in europe maybe 2 or 3 in decades.....in the States wellll you get my drift ;)
Does the US media report a lot about the floods in Germany? Would be interesting to know! The floods here are really bad, especially since we are not used to something like this in Germany, and especially to this extent. So strange to know that not far away from you villages have just been completely destroyed. You can‘t imagine…
So many misconceptions regarding a non-existent "gun culture" in the US. Usually perpetuated from non-US individuals. There is no more a "gun culture" than a "car culture" or a "gardening culture"... I own guns (and other weapons). I carry them at times. I am licensed to do so. Just another tool. People are killed by other people with hammers, axes, baseball bats, but never do those tools harm anyone on their own.
Thanks for you fine video and your interesting observations. I grew up in Dayton Ohio, born there in 1953. Mein vater war in Bremen aufgewachesend und hat nach America ausgewandert in 1925, ab 15 jahre. He worked as a machinist and would take me along on trips to Sharonville and Cincinnati to machine shops and foundries where it was far more useful to speak German than English. There were so many German people in my life growing up in Dayton, and many German clubs and organizations. I learned a bit from my dad and opa, then a bit more wann inch war in Bamberg mit US Army, 1973 durch ‘75. (aber mein Deutsch it’s jetzt ganz eingerostet)! There was even an FM station in Cincinnati that broadcast “ The German Hour” hosted by Hermann the German. He played German music and announced where various clubs were holding dances, concerts, dinners and gatherings, Alles auf Deutsch. So, here I am at age 67 at home in Northern California having fun watching your fun and informative channel, and remembering German culture in Ohio 50 years ago. I also remember the many differences between American and German culture in 1973, some of which were baffling indeed.
Here in Adelaide, South Australia (which also has a high-level history of German-speaking migrants, mainly Prussian from before WW1) we also have a lot of chlorine in our water. However, anyone who doesn't like it only has to fill a large jug with water from the tap/faucet and, as long as the lid is left off, the chlorine will usually evapourate after about one hour.
One thing that baffled me while staying at a roadside motel in Iowa was an automatic pancake machine at breakfast. Before going there I didn't even know such a machine exists.
@@iluvmusicals21 they also have pancake ones, they are interesting to watch, the ones ive seen, dont see them often, but you basically pour the batter on a small conveyor that cooks it and puts it out. lol :)
Europe is more modern than USA? I never got paid by check in Italy either. When I got a job in Italy I had to give my account bank information to the employer and that's not strange to me or unsafe
Our banking system is very outdated here in the US, but you also get options. The default payment method starts off as getting a check, but most companies offer direct deposit (which still requires banking info such as your account and routing number). You can choose one or the other, but typically if you're starting a new job your first payment will be a check. I've also heard some minimum-wage jobs sending payments thru a company-provided debit card. Same antiquated policies in the credit system-- in the US we don't have chip-and-pin for credit card purchases, but rather chip-and-signature. Depending where you live, many retailers have tap and pay (Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay, tap-enabled credit cards, etc), but you still see some outdated tendencies here.
In many ways Europe is more modern than the USA. Most Americans firmly believe that the we are the most advanced country in the world in everything. Even though they have never considered going to Europe and do not have a clue about what it actually like. Americans need to travel and see what the world is like.
In many cases where other countries appear more “modern,” it’s because the US developed or was an early adopter of those innovations and has a lot of sunk cost in the older technology. Other countries who adopted them later don’t have to figure out what do to with those investments when moving to newest tech because they never made them.
@@kokomo9764 in my view it is dumb to build the buildings in wood or even lighter materials - thats gave the tornados hurricanes and so on only options to destroy - in Germany for example - europes most haunted country with tornadoes is never so much destroyed because the buildings usually are to heavy for them...
I vote YES to a part 2 What I did in Germany that I've never done in America... (4 years in Germany while in Army)... Ride in a Mercedes Benz, Audi, BMW (all were Taxis). In fact, my first day in Germany (Frankfort) I spotted Mercedes taxis and thought "Germans are so rich!"
Taxi companies often choose (at least chose) Mercedes because they're sturdy and last quite long, bringing down overall cost. Most people here in Germany see their cars as an investment spread over the lifetime of the car, including maintenance/repairs, fuel consumption and cost, insurance, deprecation, taxes, etc. As a result we tend to pick the most economic car that (just) fits our projected needs instead of the cheapest. The car companies want to make money, so they cater to their customers.
Before they retired, my uncles in Central America were taxi drivers and they also drove Mercedes Benz cabs. I thought that was so amazing too! Even now, decades later, riding in their cabs as a kid was the only time I've ever been in a Mercedes.
This has been a challenge for Mercedes. They wanted to be seen as luxury brand in the US, not the domestic everyday brand they are in Europe. So Mercedes in the US went very upscale and didn't even import the lower end models and trims. They pretend they don't exist and won't sell them. Meanwhile in Europe, the AMG brand takes the luxury and performance status.
When we visited the US for the first time I guess one of the strangest things were crossings with 4 stop shields. When I visited the US later together with my boyfriend, he did not believe me until he saw one himself 😆
They don't have crossroads that aren't circles where you're from? The 4 way stop sign has each driver taking turns, typically starting from the right. A lot of these are being replaces with circles.
You: "waste of plastic" Americans: "FREEEEEEDOOOOOOM" Same for paper plates, we never met a nice durable product we couldn't replace with a disposable one to save a few minutes.
Yes, people should be free to buy disposable plates if that is what suits them. Even as silly as it is, someone should be able to fly a private jet from New York City to Los Angeles to buy ice cream if that is what suits them.
@@Anon54387 my right to swing my fist ends where your face begins, and vice versa. Unfortunately a good portion of the human population wants to keep living as if there are a few thousand of us in a wide open world where our actions don't affect each other, instead of today's densely packed and interconnected reality. I don't support banning paper plates, but I do support adjusting our cultural outlook to stop being so ridiculously wasteful.
Do not punch a wall, I repeat do not punch the wall I never would have thought that houses are built any different, though I never actually thought about it
To even afford a house she mentions in Germany, you have to be very rich OR inherit the house and property. That's why many Europeans live in rented condos, apartments and "flats" I don't know too many people here who punch their walls. It's NOT "a thing " as she states 🙄
@@lia-liz2012 while houses can be expensive in Germany (at least in or near cities), it‘s not that expensive either. And condos and appartments are still build out of stone and concrete
If you punch a wall, make sure it's drywall & you're not punching an area where a stud is located. That's as bad as punching concrete. LOL! Better yet, try to control your emotions.
Im in the Pacific Northwest and most of what she talks about isnt that common out here. But Im originally from the Midwest where what she says brings back memories.
You may not have ever used a water filter in Germany, but Brita is actually a German company. Wikipedia says : "Brita GmbH is a German company which manufactures water filters. The company headquarters are in Taunusstein near Wiesbaden in Hesse, Germany. Manufacturing facilities are in China, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, and the United Kingdom.[ Brita products are distributed in 69 countries." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brita_(company) I lived in France 10 years ago and they use checks similar to US checks.
I always thought how strange it is that women think that being on the phone when you're out is a form of self defense. Especially in a culture where there's a hundred thousand horror movies where the victim is on the phone with someone while being chased after, and the only thing the other person on the line hears is the victim's final screams.
It does scare people off in some cases and it might make you just give a safer feeling to know that if something were to happen, that person on the phone would know where you are and could call for help.
@@FelifromGermany That's interesting. I would think the police would be the ones to call for help (cutting out the middleman) especially since they have tech to locate exactly where your phone is. A smarter move might be to record on camera what's going on then broadcast it if possible, but as far as safety goes, a phone in the hand is not enough to fend off a motivated attack-unless you're James Bond and Q branch built it
@@goldflo91 Yeah, distraction is a problem when one needs to be aware. And think about it...if someone feels threatened enough to the point that they need to call someone, why complicate things? what is that person who is 20, 100, maybe 500 miles away supposed to do that the person with the phone can't do themselves?
@@FelifromGermany "Help" arrives too late. There is an expression: "When seconds count, the police are just MINUTES away!" This is why self-defense is important in the United States and why the Second Amendment is sacred. It protects millions of families every year.
I'm 74 and bought my first gun about 8-9 years ago. My first trips to the range were with well-versed, competent teachers of the practice of owning and using a weapon. One of the first things I was taught was the establishment of a routine - a safe routine. That was followed by the insistence on becoming familiar but absolutely not complacent with that weapon, regardless of the routine and familiarity - in fact, perhaps because of the the routine and familiarity. My weapon teacher/mentor is also my good friend - my good Austrian friend - who has also tried to teach us German. He has also taught us there are generally two purposes in owning and discharging a firearm. First, is target shooting. And, while target shooting can be fun, it's primary function is safety and proficiency. That brings us to the second purpose - self defense. Most of us will never have to aim and fire at a person. But, if the time comes, we should be proficient. We should have thought through the process long ago against the day it is required. But, those targets you disliked are also used to teach us. Also there are some who advocate shooting to wound when that awful time comes., Shooting to wound is exactly what a gun owner should not do. In fact, that would simply cause even more shooting and becomes an even more dangerous situation. Shooting should be the absolute last resort. And, if you are not prepared to shoot to definitively end the threat, then buy a new pair of shoes instead - seriously. Gun ownership is an awesome responsibility. Like owning and driving a car - another dangerous weapon when used improperly - we're finding that neither are for everyone. Would that many car owners and drivers understood that circumstance better. Your attitude on the subject sounds healthy.
My first shooting experience was when I was 11 years old as a Boy Scout at summer camp, Camp Sequassen in Ct. My step-father took me out to shoot clay pigeons at about 14. My next experience was when I served in the Air Force for 20 years as a Security Police technician. I learned how to shoot various weapons. Some for daily use, such as the M-16 and the .38 revolver. Also learned how to shoot an M-79 I think it was called, it could fire 40mm rounds. We transitioned to the Beretta M-9 in the mid 80's. Retired in 95, then worked for the Navy as a civilian police officer and carried the M-9 there until we transitioned to the Sig P-226. I worked at a gun store for close to a year, and bought several guns over the years. You are right, gun safety is the primary focus when carrying a gun. Remember the 4 gun safety rules and you should never have a problem. A gun is just a tool, that you use properly. I have been a CCW holder since 1996 and still carry today. I don't show off or brag about it. I only mention it now, because we have a Constitutional right to own and carry a gun for self defense. We also have a right not to own or carry a gun if we so choose. I applaud Felicia for at least going to a range and shooting. I hope whoever took her took great care in explaining gun safety rules to her and checked to be sure she understood them, and corrected her if she became distracted as to keeping the barrel down range. That she still has a fear of guns and wants to restrict them more, on that last point, I respectfully have to disagree. But, that too is her right to feel that way. I still enjoy watching her videos and her explanations about the difference between Germany and the US. Very enlightening. And while Germany may not be much of a gun culture now, pretty sure it was more of a gun culture before WW I and WWII.
As she said in another video she moved to the US at age 22. She speaks perfect English, like a native. It makes me be sure how age is an important factor in language learning. By the age of 20 it is easier to acquaint the language and learn to speak it fluently as the brain assimilates everything almost automatically. After 30, the memory is no longer the same and to learn it needs to be dedicated, as the assimilation of the language is not so automatic and is almost impossible to speak without accent. After 40 you need to pay more attention to the speech of others, read a lot, watch TV in the new language and it is not so easy to memorize the words in another language even if you hear them many times.
Part of it is whether one stays in the habit of learning after one gets out of school or not. People that stay in a habit of learning can readily learn things later in life.
Most Germans start to learn English in 3rd grade. I came to the US from Mannheim, Germany in 1984 at the age of 18 and already spoke English fluently as well.
@@Siggy4844 Nowadays it's even common to learn English in kindergarten already. In a playful manner of course. Most Germans have an advanced level of English when they leave school. After school there is often a lack of practical exercise.
I’m so glad you mentioned the tampons! I would have been so confused seeing tampons without an applicator in Europe. But I totally agree about the applicator being wasteful. I wish the U.S. would take notes.
The US has had a well known non-applicator brand for years -- 'OB' -- since the 80s. There are other organics brands without applicator as well - Natura and Seventh Generation and so on. Yes, some need the applicator, some don't.
@@sadee1287, o.b. is actually a German brand, established in the fifties (though owned by Johnson & Johnson now). The abbreviation means "ohne Binde" = "without pad". "O.b." ist often used as a generic term for any tampon in Germany.
I had the same experience as Feli as a German exchange student in the 90s in the US. But without the internet or the courage to ask anyone about those strange contraptions! They really should have told the girls about that. It was also shocking how expensive tampons were back then compared to home. So I bought the cheap ones which probably did not help. I never got comfortable using the applicators during my time is the US.
In NY we have the best tap water. It comes from nearby reservoirs. You can drink it from the faucet but many people will add a filter that attaches to the faucet to increase quality. As you said I also had refrigerator/ freezer with built in water/ice that come with their own filter.
@@mannmanuel7762 One of the oddest bits of trivia about "filthy" New York City is that it has some of the best tap water in the entire world. And it arrives completely unfiltered. They've just got a really pristine water source from upstate. Much of the state shares that source as well.
I've met several Germans who feel the same as you about our guns. Guess I'm glad Germany doesn't get to make that decision for us. Our guns aren't for sport they are for defense, specifically against our own government. Disarmament is the first step of genocide, and democide is probably the number one cause of unnatural death last century. Considering we are about to experience another one since the government is intentionally dismantling the food supply lines, you might want to get yourself one. No disrespect intended, in fact quite the opposite. Americans come from a long line of distrust for our governing powers and complete trust in the tendency for corruption among those governing powers. We own guns because, "screw authoritarians"... that's why.
*This comment is so fucked up.* 🤦🏼♂️ First of all: disarmament is definitely *not* _the first step of genocide._ There's just no relation. And the last genocide in the US (murdering Lakota in 1890) was widely supported by most citizens. At least I never heard about the story about how gun owners stopped it from happening. So why this blubbering about _a long line of distrust for our government powers?_ I mean I don't trust my government either to 100%. But I don't get what a gun can do about it?! In 2020 there were more than 20.274 US citizens killed by fire arms. That means more than 55 a day. You're fascination for fire arms is retarded.
Thanks for explaining the thing with the houses. I've always wondered how there can be such big holes so easily when they like only "touch" it in movies... it feels like it'd be paper watching it. 😂
As far as feeling unsafe after you were shooing a few rounds and became a little complacent, I think that's rather common among very casual shooters who may own a gun and only go to the range every couple years or just occasionally shoot with friends or family members who own them. I don't think this necessarily translates to more complacency occurring after more time at the range. In fact, if you take it seriously, the opposite tends to be true. I happen to be in law enforcement and was in the military and generally always go to the range with either LE or military folks I know. We shoot a lot, but I can assure you we all respect the dangers associated with careless firearms handling. I know a lot of hunters too who are also extremely cautious. Frankly, I think the key difference is that people who look at guns as something to use for "sport" tend to be more careless. On the other hand, people to look at guns in their true light (as weapons or tools designed to kill an animal or incapacitate a dangerous threat) tend to train more with them and appreciate their lethality - and thus not play around with them because the hunter, the law enforcement officer and the soldier constantly view the gun for what it was designed for (to incapacitate a person or animal) instead of viewing it as just an exciting object used to perform a sport like shooting a paper target. It really tends to boil down to mindset. Even when my friends, coworkers and I are at the range and enjoying the experience of shooting paper targets to improve our speed and accuracy or compete with each other in a friendly way, we never forget that we are using an instrument invented and designed to kill a person or animal. Thinking of guns that way tends to make those handling them safer and more careful at all times, but many people who just like the idea of going to the range and having fun often aren't willing to think about what firearms were invented and designed for. I think it's this disconnect that makes some casual shooters let their guard down when it comes to safe weapons handling because they aren't viewing what they hold in their hands as a weapon. (I suspect in many cases perhaps they aren't psychologically comfortable with viewing it that way because they don't want to view it that way, even though it is the reality of the object they are holding in their hands). People who shoot professionally and many who carry a firearm for a living tend to shoot a lot and very often. (Often thousands of rounds a year or even a month.) Yet those who shoot and carry for a living tend to be the safest and most careful when it comes to handling firearms - because they are constantly aware of the harm the firearm is capable of doing.
If only all gun owners had that type of respect for their firearms. However, like most groups, the loudest and the most idiotic people get most of the attention.
Where I live everyone owns several legally purchased guns and there is very low ,almost no gun violence. We aren’t afraid of guns but we respect them. Everyone here hunts, target plinks and protects our families and property. They are a tool, neither good or evil. If someone is drinking alcohol and driving a car they are as deadly as a criminal with a stolen gun.
@@kirke420 The vast, vast majority of gun owners are very safety minded. With, at low estimates, 100 million gun owners in the USA the accidents per year number in the mere hundreds.
@@Anon54387 - I don't know that I agree with your assessment of how many gun owners are responsible. I am admittedly using the "most people I've met" method of guess-timating (but I imagine you are as well). The number of idiots who have had a loaded gun stolen from an unlocked car blows my mind. Nearly half of people are idiots (and therefore roughly half of gun owners are idiots), and I'd need to see some pretty hard evidence from a very reliable source to believe that mostly not-idiots are the gun owners. I do know people who take gun safety very seriously, but they are not an overwhelming majority.
As a 20 year veteran of moving to the Midwest (albeit from England, so marginally closer in language) I can attest to most of these. Early closing frustrates me every time I go home, but tap water here (from the Mississippi) is great, unless there's a lot of snow melt weirdly. Also become very pro 2A over the years too after holding a position much closer to yours, mostly through a philosophical, whilst dispatching an emotive position.
Regarding 2A i would say that a fear of the presence of guns is mostly a city thing. Whenever i visit my cousins in the out-county it is a rarity to come across an unarmed person. No one is afraid because by and large most people are competent, so if some one is crazy enough to try anything, there is more than enough backup. I would say that for city people you could pose the question as to why it is that they don't fear the rampant presence of automobiles everywhere. For, hypothetically at any given moment someone could just decide to turn off the road and hit you with a 1 tonne projectile at 40mph.
@@jerichogonzales1290 gun deaths, and crime in general, varies such an amazing amount by county and city that it doesn't make sense to treat them all as the same. I'd have no problem jogging in the middle of the night where i live, we had maybe one murder in the entire county last year. But i wouldn't jog at night in most major cities.
@@afhostie Not just by county and city, but within cities, as well. I went to college in a neighborhood known for its gang activity. I ran in the area at night, frequently. However, there isn't a chance in the world I would have even driven my car in the section of the city about five miles to the south. Not even in the daylight.
@@gl2996 Absolutely. You can look at stat trackers for Chicago or DC (among others) and you can see where much of the violence is contained to specific neighborhoods.
#9 is bizarre to me, too. I'm 75 (live in Utah) and have never seen paper plates used except at backyard gatherings, or for an extra large grouping of family, or while traveling (as in a picnic in the mountains). Any in home "sit down" meal is on real, hard dinnerware, glasses and "silver".
I have lived in the U.S. all my life, and I have never seen or heard of anyone here using paper plates at home unless either the power was out, or they were having a large gathering or something outdoors like a barbecue.
as an american i havnt had a check book in almost 20 years. I just always choose the direct deposit when ever i am given the choice, this includes taxes. I have received checks but i find that a rare occurrence.
Same! Almost every job I’ve had is direct deposit, especially if it’s chain stores like Wal-Mart or the Bath and Body Works store I used to work at. In my experience, checks aren’t so common anymore
@@m.h.6470 It depends on the age of the people you ask. I last wrote a check in the 1990s if I remember correctly. Younger people might not ever have seen a check indeed.
It's been a bit over 10 years since I had a checkbook, but even then it was rare that I ever wrote a check. Personal checks became uncommon around 2005. I'll receive a rare check from some company that isn't my employer and doesn't pay me often enough to set up direct deposit. I haven't worked for an employer that didn't offer direct deposit in over a decade either and some don't even offer the option of a paper check anymore.
It was more common when I moved to the US 20 years ago. But I still need one in case. 3 years ago my old landlord in Los Angeles wanted a check for rent every month and to drop it in an envelope into a mailslot in a door. So I had to get more checks and envelopes just for that. stupid but it is still fairly common. But I was never paid with a check. Maybe hourly workers or if you are a contractor... But Yes... right now my checkbook is buried deep in some box and my one emergency check in my car is 2 years old.
I'm sure you have gotten Pro 2A comments on this video already. I just found your channel a few days ago and I'm loving it, and I always like to hear other viewpoints and quite respect them! I can understand why, coming from another country, especially European based countries, one would feel stricter control should be necessary here, but one, it wouldn't fix the issue of you feeling unsafe at night; and two, it removes control from the hands of the people against the government, the sole reason we have our gun culture in the first place. I actually think there is *too much* control in America, and that we need to wheel it back. I can dive deep into a discussion about it, but that's for another comment. Love your content and keep it up Feli!
You can fight the government without guns. Like protest or go voting. I remeber the people from Kiev kicked out the president without guns. While the police used snipers on them. In germany hitlers first try to take over the government with guns failed. The second try using protests and voting worked out. Is their an example of the people taking over the government with guns?
As an American, I'm also surprised that she got disposable plates at a high end hotel. I only associate disposable plates with the cheapest, most basic of hotels.
Point 7 - If a person is afraid of guns that means they are afraid of being shot. Learning how to shoot does not take that away. You could be very proficient with a gun but still be afraid of being shot.
@ the possibility there is much much much higher than anywhere else and it just feels uncomfortable and unsafe because theoretically anybody could take out their guns anytime anywhere and just do mass shootings. People tend to get mental disorders and there are sick people everywhere so... it's just abot the safety feeling.
I think your feelings around guns are more to do with the culture you grew up in. I don't feel safe in the UK alone because we have an issue with knife crime here. Someone was murdered less than a mile from my house. Suffice it to say, I don't generally leave the house without something to defend myself with.
I agree. Criminals will find something to use. It’s a city culture problem, not a gun problem. I grew up in the country with everyone I knew hunting, and owning guns, etc, and no one ever shot each other, or got shot. Only in the cities do I feel unsafe.
As an American I find the lack of gun culture in Germany to be interesting as both of my favorite firearms manufacturers (Sig Sauer and Heckler & Koch) are German companies
@@michaelzappone9343 probably explains why they have so many fewer shooting deaths than we do. Even though I’m a gun owner, I wish the US had tighter regulations than we currently have. I really hate the fact that hearing about mass shootings no longer surprises me. It makes me nervous knowing my son will be starting first grade in a couple years.
Until about 1985 or so, check writing was way more common than now in the U.S. My 80+ year old mom proudly writes checks for most everything. I write an average of less than one check per year. Making a right turn on a red traffic light is not generally allowed anywhere in Europe, not just Germany. This is because most traffic signals were installed long after the cities were built and so it is not possible to verify for conflicting traffic because the buildings are in the way. That is, there almost always restricted visibility at European intersections.
Not to forget that some states have roundabouts and since there are no official US signs for them they use signs from the UK. Can't find that link right now but there's this one www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p050s3qt
Why it's almost as if the United States is a union of states that created the Union and meant to limit the powers of the Union and those states maintain their sovereignty and have their own laws.
Quality of tap water varies by region in the U.S., at times significantly. Here in Chicago suburbs, we get our water from Lake Michigan, which is excellent. In rural areas from a well, the water might need to be run through a water softener to remove minerals that can discolor white clothes in the wash, and perhaps the smell of sulfur.
I've learned recently that well water should also be tested for radioactivity. Sometimes there's an unknown natural deposit of uranium or some other radioactive mineral.
@@kylechalve Please, do not be paranoid. With modern lab equipment some substances can be traced in ridiculously miniscule amounts. So the substance is there but you'd need a dose hundred of thousands times as big as was found of it to cause any effect. Which is the case for uranium.
Well it's odd because it's almost impossible to order tap water as a free benefit at a German restaurant. I was trying to explain what I wanted at a restaurant in Berlin, and a German at a neighboring table told me to call it (if I remember correctly) Leitungswasser. But they'd much rather you order a bottle of water for 5 euros.
Ohh yeah, I can remember that time. But that has changed since 2001, as by law a restaurant must provide at least on non alcoholic beverage that does not cost more than the cheapest alcolic beverage. But it is still uncommon to get tab water in a restaurant. Nevertheless here in Berlin at least you can get tab water in bars, not at all of them but some, if you ask kindly
@@lindamaes6454 that makes sense. Bikes still have to follow all traffic laws here in the states. Cars can turn on right when it's red unless a sign reads, "no turn on red." Now, within the past few years, we have the flashing yellow arrow. You must yield/stop only if someone is coming. If no one is coming, you can turn left on a flashing arrow light.
@@charlesmassie6775 Bycicles also have to follow all traffic laws but they have exceptions specifically for their own safety and of course we have special bycicles lanes, not as much as in the Netherlands but we are improving on it.
There is not a low threshhold to purchase a gun. The gun must be registered with the ATF in the buyers name. Then a complete background check is performed on the potential buyer and this may take 3 days to a week. All this checking must be completed by the government before the customer can ever put his hands on the gun.
How about the converse Feli? Ten things you did in Germany that you can't do in the US? Also, you need a "German/American (temporary)" t-shirt for green card holders like yourself!
Do you have a problem with green card holders ? I can assure you that America has the best employees, smart and resilient people you can ever get. We are educated and money smart and we are contributiotig to the community
@@hairyairey That's not true. Green Card holders are permanent residents, and the Green Card itself is valid UNLIMITED. Only the DOCUMENT needs to be renewed every 10 years. Don't mix that up. Also she can get the US citizenship after 5 years living in the US. Then she doesn't need a GC anymore at all. Just saying.
This intrigued me, so I researched it. It is simplly because the manufacturers of the ATM machines did not want to make some of them different. All ATM machines are made with braille signage.
Braille signage is part of the way to comply with US federal/state/local regulations related to equal access for customers with disabilities. You could spend hours reading all about the "Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990" (ADA) and how each state & city have their own regulations in addition to the US Federal ADA regulations.
An American, I've drunk plain tap water pretty much everywhere I've been in the US (46 states) and Europe (lived in Germany for 2 years). It's all been equally good to me.
I tend to drink bottled waters on the road. It's not that the water is necessarily bad, but it does taste different in other locales and that's a little hard to adjust to in some areas.
Checks in Germany: Only seen when a company owes you something. For example: Rental car security deposits sometimes gets issued as a check, or insurance companies send checks.
In Sweden not even then. They existed here but was rare in the 70thies to 90thies, I remember ques being hold up a few times when somone payed with them back then, but haven't enocuntered on the last 20 years.
No, in 99% of cases they ask for your bank account. Although checks are possible. They don't make themselves friends, cause the receiver doesn't even know what to do with a received check. If he has an online bank, he probably had to mail it to his bank ? And what if it is lost ?
Yeah, I'm 61 (and German). I do remember using checks ... seems a long time ago, presumably it was the 1980s. But even then, only for bigger things. I remember the one time I got a check from the US - don't even remember what it was for, some account closure thing - and how confusing it was even for the banker who had to handle it. Really, have reasonable banking regulations (and I'd still argue we need more), and checks are mainly useful for delaying the moment the recipient gets the money - they certainly aren't safer (actually the opposite). Pretty much *everything* is done electronically, except sometimes for the communication with your bank (orders and reports on paper if you don't do it online, as is the case for my mother).
Never experienced that in Germany. Checks went out of fashion around 30+ yes ago and even then it were different kind of Checks - they were ‚guaranteed‘, i.e. they couldn’t bounce. You usually also only got 10 checks. Felt very very strange for me during my university time in the U.S. after opening a bank account to receive a check book with a 100 checks. I remember paying with a Euro-Cheque in the U.S. at a department store in the early 90s. The were very confused about the cheque card and the security number you had to write on the back, but in the end they accepted it - and to my big surprise my bank account was charged 4-5 months later.
Here in Czech Republic when my insurancy company owns me money, they just send it directly to my bank account, I never saw any checks. :-D Last time I recieved some money for beying in quarantine, it just came to my bank account automaticaly, I even didn't know I have right for that money. It was only very little so I would not really care about that if they didn't send it, but it's nice to know that they can just send it to you automaticaly. I even didn't know they know my bank account, but state and insurancy companies know everything about you.
As an norwegian (living in Norway) I can deffo see your points as Germany and Norway is not that different when it comes to culture. BTW been to Germany many times and I do enjoy my time there :-)
I have the bank that does my mortgage take it out directly from my checking account (I own a two bedroom condo outside of Cincinnati but on the Kentucky side of the river), but I provide them with my checking account information and they take it out. When I was a landlord, I accepted cash, as my tenants preferred cash payments. I now live with my sister, and with utilities, I’ve noticed there is an option to pay via credit/debit card online (however, please don’t pay with a credit card, as interest can be as high as 23%).
I put all my gas and groceries on the credit card and pay the credit card off every month and don't get charged interest. Credit cards are useful but you have to be diligent and disciplined with money. If that's not you then you can get into trouble. Also, for every $5000.00 I charge on the card $50 is deposited in my savings account. I use my bank's bill pay for my mortgage and utilities. I do like direct deposit but I don't like automatic withdrawals. Everything that gets paid out, I like to manually do the transaction. I feel that it keeps me aware of what I'm paying for every month. I've got a spreadsheet that I use to track my expenses and deposits and plenty in my checking account. At the end of the month, if it tells me that my spending outpaced my income I make damn sure that I know why and that I take steps to recover it in the future. Anything over and above a predetermined balance in the checking account is put in my savings. If I want to take a vacation or indulge in a "want" instead of a "need" I treat my savings account like a credit card. I set up a payment schedule and charge myself 10% interest. It took me years to wise up and do this. I wish I had done it in my 20's. If I did at 57 I would have been retired now.
As a woman, who is trained in bjj and muay tai, I always carry. A 6'5 220lbs with no training and no gun can do what he wants to a woman my size... But because I have a gun, I'm not worried about that guy.
@@jrh80 I'm a millennial and I use them sometimes. Certainly not, like, to buy groceries or anything at a store. But I'll sometimes pay doctors' bills, hoa fees or certain utilities with check. And sometimes I'll still receive them as gifts, lol. Most everything is done through online bill pay or transfer, etc. but I still keep a stash of checks in case. I personally love writing them out?? lol but maybe that's weird!
Gen X here, I cash checks from time to time, I haven’t written one in years. I rarely use paper plates at home. I have a pack of 50 that’s about 15 years old. I needed 6 for a party where I brought stuff.
Yeah, but you have a culture that teaches gun safety and respect. Here in America, gun ownership is a superstition, where the statistic that a gun in the home is more likely to be used on a member of the household, rather than on an intruder, is ignored. Switzerland is also a declared neutral country, where as in America, we need willing people (ignorant or otherwise) to fight all the declared and undeclared wars we get ourselves involved in. 🙄
@@ssgtmole8610 that’s true. But in Switzerland you can carry a gun on you but it has to be bolt action or semi automatic. I have some guns at home (18) some old military guns like 5 k31 or 3 sig 510, German karabiner 98k with still the nazi emblem (very rare gun has a value of about 20k$) 5 22lr carabines, à desert eagle, smith & Wesson 629 44magnum, sig p226. My Swiss armed forces sig 550 that I have since I began military service.
@@MrThecyrille34 Well, growing up in Oregon, it was still okay to carry a firearm on you as long as it was visible. You can petition the local sheriff for a concealed carry permit. Doesn't make me feel safer to walk the streets. Frontier justice is a myth ginned up by dime store novelist publishers and Hollywood fantasists. Before the military, I came across a friend who showed me his father's bolt action rifle - yet another way kid's die in America. This was before I was 10. Fortunately he'd didn't have access to any ammo. There are too many chowder heads in America who think it is cool to open carry AR-15s. Some of which have probably been converted to full auto with easily obtained conversion kits. One of my buddies in the military bought an AR-15 - I assume he had to store it in the base armory because we were both living in the dorms - and showed me an add for the conversion kit - this was back in the 1980s.
@@brianjohnson3063 that’s why I said that switzerland has the same number of firearms per habitant as the us at egal population we heave the same amount of guns per person.
With regard to VPN's, you can also save money using TOR which usually ends up using a server in Europe. TOR jumps from several different severs in order to hide your IP address which tells the internet where you are searching from. It is also autonomous which means your search data is not tracked. TOR is free and updated frequently. TOR stands for The Onion Router which means it uses TOR servers around the world like the inner peelings of an onion.
The tap water thing is very different by region. Some places have great tap water, others, not so much.
It really depends on the water system. I live in Maryland. When I was on the Baltimore water system I would drink the water from the tap but not water from the DC water system.
The tap water in Keizer, Oregon (just north of Salem), was very good when I grew up.
The tap water in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where I went to college, was not as good. It could have been the old pipes in my dorm though; it was built during WW I.
In the Seattle area, the tap water isn't bad, but I still prefer to filter it for taste.
Areas in and around downtown Cincinnati generally have great tap water.
Bad water is often from high mineral content in ground water, and hard to filter. Some of the worst water in the country is in the Silicon Valley (San Jose, CA). Looks bad, tastes bad, and will ruin your toilet in 5 years.
My father got a water cooler for his home in Las Vegas, Nevada. He took the plastic tank to the grocery store to fill at the water distiller. He said that the ground water percolated through a layer of clay known as caliche. It makes the water alkaline. My local Walmart has a similar machine, but I use a pitcher filter. I use it to remove a metallic taste to my water - which I think are from the 1944 pipes in my house and not from the Portland water system - which is one of the best in America.
I’ve lived in America my whole life and I think it’s strange to use disposable plates in situations other than a picnic or maybe an open house. The thought of using paper plates at a holiday meal is just weird.
I think it seems a bit weird as well, but I have been to parties at peoples houses that have used paper plates - especially if it's barbeque. It may have more to due with ease of clean up after the party in that case. I personally don't have that much dinner ware, so I'd have to purchase paper plates if more then 3 guests arrived. :-)
Used them all the time growing up no one wanted to do dishes. So after cooking it was like a buffet line grab a plate then throw it all out no muss no fuss.
Maybe..MAYBE…I could see if it were like a big holiday party event? But using paper plates for a holiday meal with only family? Huh? No.
@@seandelevan why not? When you have the whole family there it’s easier to just use paper plates so once it’s all done throw it way same with paper table cloth and napkins. Remember not everyone grew up with a dishwasher and not everyone had a stepford wife to clean up everything.
I do my grocery shopping around 9-10pm on Sunday. Few people, it’s quite and quick at checkout. Used to do checks all the time, but I was first on board with PayPal to ApplePay. I drink the filter water from the fridge, but no problem drinking tap water. It really depends where you live. Sone is better than others. The east coast area I hear was not the best water compared to the west coast. It all has to be safe and legal to drink. But some states have more minerals and other things that can give water a strange taste. It’s not unsafe to drink, but still taste funny. A water filter will help with that.
I don’t have a dishwasher, it’s just easier to use paper plates. Toss out, done!
Old school gangster for writing checks. That’s funny
I did have a checkbook back when I was living in Dubai, fortunately, I never had to use it. Still have it lying around somewhere. The only checks I ever used were written by the bank itself and intended for a car dealership to pay for the car.
Writing checks are the only reason I still have for learning to write English in cursive. I have trouble remembering how to write a capital Q, and have to practice a few before writing a check to someone or some company who's name begins with q.😆
@@Hans-gb4mv Hory shet , we got a rich one, Dubai! What you need a car for, to drive back and forth to Abu Dhabi?
Yeah, I didn't know old school gangsters wrote checks. I thought they just robbed banks... And spun away in cars.
Old school gangster in the US is opening the suitcase full of cash. My last car dealer says its still done a lot to buy cars.
One of the most striking differences from Europe (I’m from Italy) is the price tags. I remember how dumbfounded I felt when I took an item labelled 1 dollar, went to the cashier with my 1 dollar bill in my hand and I was asked 1 dollar something.
Here in Europe the first law of consumers right is “the final price of an item must be clearly stated on the price tag”.
All prices in Italy include all applicable taxes (since one cannot not pay them, might as well include them in the price tag…) so if it’s written 1 €, well, that’s what the cashier will ask you to pay.
I agree it can be confusing sometimes but less of an issue now that we don't use cash as often. I could be wrong but as an American I wonder if we do this for a couple reasons- one is that sales taxes are different in different states so if an item comes with a price on it, then it can be sold to any state. Another reason is our view towards taxes here is a little different and we want the tax pointed out and obvious so we don't forget we pay taxes to fund things. I once went on vacation to another state and was shocked by how high the taxes were, including a hotel tax, and had they just included it, I would be ignorant to that. The hotel wants you to know that they are not that expensive, it's the state's fault for adding that tax on. If money was tighter, I may not be as likely to go back to that state, I mean people literally move to other states sometimes because of the difference in taxes. Another reason is itemized receipts. Some people who pay a lot in sales or hotel (or other) taxes because they bought a lot and traveled a lot, can do this thing at tax reporting time to show how much they paid to get money back. I don't know if that's a thing in Europe.
Another reason is that when sales taxes change you don't have to update prices. In some areas school supplies or other items can be tax-free only during certain times.
@@kellypat125 I figured something like that. Still, we in Europe consider way more important to know how much we are going to pay for an item BEFORE we decide to buy it, and this is only possible if the price tag shows the final price. We too pay taxes, and they are different for different categories of merchandise (beauty products vs. hardware vs. food etc.) but since we cannot escape paying taxes, we don’t really care how much they are. Anything that shows up only at checkout which was not shown on the price tag is frown upon and seen with a lot of suspicion, because we start wondering if the seller is trying to rip us off. This is the reason why tipping is not a thing in Italy (and in Europe in general): first, because waiters are considered normal workers who are hired for a pre-agreed remuneration, and second, because if I order a $20 steak and a $5 coke I expect to pay 25 dollars. Hell, if you want 35 dollars for a 25 dollar meal, just raise the steak’ and coke’s price, instead of putting me through the annoyance of having to decide whether the service was worth 10 or 22%.
Just a little insight on the average European Italian customer. ;)
@@giuliobernacchia1848 fair enough, I see a reason to do it that way of course. I remember being about 9 years old and buying ice cream by myself and I did not consider tax and was short a few cents. Luckily the adult behind me in line pulled out some change and came to my rescue. Never happened again! However, about tipping- I have only been to two European countries, England and Croatia, and was kind of bummed to find out tipping is still a thing there at restaurants, although a smaller amount. The internet had me fooled with all the complaining about tipping in America!
@@kellypat125 it’s all your fault, dear American friends! Many places where tipping was not a thing got “americanized” with time. After all, nobody will refuse some extra money…
Here in Italy, I NEVER tip or ever have I seen other Italians tip. Usually we just round up the change, so we talk about 50 cents or one Euro at the most. And nobody ever complains, because as I said, the prices everywhere in Italy include all service charges and taxes. Obviously if the waiter is dealing with a tourist, he/she will behave as if tipping is compulsory, especially if the customer is American…
So, caveat emptor, as Latins would say! Nice chatting with you, by the way, civility is indeed possible in the cyberworld!
The reason checks are still used here in the U.S. is that many small family businesses still prefer checks is to avoid service fees that credit cards incur.
And they will never get my business. I don't carry checks on me. As someone who has worked retail - it's really a gamble whether a check with actually go through. It's much safer for business to use plastic or cash as pay methods. Tons of options exist to pay through apps now.
After working at Costco I hate checks because of the elders who would spend 10 min writing a check….
I hate the situation at the gasoline pumps. They add 10 cents a gallon to use a credit card. I could see adding a quarter to the entire transaction like some fast food places do. I don't like to use my debit car to avoid my bank account being drained, there are more safeguards for fraud with the credit card.
@@Anon54387 If you use 'tap to pay' (Samsung, Apple or Google Pay) with your phone, that is by far the safest way to pay. The retailer and network never actually get your real card number because the phone only sends out a one time use 'token' card number. And most gas pumps are now equipped for tap to pay.
The US are in the dark ages when it comes to banking. I might write 2 cheque a year for some obscure transaction. The last time I purchased cheques was 2002.
They often have you sign credit card receipts! A totally useless exercise. I sign George Bush but still get the bill.
When I was in the US for the first time I found out that I didn't have a pain in my back after sleeping in a "boxspring bed" as they are normal in big hotels.
At home in Germany it was a big problem for me, because in the morning I usually woke up with a pain in my back.
So I bought a "boxspring bed" for me at home, and since then it feels like sleeping on a cloud and I don't have a pain in my back anymore when I wake up in the morning.
When I first visited my boyfriend in America (I am also from Germany/Munich) I walked around like a kid in a candy store, even in the supermarkets. I can relate to every point on that list😂😂😂
@PeakApex On the first vacation drastically but even like premade food on the supermarket I was just like wow, but now not so much I prefer to cook fresh stuff at home😂😂😂
@@littlebutterfly4512 so you were able to get over American Guys being more forward/aggressive in pursuing Hot Chicks? Feli has not gotten over that.
@@kevincryan7220 I usually go to most places with boyfriend so for that reason I'd say it hasn't happened that much to me. I am more bothered by random people wanting to talk to me everywhere especially the supermarket, you can barely grab a product with someone commenting or starting a conversation and sometimes I just want to be left alone😂😂😂
@@littlebutterfly4512 if you give short answers people will get the hint... but sometimes Small Talk can help you with local food, where to find things, or you could meet somebody random who knows some of your friends. Did you meet your boyfriend in Germany ? Army?
@@littlebutterfly4512 hard to imagine...people actually being cordial, hmmmm 🙄🙄🙄
In Canada we typically use disposable plates when having a picnic or perhaps when hosting a garden party, but they are not generally intended for every day use.
I moved to Germany in 2016 and for a short time had a car (before I knew about the reliability and accessibility of the public transportation system)....I was turning right at red lights for like MONTHS and eventually noticed people were always staring me down and giving me the stink eye when I did it so I googled it and realised the law is totally different here
Fun fact. In France cheques are pretty common, too and you pay the monthly bill for kindergarden or your electricity bill via cheque. Very strange as a German....
Do they still use cheques in stores in France? That was quite common here in the Netherlands before about 2000.
Cheques for payments like electricity bills were not common here, one used bank transfers either manual or automatic (direct debit).
@@Rob2 AFAIK (German), no - France is plastic card country. But they use cheques to pay something on a distance, where we (both NL and DE) would use direct banc transfer, because this seems to be complicated in France. I visit a yearly meeting with friends in France (100 people) with a dinner that has to be prepaid. They ask to do it by cheque mailed to them (until 2019). I get a special permission to pay on site ;)
@@Rob2 Yes they do n France. For us, Dutch, it's very strange to see. We pay with our debit card and Apple Pay everywhere, but when you do groceries in France and you want to be quick, big chance someone in front of you is paying with a cheque. Raar he?
Almost never use checks in the U.S. anymore. Though I admit 5 or so years ago I was still using them for bills. But now even though my supply of checks is almost run out, I never write checks anymore, so they haven't run out. Trump and Biden's silly briber... I mean stimulus checks don't come by check either. They go right to my bank account.
I'd say it's been well over a year since I used one. Maybe multiple years. I pay everything online now, preferably with credit card.
Well, Cheques (first the "bank cheque" and later "eurocheque" which does not mean it is in EURO, it was a system accepted across europe) were common for store purchaces here, but they never were common for other purposes as formally they were only valid when presented in-person. Still, sometimes they were mailed, but not to reputable companies like electricity companies.
They silently went out of use when payment terminals appeared everywhere.
I lived in a rural area in Connecticut, US and we had a well - no treated city water - and it was delicious, but when I moved to Florida, US we've only had City water and most of the time the chlorine is overwhelming.
I live in a kinda rural place in CT. Note to others, CT rural is not rural as you know anywhere else in the US. It is that place where suburbs give up until the next suburb. It is not “100s of miles from nowhere”. It is less a hundred & fifty miles from Boston or NYC. And a lot closer to smaller cities.
It is great because you do have wells and quiet without the remoteness of the really rural.
Hell I lived in Glastonbury a suburb of Hartford CT and always loved our well water!! Now in Colorado some places don't taste great
The well water in ct is bussin
Florida water is horrible. In many places, the sulfur has to be gassed off before you can drink it.
No the Sulfur was.
About tap water: When I stayed in the US as an exchange student in the early nineties, the first time I tried drinking tap water, I did not think of any harm. But as soon as I swallowed the first mouthful, it felt like I was suffocating and I had to gasp for air. That was due to the enormous chlorine content that I was absolutely not prepared for. I drank tap water a few times thereafter, and it got a bit better, but I tried to avoid it as much as i could. I will not forget this experience.
Please do a second part. I lived and went to highschool in the US for two years and can relate to almost all of your experiences. It's always nice watching your videos!
Thank you!
@@FelifromGermany Another thing. I've seen a few people say they are done watching your channel over your lack of support of our Bill of Rights, and it IS a lack of support of our rights. Gun ownership is so common here and people feel very strongly about it. And for everyone saying they will no longer watch your channel there are more who won't even though they aren't saying it. The same person who has been watching your channel and saying no more is also someone who might've bought some of your merchandise but now definitely will not.
@@Anon54387 Then they can go watch something else. I own over 20 myself but I'll say straight out that If their entire universe is defined by guns they are defective human beings.
@@JGW845 Not personally no. War is hell. This isn't exactly news. So what's your point?
@@petercollingwood522 Apologies. I intended to reply to Anon54387 but somehow it went to you. Please ignore.
I work at a dmv in the u.s. and any card transactions have an additional fee. Its a percentage, so if your total is 2000 dollars, you'd pay an extra 50 bucks or so just to use the card. We have a lot of people write checks to avoid this fee.
The same occurs with the credit card fee when paying property tax in my state. Property tax is one of the very few times I ever write a check. I only write two or three checks in a year.
In Belgium we had to pay an additional fee when you used checks because it required manual processing. All card transactions are free even credit cards payments in stores, you will pay only a small monthly administrative fee that's automatically deducted from your bank account and is about 5 dollars when you have a regular bank account.
Same in Germany. If you use online banking and tranfer money via your online account, it's free. Anything that needs to go through the hands of an actual person at a bank is costly.
Checks aren’t an “Ohio thing”. It’s all over the US thing. You can still sometimes see old grandmas using checks to pay for food in the grocery store.
Truth is, not everybody has a computer or smartphone.
I very, very rarely write checks. I pay my mortgage online, car tags online, use debit or credit cards for gasoline, groceries, almost everything. I don't even know which presidents are on what denominations. The only things I write checks for usually are my house insurance and my property tax, and the only reason I do that with my property tax is that they charge 3% extra for use of a credit or debit card on that. I can do a direct bank transfer e check on my property tax, but that's one thing I like to make sure it's done and get the receipt in hand in case of error. I go to the court house once a year to pay the property tax. My auto insurance premium is automatically taken out of my checking account every month.
So basically I write two or three checks in a year.
I work at a grocery store in PA. We still get older folks that write checks. About 2 people a day through my register use a check.
You can go shopping the night before your payday by paying with paper checks. lol So still use checks.
I still write one or two checks a month. I have bills, usually landlords or storage unit rentals, that won't take an electronic payment like a credit card or debit card. It is ether cash or check or a postal money order!
I think many grocery stores allow shopping late at night because they have people working there restocking anyway, so they might as well let a few people buy things.
Really surprised how much Australia is more like Germany than USA in all these ways!
It's crazy how much America varies. I grew up in Oregon (west coast), moved to Arkansas (part of the south), and now live in Germany. In my experience Germany and oregon are way more similar than oregon and arkansas were even tho they were both in the US.
I was just thinking exactly the same thing, until we got to the "turn right on red" item. But then again I'm from Melbourne where we do hook turns... ;-) I mean, using cheques? What the hell? And drive through ATMs? American banking seems weird.
@@juthan0 NSW has right turn on red when there's a sign permitting it, like Germany.
I think they've taken the fun out of hook turns with all their extra signs now! :-)
@@peterwilliams6289 What is a hook turn?
@@NadaEspamo It's to keep cross-turning traffic clear of tram tracks that run down the middle of the road. Keep in mind we drive on the left. To make a right turn, you pull all the way over to the left (!) and wait there until the lights on the road you're turning into go green. Then you make your right turn from the extreme left side of the road. Here's a short video: th-cam.com/video/Yh92LirlCf8/w-d-xo.html
I've seen motorbikes do something similar in Taiwan, so they don't get knocked over in the middle of frantic intersections.
It might be because I don't watch enough of Felicia's videos but, I often find her openness refreshing.
The one about the right turns made me laugh. I spent 4 years in Germany while in the Army (Baumholder) in the 1990's and got use to the no turn on red. When I came home I would stop at a red light and everyone would start honking their horn at me, and my family was always asking why I don't just turn.
Love your Channel though you do make me miss Germany a lot.
I was in baumholder 84-86.. with 293rd engineers .. was weird seeing people eating Burgers with knife and fork, but getting beer at McDonald's was cool.. I really do miss Germany.. especially the bier😊
The taste of water in the US can vary quite a lot from place to place. As you mentioned, the chemicals used in water treatment can also taste bad. If you are lucky enough to live in a place with great tasting water it’s probably more common to drink water that comes directly from the tap. 50 years ago, that’s what everyone did, but filters have gotten much more popular over the years.
I grew up always drinking water out of taps in NH and when I traveled some place as a teen I went to another city or some places can’t remember and they had to tell us not to drink the tap water because we where not used to that.
Some reservoir water can have an unpleasant taste at certain times of year. It's not dangerous, but it's certainly unpleasant.
This story goes back to 2001. I was going to attend a conference in Melbourne, Australia, and stay in university housing. They would only accept payment by check. I had to find the one bank in my area that offered foreign bank drafts. This means that they wrote a check for me from an Australian bank, denominated in Aussie dollars. I had to bring in enough cash to cover the amount of the check plus a fee. Then I had to put enough postage on an envelope to mail the check to Australia. A credit card would have been much easier.
Damn
Yes, very annoying.
@Brent Lofgren: twenty years on you would find it very different in Australia. I haven’t written a cheque (sorry, I have to spell it this way) in a decade. It’s all direct debit, automatic payment, B-Pay (like PayPal for banks) etc. You’re actually more likely to find that rental payments are only acceptable in some form of electronic transfer, not cash or cheques.
@@Barrysautospares Cheque is actually the way it is is written.
@@antonboludo8886 Check!!!!
I still think you're calling is in diplomatic service. You are committed to building warm and sincere relationships among people which the world is in great need of.
This is so interesting. We were actually scheduled to take our first trip to Europe early in 2020 when Covid canceled the whole trip. We are still anxious to experience different cultures ASAP.
I stumbled across this video channel over the weekend. And I have to say, I’m really enjoying these videos. My mom side of the family is from Germany. I’ve never been there myself but I am enjoying learning about the differences between Germany and the United States.
Yes, the United States is convenient. I don’t do a lot of my shopping in the middle of the night but I have done a little bit of it.
Personally, I have a checking account but I do not write out checks anymore. I am now totally blind. And that is something that is really hard to do with your blind. You can but it can be complicated. Are use a debit card for all transactions. And paying my rent I just do a transfer from my bank account using bill pay.
I also find that writing checks might be a generational thing. My parents who are in their late 60s early 70s use a lot of checks. With younger people depending on the situation do not.
Love how you tackle every topic without fear! Gun laws and tampons in one vid 😂😂 I can see people fainting!
Austrian here, who was taking his mom to a New York City long weekend for her 60th birthday.
The hotel we stayed in was in the upper price range (ok no Kempinski, but still..). The look on my mom's face when he had breakfast from paper plates with plastic cutlery - priceless 🤣🤣🤣
@@badgerpa9 well I see your point, nevertheless it is sad, that it is cheaper to create tons of garbage :(
Other than the cups for the coffee maker in your room, I have never seen disposible plates and cutlery at a hotel.
I agree. We have way too many "hot-button" topics here in America that people are afraid to talk about or if they do, they get bombarded with hateful comments. I am glad that she freely and openly shared her opinions and that should never be a bad thing whether someone agrees with them or not!
Paper plates and plastic utensils, *at a hotel*? I'm older, and I've *never* seen that in the US. I'd be absolutely shocked if I did. Even in the worst of hotels, and I've been in some pretty bad ones.
Having a steak in a high class restaurant, one waiter per table, best wines, Argentinian steak ... and Ketchup on the table in plastic bottles, that's America, too.
Water filters depend on where you live. Some places have good tasting water, others are more heavily filled with minetals, etc. Also chlorine processing varies.
Agree! Denver, Colorado has very good tasting water in general without the need for filtering. However, not the case in the surrounding communities.
Only place I've spent some time in the US was in Cleveland, Ohio and I didn't really enjoy the taste of tapwater there.
@Badatallthis Stuff the east coast varies a lot. For example NYC water comes from the Catskills and the only treatment that is done to it is disinfecting it. They go to alot of work to protect their water sources. Syracuse, NY is another one like that. They control what you can do close to Skaneatles Lake which is Thier source going as far as forbidding trucks carrying hazzardous material on certain roads near the lake.
@@Hans-gb4mv Cleveland just about has to get it's water from lake Ontario.
@@larryirons8746 "hmm nothing to see here"
-Suncor Plant.
9: The family a friend of mine stayed at in the US would get take out food, put it on a one-time use tablecloth (paper), add some plastic cutlery and then eat. Afterwards, grab the 4 corners of the paper, bundle everything up (often including leftovers), and just throw this whole thing into the bin. Every freaking day. And it was 100% normal to them. This REALLY freaked me out! And I'm not even some hardcore environmentalist, just casually aware as you are. Or so I thought.
That isn't normal. It costs too much.
@@court2379 This was ~20y ago. Maybe pricing has changed, or the family was wealthy enough to just not care.
@@fonkbadonk2957 I don't think so. It has been more expensive to use disposable dinnerware for as long as I can recall (at least 30yrs). It just takes less effort to clean up, so of your live a life in a hurry or are lazy and have the money I guess spend the extra. Most only use it when it would be inconvenient to use normal ware, like when traveling, camping, a picnic, when away from home, having large parties where you might not have enough normal ware, etc..
I believe the US does use it more than others though. It's just not the normal everyday method for most people.
@@fonkbadonk2957 I've seen that in Puerto Rico (US territory) not so long ago. It was nuts.
No, that’s weird. I literally don’t know anyone who doesn’t use normal ceramic plates and metal cutlery in day-to-day use.
The gun issue i kinda agree but you have to take into account that pretty much every crime committed with a gun, the guns themselves were acquired illegally that’s why you call them criminal. I’m from the Philippines who is now residing in the US, and i wish we have the same gun culture as the US because no matter how “strict” gun control we have in the Philippines it doesn’t deter criminals from committing said crime.
If that is true, how come countries that used to have relaxed gun control laws, but later changed them, like for example Australia, saw a massive decrease in then umber of gun related violence and most importanly deaths after they got strict on guns?
Large cities in America are much different than rural areas in terms of business hours.
Very true. I’m from LA and say, Target for instance, is open till midnight.
Where I'm from, we call the rural area business hour limitation as "rolling up the sidewalks after [x] PM".
Feli. I pray your family and friends are safe during the floods in Bavaria right now 😔😔🙏🙏
There is no flood in or around Munich. We have a bit more rain than usual, but nothing to worry about. The disaster is happening in a few spots in the mountains. Please pray for the people there.
It's funny... This is international. My parents have called me once to see if I am OK in Atlanta after a several tornados in Kansas. Apart from that.... Flash floods are rare. I only ever experienced this once and it swept away some cars and flooded basements to the ceiling. One old lady in a basement died. But that was once about 30 years ago. Lets hope this is a one time thing too but I fear it is not.
@@roncenti Until now 159 fatalities in Germany; this number may still rise. But the problem is in a few spots only, where small rivers grew within a very short time to large torrents. Sometimes their level was 6 ft higher than ever before (and we measure since at least 100 years). In one place they had to open the exit of a reservoir to avoid damage to the dam, and this caused the flood. - The big rivers like Mosel, Rhine have high level but no danger of flooding. Where I live - 150 miles south of the damage area - we had nice sunshine the whole Sunday, and just some heavier rain on Thursday, but nothing uncommon.
Actually, North Rhine Westphalia, Rhineland Palatinate and Baden Württemberg currently have more problems with the flood than Bavaria.
@@DarthG3nesis Baden-Württemberg? - there was some minor damage in the area close to Lörrach on Thursaday, but noone injured. Today was sunshine. - While in Bavaria (Berchtesgadener Land) there is rain now, a lot more will follow tomorrow, major damage including at least one fatality.
The little green arrow sign for German traffic lights, that makes you turn right on red is much more common in East Germany. It didn't exist in West Germany before the reunification of Germany happened in 1990 and was adapted to the Germany traffic law.
This sign does exactly work like in the US. You are supposed to drive to the stop line, wait a few seconds and check visually, if you can go and nobody is on that path with priority. If everything is clear, you are allowed to drive. I wonder if Feli knows that, because of her strange comment on how you are supposed to deal with it in the US. Did make it sound for me, like you can just turn right on red in Germany without stopping. That wouldn't be the case.
Interesting!
Can you turn left on red in Germany? Here in some areas if the red arrow is flashing you come to a complete stop, and if the intersection is clear you can turn left just like you would making a right turn on red.
Having lived in Germany, I can attest to their remarkable, and often very innovative construction.. This applies not only to homes, they build their roads with the same thoroughness. That's why their roads last.
The best thing about drive through ATM is the Braille on the ATM keys... Apparently blind people are driving cars to the ATM in America...
I used to work for an ATM maker. It's a standard feature on all machines. And it's by law regulated that they have to have it. You can walk up to them and use them. They get fined if the audio guide is not working.
🤣
NY stories. I got a good laugh out of that one.
Why would they make an ATM specific for the drive through ones instead of just using a normal ATM? Seems like an unnecessary extra cost.
There was a news story here in Louisville about people who had statutory blindness but kept renewing driver licenses to use as a photo ID The DMV didn't seem to care.
What’s funny is my dad has a German Mauser and every time I hold that gun I think about where this gun has been we believe it was produced in the 1800s in Germany for the German army!
The German Empire at the time of manufacture
It depends on when it was made. The Karabiner 98 kurz was adopted as the standard German Armed Forces rifle in 1935. Mauser is the manufacturer who made the 98 system. That 98 means 1898. German Empire is up to the end of WWI. Gewehr 1888 was the previous Mauser rifle and the initial rifle Germany used in WWI, slowly replacing them with the 98. So it depends on with variant you have. Again 98K was mid 1930s and used during WWII. 98b was used post WWI. The 98 is the rifle they adopted during WWI as they replaced the 88s they went to war with.
When turning right on red, most importantly, look for pedestrians!
Feli - I think people could interpret there aren't "sporting" firearms present in Germany. In 1999, I had the opportunity to take the train between Ulm and Munich several days in a row. I was amazed at the number of deer stands - for hunting deer. I may not have seen them while driving due to speeds at which I drive keeping focus on the road. My friends in Ulm told me yes, hunting is very popular. Same thing where I lived in France - hunting popular but sporting firearms.
_Very popular_ is definitely not true. And in Germany you need a licence not just for your weapons, but also for the hunt itself.
On the other hand hunting deer and boar is necessity to regulate the population.
@@mariokringsIn every state in the United States a permit or (Hunting license) is also required. Each states regulations may differ as to what is required to obtain this license but they are still needed to hunt. Just like a concealed carry permit in most states is required to carry a concealed firearm. Again regulations from state to state differ, however these concealed carry permits (licenses) all require filling out paperwork and a criminal background check before those are granted.
The around the clock supermarkets thing is actually pretty common in a lot of places in Eastern Europe too, especially in big cities, the whole no Sundays, no work at night mentality is really just a German peculiarity
And France on Sunday
The UK is pretty similar to the us
Actually Poland is starting (if it hasn't finished already) to close its shops on Sundays. But when shopping centres are open 09:00-21:00 every other day, how much shopping do you really need to do?
No, early closings and Sundays are still a thing in small town America. Local ordinances can even restrict big chain stores like Walmart.
I lived in Belgium from 1998 to 2006, and they closed most of their smaller neighborhood shops at 6 or 7 pm, and the bigger supermarkets at 10pm. There were night stores that opened at 10pm, so you could still get some basic things if you needed them, but they explicitly were not open at the same time as the regular shops.
I think you may have misunderstood the reason behind people saying "let me take you to the gun range." It was not likely meant to insinuate you're incapable of going to a range to go shooting. (Anyone who follows you ought to know someone strong enough to move across the world and start a life in a foreign country can certainly figure out how and where to do shoot a gun.)
Within the gun community, at least in the shooting sports community, we prefer to introduce someone to shooting in a very controlled manner and environment stressing safety, proper grip, trigger discipline, stance, etc... We like to teach about gun safety and responsible use of firearms as part of the introduction. Just going to a range, picking up and shooting a gun, while legal, isn't a proper introduction to responsible use of firearms.
That being said, even if we don't see eye to eye on gun control, I am glad you were open minded about it and went an experienced it firsthand. I just wish you had done so with an experienced firearms person or instructor to have a proper introduction.
I’ve noticed many Gun control opinions neglect answering how they will stop a criminal with a gun.
@@enfynet I think we assign this to the Police or other officially body, how right war one and make everything that thy are not use it. We want not that it be a contest who have the big, the most or shoot first.
@@enfynet I think it is sort of a chicken/egg problem ... the more access to guns is restricted the harder it is for criminals to get their hands on them either => less armed criminals lowers the need to carry defensive arms. The challenge would be to find a way to break this cycle since criminals probably won't be the first ones dropping their guns just because of possible new restrictions ;)
From an non-US perspective the whole debate about gun control seems to be taken way too personal and emotional in the US - I recall some weird discussion about why assault rifles are called assault rifles since they are mainly used for defensive purposes while hand guns are used by criminals for real assaults ... as if renaming things would solve any problems ... completely ignoring the facts that perfoming any crime needs some level of concealment where rifles are just impractical and defense benefits from having something to show off :D ...
@@andreasbraess3759 your assumption is that police will arrive in time to make a difference. Plenty of the US has extremely limited law enforcement.
Also, some parts of the U.S. the only gun ranges that are nearby are private clubs (must be accompanied by a club member to go there, and be sponsored by a current club member to join). Or there may not even be any sanctioned range nearby at all, so sometimes "going to the gun range" means going to someone's ranch (private property, so by invitation only) or to some informally designated location out in the public woodlands that is "open secret" to the locals, but otherwise doesn't have any public information on how to get there.
Here in The Netherlands I’ve been to many catered BbQ’s where we had real dishes, silverware and glasses. No plastic or paper… it was a BBQ for 100 people… And that’s pretty normal here.
It definitely tastes better on real dishes in my opinion!
Exactly. You can just rent tablewear at rental companies lol.
Key word - catered! YOU don't have to do the dishes!!
@@ekim049 even bbq’s with 20 people that wasn’t catered. Here it’s completely normal using paper (or worse, plastic) plates and utensils. Either use real plates and silverware, or don’t throw a BBQ, parry or whatever! Not when you’re around here.
Feli, I am a native American, and I have much the same feelings about gun regulation that you do.
Ich komme aus einem Dorf in Deutschland. Die Läden schließen hier alle schon zwischen 18 und 19:30 Uhr. Samstags haben die oft nur den halben Tag offen, also schließen die dann meistens zwischen 12 und 14 Uhr. An Sonn- und Feiertagen sind die Läden komplett geschlossen 😅
Ja, als ich ein Kind war, war das bei mir zuhause auch noch so. Aber die Zeiten haben sich geändert und in den Städten ist es doch eher normal das die großen Supermärkte und Diskounter bis 20 Uhr offen haben. In Kärnten (Österreich) hab ich es sogar erlebt, das in den Sommermonaten die Supermärkte auch an Sonn- und Feiertagen offen haben. Wenn es ein Touristengebiet ist.
Aber wer 24/7 haben will, braucht eigentlich nur nach "Osteuropa", dort gibt es die UK-Kette Tesco. Ich war 2005 zum ersten mal mitten in der Nacht in Ungarn einkaufen. Und 2008 in Tschechien. Es sind aber nicht viele Kunden um die Uhrzeit unterwegs und in manchen Bereichen ist kein Personal anzutreffen zB. bei der Theke und Umkreidekabinen waren damals auch abgesperrt.
@@petergarber1423 ich habe mein ganzes Leben lang nur auf dem Dorf gewohnt, deswegen kenne ich das gar nicht, dass Läden abends oder Nachts noch so lange offen haben
I just watched a video of yours where you answered questions in German with English sub titles..loved hearing you speak your native language!!!! I hope you will again soon...hooked on your videos !!
Out on the rural areas, you will see or hear people shooting outside in their yards.
I've shot squirrels out my back door before.
@@tomgallier7245 what sort of calibre do you need to shoot squirrels?
@@charlestaylor9424 22 caliber. However, you should be responsible and know what is in the direction you are shooting like parks, houses, stores, etc because the 22 can travel up to a mile if you miss.
Stop murdering squirrels.
@@charlestaylor9424 I had a 22, but I usually hunted squirrels with a 20 gauge or 16 gauge shotgun. Out the back door was always done with a shotgun.
As a senior citizen I notice a lot of little things you describe more attributable to generational differences than being from another country. The checks and check writing is one of them. My generation used checks constantly and by the hundreds each month. I like it much better now and don't write hardly any checks ever anymore.
I'm from the same generation. I'm gradually switching over to electronic payment. The postal service is so poor, I've had bills get lost in the mail and incurred late fees. I've had a payment check get lost in the mail and payed to stop payment and a late fee.
.
I‘m 61, never used a check. (Switzerland)
"still water" - something that Americans don't say. It's just "water."
Filtering water is entirely dependent upon location. Some places have great water, other places it will have a very high mineral content. Whole-house filters are a thing.
There is an issue of ignorance though. People think filters make their water pure, but don't understand that dissolved minerals cannot be filtered. The whole bottled water craze led to people questioning their water quality and the purchase of filtering systems is the outcome. Cities are required to make their water quality data public, and most have good (safe, it still might taste off due to various minerals) water already.
@@court2379 An ion exchange unit will get rid of the calcium, which is all most people really need to deal with.
Still or sparkling is a thing. But I noticed on a drive west to Yellowstone that sparkling water became harder and harder to find in convenience stores and restaurants. In St Louis, it was everywhere. In Sioux City, I couldn't find it anywhere.
Yes, do a part two, always very enjoyable.
I'm 37, and I still have my original checkbooks from when I got my account when I was 16. They are the only checks that I've ever used. So it's not like using checks is super common here either, at least not everywhere.
The guy next to you at the range may have been military. His haircut certainly seemed to fit, and he was firing what looked to be an assault rifle at a human-shaped target. If he was indeed military, he's got a good reason for doing it.
Shooting at a human shaped target does not mean one is set to actually go out and shoot humans. I think her reaction there was an emotional one, TBH.
Exactly...it is way less common today for people in the US to use checks. It depends on where you live. They are some small Southern states (in particular) that are behind.
Hello Ms. Feli. Your videos are indeed refreshing in content, and your willingness to explore things you do not understand is admirable.
I do feel you’re missing some context regarding American “gun culture”. Firearms have been an integral part of Americana since the days of the Declaration of Independence. The vast and overwhelming majority of people who own guns in the US, are law abiding and perfectly safe. Your fears arise from criminals. Changing laws and/or adding regulations today or in the future will only remove access and availability from law abiding citizens. Criminals, by their very nature, will simply ignore any laws or regulations enacted. Does it make you feel safer, to know that only criminals will have guns?
WE don't have Guns in Europe?? It's just not something we do over here?
Well. Criminals. And lots of people who don‘t secure the guns and get shot by their kids as an accident. Or people who just shoot other people to „protect their property“. That is in fact absolutely unsafe.
People killed by Guns per Year USA: ~20.000
People killed by Guns per Year Germany: ~ 100-120
Yes, the majority of People in the USA is perfectly safe. 🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️
@@a.w.1906 that’s an untrue statement of figures. You already seem to have your mind made up, so I won’t push further. Just remember, that facts matter. Emotional responses lead to problems, not solutions.
@@robs4193 These are official Numbers. What is untrue about them? When they are untrue, just tell me the right Numbers. I am very curious. Following your logic, it would be the best, everyone runs around with a Gun at his belt. Then you are Super Super Safe, and every criminal would be killed immediately. I will tell you something: No, that would not be the case. Then you would have 50.000 killed Persons or more per year. Your big Problem is FEAR. Everyboby may be a criminal, you fear even your neighbors. Maybe in the Countryside this is different, but in the Big Cities this is true.Yes, you are Right, the US was a Frontier Country, the Land was often won with brutal Force. I don't condemn this, it was a time you had to act like this to survive. Nature and often also natives made this necessary. But the Frontier Time is long ago, isn't it? I also like weapons, and I own some, but I think, there are way to much of them in the wrong Hands. And the Situation will not get better in my opinion, when everybody with the "right Hands" will own guns also.
In Switzerland guns are also a lot more common and every swiss person has one at home ( but not the ammo which is kinda weird and funny ).
The difference is : They learned it in the army and learned how dangerous guns areafter the army they are allowed to keep them. Not every idiot can buy one.
And when was Switzerland last invaded or oppressed by a dictator? That is why the US has the 2nd amendment and that there are more guns than people in the US. Enough for every man, woman, child and baby.
@@JustMe-fz7xn When was the USA last invaded or oppressed by a dictator?
Not everyone in Switzerland, but people who serve in the Swiss army are required to store their gun at home, in a locked closet, without the ammo. And there have been several attempts at banning these weapons from homes.
No ammo makes sense. You'll be issued it if you need it. I get the sense that Swiss feel more comfortable if someone brings a fully automatic rifle onto the city tram because they know that person is trained - as opposed to me if someone were to bring one on to the Portland MAX city train. I would be very nervous because of the crazy gun culture in America and lack of universal mandatory gun safety training. I am speaking as someone who served in the US Military for 5 years, had a mandatory hunter safety course at 14 in Oregon, and earned a Marksmanship ribbon. I don't own a gun - I don't see a reason for it.
@@DontPanick January 6th, 2021.
"what's more american than shooting?!" well I see our gun culture precedes us. Depending on where you are in the US, people can love their guns more than literally anything.
Hope your family and friends are safe in the terrible German floods ♥️
And here I am as a born and bred American who's never shot a gun in his life. Feli is more American than I am!
What's more American then mass shootings ?? I get why she is reacting about guns that way.....in Europe there is a much stricter law about guns....so you can see in mass shootings in europe maybe 2 or 3 in decades.....in the States wellll you get my drift ;)
Does the US media report a lot about the floods in Germany? Would be interesting to know!
The floods here are really bad, especially since we are not used to something like this in Germany, and especially to this extent. So strange to know that not far away from you villages have just been completely destroyed. You can‘t imagine…
So many misconceptions regarding a non-existent "gun culture" in the US. Usually perpetuated from non-US individuals. There is no more a "gun culture" than a "car culture" or a "gardening culture"...
I own guns (and other weapons). I carry them at times. I am licensed to do so. Just another tool. People are killed by other people with hammers, axes, baseball bats, but never do those tools harm anyone on their own.
@@HomeOfMacWoeffie Well, in the UK knife crime is on the rise and it won't be long until it surpasses the US level of homicides with guns.
Thanks for you fine video and your interesting observations. I grew up in Dayton Ohio, born there in 1953. Mein vater war in Bremen aufgewachesend und hat nach America ausgewandert in 1925, ab 15 jahre. He worked as a machinist and would take me along on trips to Sharonville and Cincinnati to machine shops and foundries where it was far more useful to speak German than English. There were so many German people in my life growing up in Dayton, and many German clubs and organizations. I learned a bit from my dad and opa, then a bit more wann inch war in Bamberg mit US Army, 1973 durch ‘75. (aber mein Deutsch it’s jetzt ganz eingerostet)! There was even an FM station in Cincinnati that broadcast “ The German Hour” hosted by Hermann the German. He played German music and announced where various clubs were holding dances, concerts, dinners and gatherings, Alles auf Deutsch. So, here I am at age 67 at home in Northern California having fun watching your fun and informative channel, and remembering German culture in Ohio 50 years ago. I also remember the many differences between American and German culture in 1973, some of which were baffling indeed.
Here in Adelaide, South Australia (which also has a high-level history of German-speaking migrants, mainly Prussian from before WW1) we also have a lot of chlorine in our water. However, anyone who doesn't like it only has to fill a large jug with water from the tap/faucet and, as long as the lid is left off, the chlorine will usually evapourate after about one hour.
One thing that baffled me while staying at a roadside motel in Iowa was an automatic pancake machine at breakfast. Before going there I didn't even know such a machine exists.
I don’t know what that is…but now I want one.
as somebody from the US, I never heard of that either and now I also want one lol
I think you mean a waffle maker, not a pancake maker.
@@iluvmusicals21 they also have pancake ones, they are interesting to watch, the ones ive seen, dont see them often, but you basically pour the batter on a small conveyor that cooks it and puts it out. lol :)
@@iluvmusicals21 No it was definitely a pancake maker.
Europe is more modern than USA? I never got paid by check in Italy either. When I got a job in Italy I had to give my account bank information to the employer and that's not strange to me or unsafe
Our banking system is very outdated here in the US, but you also get options. The default payment method starts off as getting a check, but most companies offer direct deposit (which still requires banking info such as your account and routing number). You can choose one or the other, but typically if you're starting a new job your first payment will be a check. I've also heard some minimum-wage jobs sending payments thru a company-provided debit card.
Same antiquated policies in the credit system-- in the US we don't have chip-and-pin for credit card purchases, but rather chip-and-signature. Depending where you live, many retailers have tap and pay (Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay, tap-enabled credit cards, etc), but you still see some outdated tendencies here.
In many ways Europe is more modern than the USA. Most Americans firmly believe that the we are the most advanced country in the world in everything. Even though they have never considered going to Europe and do not have a clue about what it actually like. Americans need to travel and see what the world is like.
@@kokomo9764 Yup. Just look at our health care system.
In many cases where other countries appear more “modern,” it’s because the US developed or was an early adopter of those innovations and has a lot of sunk cost in the older technology. Other countries who adopted them later don’t have to figure out what do to with those investments when moving to newest tech because they never made them.
@@kokomo9764 in my view it is dumb to build the buildings in wood or even lighter materials - thats gave the tornados hurricanes and so on only options to destroy - in Germany for example - europes most haunted country with tornadoes is never so much destroyed because the buildings usually are to heavy for them...
I vote YES to a part 2
What I did in Germany that I've never done in America... (4 years in Germany while in Army)... Ride in a Mercedes Benz, Audi, BMW (all were Taxis). In fact, my first day in Germany (Frankfort) I spotted Mercedes taxis and thought "Germans are so rich!"
Taxi companies often choose (at least chose) Mercedes because they're sturdy and last quite long, bringing down overall cost. Most people here in Germany see their cars as an investment spread over the lifetime of the car, including maintenance/repairs, fuel consumption and cost, insurance, deprecation, taxes, etc. As a result we tend to pick the most economic car that (just) fits our projected needs instead of the cheapest. The car companies want to make money, so they cater to their customers.
Before they retired, my uncles in Central America were taxi drivers and they also drove Mercedes Benz cabs. I thought that was so amazing too! Even now, decades later, riding in their cabs as a kid was the only time I've ever been in a Mercedes.
I had an American friend visit me a while ago and he was in shock when he first saw a Mercedes semi truck.
Those are just standard cars in Germany. They're only luxury cars here in the states 😂😂😂
This has been a challenge for Mercedes. They wanted to be seen as luxury brand in the US, not the domestic everyday brand they are in Europe. So Mercedes in the US went very upscale and didn't even import the lower end models and trims. They pretend they don't exist and won't sell them. Meanwhile in Europe, the AMG brand takes the luxury and performance status.
When we visited the US for the first time I guess one of the strangest things were crossings with 4 stop shields. When I visited the US later together with my boyfriend, he did not believe me until he saw one himself 😆
They don't have crossroads that aren't circles where you're from? The 4 way stop sign has each driver taking turns, typically starting from the right. A lot of these are being replaces with circles.
You: "waste of plastic"
Americans: "FREEEEEEDOOOOOOM"
Same for paper plates, we never met a nice durable product we couldn't replace with a disposable one to save a few minutes.
Yes, people should be free to buy disposable plates if that is what suits them. Even as silly as it is, someone should be able to fly a private jet from New York City to Los Angeles to buy ice cream if that is what suits them.
@@Anon54387 my right to swing my fist ends where your face begins, and vice versa. Unfortunately a good portion of the human population wants to keep living as if there are a few thousand of us in a wide open world where our actions don't affect each other, instead of today's densely packed and interconnected reality.
I don't support banning paper plates, but I do support adjusting our cultural outlook to stop being so ridiculously wasteful.
In California, where water is scarce, one almost has to decide, "do I want to buy disposable plates and cutlery or use precious water washing them."
@@vktrys1 you know that more water is needed to produce those things than to wash them, right?
@@juliaellertsouza3577 It's nice you would assume that, but it's probably not the case...
Do not punch a wall, I repeat do not punch the wall
I never would have thought that houses are built any different, though I never actually thought about it
Yes, please don't punch the walls at my place. It's such a mess cleaning up and painting over the blood stains afterwards...
To even afford a house she mentions in Germany, you have to be very rich OR inherit the house and property. That's why many Europeans live in rented condos, apartments and "flats"
I don't know too many people here who punch their walls. It's NOT "a thing " as she states 🙄
@@lia-liz2012 while houses can be expensive in Germany (at least in or near cities), it‘s not that expensive either. And condos and appartments are still build out of stone and concrete
If you punch a wall, make sure it's drywall & you're not punching an area where a stud is located. That's as bad as punching concrete. LOL! Better yet, try to control your emotions.
It's not like your hand isn't going to hurt, or that you might break a bone in your hand for punching a wall. It's not that easy!
Im in the Pacific Northwest and most of what she talks about isnt that common out here. But Im originally from the Midwest where what she says brings back memories.
Maybe that's why so much of this video sounds so strange to me. Maybe they're Midwestern things...?
Yess PNW yayy
I moved to Ohio for undergrad, I had culture shock after growing up in California.
You may not have ever used a water filter in Germany, but Brita is actually a German company.
Wikipedia says : "Brita GmbH is a German company which manufactures water filters. The company headquarters are in Taunusstein near Wiesbaden in Hesse, Germany. Manufacturing facilities are in China, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, and the United Kingdom.[ Brita products are distributed in 69 countries." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brita_(company)
I lived in France 10 years ago and they use checks similar to US checks.
I always thought how strange it is that women think that being on the phone when you're out is a form of self defense. Especially in a culture where there's a hundred thousand horror movies where the victim is on the phone with someone while being chased after, and the only thing the other person on the line hears is the victim's final screams.
It does scare people off in some cases and it might make you just give a safer feeling to know that if something were to happen, that person on the phone would know where you are and could call for help.
@@FelifromGermany That's interesting. I would think the police would be the ones to call for help (cutting out the middleman) especially since they have tech to locate exactly where your phone is. A smarter move might be to record on camera what's going on then broadcast it if possible, but as far as safety goes, a phone in the hand is not enough to fend off a motivated attack-unless you're James Bond and Q branch built it
Isn't it dangerous to be on the phone at night 😮 ? You could be distracted, thus be an easy target for anyone who wants to attack you !
@@goldflo91 Yeah, distraction is a problem when one needs to be aware. And think about it...if someone feels threatened enough to the point that they need to call someone, why complicate things? what is that person who is 20, 100, maybe 500 miles away supposed to do that the person with the phone can't do themselves?
@@FelifromGermany "Help" arrives too late. There is an expression: "When seconds count, the police are just MINUTES away!" This is why self-defense is important in the United States and why the Second Amendment is sacred. It protects millions of families every year.
I'm 74 and bought my first gun about 8-9 years ago. My first trips to the range were with well-versed, competent teachers of the practice of owning and using a weapon. One of the first things I was taught was the establishment of a routine - a safe routine. That was followed by the insistence on becoming familiar but absolutely not complacent with that weapon, regardless of the routine and familiarity - in fact, perhaps because of the the routine and familiarity. My weapon teacher/mentor is also my good friend - my good Austrian friend - who has also tried to teach us German. He has also taught us there are generally two purposes in owning and discharging a firearm. First, is target shooting. And, while target shooting can be fun, it's primary function is safety and proficiency. That brings us to the second purpose - self defense. Most of us will never have to aim and fire at a person. But, if the time comes, we should be proficient. We should have thought through the process long ago against the day it is required. But, those targets you disliked are also used to teach us. Also there are some who advocate shooting to wound when that awful time comes., Shooting to wound is exactly what a gun owner should not do. In fact, that would simply cause even more shooting and becomes an even more dangerous situation. Shooting should be the absolute last resort. And, if you are not prepared to shoot to definitively end the threat, then buy a new pair of shoes instead - seriously. Gun ownership is an awesome responsibility. Like owning and driving a car - another dangerous weapon when used improperly - we're finding that neither are for everyone. Would that many car owners and drivers understood that circumstance better. Your attitude on the subject sounds healthy.
My first shooting experience was when I was 11 years old as a Boy Scout at summer camp, Camp Sequassen in Ct. My step-father took me out to shoot clay pigeons at about 14. My next experience was when I served in the Air Force for 20 years as a Security Police technician. I learned how to shoot various weapons. Some for daily use, such as the M-16 and the .38 revolver. Also learned how to shoot an M-79 I think it was called, it could fire 40mm rounds. We transitioned to the Beretta M-9 in the mid 80's. Retired in 95, then worked for the Navy as a civilian police officer and carried the M-9 there until we transitioned to the Sig P-226. I worked at a gun store for close to a year, and bought several guns over the years.
You are right, gun safety is the primary focus when carrying a gun. Remember the 4 gun safety rules and you should never have a problem. A gun is just a tool, that you use properly. I have been a CCW holder since 1996 and still carry today. I don't show off or brag about it. I only mention it now, because we have a Constitutional right to own and carry a gun for self defense. We also have a right not to own or carry a gun if we so choose. I applaud Felicia for at least going to a range and shooting. I hope whoever took her took great care in explaining gun safety rules to her and checked to be sure she understood them, and corrected her if she became distracted as to keeping the barrel down range. That she still has a fear of guns and wants to restrict them more, on that last point, I respectfully have to disagree. But, that too is her right to feel that way. I still enjoy watching her videos and her explanations about the difference between Germany and the US. Very enlightening. And while Germany may not be much of a gun culture now, pretty sure it was more of a gun culture before WW I and WWII.
Ahh, Bavaria. I was in the US Army and stationed just outside of Ansbach from 93-96. Loved it.
I was stationed in Ansbach in 89-91... I too loved it, would love to go back.
Lot to love in Bavaria! My father is from there, both of my parents are German.
As she said in another video she moved to the US at age 22. She speaks perfect English, like a native. It makes me be sure how age is an important factor in language learning. By the age of 20 it is easier to acquaint the language and learn to speak it fluently as the brain assimilates everything almost automatically. After 30, the memory is no longer the same and to learn it needs to be dedicated, as the assimilation of the language is not so automatic and is almost impossible to speak without accent. After 40 you need to pay more attention to the speech of others, read a lot, watch TV in the new language and it is not so easy to memorize the words in another language even if you hear them many times.
Part of it is whether one stays in the habit of learning after one gets out of school or not. People that stay in a habit of learning can readily learn things later in life.
Most Germans start to learn English in 3rd grade. I came to the US from Mannheim, Germany in 1984 at the age of 18 and already spoke English fluently as well.
@@Siggy4844 Nowadays it's even common to learn English in kindergarten already. In a playful manner of course. Most Germans have an advanced level of English when they leave school. After school there is often a lack of practical exercise.
If you stick around long enough, you can get drive thru married.
In Las Vegas
Wow
Your Awesome Dude
America is the land of shotgun weddings and quickie divorces!
In Montana you can get married with neither party present
I’m so glad you mentioned the tampons! I would have been so confused seeing tampons without an applicator in Europe. But I totally agree about the applicator being wasteful. I wish the U.S. would take notes.
The applicator is very necessary for some of us. But I am totally in favor of there being both types available.
The UK has always had them, think you can get both types.
The US has had a well known non-applicator brand for years -- 'OB' -- since the 80s. There are other organics brands without applicator as well - Natura and Seventh Generation and so on. Yes, some need the applicator, some don't.
@@sadee1287, o.b. is actually a German brand, established in the fifties (though owned by Johnson & Johnson now). The abbreviation means "ohne Binde" = "without pad". "O.b." ist often used as a generic term for any tampon in Germany.
I had the same experience as Feli as a German exchange student in the 90s in the US. But without the internet or the courage to ask anyone about those strange contraptions! They really should have told the girls about that. It was also shocking how expensive tampons were back then compared to home. So I bought the cheap ones which probably did not help. I never got comfortable using the applicators during my time is the US.
In NY we have the best tap water. It comes from nearby reservoirs. You can drink it from the faucet but many people will add a filter that attaches to the faucet to increase quality. As you said I also had refrigerator/ freezer with built in water/ice that come with their own filter.
Come to germany and taste some REALLY good water :D
Agreed, although I believe you are referencing New York City (not New York State) .
@@robertmonroe3678 In which case he should have said NY, NYS!
@@mannmanuel7762 NYC does have excellent tap water, better than Germany's IMO.
@@mannmanuel7762 One of the oddest bits of trivia about "filthy" New York City is that it has some of the best tap water in the entire world. And it arrives completely unfiltered. They've just got a really pristine water source from upstate. Much of the state shares that source as well.
I've met several Germans who feel the same as you about our guns. Guess I'm glad Germany doesn't get to make that decision for us. Our guns aren't for sport they are for defense, specifically against our own government. Disarmament is the first step of genocide, and democide is probably the number one cause of unnatural death last century. Considering we are about to experience another one since the government is intentionally dismantling the food supply lines, you might want to get yourself one. No disrespect intended, in fact quite the opposite. Americans come from a long line of distrust for our governing powers and complete trust in the tendency for corruption among those governing powers. We own guns because, "screw authoritarians"... that's why.
*This comment is so fucked up.* 🤦🏼♂️
First of all: disarmament is definitely *not* _the first step of genocide._ There's just no relation. And the last genocide in the US (murdering Lakota in 1890) was widely supported by most citizens. At least I never heard about the story about how gun owners stopped it from happening.
So why this blubbering about _a long line of distrust for our government powers?_ I mean I don't trust my government either to 100%. But I don't get what a gun can do about it?!
In 2020 there were more than 20.274 US citizens killed by fire arms. That means more than 55 a day. You're fascination for fire arms is retarded.
Thanks for explaining the thing with the houses.
I've always wondered how there can be such big holes so easily when they like only "touch" it in movies... it feels like it'd be paper watching it. 😂
As far as feeling unsafe after you were shooing a few rounds and became a little complacent, I think that's rather common among very casual shooters who may own a gun and only go to the range every couple years or just occasionally shoot with friends or family members who own them.
I don't think this necessarily translates to more complacency occurring after more time at the range. In fact, if you take it seriously, the opposite tends to be true.
I happen to be in law enforcement and was in the military and generally always go to the range with either LE or military folks I know. We shoot a lot, but I can assure you we all respect the dangers associated with careless firearms handling. I know a lot of hunters too who are also extremely cautious.
Frankly, I think the key difference is that people who look at guns as something to use for "sport" tend to be more careless. On the other hand, people to look at guns in their true light (as weapons or tools designed to kill an animal or incapacitate a dangerous threat) tend to train more with them and appreciate their lethality - and thus not play around with them because the hunter, the law enforcement officer and the soldier constantly view the gun for what it was designed for (to incapacitate a person or animal) instead of viewing it as just an exciting object used to perform a sport like shooting a paper target. It really tends to boil down to mindset.
Even when my friends, coworkers and I are at the range and enjoying the experience of shooting paper targets to improve our speed and accuracy or compete with each other in a friendly way, we never forget that we are using an instrument invented and designed to kill a person or animal. Thinking of guns that way tends to make those handling them safer and more careful at all times, but many people who just like the idea of going to the range and having fun often aren't willing to think about what firearms were invented and designed for. I think it's this disconnect that makes some casual shooters let their guard down when it comes to safe weapons handling because they aren't viewing what they hold in their hands as a weapon. (I suspect in many cases perhaps they aren't psychologically comfortable with viewing it that way because they don't want to view it that way, even though it is the reality of the object they are holding in their hands).
People who shoot professionally and many who carry a firearm for a living tend to shoot a lot and very often. (Often thousands of rounds a year or even a month.) Yet those who shoot and carry for a living tend to be the safest and most careful when it comes to handling firearms - because they are constantly aware of the harm the firearm is capable of doing.
If only all gun owners had that type of respect for their firearms. However, like most groups, the loudest and the most idiotic people get most of the attention.
Where I live everyone owns several legally purchased guns and there is very low ,almost no gun violence. We aren’t afraid of guns but we respect them. Everyone here hunts, target plinks and protects our families and property. They are a tool, neither good or evil. If someone is drinking alcohol and driving a car they are as deadly as a criminal with a stolen gun.
@@kirke420 The vast, vast majority of gun owners are very safety minded. With, at low estimates, 100 million gun owners in the USA the accidents per year number in the mere hundreds.
@@Anon54387 - I don't know that I agree with your assessment of how many gun owners are responsible. I am admittedly using the "most people I've met" method of guess-timating (but I imagine you are as well). The number of idiots who have had a loaded gun stolen from an unlocked car blows my mind.
Nearly half of people are idiots (and therefore roughly half of gun owners are idiots), and I'd need to see some pretty hard evidence from a very reliable source to believe that mostly not-idiots are the gun owners.
I do know people who take gun safety very seriously, but they are not an overwhelming majority.
As a 20 year veteran of moving to the Midwest (albeit from England, so marginally closer in language) I can attest to most of these. Early closing frustrates me every time I go home, but tap water here (from the Mississippi) is great, unless there's a lot of snow melt weirdly. Also become very pro 2A over the years too after holding a position much closer to yours, mostly through a philosophical, whilst dispatching an emotive position.
Regarding 2A i would say that a fear of the presence of guns is mostly a city thing. Whenever i visit my cousins in the out-county it is a rarity to come across an unarmed person. No one is afraid because by and large most people are competent, so if some one is crazy enough to try anything, there is more than enough backup.
I would say that for city people you could pose the question as to why it is that they don't fear the rampant presence of automobiles everywhere. For, hypothetically at any given moment someone could just decide to turn off the road and hit you with a 1 tonne projectile at 40mph.
@@jerichogonzales1290 gun deaths, and crime in general, varies such an amazing amount by county and city that it doesn't make sense to treat them all as the same. I'd have no problem jogging in the middle of the night where i live, we had maybe one murder in the entire county last year. But i wouldn't jog at night in most major cities.
@@afhostie i agree
@@afhostie Not just by county and city, but within cities, as well. I went to college in a neighborhood known for its gang activity. I ran in the area at night, frequently. However, there isn't a chance in the world I would have even driven my car in the section of the city about five miles to the south. Not even in the daylight.
@@gl2996 Absolutely. You can look at stat trackers for Chicago or DC (among others) and you can see where much of the violence is contained to specific neighborhoods.
#9 is bizarre to me, too. I'm 75 (live in Utah) and have never seen paper plates used except at backyard gatherings, or for an extra large grouping of family, or while traveling (as in a picnic in the mountains). Any in home "sit down" meal is on real, hard dinnerware, glasses and "silver".
I have lived in the U.S. all my life, and I have never seen or heard of anyone here using paper plates at home unless either the power was out, or they were having a large gathering or something outdoors like a barbecue.
It’s quite common..
Then you’ve never been around people out of your bubble. Had paper plates growing up paper towels too. Easier than doing the dishes
Easy cleanup with pet food also.
im eating off a paper plate in my room right now. That's cuz im too lazy to do dishes
Well it definitely depends on the person/social circle, but I've experienced it pretty frequently
Getting my popcorn ready for the comments about #7 hahaha
as an american i havnt had a check book in almost 20 years. I just always choose the direct deposit when ever i am given the choice, this includes taxes. I have received checks but i find that a rare occurrence.
Same! Almost every job I’ve had is direct deposit, especially if it’s chain stores like Wal-Mart or the Bath and Body Works store I used to work at. In my experience, checks aren’t so common anymore
well... you would be hard pressed to find a German, that even knows what a check looks like - that's how uncommon they are in Germany.
@@m.h.6470 It depends on the age of the people you ask. I last wrote a check in the 1990s if I remember correctly. Younger people might not ever have seen a check indeed.
It's been a bit over 10 years since I had a checkbook, but even then it was rare that I ever wrote a check. Personal checks became uncommon around 2005. I'll receive a rare check from some company that isn't my employer and doesn't pay me often enough to set up direct deposit. I haven't worked for an employer that didn't offer direct deposit in over a decade either and some don't even offer the option of a paper check anymore.
It was more common when I moved to the US 20 years ago. But I still need one in case. 3 years ago my old landlord in Los Angeles wanted a check for rent every month and to drop it in an envelope into a mailslot in a door. So I had to get more checks and envelopes just for that. stupid but it is still fairly common. But I was never paid with a check. Maybe hourly workers or if you are a contractor... But Yes... right now my checkbook is buried deep in some box and my one emergency check in my car is 2 years old.
I'm sure you have gotten Pro 2A comments on this video already. I just found your channel a few days ago and I'm loving it, and I always like to hear other viewpoints and quite respect them! I can understand why, coming from another country, especially European based countries, one would feel stricter control should be necessary here, but one, it wouldn't fix the issue of you feeling unsafe at night; and two, it removes control from the hands of the people against the government, the sole reason we have our gun culture in the first place. I actually think there is *too much* control in America, and that we need to wheel it back. I can dive deep into a discussion about it, but that's for another comment. Love your content and keep it up Feli!
Armed people are citizens, Unarmed people are subjects.
You can fight the government without guns.
Like protest or go voting.
I remeber the people from Kiev kicked out the president without guns. While the police used snipers on them.
In germany hitlers first try to take over the government with guns failed.
The second try using protests and voting worked out.
Is their an example of the people taking over the government with guns?
It's so weird seeing non-Americans confused about disposable dishes. Like it's just so commonplace here, it's like a parallel world lol
As an American I've never used disposable dishes before tbh lol.
Eating inside at a dinning table, always use china. only outside as in a picnic did I use paper/plastic.
That’s for ruining the environment with all that unnecessary thrash🙄
As an American, I'm also surprised that she got disposable plates at a high end hotel. I only associate disposable plates with the cheapest, most basic of hotels.
@@Sam21998 Never?!
Point 7 - If a person is afraid of guns that means they are afraid of being shot. Learning how to shoot does not take that away. You could be very proficient with a gun but still be afraid of being shot.
@ the possibility there is much much much higher than anywhere else and it just feels uncomfortable and unsafe because theoretically anybody could take out their guns anytime anywhere and just do mass shootings. People tend to get mental disorders and there are sick people everywhere so... it's just abot the safety feeling.
@David Rayner that's basically what she was referring to
@@luis15317 It's much, much higher yet it's still not a large amount at all. An increased chance doesn't mean the chance is high.
@ but it's absolutely normal for people that aren't used to that to feel unsafe in that country why is that even a debate. That's logical
@ This is partly why I'll never visit the USA as I have no desire to. Nothng about your country's system and way of life appeals to me.
I think your feelings around guns are more to do with the culture you grew up in. I don't feel safe in the UK alone because we have an issue with knife crime here. Someone was murdered less than a mile from my house. Suffice it to say, I don't generally leave the house without something to defend myself with.
I agree. Criminals will find something to use. It’s a city culture problem, not a gun problem. I grew up in the country with everyone I knew hunting, and owning guns, etc, and no one ever shot each other, or got shot. Only in the cities do I feel unsafe.
The only person responsible for you safety, is you. No one is coming to help. Doesn’t matter where you are.
@@NoneYaBidness762I agree up to a point!
Bin dat buttah’ knoife roight now! Why would you evah need a buttah knoife ya cheeky mingah!? Come with the constabulary ! Everyone to jail
@@NoneYaBidness762 Police? Fire? Ambulance? Plenty of people coming to help.
As an American I find the lack of gun culture in Germany to be interesting as both of my favorite firearms manufacturers (Sig Sauer and Heckler & Koch) are German companies
there just more control on use they do not view it as a god given right
@@michaelzappone9343 probably explains why they have so many fewer shooting deaths than we do. Even though I’m a gun owner, I wish the US had tighter regulations than we currently have. I really hate the fact that hearing about mass shootings no longer surprises me. It makes me nervous knowing my son will be starting first grade in a couple years.
Until about 1985 or so, check writing was way more common than now in the U.S. My 80+ year old mom proudly writes checks for most everything. I write an average of less than one check per year.
Making a right turn on a red traffic light is not generally allowed anywhere in Europe, not just Germany. This is because most traffic signals were installed long after the cities were built and so it is not possible to verify for conflicting traffic because the buildings are in the way. That is, there almost always restricted visibility at European intersections.
Right on red is forbidden within the City of New York (all 5 boroughs) , unless there's a sign saying it's allowed.
I still find it bizarre that every state has different driving signage and laws.
They’re largely standardized by federal highway rules. There’s some slight variation, but all the important signs are the same.
Not to forget that some states have roundabouts and since there are no official US signs for them they use signs from the UK. Can't find that link right now but there's this one www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p050s3qt
Yeah and different voting laws😶🌫️
I had to turn 45 before I saw in a video lately that there exists at least one motorway exit *to the left* in Germany. 😳😄 I've never seen that before.
Why it's almost as if the United States is a union of states that created the Union and meant to limit the powers of the Union and those states maintain their sovereignty and have their own laws.
Quality of tap water varies by region in the U.S., at times significantly. Here in Chicago suburbs, we get our water from Lake Michigan, which is excellent. In rural areas from a well, the water might need to be run through a water softener to remove minerals that can discolor white clothes in the wash, and perhaps the smell of sulfur.
I've learned recently that well water should also be tested for radioactivity. Sometimes there's an unknown natural deposit of uranium or some other radioactive mineral.
@@kylechalve Please, do not be paranoid. With modern lab equipment some substances can be traced in ridiculously miniscule amounts. So the substance is there but you'd need a dose hundred of thousands times as big as was found of it to cause any effect. Which is the case for uranium.
Well it's odd because it's almost impossible to order tap water as a free benefit at a German restaurant. I was trying to explain what I wanted at a restaurant in Berlin, and a German at a neighboring table told me to call it (if I remember correctly) Leitungswasser. But they'd much rather you order a bottle of water for 5 euros.
Ohh yeah, I can remember that time. But that has changed since 2001, as by law a restaurant must provide at least on non alcoholic beverage that does not cost more than the cheapest alcolic beverage. But it is still uncommon to get tab water in a restaurant. Nevertheless here in Berlin at least you can get tab water in bars, not at all of them but some, if you ask kindly
Yes for a part two. :)
Although we know about most of the little differences, it’s entertaining to learn what YOU have experienced.
My favorite things about driving are how we can turn right on red (if it's safe to do so, of course) and turn left on the flashing yellow arrow.
The only onces that can turn right on red are bycicles in Belgium.
@@lindamaes6454 that makes sense. Bikes still have to follow all traffic laws here in the states. Cars can turn on right when it's red unless a sign reads, "no turn on red." Now, within the past few years, we have the flashing yellow arrow. You must yield/stop only if someone is coming. If no one is coming, you can turn left on a flashing arrow light.
@@charlesmassie6775 Bycicles also have to follow all traffic laws but they have exceptions specifically for their own safety and of course we have special bycicles lanes, not as much as in the Netherlands but we are improving on it.
I used to shoot all the time when I was in Germany. There was a neat little range not far from Ansbach.
There is not a low threshhold to purchase a gun. The gun must be registered with the ATF in the buyers name. Then a complete background check is performed on the potential buyer and this may take 3 days to a week. All this checking must be completed by the government before the customer can ever put his hands on the gun.
How about the converse Feli? Ten things you did in Germany that you can't do in the US? Also, you need a "German/American (temporary)" t-shirt for green card holders like yourself!
Do you have a problem with green card holders ? I can assure you that America has the best employees, smart and resilient people you can ever get. We are educated and money smart and we are contributiotig to the community
@@ilipence406 why are you assuming I have a problem? My point is that Feli is German/American currently on a temporary basis.
@@hairyairey
A greencard is for permanent living.
www.uscis.gov/green-card
@@witty2u not all of them. Feli has a ten year one. Hence temporary. uk.usembassy.gov/visas/diversity-visa-lottery/
@@hairyairey That's not true. Green Card holders are permanent residents, and the Green Card itself is valid UNLIMITED. Only the DOCUMENT needs to be renewed every 10 years. Don't mix that up. Also she can get the US citizenship after 5 years living in the US. Then she doesn't need a GC anymore at all. Just saying.
Why us there braile on drive through atms?
This intrigued me, so I researched it. It is simplly because the manufacturers of the ATM machines did not want to make some of them different. All ATM machines are made with braille signage.
They're also on restroom signs. For a blind person to use the braille sign, they would have to find the sign. Probably government PC rules.
Braille signage is part of the way to comply with US federal/state/local regulations related to equal access for customers with disabilities. You could spend hours reading all about the "Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990" (ADA) and how each state & city have their own regulations in addition to the US Federal ADA regulations.
I understand and respect your feelings about guns. But I must say that Germany makes excellent guns. My first gun was a Walther PPK.
Quality, not quantity 😉
So it’s clear now who calls himself Mr. X, Mr. Bond. ;)
Shaken, not stirred
"Walther PPK. 7.65 millimeter. Only three men I know use such a gun. I believe I've killed two of them."
@@toaster4693 🤣🤣🤣
An American, I've drunk plain tap water pretty much everywhere I've been in the US (46 states) and Europe (lived in Germany for 2 years). It's all been equally good to me.
Hawaii also has good tap water. Actually it might be one of the best in the world.
I tend to drink bottled waters on the road. It's not that the water is necessarily bad, but it does taste different in other locales and that's a little hard to adjust to in some areas.
Checks in Germany: Only seen when a company owes you something. For example: Rental car security deposits sometimes gets issued as a check, or insurance companies send checks.
In Sweden not even then. They existed here but was rare in the 70thies to 90thies, I remember ques being hold up a few times when somone payed with them back then, but haven't enocuntered on the last 20 years.
No, in 99% of cases they ask for your bank account. Although checks are possible. They don't make themselves friends, cause the receiver doesn't even know what to do with a received check. If he has an online bank, he probably had to mail it to his bank ? And what if it is lost ?
Yeah, I'm 61 (and German). I do remember using checks ... seems a long time ago, presumably it was the 1980s. But even then, only for bigger things. I remember the one time I got a check from the US - don't even remember what it was for, some account closure thing - and how confusing it was even for the banker who had to handle it.
Really, have reasonable banking regulations (and I'd still argue we need more), and checks are mainly useful for delaying the moment the recipient gets the money - they certainly aren't safer (actually the opposite). Pretty much *everything* is done electronically, except sometimes for the communication with your bank (orders and reports on paper if you don't do it online, as is the case for my mother).
Never experienced that in Germany. Checks went out of fashion around 30+ yes ago and even then it were different kind of Checks - they were ‚guaranteed‘, i.e. they couldn’t bounce. You usually also only got 10 checks. Felt very very strange for me during my university time in the U.S. after opening a bank account to receive a check book with a 100 checks.
I remember paying with a Euro-Cheque in the U.S. at a department store in the early 90s. The were very confused about the cheque card and the security number you had to write on the back, but in the end they accepted it - and to my big surprise my bank account was charged 4-5 months later.
Here in Czech Republic when my insurancy company owns me money, they just send it directly to my bank account, I never saw any checks. :-D Last time I recieved some money for beying in quarantine, it just came to my bank account automaticaly, I even didn't know I have right for that money. It was only very little so I would not really care about that if they didn't send it, but it's nice to know that they can just send it to you automaticaly. I even didn't know they know my bank account, but state and insurancy companies know everything about you.
As an norwegian (living in Norway) I can deffo see your points as Germany and Norway is not that different when it comes to culture.
BTW been to Germany many times and I do enjoy my time there :-)
A Norwegian ... deffo??
@@gregoryconnor9333 Deffo=definitive. Slang.
I have the bank that does my mortgage take it out directly from my checking account (I own a two bedroom condo outside of Cincinnati but on the Kentucky side of the river), but I provide them with my checking account information and they take it out. When I was a landlord, I accepted cash, as my tenants preferred cash payments. I now live with my sister, and with utilities, I’ve noticed there is an option to pay via credit/debit card online (however, please don’t pay with a credit card, as interest can be as high as 23%).
I put all my gas and groceries on the credit card and pay the credit card off every month and don't get charged interest. Credit cards are useful but you have to be diligent and disciplined with money. If that's not you then you can get into trouble. Also, for every $5000.00 I charge on the card $50 is deposited in my savings account.
I use my bank's bill pay for my mortgage and utilities. I do like direct deposit but I don't like automatic withdrawals. Everything that gets paid out, I like to manually do the transaction. I feel that it keeps me aware of what I'm paying for every month. I've got a spreadsheet that I use to track my expenses and deposits and plenty in my checking account. At the end of the month, if it tells me that my spending outpaced my income I make damn sure that I know why and that I take steps to recover it in the future. Anything over and above a predetermined balance in the checking account is put in my savings. If I want to take a vacation or indulge in a "want" instead of a "need" I treat my savings account like a credit card. I set up a payment schedule and charge myself 10% interest. It took me years to wise up and do this. I wish I had done it in my 20's. If I did at 57 I would have been retired now.
As a woman, who is trained in bjj and muay tai, I always carry. A 6'5 220lbs with no training and no gun can do what he wants to a woman my size... But because I have a gun, I'm not worried about that guy.
I can't even remember the last time I wrote a check😂no it's really not too common anymore. This was a great vid! Thank you!
Same. I don’t even have these. It’s definitely a generational thing. Boomers still use them. Others do not.
@@jrh80 I'm a millennial and I use them sometimes. Certainly not, like, to buy groceries or anything at a store. But I'll sometimes pay doctors' bills, hoa fees or certain utilities with check. And sometimes I'll still receive them as gifts, lol. Most everything is done through online bill pay or transfer, etc. but I still keep a stash of checks in case. I personally love writing them out?? lol but maybe that's weird!
Gen X here, I cash checks from time to time, I haven’t written one in years. I rarely use paper plates at home. I have a pack of 50 that’s about 15 years old. I needed 6 for a party where I brought stuff.
I've been paying my rent via check for years in the States. Just recently did I get a landlord that accepts Venmo and I'm so glad.
i live in Switzerland, and we have the same amount of guns per habitants as the US and only 1 or 2 murder per firearms a year.
Yeah, but you have a culture that teaches gun safety and respect. Here in America, gun ownership is a superstition, where the statistic that a gun in the home is more likely to be used on a member of the household, rather than on an intruder, is ignored. Switzerland is also a declared neutral country, where as in America, we need willing people (ignorant or otherwise) to fight all the declared and undeclared wars we get ourselves involved in. 🙄
@@ssgtmole8610 that’s true. But in Switzerland you can carry a gun on you but it has to be bolt action or semi automatic. I have some guns at home (18) some old military guns like 5 k31 or 3 sig 510, German karabiner 98k with still the nazi emblem (very rare gun has a value of about 20k$) 5 22lr carabines, à desert eagle, smith & Wesson 629 44magnum, sig p226. My Swiss armed forces sig 550 that I have since I began military service.
Switzerland has better mental healthcare and doesn’t have fear mongering tv stations and radio hosts inciting violence.
@@MrThecyrille34 Well, growing up in Oregon, it was still okay to carry a firearm on you as long as it was visible. You can petition the local sheriff for a concealed carry permit. Doesn't make me feel safer to walk the streets. Frontier justice is a myth ginned up by dime store novelist publishers and Hollywood fantasists. Before the military, I came across a friend who showed me his father's bolt action rifle - yet another way kid's die in America. This was before I was 10. Fortunately he'd didn't have access to any ammo. There are too many chowder heads in America who think it is cool to open carry AR-15s. Some of which have probably been converted to full auto with easily obtained conversion kits. One of my buddies in the military bought an AR-15 - I assume he had to store it in the base armory because we were both living in the dorms - and showed me an add for the conversion kit - this was back in the 1980s.
@@brianjohnson3063 that’s why I said that switzerland has the same number of firearms per habitant as the us at egal population we heave the same amount of guns per person.
With regard to VPN's, you can also save money using TOR which usually ends up using a server in Europe. TOR jumps from several different severs in order to hide your IP address which tells the internet where you are searching from. It is also autonomous which means your search data is not tracked. TOR is free and updated frequently. TOR stands for The Onion Router which means it uses TOR servers around the world like the inner peelings of an onion.