40 Normalized Things In Europe That Are Unknown In The US, According To The Internet

If anyone tells you how difficult Universal Health Care is to do, remind them that only 35/36 of the largest economies can make it work.

Should be this way everywhere, so no one's surprised by the full cost. I know what is taxable and how much tax where I live, but not where I travel.

Our supermarkets in a little fishing village at the Dutch coast have digital price tags on the shelves. Isn't that an option for the US too? Easy to update prices...

Sales tax where I live (Eastern Canada) is 15%, so it can definitely be a shock to visitors

In Oregon we simply don't have sales tax. Sales tax is pretty messed up if you think about it. Why TF are you taxing people for the things they need every day? Why are you taxing food and toilet paper? Those are basic necessities. It's like taxing people to live. It's just messed.

Fun fact: sales taxes, like all taxes, fees and tariffs , are ultimately paid by consumers, they're only collected by businesses. So please stop advocating for increasing taxes to "make the evil business owners pay their fair share." They either pass it off to the consumer or go out of business.

Everyone in America hates the way it's done here.

America was founded on a distrust of government, and that sentiment continues to run strong. Not “hiding” taxes in stores’ prices makes it clear how much more the government is taking from our wallets as we spend our “post-tax” income.

Included in Spain. Much easier to shop.

This was one of the most annoying realizations when we moved from Germany to Canada, I still despise it after 30 years.

I think paying tax on top of the price listed keeps US citizens angry about taxes. They are reminded about taxes every they buy something adds to the confusion for the math impaired too.

Also note the use of a comma instead of a decimal point.

Or perhaps it is a way of reminding ourselves how much the government is taking..

Isn’t it difficult in the US to check you are being asked the right amount? If you buy something that’s labelled $2.57 and at the cash desk they ask for €2.76, do you just trust that is right or can you add 7.35% in your head?

.......and tips.

It’s always sooo annoying when I’m shopping with my friends. Obviously we only have our broke teen allowances with us cuz none of us have applied for a debit card yet, so it’s always sooo annoying to have to calculate tax so I don’t go over my tiny budget of $15-

Urgh, okay, here goes... sales tax here isn't a federal tax. It can be applied at the state, county, municipal or local level (or a mixture of them). In my city, different STREETS have different tax rates which may or may not apply depending on the size of the business. So, a bodega will be 3.5% but the Burger King next door will be 6.375%. Cross the state line to NYC, and now the Burger King is 12% (8% state + 3% city + 1% local) and the bodega as well. Now, if the state, local or municipal tax changes, but the others don't it may or may not affect a given business, especially if it only changes on certain products or services (i.e., entertainment or prepared foods.) Now, besides the minor headache of trying to make national ads with no prices mentioned, there's also every small business that has to do this as well at the state level. A mom & pop shop would spend a lot of time changing price tags because local tax rates are volatile and state rates can change frequently, too.

The US never outgrew the original puritans.

That is soo behind...

SO sensible and completely logical. Also, meters, kilometers, degrees Celcius. It is just plain stupid that the US clings to imperial when nearly all the rest of the world is on metric!

What is weird is naming a room without a bath, a bathroom. That's not standard in Europe.

Safe public transportation!

Tips in the USA have gotten way out of hand. Even if you are picking up carry out, many places still expect you to tip.

Portland, Oregon, Boston Massachusetts, New York City. There are a few who have it figured out. The rest of the country is living in the dark ages if Mid 20th century car centered life.

I'm pretty sure anyone taking an ambulance ride has at least one thing to be worried about

We can send money from our banks via Zelle.

Cashiers in the US stand all day? I had no idea. What do the trade unions have to say about this?

Not everywhere.

UK NHS worker. I get 30 paid annual leave days (when I started it was 20, but you get additional days added depending on years of service). Plus bank holidays-christmas, boxing day, new years day, spring and summer Bank Holidays, 2 days at Easter. If I'm on call during a Bank Holiday, I get a day in lieu. Sick leave-6 months at full pay, 6 months at half pay, then onto statutory sick pay. Discretionary compassionate/family leave (if someone suddenly drops dead, family crisis etc, at the discretion of your line manager). There's a lot of research showing that shorter working weeks are actually more efficient and productive. Then there's maternity leave (a year) and paternity leave, and also adoption leave (if you adopt, it's considered similar to maternity leave)

The issue isn’t the US’s military budget, although this is higher than is typical in Europe. The issue is that US government is hamstrung by ‘conservatives’ who are simply misogynists who won’t recognise that maternity leave is hugely beneficial for mother and child, and that supporting mothers results in better long-term economic outcomes.

I live in Portland, Oregon and haven't driven a car in almost 20 years. I have a dedicated shopping bike I use one a week and all winter. It's the bike with fenders. I can carry two shopping bags home at a time and that's how I control my spending.

Many people in the USA take their own bags to the grocery store also.

I'm from the Netherlands and most people I know don't mind if you wear shoes in their homes. It's a personal choice, not a cultural thing.

For me as a Belgian, Dutch mayonnaise is way too sweet though.

YES!!! Seriously I am so sick of a two party system! Democrats and Republicans BOTH suck! How did we get stuck with this BS?

This is very noticeable. Most Europeans have a far greater respect of the life part of the Work Life balance, and so this is seen reflected in cultural norms and often laws. (For example, try to go shopping in Germany on a Sunday or see the consequences of non-emergency work-related 'phone calls outside standard office hours.)

We have trains. Yeah, this country is backward as f**k but we have goddamned trains.

Respect other peoples' property maybe?

You can get your phone unlocked if you've finished paying it off

I'm curious how this differs from eu legislation. For example, the app store must clearly state how data is collected and how it is used. Sites can be prohibited from collecting data and the use of cookies can be adjusted manually. Apps can be denied access to, for example, the camera, messages or gallery if you want.

Roundabouts are becoming far more common in the USA.

The United States has an extremely low population density. When you live 25 miles from the nearest Walmart and there's nothing in between except corn and soybean fields, you need a car.

You have disrespectful police in every country.

Mandatory in more than half of states. We're getting there.

lol legal-64d8...b4ee4e.png

This one is also not true. It depends on the country. Some countries in Europe are still very, very bureaucratic

Please come visit us on the West Coast. Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, and LA know how to day drink.