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Americans Are Sharing Things They Wish The US Would Learn From Other Countries, And Here Are 30 Insightful Answers
What better way to broaden your worldview than by traveling? Being able to experience new social norms and customs that might be miles away from what you're used to sounds like a great way to get some new perspectives. Perhaps just because things have always been a certain way, doesn't mean it's necessarily the best?
One Redditor asked US citizens what they think the US could adopt from other countries, and people had a lot to say. It's clever to check out how other systems work once in a while, and these folks noticed some huge gaps that the US needs to jump.
From mundane things like shoes in the house, to the whole tax system, people were eager to share where they think the US is lacking. Bored Panda selected the best submissions on what Americans could learn from other countries. Upvote your favorites, and don't be shy to share your opinion in the comments below!
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No tipping. But actually having a good salary for waiters not to mention, health insurance, paid vacation.
In Denmark waiters are paid a decent wage, so you only give a tip if the service has been extraordinary.
When I was in Austria and Germany, I walked my ass off everyday because I could. The streets were safe with designated pedestrian areas. I ate tons of food and drank tons of beer and I still lost weight. If American cities were more pedestrian friendly, we wouldn't have the obesity epidemic we have now. Well, maybe we would anyway - because, cr**py processed food with mystery chemicals in it.
I like how in Japan the schools basically have the kids clean up after themselves and take care of their school. They don't have janitors and children serve their peers lunch, too. Plus, their lunches always look amazing compared to the highly processed foods my child gets here. My son and I pick up trash around our area. The middle school by us is always covered in trash. Give some responsibility and respect to our planet.
Adding to this, guaranteed annual paid vacation days for everyone, period. The EU guarantees FOUR CALENDAR WEEKS. Some other countries have more.
US has ZERO.
Australia has 3weeks at Christmas, 1week at Easter and many paid public holidays, we even take 4 days off in November because of a horse race, frickin awesome:)
Finland has recently ended homelessness via just allowing people to live in small apartments without any preconditions and 4/5 make their way back to a stable life
it's also cheaper then allowing people to be homeless
I'm all for supporting the homeless but wonder how it's cheaper to house them than not? (Even if it's more costly I support)
A prison system that focuses on rehabilitation instead of punishment. Many countries have been successful with this saving literally billions of dollars and cutting down on crime.
Decent healthcare that isn't tied to your job. Other countries all over the world have figured out different ways to do this, so why can't we? (I know, corporations own politicians)
I'm not an expert, but I'm guessing it would destabilize a bunch of industries in the near term. But I wonder if long-term, it would create so much new innovation since people would be unafraid to lose their health benefits to leave their stable but s****y corporate jobs to start new ventures.
In Australia healthcare is paid for by our taxes, we are taxed heavily for this. In Australia we are pretty much taxed heavily for everything, the only people who seem to get away with not paying a lot of taxes are politicians
Teaching foreign language to young students in public schools (ie 5yrs, k-5) when the propensity to learn language quickly is maximum.
Seems that with huge spanish speaking countries directly to our (US) south, spanish SHOULD be mandatory.
I received mandatory Spanish lessons in my 7-8th grade years (11-13 age) as an English speaker in California USA, and they did me almost no good. If the lessons had started earlier in life, I'm sure the message would have gotten through. I can order food in a Mexican restaurant OK, though!
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Here in Germany it's mandatory to learn english in school, with french and spanish being options in secondary schools for average talented and smart people (We have 4 different kinds of secondary schools here)
My school has english then french or latin and then Italien for the one who want to learn another language instead of having chemistry early on. I think it depends on the school which languages you have, but English is mandatory and I think French is mandatory to have as an option.
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Here in India we have so many languages so kids from non-hindi speaking states learn not only their native language (read, speak and write) but also hindi and English. So, many kids here are well versed in three languages by the time they reach High School.
I grew up in FL (US), and we all started Spanish in Kindergarten (for me this would have been late 1980s)... I still remember Profesora Josefina! So this must be a district or state thing.
My mother was born in 1920. When she was in school, they started teaching foreign languages in 3rd grade. She took French all the way through high school. Even though she hadn’t spoken it in 30+ years, it had been drilled deep in her memory. When we went to Montreal, it came tight back to her, and she was the one who guided us around, and had the vast majority of encounters with locals who didn’t speak English. Made me wish that schools still did that. I started school in 1966, and foreign languages weren’t offered until 7th grade—-and you could switch languages if you didn’t like the one you were taking.
My daughter is in a tiny rural primary in Scotland and they teach Mandarin and French!
Two years of a second language were required for me to graduate high school. I took Spanish because here on the West Coast we have a huge Latino population and it seemed more useful than French. Those were the only two options.
Mine son(9) and daighter(7) already speak some basic English. We Laredo
Elementary schools in Houston area teach other languages as an option before or after school. Youngest took ASL (American Sign Language), but they also offered Spanish, Mandarin Chinese, and another. But many parents can't get kids there early or have them stay after. Youngest had an advantage when they took ASL in HS because of this.
There is a lack of language teaching in the U.S. and we are justifiably criticized for expecting others to speak our English (Who can understand the Brits, not even the Brits) but maybe 95% of Americans will not ever need a foreign language. In Europe you can live where 2 miles in either direction you can have people speak 3 languages, hence a need to learn more languages and less of other subjects.
My daughter, 12, did French and Spanish when she was at primary school (4-10 yrs) and has recently been doing modern languages at high school, French, Spanish and German, she has opted to continue with French into next year and although I’m better at politely ordering a large beer or 6 and I can get directions in a few languages she’s racing ahead of me in pretty much every other aspect of languages. It’s the way it should be! This is in the U.K. btw 😀
Foreign language study should start early (kindergarten) as it is beneficial for brain development. Most adults I know in the U.S barely remember the Spanish/French/German they took in high school. Sad really, when many Europeans are at least conversant in 2+ languages....
One of the greatest regrets of my life. If I could do it over, I would have asked to go to a bilingual elementary school. I think Spanish should be mandatory, or other languages as a different option, depending on the region.
Yes, yes, yes! I was shocked to learn that so many young people start their language education in secondary school (high school) in the US. I feel like this is such a difficult age to learn a language as so many teenagers are worried about peer pressure and making a mistake in front of their peers. There is so little emphasis placed a learning a foreign language in the US and other parts of the world. As someone working in the linguistics and language services field, so many companies and even hospitals view translation and interpretation as a commodity and refuse to pay linguists what they are worth. It’s terrifying as some hospitals had no workers who could speak another language so children had to interpret for their parents at highly technical medical appointments. It’s really sad..
This would not work for the American government. When you can communicate with people from other countries, you will find out that everyday normal people do not want war. It's certain people who have a love of money and want more money, that want war.
That would be great! Unfortunately, im stuck trying to learn French in high school with some basic knowledge of asl (I can say hi what's your name and introduce people, but other than that all I know is the alphabet)
i learned a bit of french from duolingo lol but i stopped when i lost my 650 day streak in september
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In Germany English started at grade 5 (10-11 years old) and other languages (most often French or Spanish) around 2 years later I think. That changed though. Now English is beginning at grade 1 (5-6 years old) and sometimes even in Kindergarten (like preschool in the US)
I keep seeing people in the US being charged ridiculous fees to apply for a rental property and then up not being successful in their application. The UK has banned these fees and it seems a much more fair way of doing things.
No big pharma advertising
So, I pay my doctor $250 US per visit but then I have to talk to HIM about so and so drug???
Mandatory paid family leave for the birth or adoption of a child.
OMG yes, some people come back after a baby with no job. Huge problem
Remove it being legal for anyone to get paid less than minimum wage so as to rely on tips. No more tips. Just people making their hourly pay doing the job they do, and we pay what it costs, period.
If that means a haircut is $45, well, that's what even the cheapest one comes to anyway, with tip, so let's just have done with the tip economy and pay everyone their full wage, paid by the employer, and the customer pays the set price.
A haircut in Australia is well over $45, I mean, a packet of cigarettes is $55, a gallon of petrol (we use litres in Australia but I'm making it easier:)is approximately $7.50, my daughter got her hair coloured at the hairdressers, $425, minimum wage in my industry (I work in the building trade) $29 approx per hour, my 19 year old daughter earns $29 an hour, my 25 year old son earns $60 per hour........whilst the amounts seem large, they have to be because everything is extremely expensive
At South Korean restaurants, tables have call buttons. You press them when you're ready to order or you need anything. Other than that, the service staff leaves you alone.
In Canada they come regularly until you order then as soon as your food arrives they come back and ask how everything is before you have a chance to try it, then they can't be found when you want to pay and leave
When I went to Canada this summer I was amazed that there were recycle and compost bins everywhere. It was to the point that I almost didn't throw anything in the actual garbage the entire trip. Time to step up your game America.
Out subdivision recycles, but if you put the wrong things in your recycle box, they don't pick it up. I try to use a lot of recyclable items for my crafting. Just made 20mo grandson alphabet, number, color, and shape magnets using soda boxes. Cut in 2x2 squares, glued 10 pieces together, painted and sealed, attached magnets. He LOVES them!
Universal school lunches. It is embarrassing that we do not have folks cooking lunches for students from scratch, and that it is not provided for free to all students. You want to bring your own lunch? Great, but you can also have the free hot lunch that looks homemade, not pizza squares, canned veggies and a slice of a fruit and 3 oz of milk. Kids shouldn't be going into debt for lunch. We're probably wealthy enough that our food waste alone would be sufficient to, if captured magically, to feed every kid in the United States three proper meals per day.
Walkable cities.
Above ground monorail systems.
I was on the board of a food charity for about six years. The amount of food that grocery stores throw away is staggering. In part due to US food safety laws. In bigger part due to US shoppers are super picky so if any fruit or veggie has a minor blem they will pass on it. The amount of waste is just painful to see.
A better tax system. IE the government gives you a number and you pay it, no guess work.
I thought USA is such a great country but reading all these and something as simple as taxes makes me realise maybe it is not as great as they make it look like. You are missing on so many points and to me it seems like your citizens are money making machines for the 1% and close to getting bankrupt with one wrong step....
Not having huge gaps in bathroom stalls from any other country in the world please. Why do we as americans put up with this? I'm tired of making eye contact with strangers while s******g in public.
I loved a unisex setup I used in Japan. (I think, small chance it was Korea). Open area is for hand washing. Also a pee trough on back wall. The stalls had walls/doors floor to ceiling. Appropriate since they were squat toilets. But when a person goes into a stall it is basically like a private room. So nobody watching you potty - but saves space with shared sinks. And of course it totally sidesteps the "which bathroom is okay to use" problem because everyone uses the same one.
In Japan there is a service that you can call 24hrs/day that will come with 2 drivers 1 car. One driver drives you and your car home, the other follows in their car to pick up the driver that took you home with your car. No DUI ect. Its actually really affordable there. No need to get an uber home that night then an uber back the next day when you are hung over only to find out you have a million parking tickets or your car got towed.
The train system from Japan. The US public transportation is lacking.
The US public transportation system is lacking because everything is rigged for fossil fuel companies to make moolah.
Taking your shoes off when entering the inside.
Lol this is certainly an American thing and i don't understand at all why you would want to wear your shoes indoors. It's dirty and so much more comfortable without shoes anyway
keep public spaces clean and tidy like in japan. that is all.
Swedish drinking laws. If I remember correctly, you can purchase alcohol below 5% at age 18, and be served liquor is bars (so the bartender can control the amount being served.) Seems like a smarter way to introduce kids to alcohol rather than opening the flood gates at 21.
I have always hated the hypocrisy / inconsistency between when you are mature enough to drive - 16, sign legal contracts / die in the military - 18, and smoke or drink - 21. Drive a car to the recruiting center, join the military and kill other human beings / maybe get blown up. But don't you dare buy a cigarette.
Widely available artisan bread at affordable prices
Where I live you can get the best artisan bread ever in a supermarket. Plus we have mini bakeries in some grocery stores that make amazing bread and other baked goods and sell them for a couple euros at most
Amsterdam. Knew they biked, but didn’t expected multi-level bike parking lots every mile. Jesus christ I loved it there.
I have just come back but did not do any sight seeing as the client my husband is a carer for wanted to go to the red light district every day. The first day we split up I want off with my baby but due to having sarcoidosis and ME the walking we done left me bed bound the following day with my feet elevated. Anyway this is the only tourist thing that was done, my husband his client and a friend who tagged along took the baby out for a canal cruise. The guide was really informative apparently and had said that every year they remove about 15 thousand bikes from the rivers and canals in the city. I thought it was a great fact because I love facts. But I really hope these bikes are recycled and turned in to more bikes because they are everywhere you look. I want to go back soon as I missed so much I wanted to see
Siesta. Nothing seems more civilized than everyone taking a nap from 12 until 3ish in the afternoon. Then working until 6-7. And eating dinner at 8 or 9
This seems like a waste of a day to me. I'd rather finish work 3 hours earlier in the day to have that time back with my family instead of napping and stretching out my work day
When I went to Japan. When I ordered from food from any type of chain that is also in USA like McDonald's, Denny's, Burger King, it looked like the picture on the menu or the commercial. It was truly bizzare. Like in the USA if you get a bigmac it looks nothing like the picture or in the commercials. When You get a big mac in japan...it looks like the one in the picture. Its like somebody back there was painstakingly putting that burger together perfectly.
Japan seems to take pride in everything they do. Amazing country and people
Fika, Swedish break for coffee and light socializing.
Note: this post originally had 37 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.
FYI: These are not universal, either in or outside the US. Humanity plus corporate greed plus local/regional/national preferences mean any of these can apply anywhere, anytime. If you don't tip in Latin America, btw, be prepared for a *very* bad time. So.... yeah, not even tuesday and here we go. Geez, BP, take a weekend off... or just block everyone from the US from using BP since our nation sucks so much. I understand that's a very progressive/s/ thing to do. (For those wondering: See: News: Montana bans Tiktok)
Agreed. South Africa has a lot of the above problems as well. We have a tipping culture, and if you want quality anything you pay. We do have free education and public healthcare but the quality is abyssmal so most people pay for private suppliers.
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This isn’t an attack on the U.S., unless you make it one. These are ideas from around several countries that may improve lives in the U.S., some areas, some communities, some cities may not benefit from them, to think that one idea or system would work across a nation as huge and varied as the U.S. is optimistic to say the least, but look at the system that is in place now and see if it could be improved by importing some ideas that work elsewhere. If you are offended that’s your issue, offence is taken, not given. The U.S. has exported some great ideas, be confident enough to admit that others may have ideas that would improve your nation, none of us live in a perfect country.
And aren't the answers being given by Americans who have been to Europe and seen where changes can be made?
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Maybe we’ll get lucky and get :eek: 2 closed-minded, US-slamming posts this week. *Fingers-crossed*
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It's staggering how little we get for the amount of taxes we pay. In Europe and Asia, ordinary people are not subsidizing the wealthy and enterprises who are not paying their taxes.
German traffic education, laws, and penalties. German regulation of automobiles. Yeah, gimme that.
4 weeks of vacation would be great and all, but I go bonkers after one week.
It's not 4 weeks in a row, you arrange them during the year as you wish and can according to your work schedule / organisation with the colleagues. I have 8 weeks paid, and take them throughout the year so as to do max 15 days in a row, otherwise I'd go bonkers as well.
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So you're against the US adapting good ideas from other countries? That's all this list was. And most of our ideas originate elsewhere. This is a global age. Stop being a snowflake, we're not perfect.
Load More Replies... FYI: These are not universal, either in or outside the US. Humanity plus corporate greed plus local/regional/national preferences mean any of these can apply anywhere, anytime. If you don't tip in Latin America, btw, be prepared for a *very* bad time. So.... yeah, not even tuesday and here we go. Geez, BP, take a weekend off... or just block everyone from the US from using BP since our nation sucks so much. I understand that's a very progressive/s/ thing to do. (For those wondering: See: News: Montana bans Tiktok)
Agreed. South Africa has a lot of the above problems as well. We have a tipping culture, and if you want quality anything you pay. We do have free education and public healthcare but the quality is abyssmal so most people pay for private suppliers.
Load More Replies... This isn’t an attack on the U.S., unless you make it one. These are ideas from around several countries that may improve lives in the U.S., some areas, some communities, some cities may not benefit from them, to think that one idea or system would work across a nation as huge and varied as the U.S. is optimistic to say the least, but look at the system that is in place now and see if it could be improved by importing some ideas that work elsewhere. If you are offended that’s your issue, offence is taken, not given. The U.S. has exported some great ideas, be confident enough to admit that others may have ideas that would improve your nation, none of us live in a perfect country.
And aren't the answers being given by Americans who have been to Europe and seen where changes can be made?
Load More Replies... Maybe we’ll get lucky and get :eek: 2 closed-minded, US-slamming posts this week. *Fingers-crossed*
Load More Replies... It's staggering how little we get for the amount of taxes we pay. In Europe and Asia, ordinary people are not subsidizing the wealthy and enterprises who are not paying their taxes.
German traffic education, laws, and penalties. German regulation of automobiles. Yeah, gimme that.
4 weeks of vacation would be great and all, but I go bonkers after one week.
It's not 4 weeks in a row, you arrange them during the year as you wish and can according to your work schedule / organisation with the colleagues. I have 8 weeks paid, and take them throughout the year so as to do max 15 days in a row, otherwise I'd go bonkers as well.
Load More Replies... So you're against the US adapting good ideas from other countries? That's all this list was. And most of our ideas originate elsewhere. This is a global age. Stop being a snowflake, we're not perfect.
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