JPF Home Page Forums General Messages General Message Forum The US Bounced A Check

I haven't found detailed data for other countries, but in the US, the average commute each way ranges between 26 minutes and 46 minutes, almost entirely (as a %) by car. In most places, public transportation of ANY kind is simply not available.

As for Big Jim's remarks, after I finished laughing because surely he was joking, if he thinks the US is poorly traveled he's never driven across it on vacation. From ICY arctic tundra in Alaska, to death valley deserts in the Southwest, to tropical rainforests in Hawaii and mountainous regions across America north and south, east and west as well as giant grasslands, lush farmland, swamps and tropical areas in the southeast and some of the most amazing natural beauty in the world and diversity in cities, cultures (music, art, sculptures, architecture etc.) and people that rival if not surpass any other country in the world. We're also the only country to openly (i.e. everyone gets a vote) elect a minority as our country's leader. Our diversity in all things has been our strength as the world's melting pot and all those cultures have left their mark on all things. By comparison nearly all other countries are racially segregationalists in that places like Scotland are over 90% caucasian and 96% Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish. For folks in your country to find significant diversity of anything, you HAVE to leave your small island (you're barely in the Top 10 in Island sizes coming in at #9 in between 2 different Canadian Islands with a third, Victoria Island, coming in at number 3).
The UK has less than 80,000 miles compared the the USA's 3,717,813 square miles. We have 18 of 50 USA States as large or larger than the entire UK. Here, we can drive across town and find nearly all races, religions, ethnicities and even languages, especially in our larger citiesd. Geographically we have to be among the most diverse (perhaps Russia is on par due to size but without enough city and infrastructure development for even the citizens there to get to most of the country for a visit) of anywhere in the world. We have a single national park in the USA that has more square kilometers than all of the UK in size. If you take Russia out, all of Europe is far smaller than the USA. Even with a large portion of Russia, the worlds largest country, tossed in, it's only about 10-20% larger. So big deal that you have a passport. I bet you are far less traveled geographically, on average, than people in the USA are. I visited people in both Ireland and Scotland that hadn't been out of their county in their entire life (especially Ireland). I had visited many people in both the UK and Ireland who hadn't been to the other Island. They also had never been to France and you're connected by a tunnel to them!

So get off your Scottish high horse my friend. You guys are among the least diverse people's of the world. And your country of Scotland, which I love (and from where some of my ancestors came) isn't a fraction as diverse as the USA or on many counts Australia either for that matter.

More interesting facts:

Ethnic groups
UK ethnic groups list
92.1% White
4.0% South Asian
2.0% Black
1.2% Mixed
0.4% Chinese
0.4% Other

By comparison, the USA is:

White alone 63.7% or 196.8 million
Black or African American alone 38.9 million 12.6%
White Hispanic and Latino Americans: 26.7 million 8.7%
Some other race alone
(Mestizo, Mulatto...) 19,107,368 6.2%
Asian alone 14,674,252 4.8%
Two or more races 9,009,073 2.9%*
American Indian or Alaska Native alone 2,932,248 0.9%
Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander alone 540,013 0.2%

*As a side note: That means our President comes from a minority that is only 2.9% of our population. (For all those who view the USA negatively when it comes to race)

Stats above are from Wikipedia.

Sorry.. but passport stats mean nothing in terms of travel or multicultural experiences. I've visited 20 Countries in Europe alone. How many have you visited? How many US States? I've been to all the largest cities in Scotland. (Liked them too, though Glasgow was my least favorite). I am also not sure of why getting kicked out of a country means you're better traveled than someone else? What was the relevence? Were you working as a Spy for Scotland or something?

The USA Rocks, and so does Scotland, but I doubt the average Scot is better traveled than the average American, nor as experienced in multi-cultural activities, interaction or living in proximity. You might see some folks on business or vacation, we see a diverse array of folks every single day and when we do travel, we see more geographic diversity in our own country than most people see in a lifetime of travel elsewhere. Next question?

Brian