The Better Life in Europe

Just a quick post today, but in case you're wondering why almost 1 in 4 US expats live in Europe, I think this article sums a lot of it up. Many Americans came over here for the sheer beauty of Europe (thousands of years of history adds up over time), but we stay for the better life. We have better health care, less crime, and our politics, while arguably screwed up in many ways — as you'll find everywhere — are far less hostile than the politics of the US.

London, Houses of Parliament
Photo by Brianna Lehman

And it certainly doesn't hurt that you can drive for a day and pass though multiple countries, just waiting to be explored.

And a couple of quick notes about yesterday's Czech Green Card post. First, it was pointed out to me on Reddit that the Czech Republic does not usually recognize dual nationality. If you wish to us the Czech Green Card as a permanent route to Europe, you will either have to give up your own nationality if you take citizenship, or accept permanent Czech residency which means that you can't live and work in other EEA countries, but at least you'd still be living in a gorgeous country and can easily visit the others.

Second, in one day, the Czech Green Card post has become this blog's fifth most popular blog post of all time. I expect it to rise through the ranks even further as today progresses. Obviously the "secret back door to Europe" really grabbed people's attention. I knew it would be popular, but not that popular. I won't focus exclusively on Europe, but maybe I should put more emphasis there if that's what people want?

And while we're at it, I've found yet another article about Americans giving up their citizenship. The only major industrialized nation to tax its citizens abroad, but they refuse to count us in the census and a quarter of us who vote never get our votes counted. Truly this is taxation without representation.