New Zealand

[Avetsen]

Anyone in Auckland? Come to our meet-up group. Let me know if you are interested.

I'm out of Auckland at the moment, but I should be back late January sometime and I'd be keen to come along then.

 

[AceNZ]

I'm in Nelson. My family and I moved to NZ from the States (Silicon Valley area in California) about a year ago.

 

[Man from La Mancha]

I'm in Nelson. My family and I moved to NZ from the States (Silicon Valley area in California) about a year ago.

Why, they seem more big brother and anti gun?

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[AceNZ]

Why, they seem more big brother and anti gun?

Life is about balance.

NZ is 65% the size of California, but only has 10% of the population. Housing is less expensive, property taxes are 95% lower, there are no death taxes, no capital gains taxes on the sale of your home, and it's beautiful and relatively unpolluted. I'm new to NZ politics, but so far it seems much more under control than in the US. Special interests don't seem to dominate things here.

They do have socialized medicine -- but there's also a parallel private system that allows you to opt-out of the public one if you want to. Taxes are high -- but at least the tax forms and associated tax law are extremely simple in comparison to the US (the annual tax return is only about 4 pages long). The overall tax rates aren't directly comparable, but I'm sure I'll pay less here overall than I would in the US.

Although I'm relatively new here, my perception so far is that NZ is nowhere close to being a Big Brother type of environment. I haven't found the government to be anywhere near as intrusive as in the US. In foreign policy, they have been solidly against the war in the Iraq, for example. Many laws are relatively lax compared to the US -- gambling is legal, the drinking age is 18, minimum age for a driver's license is 15, etc. The courts don't allow the type of distorted settlements that happen regularly in the US. Million-dollar awards for "damages" are unheard of. For example, in an auto accident case, the person who was hurt is likely to be awarded lost wages plus a little extra. The result is that insurance costs much less than in the US.

My overall sense of New Zealanders is that they understand and support the idea of personal responsibility -- something that was lost in the US a long time ago.

Native New Zealanders, please let me know if I'm off-track, or if any of this resonates with you.

Although I was attracted to NZ, I also felt driven away from the US. Who wants to live in a country that a large part of the rest of the world hates? That's a situation that isn't likely to end well. I don't want my tax dollars to continue to be used to support perpetual wars of aggression. The level of government intrusion and the loss of respect for personal liberty is really crazy. If Ron Paul gets elected, hopefully things will change....

 

[Man from La Mancha]

Although I was attracted to NZ, I also felt driven away from the US. Who wants to live in a country that a large part of the rest of the world hates? That's a situation that isn't likely to end well. I don't want my tax dollars to continue to be used to support perpetual wars of aggression. The level of government intrusion and the loss of respect for personal liberty is really crazy. If Ron Paul gets elected, hopefully things will change....

Thanks for the info. Is it true that New Zealand women are the hottest babes in the world. according to this article they are, which is a big plus...http://www.stuff.co.nz/4235893a10.html.

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[AceNZ]

Thanks for the info. Is it true that New Zealand women are the hottest babes in the world. according to this article they are, which is a big plus...

Well, I'm happily married, so I think my wife is hotter than the locals...

But yes, I would say that NZ women are generally more attractive than women in the US. They seem to be more athletic, outdoorsy, they eat better, are more trim, healthier and just happier. And of course the accent is cool, too.

 

[raiha]

Avetsen PM me when you get back in town! We meet-up in Central Auckland on Thursdays at 7pm.

Ace NZ you are pretty accurate. Especially the bit about personal responsibility. We fight like hell the moment any whiff of someone taking our liberties away happens. We climb up trees, chain ourselves to machinery, farmers herd sheep through towns, and we are not averse to the occasional riot.
We have more bookshops per capita than anywhere else in the world.
We are encouraged to think for ourselves. Still we have just as much domestic violence, gang violence, youth suicide as anyone else. I am meeting more and more Americans that have come here because they are afraid of what is going on over there.

As for the gun thing...well figure this, most people in the Western world can't relate to your second amendment. Although with the encroaching fascism, I am beginning to understand why it might be a good idea!

Oh and promiscuous and hot aren't the same thing. Maybe they are to a bloke!

 

[AceNZ]

It seems like there's also a pretty big difference between the north and south islands -- much more so than I thought when I first moved here. South Islanders seem to be somewhat more rural, more independent and more relaxed than North Islanders. People on the NI seem to be more urban, more stressed. I think there's more crime per capita on the NI, and I know first-hand that the driving there is a completely different and more stressful experience than driving on the SI.

It's not that gun ownership is impossible in NZ. From the number of gun-oriented stores I've seen, I suspect that a lot of people actually do own them, although I don't know that for sure. What's different than the US is that they take gun ownership, and particularly gun safety, much more seriously. You have to take a safety test to get a license, guns are required to be secured when not in use, someone you know has to endorse you in order to get a license, you have to regularly demonstrate basic skills to own a pistol, etc.

The country certainly isn't crime-free or poverty-free, but in spite of the problems, I would say they are generally much nicer, happier and generally more satisfied with life than most Americans I know.

@raiha, I have noticed a lot of bookshops, although books are extremely expensive here. I've seen small paperbacks for NZ$35 that would be a third of that price in the States.

 

[idiom]

We have very low violent crime although other crime is pretty high. Most of the first world outside the U.S. is like that.

 

[Misesean]

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[silverlegacy]

New Zealand has always interested me. I love the personal responsibility thought I always hear about in their government. The only parts that scare me are what seems to me like expensive housing, low wages and the gun rights. If this country continues over the next 20 years like it is, I might have to think about moving.

 

[AceNZ]

New Zealand has always interested me. I love the personal responsibility thought I always hear about in their government. The only parts that scare me are what seems to me like expensive housing, low wages and the gun rights. If this country continues over the next 20 years like it is, I might have to think about moving.

Whether housing is expensive and wages are low really depends on your perspective, as well as what part of the country you're talking about. I could make the same claims about the US.

Coming from California, as I did, I found housing to be less expensive than what I was used to (maybe half the price for an equivalent home). For wages, keep in mind that the numbers aren't directly comparable, since there are significant differences in benefits -- medical, holidays, taxes, etc.

If Ron Paul isn't elected, 20 yrs from now the US will very likely be a shell of its former self. The dollar will be worth so little that moving out of the country will be impossible for anyone but the very wealthy. I decided to get my family out well in advance.

 

[silverlegacy]

Calis cost of living is way more expensive than where I live (ID/WY), but the wages are way higher too. I agree that it is very possible for the US to continue to fall, but the saving grace may be its biggest short coming. The whole world has huge reserves of US dollars, if it totally crashes, the whole world crashes. That may differ here in 10 years as the Euro is gaining more and more demand, and how much US policies change for the better or worse.

 

[s burgess]

hey great to c im not the only kiwi whos inta ron paul even better i saw some nelson locals.mayb i will get a ron paul t shirt afta all if i can find where to get them.is there any austrian groups in new zealand

 

[idiom]

Bump for 2012

 

[AceNZ]

A few interesting changes in NZ over the past year or so:

-- Income tax rates were decreased, with a supposedly offsetting increase in GST (like a national sales tax), from 12.5% to 15%
-- Gift taxes were abolished (consistent with no inheritance taxes)
-- Driving age was increased to 16
-- Legal limit for alcohol was decreased to zero for those under 20
-- The earthquakes in Christchurch caused a number of people to relocate. I'm not sure we've seen the final results of that process yet.

 

[Willem van der Decken]

join the Ron Paul singbomb !

Hey New Zeeland,

http://www.ronpaulsignbomb.com/other-countries.html

make the tree of liberty grow !