I spent over 30 years of my life in the US thinking I had freedom, until I moved to the UK. That was the first time in my life I actually had freedom. I can't say this strongly enough, the people in the US have a way of societal bullying, and often call the authorities to enforce conformity, many call the police when there is no problem at all. In my opinion the US is less free, the only real freedom you do have in the US is doing something out of view of police and the public and there is lots of stretches of wilderness where you can get away with things. Except don't let peering eyes catch you because they will run straight to the police over any little thing. In UK there is no such thing as suspicious behavior, you would only be approached by authorities if you actually done something wrong. In the US walk down a sidewalk oddly, stand in front of a building too long (loitering) be in a residential neighborhood above your pay grade in a not so nice car, you would be met with stares and suspicion, possibly having the cops called on you (societal bullying, pressure to conform using threat of police) Paranoia in the US is rife too, can a paranoid society actually be free? I don't believe fear and freedom mix, the freedom to own guns has made police paranoid of criminals, and good citizens, and the good citizens paranoid of both. Another example of paranoia, for example one place I worked called the police because of an abandoned minivan in the parking lotwhat goes on outside and around the store in the US is always guarded, everyone's first thought seemed to be it must be stolen. I have lived and worked in the UK and no one in the UK is concerned about a car being in a parking lot too long, that's parking enforcement job. If a minivan sat there all night, so what? There was no limits on the US parking lot so was there a law actually being broken? Better yet American cops just go and enforce things outside of the law, which keeps the public a bit on their toes that they tread on eggshells to be safe. The lack of everyday freedom in US for your protection is annoying as well. In UK you are an adult, you're expected to act responsibly on your own accord, you are not baby sat with the expectation you are going to screw up. In the US its presumed you are going to screw up and need 1,000 different rules to prevent you from screwing up, this often sucks the fun out of everything. For example in US I went to a popular tourist beach, stepped off the boardwalk and wanted to put my feet in the water with my friend at nightit was spooky staring at the abyss but I hadn't made it close to the water when two police on horseback told us they didn't want people on the beach after dark for safety reasons. So this means people couldn't sit off the boardwalk on the beach either this is hundreds of feet away from the water. I live in a tourist area in UK, my city has a beach, I could put a tent up, have a bonfire, and get drunk and go night swimming and not one person would care, if however something went wrong I would have to shoulder the responsibility for my actions after the fact. The freedom to roam, wander and do whatever pleases my heart in the UK is pretty much accepted as long as no one is being harmed. For example my first trip to UK I went to the New Forest a park, I couldnt understand where the entrance was, we drove around in the little towns in the New Forest I asked a pub worker in Lymington where is the entrance she laughed and said you're in it you mean no fence? No gates? No rangers? No rules? No place to pay an entrance fee? What in the hell is going on hereThen we get to the woods, I just wanted to go off and explore but I wasn't sure. I kept asking my husband are we allowed here and there is no park police going to tell us off for going off a trail right?. I had no concept that we could wander freely.. Then I asked what would happen if we camped here? his response was nothing would happen. It took me a while to understand this thought process. I had worked in a state park, while it was free the rangers knew who was coming in and out and where people were most of the time. My kids have lots of freedom. CPS will not be called if they are unattended at a park, walk, bike or take a bus to school alone. Seeing kids in groups sometimes pretty young playing without adults will not trigger any fears from concerned good samaritans In the UK its still the same childhood Americans had in the 80s. So for kids it's exceptionally free. I was pleasently shocked by Penny For The Guy it made me excited for kids in the UK and saddened for American kids Could you imagine the horrors of the public and the reaction of the police if they'd seen panhandling kids with a dummy, begging for change from strangers with no parents, and loitering in front of a store too? How many American laws were broken there? I have no ideabut I'm sure if these boys were mine in the US something not so nice would happen. Yet I happily give to everyone if these kids so they can buy sweets and fireworksbecause I want to encourage this tradition, it's the antithesis of the US nanny cultureI would rather see kids be kids than being locked away in their homes for fear of stranger danger. I could probably list a thousand more examplessuch as Jay walking (although it's not a law everywhere in the US), being in parks after dark, drinking in public, fishing without a license (I don't know if all states have that but most do). and much, much more that restrict freedom in the US. Edit: While camping is not permitted in the New Forrest unless in designated areas, I still stand by my answer that nothing would come of it if we decided to camp there. Also UK requires a fishing license for streams, rivers, ponds, lakes, but not for ocean fishing.
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