US American REACTS - The Dark Side of Living In Germany

[@metalboerny7498]

Dog poo can be an issue in parks in big cities. But actually there is a law that dog poo should be collected and trashed by the owner. If you get caught leaving your dogs fecies by an official, you get fined.

[@alexamurawski4524]

...and dog are surely not allowed in groceriestores. You can bring them into shops where they have no groceries, and some restaurants will allow dogs today.

[@wilhelmmay3537]

I live in Mannheim and I can assure you, the dog poop problem isn`t nearly as big as he said. Also I have just declared my income tax online.

[@twinmama42]

Hi from a Palatinatian to an Electorial-Palatination (I live just outside of Ludwigshafen city borders). Dog-poo: more dangerous when hiking in the forest than in pedestrian zones. Income tax online for the last 10-ish years. I'm on my 3rd or 4th online certificate.

[@blaumupi]

If these are the "dark sides" of Germany, then I can only be glad how well off we Germans are here! 😀😊

[@NateLawson]

I know, right? Such a dark place to live! 😂

[@lbergen001]

Regarding taxes, many countries with relatively high taxes also score high on having happy citizens. I think there is a strong correlation between these aspects.

[@Travis-L6E]

I've been 14 years in Germany from America, as my wife is german. Over the years i've learned to accept the good with the bad.

[@NateLawson]

I think that's true of any place you live really.

[@Travis-L6E]

@@NateLawsonagreed

[@HappyLoki585]

Living in a 9k village, we have fast Internet (Glasfaser). Dogs are not allowed in grocery stores. I never visited a city or village in Germany with a dog pop problem I'm doing my tax declaration online since years. And after living since 30 years in Germany I very much love and appreciate the german directness!!!

[@Mars-l9b]

I don't really know much about Germany in the context of the topics that the video you reacted on discussed, but geez the guy loves to say "the dark side of Germany" a lot.. and they were pretty broad and easy topics to cover. I'm from the Netherlands and I think our neighbor country isn't very different from my country.. so imo most topics were kinda moot, and definitely not "dark sides". The taxes topic is quite popular, and at least some credit for the guy mentioning how that tax money is used for social services and such.. very often they are like: taxes go up to 50%!!! Yes and no.. for most people (low to median income) they only pay like 30% cos that's the lowest tax bracket. Once you go up in how much you earn, you might find yourself in a higher tax bracket, but that only applies to the part of your income that goes BEYOND the lower bracket. So people who pay "50% taxes" only do so for the amount they make beyond like 100k (I'm just guessing numbers here as an example).. which most of us think is pretty fair. So, let's say you make 100k a year, you get taxed 30% over the first 45k, 40% over the next 30k, and 50% over the rest (again, just guesstimating the numbers). And I don't know about Germany, but here in the Netherlands, those taxes are already automatically deducted from your monthly salary. So for most people, most of the time, filing your tax form is pretty much just clicking through an online form that already has all the info pre-filled for you and agreeing with it, meaning you don't have to pay anything extra and you're done in like 15 minutes.

[@arnodobler1096]

I haven't had a single YT video, or media library and streaming service in the last 10 years, in a 3 k village. 30€ per month. 9€ for 6 GB with the smartphone. Nate, you'll make friends the way you are! The guy must be a dog hater! I can't remember the last time I stepped in dog poop.

[@weinhainde2550]

I live in a really small village .. Fast internet: Glasfaser

[@LalaDepala_00]

I'm Dutch, but have German grandparents. I love both the Netherlands and our "big brother" Germany. Wouldn't want to live anywhere else on earth.

[@Phiyedough]

My own experience of Germany has mainly been when passing through from UK to Hungary. It is true that I have always been driving slow vehicles but I have experienced more road rage incidents on German autobahns than in any other country. This is partly due to them mainly being 2 lane whereas the same road would be 3 lane in other countries. If I'm overtaking a slower moving truck I will inevitably get a BMW, Mercedes or Audi behind me with horn blasting and headlamps flashing.

[@alansmith4748]

Poor Customer Service is one of the worst aspects of living in Germany (not from everybody). I was once accused of shoplifting in a German Store. I was so angry, the shopkeeper, who had accused me, and the security guard were just laughing at me, they kept asking me why I hadn't kept my receipt, although it's common practice in German stores not to keep your receipts. I wrote two emails, one to head office, one to the store itself, plus a letter of complaint to the store. I never received a reply. I still feel angry thinking about it.

[@spinnetti]

I dunno, and place is a place. I think Bavaria anyway is beautiful, and I appreciate directness so its a relief for me - little fake friendliness. Only thing I've found annoying is the shops not being open like I'm used to in the states, especially evenings and Sunday.

[@metalboerny7498]

That Internet issue is bullshit. I live in a tiny village (1500 inhabitants) have high speed internet, no problems with streaming movies in best quality. It can get bad though with mobile internet connections for a few minutes when you are in between two rural towns.

[@NateLawson]

That's good to know! So, it's really like here in the US when you're travelling and lose signal.

[@metalboerny7498]

@@NateLawson exactly. But with a good phone and some memory for buffering you won't even notice whilst streaming songs to your car stereo.

[@nicklenz7030]

Compared to other countries,racism in Germany is not a bigger issue, be it the UK, USA or France. Smoking is regulated by the different states (Bundesländer). The rules in Berlin and Brandenburg for instance are much less strict than in Bavaria.

[@Thorium_Th]

I had mediocre internet until 2022 when my street got optical fiber. It was enough for private use like streaming but transferring big files when being in home office took some time. Funny enough, it slowed work down to a very comfortable level 😄But yeah, in some places internet is still not the best.

[@andreashofer4442]

i pay around 45,- for 1gig fiber in Austria and 20 for the phone + 10 for TV, if you wanna split the bundle offer.

[@andreashofer4442]

@@user-xd9fp2si5c yeah bro, but i have a server and an unlimited EU contract... i know you cna have it for almost free if you dont care about some creteria

[@AnnaAnna-uc2ff]

Thank you.

[@klausschroiff4405]

I'm pretty sure the immigration office is concerned about language. Most immigrants don't speak German, and you can't expect "simple" bureaucrats to be fluent in some other language-and they don't have the obligation to do so. It's Germany, not the US, Turkey, or Syria. If you don't speak the language on either side, you are getting impatient. Regarding friendships, being a dual German-Australian citizen in Australia, I'm not so sure about this one. For example, being a "mate" (buddy) here in Oz is easy, but "friendship" in the German sense is at least as difficult here. AirCons-yes, I never understood that in Germany. I worked in offices with more than 30C during summer, and all I got from my employer was mineral water. And even weirder, most think that this is "normal." Taxes: It depends. For singles and couples without children, the taxes are being robbed. With kids, it's very reasonable. Bureaucracy-yes, it's a joke, especially the tax return. And famously, FAX is still a thing in Germany.

[@mdk-wc2sw]

Villager here (populuation 1500, literally in the middle of nowhere). FTTH, fibre Gigabit connection for decent monthly rate. Don't know where the myth comes from. Thing of the past in my opinion.

[@JacobBax]

I thought the dutch had the monopoly on rudeness?

[@Mars-l9b]

As a Dutch person. How rude!! lol j/k.. We're not trying to be rude, I think we're just very direct and very honest about things which can be a shock if you're not used to it. And in general it's meant as a friendly gesture/advice, not to be malicious. I'd much rather someone tell me so I can fix it instead of going about my day and look like an idiot everywhere I go lol

[@LalaDepala_00]

We just don't like to waste time on sugar coating things, we view lying as being rude.

[@Arch_Angelus]

I don't know from when this Video is but i have nearly 8 Years 1 GB Internet with no Problems and 3 Places (the whole Family with own devices) Streaming, Video, Photoshop, Gaming ....all side by side with no lags ... for roundabout 50 €. So i think this Video has wrong facts or it is older.

[@NateLawson]

That's good to know! And you're paying about half of what I'll be paying for 1 gig!

[@juliabuddle7927]

Being from the UK I found this very interesting. Firstly a lot of the down sides apply here too, for example so called high taxes, lack of air conditioning etc. Americans less open enlightened than you Nate think everything American is better without actually checking the facts and some of the things US citizens are better seem to eurpeans bad! Profligate use of power and fuel for instance is not in my opinion a virtue! As you said nowhere is perfect and in fact I think things in general are getting worse everywhere. Thank you for your balanced viewpoint and sensible approach to everything it helps counterbalance the overwhelming presentation of Americans as badly educated ignorant and stupid which is prevalent on social media. These people exist in every country and depressing though it is sanity also exists everywhere! I hope your new job and health are both good. Julia

[@jurgengrove2488]

What I don't completely agree with is the statement that we are racist here in Germany. Given the history of our country, not so much... I would like to put it another way, there is a kind of xenophobia in a certain way, but racism??? I do not think so.... Many greetings from Niedersachsen Jürgen

[@KnightmareUSA]

US is addicted to the subject of racism

[@davidmarkwort9711]

What’s your problem? 83 million people think things are relatively normal in Germany compared with the US

[@treasey8655]

do you still plan on emmigrating to Germany?

[@NateLawson]

Yes, our plan is the summer of 2025. 😁

[@treasey8655]

@@NateLawson Good luck, we welcome you with open arms :)

[@alansmith4748]

I've never noticed any dog dirt, the UK is far worse

[@Thomasg1404]

Klar klar kann am so sehn . 1 Internet hatte nie ein Problem ,aber ich brauch nicht viel. 100k mit effektiv 50 langt für Fernsehen Mobil schau ich nie filme. 2 keine Erfahrung 3 ja es dauert Freunde zu bekommen aber wenn dann sind es Freude fürs Leben. Und auf die kann man sich verlassen. 4. Bin mein Leben Land ohne Klimaanlage ausgekommen habe einen Ventilator. Und niemand hindert einen eine Mobile klimaanle zu kaufen lol wird halt recht teuer aber wer es braucht darf. 5 ich weiss nicht so er rumgelaufen ist aber bei uns ist das ein kleiner Problem. Wer seine sch... Nicht wegräumt kann mit einer Strafe rechnen. Eigentlich räumen die meisten die Hinterlassenschaften ihrer Hunde weg. 6 Sind unser Steuern und Abgaben hoch wie er sagt man bekommt was dafür. 7 ja das dürfte Stimmen wird aber schon besser . Und ja Deutsch oder besser Behördendeutsch sollte man können. 8 wir lieben unsere Regeln einige sind gut andere darf man hinterfragen. Aber der Führerschein die find ich gut . Schliesslich dient das der Sicherheit aller . In den USA hab ich mich schon gefragt ob man den Führerschein geschenkt bekommt und das stimmt ja fast. Und so fahren drüben einige auch . Aber auch bei uns gibt es Deppen .

[@KeesBoons]

Nate, I've seen this video before, and it's among the worst on this topic. Wasn't able to watch the entire video (again), but I think you will have come to the same conclusion. Our neighboring country of Germany is not perfect, but from me it easily gets a passing grade.

[@Sat-Man-Alpha]

Click baiting😢