How would you rate the quality of life in Ireland?

steddyeddy · 20-12-2016 12:40PM #1

Compared to other countries. Do we get value for our taxes?

dinorebel · 20-12-2016 12:43PM

Mick Wallace does.

MRnotlob606 · 20-12-2016 12:44PM

Good, but lots of high taxes and a lack of disposable income.

me_irl · 20-12-2016 12:46PM

Ask Bono.

Patser · 20-12-2016 12:47PM

Sure tis grand

Galway_Old_Man · 20-12-2016 12:49PM

I would rate it excellent. We live in one of the most stable countries in the world. Politically, economically, low-ish crime rates and no tornadoes/earthquakes/Mother Nature-on-a-rampage events. Social welfare is a notch above most in Europe.

Sure there's room for improvement and certain countries are ahead of us in certain things. Public transport and health are bad notably. But all in all, we're in the top few percent of the world.

Mr. Incognito · 20-12-2016 12:51PM

Health- Rubbish. Seriously rubbish
Work/ Life balance- Good
Crime- Low
Public Transport- okay in Dublin, crap outside it
Cost of living- High
Public Amenities- Good
Price of Property - inflated.

Some good, some bad. Overall it's a first world country and if you have a decent job its grand.

stimpson · 20-12-2016 12:53PM

I give it 5 thumbs up, or a solid 8 stars in old money.

pumpkin4life · 20-12-2016 12:55PM

Good: Functioning society, Irish people are sound out in general. Great weather (hey no volcanoes or earthquakes for us), very safe, great fun, reasonably good (by the world standards) education system, strong (sense of community compared to other E.U countries) culture and community spirit, small enough to have that community spirit but big enough where there's a lot to do in terms of nightlife/hobbies etc, social net if any of us are unlucky enough to get in trouble, we don't have the numbers yet for there to be multiculturalism issues; means this might be one of the safest if not safest country to be in Europe for the next while. For the time being anyway.

Bad: High taxes, poor economy, crap rental market, the fact that Irish people are jealous of people who achieve success which means starting a business/trying to better yourself is harder than it should be, elitism in terms of beliefs and jobs among the run the show D4 crowd, intolerance of ideas and opinions outside the main, like to be told what to do at every turn.

I'm starting to think I have a more "American" personality lol.

Grayson · 20-12-2016 01:04PM

It depends on your income bracket and age. I'm sure some people would rate it 5 stars (out of 5) but others would say it's lower.

If you're young and not earning loads it's a pretty crappy place. If you're elderly and relying on a state pension it's not a great place. For those that are established it's not bad.

steddyeddy · 20-12-2016 01:11PM

pumpkin4life wrote: »

Good: Functioning society, Irish people are sound out in general. Great weather (hey no volcanoes or earthquakes for us), very safe, great fun, reasonably good (by the world standards) education system, strong (sense of community compared to other E.U countries) culture and community spirit, small enough to have that community spirit but big enough where there's a lot to do in terms of nightlife/hobbies etc, social net if any of us are unlucky enough to get in trouble, we don't have the numbers yet for there to be multiculturalism issues; means this might be one of the safest if not safest country to be in Europe for the next while. For the time being anyway.

Bad: High taxes, poor economy, crap rental market, the fact that Irish people are jealous of people who achieve success which means starting a business/trying to better yourself is harder than it should be, elitism in terms of beliefs and jobs among the run the show D4 crowd, intolerance of ideas and opinions outside the main, like to be told what to do at every turn.

I'm starting to think I have a more "American" personality lol.

Well it's a lot harder to rise to the top in America than it is here.

Stonedpilot · 20-12-2016 01:20PM

It's poor. Pretty darn poor.

pumpkin4life · 20-12-2016 01:24PM

steddyeddy wrote: »

Well it's a lot harder to rise to the top in America than it is here.

Compared to the U.S, at the top in Ireland could equal a modest success in the U.S.

Its harder to be a great success or a great failure in Ireland than in the U.S.

There's nothing good or bad about that, it's a natural personality thing.

Dirty Dingus McGee · 20-12-2016 01:26PM

pumpkin4life wrote: »

Good: Functioning society, Irish people are sound out in general. Great weather (hey no volcanoes or earthquakes for us), very safe, great fun, reasonably good (by the world standards) education system, strong (sense of community compared to other E.U countries) culture and community spirit, small enough to have that community spirit but big enough where there's a lot to do in terms of nightlife/hobbies etc, social net if any of us are unlucky enough to get in trouble, we don't have the numbers yet for there to be multiculturalism issues; means this might be one of the safest if not safest country to be in Europe for the next while. For the time being anyway.

Bad: High taxes, poor economy, crap rental market, the fact that Irish people are jealous of people who achieve success which means starting a business/trying to better yourself is harder than it should be, elitism in terms of beliefs and jobs among the run the show D4 crowd, intolerance of ideas and opinions outside the main, like to be told what to do at every turn.

I'm starting to think I have a more "American" personality lol.

Don't think that's really true though and we're no worse than most people in that regard but it suits the old Irish begrudger stereotype.As Gore Vidal said : " Everytime a friend succeeds I die a little".

Also doesn't the second part of that paragraph contradict the first part , aren't you begrudging the "D4 Crowd" ?

Stonedpilot · 20-12-2016 01:32PM

Dirty Dingus McGee wrote: »

Don't think that's really true though and we're no worse than most people in that regard but it suits the old Irish begrudger stereotype.As Gore Vidal said : " Everytime a friend succeeds I die a little".

Also doesn't the second part of that paragraph contradict the first part , aren't you begrudging the "elite" ?

Begrudery is a national past time in Ireland you do it as well. We all do. Anyone who says they don't is a bold faced liar.

Ireland is a cesspool of corruption. Every government, every deal, every person in authority is working an angle to feather their own nest and take from yours.

Nice country, shame about those in charge though.

Dirty Dingus McGee · 20-12-2016 01:38PM

Stonedpilot wrote: »

Begrudery is a national past time in Ireland you do it as well. We all do. Anyone who says they don't is a bold faced liar.

Ireland is a cesspool of corruption. Every government, every deal, every person in authority is working an angle to feather their own nest and take from yours.

Nice country, shame about those in charge though.

But the people in charge reflect on the people who vote them in.

Everybody in the world is a begrudger it's just some people think that it's a uniquely Irish characteristic which it isn't.

namloc1980 · 20-12-2016 02:53PM

Pretty good. Stable country, no ridiculous weather extremes or crazy natural disasters, opportunities for people who work hard to succeed, decent education system, chance to go to third level without incurring insane levels of debt, decent social protections relative to most countries,relatively low crime levels.

The bad is high taxes - would be tolerable if we had a world class health system but being sick in Ireland when earning just above the medical card threshold, is very expensive. As someone with a lifelong illness I feel punished enough without having to fork out large sums of money every month for medicine and doctors. Also services aren't great - practically everything must be paid for on top of taxation.

galwayguy85 · 20-12-2016 02:56PM

Mr. Incognito wrote: »

Health- Rubbish. Seriously rubbish
Work/ Life balance- Good
Crime- Low
Public Transport- okay in Dublin, crap outside it
Cost of living- High
Public Amenities- Good
Price of Property - inflated.

Some good, some bad. Overall it's a first world country and if you have a decent job its grand.

With respect, nobody is asking you to stay here.

Permabear · 20-12-2016 02:56PM

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ArnieSilvia · 20-12-2016 03:08PM

galwayguy85 wrote: »

With respect, nobody is asking you to stay here.

With respect? :rolleyes:

So we don't need to address issues, the solution is to tell whoever doesn't accept inefficiencies to f**k off to another country. Well done.

And later people moan about brain drain

Saipanne · 20-12-2016 03:10PM

9/10

We live like kings compared to most of the world. Only a ignoramus would dispute this.

ArnieSilvia · 20-12-2016 03:33PM

Health service: two tier system (public&private) didn't come out of nowhere. Why private health insurance is taxed then

Weather: good, no extremes so cheap to live (heating) although I'd prefer to have 4 seasons

Work: Lots of work (and well paid) if you plan the career wisely. It might not be what you want/like to do but there has to be compromise.

Work/life balance: Not great IMO, most of my neighbours leave home before 7 and come back at 7, work shifts etc. Lots of people would say that working extra hours for free is ok, no it's not. There's many countries where working so many hours including getting to work is not acceptable by population.

Public transport: I don't think it's good, see how long it takes to get from suburbs to city centre on bus. Try to get from Lucan to Tallaght, far from ideal. Commuter trains are full (not a personal experience but see lots about it on boards). It varies from country to country but Munich is what I experienced and it was superb.

Road network: considering population density in rural areas not too bad, different story in Dublin, to the exent that I'm considering moving away.
Motorway network reasonably good

Housing: Way too expensive in Dublin, reasonably expensive in the countryside. Other issue is the price doesn't reflect the condition of the house or how old it is, but where it is.

Amenities/infrastructure: depends where you live and you pay a lot for access to it by means of rent or house price

Safety: Not too bad but short trip to less desirable areas might open your eyes. Recent reports on rural crime shocking. People with tens of convictions walking free. I felt safer walking down the streets of (apparently rough) Belfast in the evening hours, than in Dublin City Centre

Social welfare: Good when you need it, not so good if you work and see others making it a career choice. It has been addressed on this thread already.

MPFGLB · 20-12-2016 03:48PM

Mr. Incognito wrote: »

Health- Rubbish. Seriously rubbish
Work/ Life balance- Good
Crime- Low
Public Transport- okay in Dublin, crap outside it
Cost of living- High
Public Amenities- Good
Price of Property - inflated.

Some good, some bad. Overall it's a first world country and if you have a decent job its grand.

Is this true? I ask because everytime I see Irish news someone is murdered either by being shot in Dublin or Limericak or murdered by a spouse or something... Also someone (or more) is killed in car accident..and also in winter there always seem to be fatal fires in homes

I also watch London news and murders I would say are less (if at times on a par with Ireland) ....and auto accidents are less...house fires seem to be less also....

This I have wondered about esp given the population in London is about 3 times that of Rep of Ireland

I think maybe i have noticed this more in the last 10/15 years.
Didn't notice it so much in the 90s....

Growing up in Ireland was the best experience ...Ireland is a very good country and has a good social welfare system for those in need. Also people are kindly and inclusive. Irish people also have a great sense of fun and strong views on what really matters in life. They are generous and lively and great company

However begrudgery and gossip are rife

Permabear · 20-12-2016 04:13PM

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Cina · 20-12-2016 04:32PM

Mr. Incognito wrote: »

Health- Rubbish. Seriously rubbish

Somehow rubbish despite being 19th out of 190 countries in the world.

Mr. Incognito wrote: »

Cost of living- High

Not that high, though. We're actually the 13th most expensive country to live in in the world yet we're 6th on the HDI and 8th on GDP per capita (where we're only behind tax havens and oil rich states).

For reference, the Denmark, New Zealand, Japan, Iceland have a lower GDP per capita and a higher cost of living than we do.

Mr. Incognito wrote: »

Some good, some bad. Overall it's a first world country and if you have a decent job its grand.

In reality it's more like "almost entirely good, very little bad". Ireland has a higher quality of life than about 90% of the world, even what's considered 'bad' for us is still substantially better than the vast majority of countries on earth.

We live in one of world's most prosperous nations, yet people (not necessarily you) in our country seem to have an incredible sense of self entitlement and loathing of our public sector despite this. We should be f*cking delighted, it's only 30 years since we were one of the poorest countries in Europe!

murpho999 · 20-12-2016 04:37PM

me_irl wrote: »

Ask Bono.

Why? He does pay taxes here.

The U2 corporation that would pay him is based in The Netherlands, if that's what you're referring to but he'll still pay Irish tax on his income.

Stonedpilot · 20-12-2016 04:37PM

Saipanne wrote: »

9/10

We live like kings compared to most of the world. Only a ignoramus would dispute this.

Utter bollocks. You are simply comparing us to some peasants in Uganda.

Polo_Mint · 20-12-2016 04:40PM

Stonedpilot wrote: »

Utter bollocks. You are simply comparing us to some peasants in Uganda.

And who are you comparing us to?

Knex* · 20-12-2016 04:41PM

Stonedpilot wrote: »

Utter bollocks. You are simply comparing us to some peasants in Uganda.

We are literally some of the most privileged people on the planet. Its amazing how many people fail to comprehend this.

Permabear · 20-12-2016 04:42PM

This post has been deleted.

20-12-2016 04:45PM

Our quality of living is amongst the best on the planet.

We are healthy and wealthy for the most part.

Any health system has problems.
If you are sick in this country you will generally get appropriate care.

How would you rate the quality of life in Ireland?

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