Can you think of anything to add to these lists? If so, post a comment with what can be added. ;)

What we have in common with most of Europe

Culture, the arts, poets and philosophers
Great welfare sytems
Rich history dating back way before america even started

What we have in common with America:

We often listern to american music
We like to watch american films and trashy reality tv programs
Are kids keep getting fatter

Yup, I was watching HOW EURO ARE YOU? on TV last night.  I came out in the Euro enthusiasts group. lol

Europe : we have owned a large chunk of it at some time or other and have married in to most royal families.
they happen to be just a few miles away. They have been tradign with us for many years.

America: They speak the same language. Have a very similar economic cycle, political and monatary systems. They use feet and inches, which even after many years metric most people in the UK still use and understand.

Im sure that there are loads more.

Didn't watch the programme but it's interesting isn't it considering that the American culture initially evolved from it's european roots.

in what way are american politics like our own.

Well they have 2 houses the same as ours and 2 main parties, who broadly speaking hold similar ground ot ours, the majority of both countries never vote. Im sure that there are many more similarities. 

We like American music, films and reality Tv but so do Europeans

I think it's a shame that we adopt many of the American traits such as measuring success with value and status whereas European countries such as Portugal, Spain, Italy and Greece put much more store into family values  especially where children are concerned.  I am not sure but I think we still have the highest percentage of single teenage mums compared to Europe but not to America.

I agree that it is a shame about the lack of family values, however to some extent this is what is portrayed by TV. I firmly believe that the majority of people both in the UK and US have strong family connections, you just hear less about them than single mums etc.

One thing that I do think we could and should learn from the US is to judge people on their merits and effort rather than on their class and the location of their education. It would also be very nice is we supported people who are willing to take a risk to follow a dream in the same way that the US does, both financially and in moral support - but that is one of my hobby horses!

It's not just media that you get the impression of difference in family values though.  If you look at a country like France they have shorter working weeks and there doesn't seem to be so much emphasis on wealth being important, i.e. they aren't into buying their houses like we are, in fact we are buying their houses as well.  Here we seem to generally strive to achieve to gain better houses, cars etc which has helped bolster the 24/7 lifestyle which has chipped away at quality family time.  My own family work different hours meaning that my huge dining table rarely has more than 2 or 3 sitting at it at one time.  Look at the emphasis the Europeans put on eating out and eating together.  When my children were small it was so noticable how differently the Spanish treat children, anybody's children.  They were always smiled at and heads patted and welcomed everywhere anytime.  Children here are not treated the same way.  It's not a criticism of families in this country it is a difference in culture.  Why are there so many single teenage mums here compared to Europe. (My 15 yr old son tells me that our town actually has the highest incidence of teenage mums in the country)

I agree that it is almost impossible to get our family round a table, but that is at least partly because we live a long way apart, due to following employment round the country.

I think also that we positively encourange girls to become teenage mums as they see it as an easy way to get a property and hand outs.

There is also a big incentive in France and I believe a lot of Europe to remain married as their laws on inheritance and divorce settlements are not only highly complex but also in some instances draconian. I know one of my friends bought a house with her second husband in France, when he dide she had no rights at all to the property, it went straight to the children from his first marrage. If this had been her main residence she could literally have been put out on the streets.

I agree with everything you said.  We have a friend who married a French lady and she told me her will states that her property will go to her grown up children not her husband but there is a proviso that they cannot throw him out.  (I wonder if he will live to 112 just to spite them? lol)

I remember as a child (no, after the war) when my dad used to work in the town we lived in probably because cars were still a luxury then.  My husband is 1 of 6 and he, his brothers and sister and dad all worked for the same company inthe town. It's very different now isn't it.  Cars and the vanishing act of manufacturing means that people are more likely to move to where the work is, splitting families by location.

I think you are absolutely right that girls are 'rewarded' by having babies very young.  It was something I was very conscious of when my own daughters were growing up and we used to talk about it quite a bit.  Now they are 21 and 19 and they haven't got a hope of getting a council house because as my 19 year old points out she hasn't got any kids, it's those who get priority. A number of her school friends already have babies. My girls can't afford mortgages and my 21 year old is paying £500/mth for 1 bed flat.  what is it though that makes the girls think that life will be better with babies in tow?

>I think also that we positively encourange girls to become teenage mums as they see it as an easy way to get a property and hand outs.

I think that is a bit harsh really, I know/knew quite a few teenage mums (I was one myself, however I was married and we already had our own property) but of the 10 or so teenage mum's I know none of them got pregnant on purpose to get a house and hand out's, and in fact all of them work and support theirselves, apart from one who only had her baby 2 months ago, she is still living at home with her mum and dad, and she is planning on returning to work as soon as she finds a childminder she trusts.

A friend of my hubbie, his step-daughter is 16 and is 6 months pregnant, he and his wife have decided that they have had their children, and don't want to start again with their daughters baby, and so have told her she has to find somewhere else to live before the baby is due, if we lived closer I would quite happily have her to stay here, but it isn't practicle, so goodness knows what she will do, she probably will end up in a council house with hand outs as you say, but whose fault is that? She had no idea her parents would 'kick her out', she certainly hadn't planned to get pregnant, for any reason, but what choice does she have left short term?

Sadly Natalie my experience is that a number of girls I know at around 14 or 15 decide that having a baby is an easy option. I know several who deliberately went out to get pregnant to get housing and handouts. NOT all by any means but too many.

Now I know that there have always been accidents, but it does strike me as a little odd that when it was socially unacceptable to be a single/teenage mum the numbers were so low, where as now no one appears to know how to be 'careful'. Perhaps I am a bit old fashioned, but it was certainly my experience that the teenagers who accidentally fell pregnant in my peer group were the ones that were almost toatally reckless with contraception.  I know it is sounding harsh of me, but so is life and your do tend to reap what you sow.

She may not have planned to get pregnant, but how had she managed to miss the compulsory lessons when how it happens is explained? Family planning advice is free and confidential ...

JG Fully grown adults can get pregnant "by accident", yes you are right the knowledge is there for everyone, but that doesn't mean everyone takes it!

Bluebell, I am sure you right that teenagers do get pregnant to get a house and the 'easy life', I was just pointing out that not all of them get pregnant for this reason. I don't think that just because the services are there for single mum's, or anyone else who needs the help, that it makes people think they have to put themselves in certain positions so they can take advantage of the system, and if it does, maybe the 'blame' falls to the people who should support these girls, their families and friends for example.

Natalie you have hit a valid point that kicked this off in the first place.  It does have something to do with families and the social system and culture (leaving out diverse cultures within the social system that seem to be largely unaffected).  What is it about the teenagers in this country that causes them to readily have babies as such young ages compared to the Europeans in general?  Yes it must have something to do with their families, but what is it? Yes it has something to do with the system and the only thing that stands out so far is the financial and housing support that is awarded to single teenage mums. 

One of my pregnancies was an accident, happily as it turns out.  However, having an accident in a relationship where a home and income is already established is far removed from having such an accident as a teenager.  My mother told me if I ever brought shame to her house I would be put out on the street!  Harsh and probably not true but I made damned sure that I wasn't going to test her and made sure I didn't have any accidents.

Chez swa, this is very true, an accident whilst you are already set up in your own home with your own income is a different story to an accident with a 15 year old girl, but they are both accidents all the same, if a fully grown adult can make a mistake, so can a teenager ;)

I was thinking of single teenage mums of which there are a very high number where we live.  The question is not about those who are in stable long term relationships although what is considered long term at my age compared to a teenager is very different.  Why do teenage girls fall into the baby trap before they've had a chance to grow and develop themselves?  I would be sad if my daughters had babies now, not because of the benefits they would receive and lets face it, whether you know anyone who takes them or not the fact is they are easy to get for single teenage mums, but because they haven't got to know themselves yet.  My 19 year old is off to Australia next month for at least 6 months and when she told me she thought I would try and stop her.  I said no way, go, explore and have a great time because once you have family it won't be so easy to do and the experience wouldn't be the same anyway.  It's been so easy for her to organise I couldn't believe it myself.  She earns crap money but the incentive was so great that she has managed to save enough to meet the minimum requirement set by the Aus gov.  So given the choice, why would teenage girls rather have babies that can be put off a few years instead of grabbing few g-strings, a few tops, shorts, couple of skirts, Brazlian bikini and some nail varnish (this is what she says she's taking) going to the Gold Coast for surfing and working during the days and clubbing at nights?

>I think also that we positively encourange girls to become teenage mums as they see it as an easy way to get a property and hand outs.

Perfectly true. Back in 1979 when I was looking for somewhere to rent I asked to go on the council's waiting list, and was told there was a 2-year wait, but if I got pregnant I could get a flat straight away. Yes, that was the official advice. Luckily I wasn't stupid enough to do that.

mine dropped before yours because I get the verbal runs :D

I would be interested to know just how many of these accidental pregnancies are truly accidental.  Out of the people I know who had babies that weren't planned, only two were accidental (they became pregnant with a coil).  The others were all caused by people not taking proper precautions - which is hardly accidental!  Contraception used properly and as advised is very effective, unfortunately people don't always listen to what they are told.

Well Jackyjat that was the point I was clumsily trying to make earlier.  Bit personal really but quite bluntly our mistake wasn't planned but wasn't properly prevented either.  When you are a family unit with home and income the mistakes are more of a 'whoops' because you know what you should have done or not should have done :D  Now you will have to put off next year's holiday, buy a bigger car and re-jiggle the bedroom situation. Because of the threat of being made homeless by my mum if ever I got pregnant I made damn sure I didn't make that mistake and that's the difference.  There isn't the stigma attached to teenage pregnancies anymore, there is much more support financially and socially and consequently girls don't see getting pregnant as a problem like they did say 30 years ago.  Oh and contraception is far more advanced and more easily accessible now than when I was a teen so really there should have been more teenage pregnancies then than now.