It's a moot point really because most men have no interest in going abroad, in fact Winston, Matt Hanson and Ghost said they would have been happy to stay in the US all their lives if it wasn't for the dating situation. Those gentlemen were happy with their lives for the most part and they moved abroad but they're a minority, most men just don't have the minerals to make the move - their whole support system is right there in their crappy hometown - friends, parents, family, acquaintances from their schools etc - they are going to leave all these things for a chance on another continent or country? Most of them don't have what it takes to get on the plane to try.HouseMD wrote: ↑June 22nd, 2025, 1:23 pmEating well, exercising, sleeping well, not drinking, not smoking, and not doing drugs will help in a great many things. Fasting has some benefits, but isn't really dramatic in them- personally I do intermittent fasting and it helped me lose a lot of weight. But, like, some things you just end up needing medicine for. You're lucky until you're not. A friend of mine from medical school, she's from a modest family in Vietnam. Her mother has metastatic breast cancer and her father had a severe stroke, both in their very early 60s. It is easy to blame the West, but people statistically die younger in most developing nations due to various reasons, which doesn't really fit with the romantic idea that the West is killing people and the developing world is some healthy paradise.kangarunner wrote: ↑June 21st, 2025, 10:03 pmI refuse to put any trust into pharamaceutical companies/medical system. They're both for-profit. I'll go with Winston's philosophy to prevent health issues by eating well, fasting, exercise, sleep.
Here I am. A free man living and thriving in Vietnam. Never got COVID. Never took the vaccine. I use a prevention method called.....common sense.
I'll tell ya what will kill you in the long run....living in America.
Health is what you make it, and where you make it. The thing that kills people when they leave the West is usually a combination of hedonism and loneliness leading to a life of excess and internalized stress. If you can avoid those things and live a healthy life otherwise, you can probably kick around for a while. You can eat healthy and live healthy in the West if you know what you're doing, the West only kills you if you let it.
But I suppose my ancillary question would be what you mean by "free." There's little I can do abroad that I can't do in the West, it's no more free, it's just a different vibe. I tend to prefer it, but I've got strong social connections that keep my grounded at home, even if I do only feel like I can recharge abroad. Soon I'll be able to retire, and at that point if I'm no longer working and can support myself... I don't know, I get that same sense of peace in the mountains, on the ocean, anywhere where there aren't people
I guess the difference is that I'm happily married. I suppose if I were single heading overseas might have more appeal. Though if my wife were no longer in the picture at this point it would likely mean something tragic has occurred, and I would probably turn my efforts to something like helping authorities hunt down and convict pedophiles in the Philippines. Would give my life a sense of purpose again, at the very least
Not that dating is 'easier' abroad, lots of roadblocks in the way there also - cultural competencies, language barriers (a lot of hot women in whatever country usually aren't massively interested in dating a foreigner who can barely speak their language - most women prefer to date their own men from their own culture), legal standing - a lot of people who make the move abroad have to make visa runs which is what Kangarunner does - he can live in his paradise for 90 days at a time max but if the Vietnamese ever decide to change the laws then he is screwed and it's all over.
I think Kangarunner is right that our societies (I'm British) aren't particularly good for us, especially working class people who are being squeezed more and more. People are now working in the UK to simply stay out of debt. In some cases, two wages are not enough to have anything like a decent quality of life. If you are a working class person on an average wage then the UK is simply not a good place to be in at the moment and it is badly affecting the mental health of the population.
