> My parents are very family oriented and were somewhat upset when I left my home country
Also you:
> It's just incredible to me that someone would act against their own economic interests so blatantly
It appears you didn't adopt your parents' family values. Nothing wrong with that, but I don't think the strong will to remain near one's roots SHOULD be all that "incredible" to you.
I'm also the child of immigrants, and left their adopted country for another for "greener pastures". But my parents left their home country to escape tyranny, not just economic incentive. They did the hard thing because the other option was dangerous.
Are we really at THAT point? Are we doomed to always run from the tyrant, or can we build a different society where families don't have to be split up.
I think your post is a bit self righteous. Perhaps the demand for your skills in other countries made it easy for you to immigrate. Most cannot do that. They're stuck there, and I think are reasonable to want their country to do a better job supporting the quality of life of it's residents rather than treating them like peasants.
> Nothing wrong with that, but I don't think the strong will to remain near one's roots SHOULD be all that "incredible" to you.
Regardless of what I "should" think, if people are complaining about not being able to afford to live somewhere, then they stay there while their disposable income drops and drops until they're struggling, all while alternatives are available, that is incredible to me.
I can empathise with feeling sad about leaving and delaying, but I don't think I'll ever be able to really understand the author's final decision.
> Perhaps the demand for your skills in other countries made it easy for you to immigrate. Most cannot do that. They're stuck there
But this isn't exactly what I'm talking about, is it? The author is bilingual, has a Bachelor's degree, and lives in the EU (and even further, the Schengen area), a single labour market.
We can talk in general about how some people are stuck. Indeed, helping people who can't help themselves is one of the main purposes of government, but the author doesn't seem stuck. Their comments and background indicate they're in Portugal by choice.
> My parents are very family oriented and were somewhat upset when I left my home country
Also you:
> It's just incredible to me that someone would act against their own economic interests so blatantly
It appears you didn't adopt your parents' family values. Nothing wrong with that, but I don't think the strong will to remain near one's roots SHOULD be all that "incredible" to you.
I'm also the child of immigrants, and left their adopted country for another for "greener pastures". But my parents left their home country to escape tyranny, not just economic incentive. They did the hard thing because the other option was dangerous.
Are we really at THAT point? Are we doomed to always run from the tyrant, or can we build a different society where families don't have to be split up.
I think your post is a bit self righteous. Perhaps the demand for your skills in other countries made it easy for you to immigrate. Most cannot do that. They're stuck there, and I think are reasonable to want their country to do a better job supporting the quality of life of it's residents rather than treating them like peasants.