People in the United Kingdom love to compare their country to ours. When Brits aren't enjoying the smell of their own farts, they spend a lot of time shaming America for our gun laws and loud-mouthed President.
Now, here in America we rarely obsess over what life is like in the UK verses here in the states. And for good reason. After all, when you're eating filet mignon you don't waste time pointing out how your meal tastes better than a fast food hamburger.
Even still, in the eyes of many Brits, they are a culturally superior and an intellectually more advanced nation with far better policies and government structure than the good ol' US of A.
Just so we're clear, I'm not trying to mock them or put them down. They're a proud people. That's fine. We share that trait with them. A lot of (but not all) Americans are also extremely proud of where they come from (especially here in Texas).
There's just one little problem with the UK's fart-smelling and self congratulatory rhetoric: they're about to lose one of their favorite talking points. When conducting statistical analysis of their country and ours, they often lead with the obvious differences in the homicide rate. And for good reason - in most comparisons America's homicide rate is higher. We're a much younger & larger nation with more freedoms and one of the countries that borders us is among the most violent and corrupt in the world (you know who I'm talking about). It really doesn't makes sense to compare life in Manchester or Nottingham to life in a border-town. Heck, Britain doesn't even technically have border towns. The whole nation is a tiny island.
But the easy comparison between their murder rate and ours is quickly beginning to diminish, thanks in part to a new report stating their biggest city is turning into a much more dangerous place than our biggest city. Let's compare New York to London, shall we? This is gonna sting if you're British. London's monthly murder rate is now considerably higher than New York City. This is the first time in recorded history that we've ever seen this kind of shift.
Reports of knife crimes are soaring and these incidents are often fatal in the UK's capital. This is now the second month in a row that London has surpassed New York City for murders (and they don't even have guns). Last month 22 people were murdered in London & 15 in February. That's 7.5% higher than NYC. In the past NYC has always had a higher murder rate. This is a staunch difference in what we've seen month after month in both cities.
And that's not all - you're also 6 times more likely to be burgled (mugged) in London & three times more likely to be raped. If you don't think their refugee and immigration policy has something to do with this report, you're just not paying attention. London's Mayor has been a huge advocate for importing refugees and open borders. Not every immigrant is a criminal, but many of the people coming into the country through these refugee programs don't share the same values as the British natives.
While we're on the subject, don't forget the acid attacks! 2017 was the worst year on record for acid attacks in London, a commonly used weapon by thugs and extremists in the UK's biggest city. In January a 17-year-old London teen admitted to a court room that he carried out acid attacks against six people in a little more than an hour. The victims were mostly delivery drivers - the criminal was trying to steal their mopeds.
The real shift actually occurred last October, when crime across the UK went up by 13%, with a surge in violence in the capital blamed for much of the increase. The evidence is clear: London is far more dangerous than NYC.
If you're still looking at America's gun laws as an excuse for our violent crime rate, look harder. There's a lot more at play in these two nations. We have a far less in common than many would care to admit (population, GDP, lifestyle, border security) which is why comparisons between the two countries often miss the mark.
But London and New York City, on the other hand, have a similar population, economy and lifestyle. Comparisons between these two places make a lot more sense than comparing the two nations as a whole. And these differences don't look good for London.
But don't worry, London! You've still got Chicago to look down your nose at us.
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