10 Things Most Americans Don?t Know About America

[AnarchistFish]

I think everyone's missing the point of "generalisations". That's exactly what they do. Of course there are exceptions, but you can usually identify traits and beliefs that a group of people generally hold. That's the point of them.

And for all the people saying that these stereotypes aren't true, the Americans I meet almost always support them. So who do you believe?

 

[sagacious]

how do you pay for all that travelling? I'd like to travel, but am currently broke as shit.

 

[BlumiereBleck]

I honestly wonder which country this person is from. I've read this and found nothing but stereotypes and some sort of nationalism for a country which at the moment is unknown.

 

[Darkmantle]

I think everyone's missing the point of "generalisations". That's exactly what they do. Of course there are exceptions, but you can usually identify traits and beliefs that a group of people generally hold. That's the point of them.

And for all the people saying that these stereotypes aren't true, the Americans I meet almost always support them. So who do you believe?

shhhh.... you're making the Americans feel bad about themselves

You tell by how angry they are!

lol

I honestly wonder which country this person is from. I've read this and found nothing but stereotypes and some sort of nationalism for a country which at the moment is unknown.

It says in the OP and throughout the article, an American wrote it.

 

[Varis]

I guess it struck a nerve...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFBVmhISLos

 

[Vhite]

Oh great, more trash talk and accepted racism against Americans.

HAR HAR I WONDER WHAT WE ALL DID WRONG THIS TIME?!

So Americans are now a race?

 

[AnarchistFish]

I honestly wonder which country this person is from. I've read this and found nothing but stereotypes and some sort of nationalism for a country which at the moment is unknown.

It made it pretty clear it's an American so I don't know where you got the "Nationalism" idea from.

 

[godofallu]

I came into this thread thinking it would be one of those fun little videos where they ask Americans on the street Historical questions and we all laugh as they get them wrong.

Instead it's a giant list of hot air. Generalization after generalization that is created for the sole purpose of being consumed by whiny emos who want to feel bad about their situation.

Oh Americans are fat and dumb and self centered. Well i'm not fat, or dumb, or self centered.
Oh well I mean MOST Americans are the way I said. Yeah well most Americans would probably be smart enough to TL;DR this crap instead of reading it and then sharing it.

 

[BlumiereBleck]

I honestly wonder which country this person is from. I've read this and found nothing but stereotypes and some sort of nationalism for a country which at the moment is unknown.

It made it pretty clear it's an American so I don't know where you got the "Nationalism" idea from.

He goes on talking about how another culture is superior to American culture.

 

[Agayek]

Yeah that's right.
I am sorry but considering your current economic situation it doesn't seem to "make up for it" enough...

In terms of GDP, it sure as hell does.

It doesn't do diddly for the average citizen, but the nation as a whole benefits greatly from it. It's one of several reasons that the US is the world leader in technological innovation.

 

[AnarchistFish]

I honestly wonder which country this person is from. I've read this and found nothing but stereotypes and some sort of nationalism for a country which at the moment is unknown.

It made it pretty clear it's an American so I don't know where you got the "Nationalism" idea from.

He goes on talking about how another culture is superior to American culture.

I think it's being critical of the western psyche in general more than anything else.

 

[Luca72]

I don't understand why there's even a debate about this from my "fellow Americans". I enjoy a lot of things about this country, but we have a pathologically paranoid and inept government, terrible food and health care, completely misplaced values, and if you've ever been outside the country you'll realize that Americans don't even know what fun is.

All of these things seem pretty obvious right now from within America, I can only guess how obvious they look to people outside the country as well.

 

[HouseOfSyn]

What a dull, generalising, bore of an article.

"...There are exceptions of course. And those exceptions are called English and Australian people. Whoopdie-fucking-doo".

The guy/girl is clearly a pretentious prick that thinks they know the world and everyone who inhabits it because they've travelled some.

Some of my best friends live on the US East coast and I'm rarely happier when they visit or I visit - which is very frequently I'm fortunate to say. But fascinated? ***** please. If you travel in North America - and avoid the tourist traps - being British or Australian makes you cock of the fucking walk. They eat the accent and culture up. Vise-versa? Hardly.

 

[DrOswald]

This article is poorly researched and written and the author must be completely out of touch with his home country if he really believes this is the state of affairs in the United States. I was ready to write if off as trash and forget it ever existed, but some of the comments I have seen are worrying. People are actually taking this seriously.

To everyone who reads that article, the USA isn't really like this, at least not to the extremes this author claims. I could go point by point, but others already have. I just have to say a few things:

- Americans don't think people are impressed by them being an American.

- Americans don't think we invented democracy and we don't think everything in the world was and is about us.

- Americans don't think that "the rest Of the world is a slum-ridden shithole compared to us."

I could go on, but we can start to see the pattern of the self absorbed tunnel vision douche bag that would actually think these things. This article is really about what I call the 'merican! stereotype (you need that exclamation point) which is a joke that Americans use when talking about ourselves. There are a few people actually like this but they really only exist among the highly uneducated because they only know what their equally uneducated parents taught them. Even then it is extremely rare to find someone like this.

So, in short, people from other nations: Don't be duped by this hack writer and his poorly researched and written article.

 

[Kirtap]

I fit into the cold with physical affection thing. I don't want people hugging me, kissing me, or calling me terms of endearment when they hardly know me. Though, everyone I freakin' meet does that whole thing where I go to shake hands and they pull me into freaking hug. Damn it. (Sorry, it's a touchy subject) but maybe that's because I was born into a/live in a predominantly Latino/Hispanic part of the US.

Though, I think (a-lot) of these things could be argued for all nations. I'll confess I'm not super informed on all countries, but that goes for all things. You can never know enough, you are always learning.

Speaking of uncomfortable, did you know that in the 80's some guys, instead of shaking hands or hugging, gave each other tounge kisses. Not because they were gay but becuase they were good freinds and said hello.

 

[Dags90]

Yeah no kidding. I had a culture shock moment when I moved to San Diego. I walked down the street in the morning and a total stranger said "Good Morning!" to me as he walked by. I was freaked, and more so that I was unable to respond with anything.

Last time ever. I don't live in the NE anymore, and that's on purpose. I want to be the kind of person who can give a cheerful "Good morning!" to a total stranger and not think anything of it. You can't do that unless the people around you will accept it. I live in Austin TX now, where we smile at each other when we make eye contact in passing, and we wave at pedestrians to cross in front of our cars. That's my kind of normal.

Not just uninitiated eye contact, but a hello? How intruding! Most of that stuff is incredibly artificial, and/or shallow kindness though. The "smile on eye contact with a stranger" creeps me right the fuck out.

 

[SacremPyrobolum]

You know, I actually think that Americans express themselves and are a lot more emotional than our European cousins.

That might be because I have been living in Germany for a couple of years, though.

 

[CMDDarkblade]

OP, your American friend sounds like a real douche and he isn't posting a world-shattering revelation to anyone. We Americans are fucked up and crazy, we knew that already. We've been crazy ever since the first colonists left Europe to sail across a god forsaken ocean to get here. I for one have long since decided to abandon reason and embrace the madness.

However, as a history major I feel I need to put my two cents in about other countries. EVERY OTHER COUNTRY IS JUST AS CRAZY AS AMERICA AND ALWAYS HAS BEEN! They just like to pretend it's not and bash America to make themselves feel better. However as I've found out, people from other countries are just as ignorant about America as we are about them. Thus, in their ignorance they claim moral and cultural superiority over us and often we do vice versa to them.

Personally, I'm tired of Americans who pander to Europeans for moral and cultural guidance like they hold the secrets of the universe. They are not goddamn Übermensch, but flawed human beings trying to make their way into the world like the rest of us.

But let it not be said I hate Europeans or European culture, I have the utmost respect for Europe and its accomplishments, but I do not blindly worship it. As for how I feel about America in the words of the immortal Arthur James Baldwin,"I love America more than any other country in this world, and exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually."

 

[Aurora Firestorm]

I knew all of these things. Except 4 is not true at all, and 10 and 8 are issues with of lots of developed countries. There needs to be an 11 in here: America is not unique in its foibles and issues.

 

[Mr.Lucifer]

The thing is a lot of countries are shit-holes to us. He mentioned some nice cities, but for certain countries, thats the only thing they going for them. Especially, china, most chinese people live in poverty. He talks about our news being alarmist, but thats really the problem with all new agencies around the world.

In my opinion, if anyone from another country got to see the world like this guy did, they too would view their country as a drunken brother.