Why do Americans do the date differently?

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ZephrC

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Mar 9, 2010
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Because it just happened that way and it doesn't actually matter? It's not like anybody planned this sort of thing. We just don't feel like rearranging everything we do so we can fit in with all the cool kids.
 

tawmus

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Apr 28, 2010
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The United States is a relatively new country. There are probably park benches in Europe older then the U.S. If you are making a new country that is suppose to be "different" then the established order, of course you are not going to use generally accepted methods of measurement.
 

Jake0fTrades

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Jun 5, 2008
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This is unrelated to the topic but I'll say it nonetheless.

I notice an unnecessary amount of Anti-American opinions here. I have to ask; why?

Political issues? If you assume that one country's government is worse than another you mislead yourself, you can criticize America for the war in the Middle East, but I could equally put Britain at fault for it's unfair treatment of India, or even look to Russia's infamous purges.

Our people? Different cultures have different clothes and food, but human nature doesn't change once you cross the border. All men and women of every country have lust, anger, hate and jealousy. It doesn't matter whether you live for Queen and Country or the Red, White and Blue.
 

Ordinaryundone

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Oct 23, 2010
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I think its a matter of size, with the smallest number of possible integers going first. You have 12 possible months, up to 31 possible days, and 9999 as far as years are concerned.
 

Jonluw

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May 23, 2010
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Because they realized how much it bothered us that they kept clinging to their feet and inches, so they decided to come up with a new way of writing dates.

In the dictatorship of Jonluwonia, we shall write the date "month\[sup]week[/sup]/[sub]year[/sub]\day" just to confuse people
 

mr_rubino

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Sep 19, 2010
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Lethos said:
mr_rubino said:
Ranma12569 said:
mr_rubino said:
Lilani said:
We just do. And to send it right back at ya, why do all of you Europeans and Asians drive on the left side of the road, huh? That's so silly.
Nah, just England and Japan. Two isolated islands. =P
England isn't an island it's a country along with Scotland and Wales that make up the island of great britain which contains numerous small islands as well.

Japan is several thousand islands not just one. I'm not attacking you just letting you know
*sigh* Two isolated archipelagos. Better? They also both have an odd predilection towards calling undergarments "pants".
88chaz88 said:
mr_rubino said:
Lilani said:
We just do. And to send it right back at ya, why do all of you Europeans and Asians drive on the left side of the road, huh? That's so silly.
Nah, just England and Japan. Two isolated islands. =P
Actually driving on the left was how it was done originally. It was a system invented by the Romans and the whole of Europe was using it up until Napoleon decided that everyone should drive on the right. So really we're right, you're wrong, again.
Terribly intriguing, old chap, but you haven't clarified what else you're "right" about. Sticking unnatural letters into words and calling it classy certainly isn't "right". (Napoleon, eh? Sure was a looong time ago, wasn't it?)
God bless the Englanders. If they're not adding cosmetic changes to something and retroactively claiming it's correct, or losing half the world in one fell/prolonged swoop, they're keeping traditions the rest of the world gave up and claiming superiority for it. Must be nice to live in a little soap bubble while the rest of the world has to share borders with things.
Wtf? Did your girlfriend leave you for an English bloke or something? You seem to have a rather large chip on your soldier. I think it's cute that your perception of England is out of date by about 100 years but, you really shouldn't display your ignorance so openly.
Ah, sorry, governor. Allow me to do the more more acceptable thing:
Gaw! America! Those Yanks are their differences from us! What uneducated tobbyrot! *monocle*
 

Lethos

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Dec 9, 2010
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mr_rubino said:
Lethos said:
mr_rubino said:
Ranma12569 said:
mr_rubino said:
Lilani said:
We just do. And to send it right back at ya, why do all of you Europeans and Asians drive on the left side of the road, huh? That's so silly.
Nah, just England and Japan. Two isolated islands. =P
England isn't an island it's a country along with Scotland and Wales that make up the island of great britain which contains numerous small islands as well.

Japan is several thousand islands not just one. I'm not attacking you just letting you know
*sigh* Two isolated archipelagos. Better? They also both have an odd predilection towards calling undergarments "pants".
88chaz88 said:
mr_rubino said:
Lilani said:
We just do. And to send it right back at ya, why do all of you Europeans and Asians drive on the left side of the road, huh? That's so silly.
Nah, just England and Japan. Two isolated islands. =P
Actually driving on the left was how it was done originally. It was a system invented by the Romans and the whole of Europe was using it up until Napoleon decided that everyone should drive on the right. So really we're right, you're wrong, again.
Terribly intriguing, old chap, but you haven't clarified what else you're "right" about. Sticking unnatural letters into words and calling it classy certainly isn't "right". (Napoleon, eh? Sure was a looong time ago, wasn't it?)
God bless the Englanders. If they're not adding cosmetic changes to something and retroactively claiming it's correct, or losing half the world in one fell/prolonged swoop, they're keeping traditions the rest of the world gave up and claiming superiority for it. Must be nice to live in a little soap bubble while the rest of the world has to share borders with things.
Wtf? Did your girlfriend leave you for an English bloke or something? You seem to have a rather large chip on your soldier. I think it's cute that your perception of England is out of date by about 100 years but, you really shouldn't display your ignorance so openly.
Ah, sorry, governor. Allow me to do the more more acceptable thing:
Gaw! America! Those Yanks are their differences from us! What uneducated tobbyrot! *monocle*
Have you ever been to England?
 

mr_rubino

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Sep 19, 2010
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Lethos said:
mr_rubino said:
Lethos said:
mr_rubino said:
Ranma12569 said:
mr_rubino said:
Lilani said:
We just do. And to send it right back at ya, why do all of you Europeans and Asians drive on the left side of the road, huh? That's so silly.
Nah, just England and Japan. Two isolated islands. =P
England isn't an island it's a country along with Scotland and Wales that make up the island of great britain which contains numerous small islands as well.

Japan is several thousand islands not just one. I'm not attacking you just letting you know
*sigh* Two isolated archipelagos. Better? They also both have an odd predilection towards calling undergarments "pants".
88chaz88 said:
mr_rubino said:
Lilani said:
We just do. And to send it right back at ya, why do all of you Europeans and Asians drive on the left side of the road, huh? That's so silly.
Nah, just England and Japan. Two isolated islands. =P
Actually driving on the left was how it was done originally. It was a system invented by the Romans and the whole of Europe was using it up until Napoleon decided that everyone should drive on the right. So really we're right, you're wrong, again.
Terribly intriguing, old chap, but you haven't clarified what else you're "right" about. Sticking unnatural letters into words and calling it classy certainly isn't "right". (Napoleon, eh? Sure was a looong time ago, wasn't it?)
God bless the Englanders. If they're not adding cosmetic changes to something and retroactively claiming it's correct, or losing half the world in one fell/prolonged swoop, they're keeping traditions the rest of the world gave up and claiming superiority for it. Must be nice to live in a little soap bubble while the rest of the world has to share borders with things.
Wtf? Did your girlfriend leave you for an English bloke or something? You seem to have a rather large chip on your soldier. I think it's cute that your perception of England is out of date by about 100 years but, you really shouldn't display your ignorance so openly.
Ah, sorry, governor. Allow me to do the more more acceptable thing:
Gaw! America! Those Yanks are their differences from us! What uneducated tobbyrot! *monocle*
Have you ever been to England?
Have you ever been to America?
 

ikey

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Apr 19, 2010
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The Rookie Gamer said:
Freechoice said:
Xcelsior said:
Does it really matter?
Can we chain quote this?
I will.

OT: I'm really pissed with this turning into a "My country is better than yours" argument.
I know dude, I mean it's so obvious my country is better than yours, just give it up.
Also, to people who seem to meet America and its citizens, you just have to search in the right places and you'll find some stuff we do differently that's actually smart, such as... well I can't think of anything right now, but I'm sure there's something.
 

subfield

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Apr 6, 2010
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I don't know, but I do know they get very confused when the see the date written in some semblance
of proper order as DD/MM/YYYY (basically everywhere except Russia) or YYYY/MM/DD (ISO).

Don't even get me started on the use of imperial units.
 

PeePantz

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Sep 23, 2010
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First off, it seems like a lot of people are bashing America because it doesn't conform to the rest of the world. To that, we essentially say "Fuck off", and there's nothing wrong with that. There are many differences that we don't care about. If you come here, use our date system. Don't be whiny about it. When I visit, say, England, I'll use your date system. I have no problem with that. It's rude and narrow minded to try to interject your ways on another country (I get it, "the irony of that statement"). However, just look at this thread and realize that everyone's guilty of it.

Secondly, like someone mentioned, this was started purely for a better filing system. It's a lot easier to track down something when you search for it in monthly blocks. This just caught on to your everyday person. Really not that hard or mysterious. It has nothing to do with "being different" or flipping England the bird. It was just way more practical.

Thirdly, it's shameful how many apologetic Americans there are here. Don't you dare apologize on behalf of me or others. Unless you act like how you paint a stereotypical American, no need to be apologetic. America has problems, but the rest of the world has a shit ton as well. Because they are different, doesn't make them smaller or worse.
 

someonehairy-ish

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Mar 15, 2009
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Triscut900 said:
xD *have a cookie*

The amount of times ive been on an american site or whatever and thought for a moment 'how the fuck can there be 16 months? Ahhh, nowww i remember.' Not many times, actually. Its more annoying when the day is the 1st-12th so then you read it as d/m/y and because the day is the thing you automatically look for u end up having the wrong date. Grr.
 

HyenaThePirate

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Jan 8, 2009
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Crolley said:
Maybe it's to bring it in line with (what might be) the most common way Americans say it. "Today is January first, of two thousand eleven."

Maybe the government considers the month more important than the day on their documents (maybe for organizational and cataloging purposes), so they format it like that.

Honestly, I don't know.
This is EXACTLY why we do it.
In time gone by, and to a good extent you can thank the Military, but it was just more convenient (and helped avoid confusion) to write things as they were said or dictated.
Thus, if I tell you to take down a letter for me, I'll say "February 14th, 2010" or "Tuesday, February 14th, 2010"

Consider it the same way as the word "ain't"
Ain't isn't really a word, or rather, it WASN'T, but popular usage for ease of speech made it a common phrase.
 

blankedboy

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Feb 7, 2009
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Triscut900 said:
Succes. (idontcarethat'showispellsuccescosnowitsapalindrome^^)

And yeah, Americans just thought "HURR DURR MONTHS ARE LOWER NUMBER SUMTIMES LESH BUT IT IS FRONT?"

CyberAkuma said:
In Sweden we do Year/Month/Date

We think it makes far more sense that way...
So... 1995/3/1/3/1995? For the first of March, 1995.

MagicMouse said:
The date is January 1st, 2011.

The date is 01/1/2011.

It is written the way it is spoken.
But everyone I know says "first of january" here.
I'm confuz now :(
 

Lethos

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Dec 9, 2010
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mr_rubino said:
Lethos said:
mr_rubino said:
Lethos said:
mr_rubino said:
Ranma12569 said:
mr_rubino said:
Lilani said:
We just do. And to send it right back at ya, why do all of you Europeans and Asians drive on the left side of the road, huh? That's so silly.
Nah, just England and Japan. Two isolated islands. =P
England isn't an island it's a country along with Scotland and Wales that make up the island of great britain which contains numerous small islands as well.

Japan is several thousand islands not just one. I'm not attacking you just letting you know
*sigh* Two isolated archipelagos. Better? They also both have an odd predilection towards calling undergarments "pants".
88chaz88 said:
mr_rubino said:
Lilani said:
We just do. And to send it right back at ya, why do all of you Europeans and Asians drive on the left side of the road, huh? That's so silly.
Nah, just England and Japan. Two isolated islands. =P
Actually driving on the left was how it was done originally. It was a system invented by the Romans and the whole of Europe was using it up until Napoleon decided that everyone should drive on the right. So really we're right, you're wrong, again.
Terribly intriguing, old chap, but you haven't clarified what else you're "right" about. Sticking unnatural letters into words and calling it classy certainly isn't "right". (Napoleon, eh? Sure was a looong time ago, wasn't it?)
God bless the Englanders. If they're not adding cosmetic changes to something and retroactively claiming it's correct, or losing half the world in one fell/prolonged swoop, they're keeping traditions the rest of the world gave up and claiming superiority for it. Must be nice to live in a little soap bubble while the rest of the world has to share borders with things.
Wtf? Did your girlfriend leave you for an English bloke or something? You seem to have a rather large chip on your soldier. I think it's cute that your perception of England is out of date by about 100 years but, you really shouldn't display your ignorance so openly.
Ah, sorry, governor. Allow me to do the more more acceptable thing:
Gaw! America! Those Yanks are their differences from us! What uneducated tobbyrot! *monocle*
Have you ever been to England?
Have you ever been to America?
I have actually, I spent a couple of weeks in NYC. I just find it ironic that in trying to beat the dead horse that is the British stereotype (and if I am honest, it is only the Americans that continue to beat that poor horse), you became the embodiment of the ignorant American stereotype.
 

mr_rubino

New member
Sep 19, 2010
721
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Lethos said:
mr_rubino said:
Lethos said:
mr_rubino said:
Lethos said:
mr_rubino said:
Ranma12569 said:
mr_rubino said:
Lilani said:
We just do. And to send it right back at ya, why do all of you Europeans and Asians drive on the left side of the road, huh? That's so silly.
Nah, just England and Japan. Two isolated islands. =P
England isn't an island it's a country along with Scotland and Wales that make up the island of great britain which contains numerous small islands as well.

Japan is several thousand islands not just one. I'm not attacking you just letting you know
*sigh* Two isolated archipelagos. Better? They also both have an odd predilection towards calling undergarments "pants".
88chaz88 said:
mr_rubino said:
Lilani said:
We just do. And to send it right back at ya, why do all of you Europeans and Asians drive on the left side of the road, huh? That's so silly.
Nah, just England and Japan. Two isolated islands. =P
Actually driving on the left was how it was done originally. It was a system invented by the Romans and the whole of Europe was using it up until Napoleon decided that everyone should drive on the right. So really we're right, you're wrong, again.
Terribly intriguing, old chap, but you haven't clarified what else you're "right" about. Sticking unnatural letters into words and calling it classy certainly isn't "right". (Napoleon, eh? Sure was a looong time ago, wasn't it?)
God bless the Englanders. If they're not adding cosmetic changes to something and retroactively claiming it's correct, or losing half the world in one fell/prolonged swoop, they're keeping traditions the rest of the world gave up and claiming superiority for it. Must be nice to live in a little soap bubble while the rest of the world has to share borders with things.
Wtf? Did your girlfriend leave you for an English bloke or something? You seem to have a rather large chip on your soldier. I think it's cute that your perception of England is out of date by about 100 years but, you really shouldn't display your ignorance so openly.
Ah, sorry, governor. Allow me to do the more more acceptable thing:
Gaw! America! Those Yanks are their differences from us! What uneducated tobbyrot! *monocle*
Have you ever been to England?
Have you ever been to America?
I have actually, I spent a couple of weeks in NYC. I just find it ironic that in trying to beat the dead horse that is the British stereotype (and if I am honest, it is only the Americans that continue to beat that poor horse), you became the embodiment of the ignorant American stereotype.
Ah what a coincidence. I see you on a message board whining about American dating systems. I think you might have your top hat on too tight, because it seems dripping irony is yet another thing Englanders like to claim as their own that another civilization created. (And you succeed, I'll admit.)

Sorry, man. I'm not going to bow down and apologize for my birthplace just because you wounded lions still think we somehow care enough to defy you because your ancestors had a tenuous hold on us a century or two ago. It just feeds the unhealthy complex you guys seem to have. I have no problem with you guys being a shell of an empire with your claws clutching for dear life at the closest island you have left, but I think it's about time your bunch dropped the 'tude and joined the rest of the world.
 

Lethos

New member
Dec 9, 2010
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mr_rubino said:
Lethos said:
mr_rubino said:
Lethos said:
mr_rubino said:
Lethos said:
mr_rubino said:
Ranma12569 said:
mr_rubino said:
Lilani said:
We just do. And to send it right back at ya, why do all of you Europeans and Asians drive on the left side of the road, huh? That's so silly.
Nah, just England and Japan. Two isolated islands. =P
England isn't an island it's a country along with Scotland and Wales that make up the island of great britain which contains numerous small islands as well.

Japan is several thousand islands not just one. I'm not attacking you just letting you know
*sigh* Two isolated archipelagos. Better? They also both have an odd predilection towards calling undergarments "pants".
88chaz88 said:
mr_rubino said:
Lilani said:
We just do. And to send it right back at ya, why do all of you Europeans and Asians drive on the left side of the road, huh? That's so silly.
Nah, just England and Japan. Two isolated islands. =P
Actually driving on the left was how it was done originally. It was a system invented by the Romans and the whole of Europe was using it up until Napoleon decided that everyone should drive on the right. So really we're right, you're wrong, again.
Terribly intriguing, old chap, but you haven't clarified what else you're "right" about. Sticking unnatural letters into words and calling it classy certainly isn't "right". (Napoleon, eh? Sure was a looong time ago, wasn't it?)
God bless the Englanders. If they're not adding cosmetic changes to something and retroactively claiming it's correct, or losing half the world in one fell/prolonged swoop, they're keeping traditions the rest of the world gave up and claiming superiority for it. Must be nice to live in a little soap bubble while the rest of the world has to share borders with things.
Wtf? Did your girlfriend leave you for an English bloke or something? You seem to have a rather large chip on your soldier. I think it's cute that your perception of England is out of date by about 100 years but, you really shouldn't display your ignorance so openly.
Ah, sorry, governor. Allow me to do the more more acceptable thing:
Gaw! America! Those Yanks are their differences from us! What uneducated tobbyrot! *monocle*
Have you ever been to England?
Have you ever been to America?
I have actually, I spent a couple of weeks in NYC. I just find it ironic that in trying to beat the dead horse that is the British stereotype (and if I am honest, it is only the Americans that continue to beat that poor horse), you became the embodiment of the ignorant American stereotype.
Ah what a coincidence. I see you on a message board whining about American dating systems. I think you might have your top hat on too tight, because it seems dripping irony is yet another thing Englanders like to claim as their own that another civilization created. (And you succeed, I'll admit.)

Sorry, man. I'm not going to bow down and apologize for my birthplace just because you wounded lions still think we somehow care enough to defy you because your ancestors had a tenuous hold on us a century or two ago. It just feeds the unhealthy complex you guys seem to have. I have no problem with you guys being a shell of an empire with your claws clutching for dear life at the closest island you have left, but I think it's about time your bunch dropped the 'tude and joined the rest of the world.
Okey.....Next step is for you to find where I insulted your dating system, where I said that irony is something only English people are allowed to do, where I said I care whether or not the USA is a British colony, where I said I think Britain has an empire and where I said we engaged in some sort of ancestor worship.

I mean geez man, even the OP stated he was only curious. Granted, there was a couple of posters who displayed some anti-American attitudes, but do you really think that they represent an entire country? Just because you have demonstrated yourself to be ignorant does not mean I think all Americans are ignorant.