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Have you ever had a conversation with someone from another country about America? If so, did you notice anything interesting about the foreigner's perspective on the US, including what they liked/disliked?

AB517

lol yeah

It is called envy.
But once we get past the name calling I listen to them. They have some valid points that we could learn from if we could get over ourselves.

Lecter

Envy?


I'm not American if there's anying you want to ask me.

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I'm only laughing on the outside / My smile is just skin deep / If you could see inside I'm really crying / You might join me for a weep.

romansh

I'm not American either.... definitely a foreigner... I too would be happy to share my perspectives.

The original question reminds of a friend's observation on South Africa in the days of apartheid..... "The world has many misconceptions about South Africa, but not as many South Africa has about the rest of the world."

I suspect this could be equally true of many nations; but, I fear it could be all too true for the United States.

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There is a theory which states that if ever anybody discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory which states that this has already happened. ........... Douglas Adams

AB517

I have no Questions now.

I am older now and think that we regular people are same no matter where we are. I also am working very hard to improve myself. I suffer from the 7 deadly sins and I am working to be a better person. I am a “regular” citizen of the USA and know what our problems are.

I tell people now let other countries do what they want. Decide on the quality of life that you want and if they got what you want; go there. I would rather stay here and try and improve what we have. This includes holding our companies to the same standards “over there” as they are held here in the “mother land.”

But if you want to tell me, I will listen.

Bjarki Dalsgarð

Well I'm not american, but I have talked with some of them.

And for the most they seem to be rather normal, dislike their government(can you blame them) and just about all round nice folks, though that might be the fact that they had been traveling europe for some years, and had got some sense beat into them

But even then they all (about 90% of them) had a streak of being rather high and mighty towards us over here in the old world.

Cheers

Any questions?

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Any clod can have the facts, but having opinions is an art.

The bitternes of life may consume you, otherwise it teaches you how to live for real.

debdodd

I'm a US citizen and although I have been to Europe I in no way consider myself a world traveler or have had any "sense" beat into me.

I don't believe that most of the world and it inhabitants are envious of us BUT I will say this ..... there are a bunch of you out there that are rude as hell to us .... just b/c we had the misfortune or fortune to be born here or who rules us at the time* .... you have no right to judge us by our leaders* ....

So many of you get righteous about defending Muslims and how not all Muslims are terrorists, blah, blah, blah ..... but you tend to do the same to us ... we are all a bunch of red necks, egotistical, pampered or whatever derogatory adjective you want to use and lump us all together ..... so many hypocrites .....*

__________________
"Ubi dubium ibi libertas."

"We are all lone souls. It pays to know humility, lest the delusion of control, of mastery, overwhelms. And indeed, we seem a species prone to that delusion, again and ever again ....."

Bjarki Dalsgarð

I think this is directed at me is it not anyways if it was, then it was in no way my intention to come across as rude or offencive, (can't see how I could be that from my post, so it is probably directed at us all who are not americans)

Anyways, did I say all americans? don't think so, I said all the americans I had met sofar, and they, as in them I have met in the flesh seemed to be high and mighty, it sure doesn't help that your governmnet is so (how to say it polite hmmm) stupid, for your guys overall image, I know there are lots of you who are against the government(I don't like the government here either)

And belive me there is a huge difference on americans who have been over here for some time, and those who only are here for a visit.

Name calling or blaming others of name calling doesn't help anybit, it only makes it worse.

I know we over here across the pond like to think you guys to be a bunch of religious obese rednecks, but do not try to say that there is something similar going the other way over the water.

And just so you know (in my own defence) I only judge people I have met, or had longer conversations with online, I'm just as biased as a new born baby (slight exageration there) I have just been through too much **** to be able to judge others before I've met them, they don't deserve it, you included.

So quite frankly I think you are overreacting a bit.

It is not my fault your defence choose Airbus over Boeing in making that plane, it just shows we are better

For me, I'm trying as well as I can not to be offensive, but at the same time some fun doesn't harm.

Cheers

__________________
Any clod can have the facts, but having opinions is an art.

The bitternes of life may consume you, otherwise it teaches you how to live for real.

debdodd

Yes I was directing my comments to you, don't attempt to drag others into your post by saying it was directed at non americans ... it was you .... do you find it amusing to say that americans that travel more in Europe have had some sense beat into them? then you have the audacity to say how could anyone think to misconstrue your words .....well first off pup, I've been around this forum long enough and read enough to know how amercicans are thought of around the world. I have seen first hand how we are perceived .... your high and mighty label .... oh pleeeeeeaaaazzzzzz!!! I could care less if you think I am over reacting, defensive or any other lame adjective that happens to be in your vocabulary .... I notice from your profile that you neglect to say what country you are from so I can only assume you are a) in hiding because you have pissed someone off or b) you don't want to divulge your country so that no one can prejudge you .... whatever dude. You've talked to a few tourists or a couple of students and you think you know americans, know the people ... give me a break, do you really think the everday american has the money to travel overseas? hardly! The average amercican is lucky if they can take their family to Disney World Seeing Europe isn't a high priority for most .... this country is a young democracy and we make many mistakes .... boy do we make mistakes but Amercicans are not baby eating monsters .. we care about our children,our families, our pets and everything else just like you and your fellow countrymen ... we get good presidents and we get bad ones ... once in a while a totally lousy one gets in office ... do I need to say his name ....The fact of the matter is that should you ever travel the united states you would never, ever, ever be treated as horrible as Americans are treated overseas ... our country is so vast ... you have no idea ... you could go from Maine to California and meet such a diverse population it would amaze you! Where one person visiting the US might be offended by East coast rigidness they might be equally offended by a Southerner's hugging and calling everyone "ya' all come on over for some sweet tea and sit a spell" .... or you might come to the midwest where cookouts, camping and water skiing are the big summer time events .... You could go to the Rockies where they love to snow ski and hike or Louisiana where snakes are in the trees and alligators in the water ... hell go to Florida and you'll be in the retirement capital of the world.Name calling you say ???? Ha, Ha very funny ... you've met our talked to what less than 50 Americans and that makes you knowledgeable about the other millions? What most American think about those "across the pond" is that you hate us and condemn us without knowing us ... you judge the people by it's leaders and their foreign policy.

You say you've been through so much in your life and boo hoo ... join the crowd pup, there are plenty of us out here who haven't been born with a silver spoon in our mouths and have struggled in life ... you have no monopoly on misery and it's company.

I maintain that many of you "across the pond" will defend plenty of others in the world but love to lump Americans into one big basket of miscreants .... so before you think I am overly sensitive or misinterpreting your words, reread what you wrote and see in it's not just a wee bit on the condescending side .... plus pup, you come off as passive - aggressive in your verbiage .... Oh and BTW ... you're not that funny so don't quit your day job either that or the hmor was lost in translation ... LOL

__________________
"Ubi dubium ibi libertas."

"We are all lone souls. It pays to know humility, lest the delusion of control, of mastery, overwhelms. And indeed, we seem a species prone to that delusion, again and ever again ....."

Wulfric

Well, the problem I've seen in the Americans I've met/am related to is that perhaps there is a bit of self love going on there, and as Bjarki has said, there can be an impression of being a tad 'high and mighty'.

I'm not saying anyone else in the world is any better, every nation/group of people has it's flaws, I mean I'm half pom and half Aussie, and I can tell you, neither are some kind of shining land of perfect virtue, some parts are beautiful, some parts are ugly as hell, same for the people. Here in aus people can be warm and welcoming, but equally they can be aggressive, insular and xenophobic. You'd be amazed just how quickly a jeering mob can form, even on the sunny beaches of Sydney.

I suppose it's just to the rest of us out here the impression we can get at times is that you in America are too willing to overlook the ugliness that exists there at times, too keen to see the 'land of the free' or whatever you want to see. I'm grossly over-generalising here, of course I can't know every single American, just as I don't know every single Aussie or every single Brit, but that's the impression you get from here. Heck, Australians and Brits can be just as eager to glorify their own country, it's just... well, I mean take Australia for example. We aren't the 'Land of the Free', we are the land of criminals who made a nation for ourselves. We aren't on some kind of mission from god to create a perfect heaven on earth, we're just struggling to survive in a largely arid and dead continent. We live and get on with life, no shining mission here.

I don't hate Americans, heck, I've even loved one, and I have family there (in Washington DC). I don't hate any group of people, I mean there are absolutely lovely North Koreans and Iranians out there, it's just, well, I suppose I'm just a bit over the whole 'Aren't we the great paragons of democratic virtue' bullshit.