And you think this list compares at all to the ****** that comes outta your country? TAKE BACK BIEBER!!! WE DON'T WANT HIM EITHER!!! And who are you to run your mouth about politics? You guys were under the crown until 82!!! And even though we have a bunch of crackheads, our population is big enough that there's a smaller percentage of fags than many countries. And we all know the real reason behind your post: you're bitter that all the comedians here make songs insulting Canada (most notably by Weird Al and Rucka Rucka Ali), but noone up there can work up the nerve to rant about America and put it on an album.TRR said:
Non-Americans: How do you view us?
- Thread starter retyopy
- Start date
I see your point, but my original opinion is still valid. There are alot of Americans who love to chant "best country in the world", and it is still annoying/wrong even if other people do it too. I like how no-one've disagreed with me on the "America is run by complete morons" bit, though.Alex Mac said:
I think my biggest issue with Americans is that they refuse to take responsibility for anything! Someone gets shot - Games did it, Your childs is a fatass - McDonalds did it, Games promoting enviromental awareness - Pushing the Liberal agenda(Thanks Fox news)!
I really don't get why the fuck this thread was startted. Like he wasn't expecting this. A bunch of fags from countries in worse positions than we are going on about how stupid we are so theycan feel better about themselves. I know we're in a bad position right now, but you can't ignore that we have at several points been a very wealthy and influential nation. You cannot blame all Americans for our current leaders completely disregarding all the principles that this nation was founded on. Small government. Yeah, right. In NY there is now a beareu to help you get through all the beareus that you need to go through to start a business. I will probly be muted for this comment.
the subject of the topic was america, not canada. saying that canada is no better or worse is a deflection from the issue and not relevant. that said, i feel obligated to correct the misrepresentation of religion in canada.redeemer09 said:
we are a secular state.
ignoring the fact that i live in canada and am something of an expert on the subject for a moment, i feel obligated to point out that the wikipedia article you linked to actually says, and i quote,
"With Christianity having once been central and integral to Canadian culture and daily life, it has been recently suggested that Canada has come to enter a post-Christian or secular state, where practice of the religion has "moved to the margins of public life",[5][6] and irreligion is on the rise."
the rest of the article goes on to state that canada is increasingly secular, and for that matter, increasingly aetheist.
for a more concrete example, the conservative party (canada's right wing party) lost the ontario provincial ellection in 2007 due specifically to thier suggestion that we fund religious schools. the very idea that public dollars would some how be used to fund religion so outraged and horrified canadians that overnight they went from a very large lead in the polls to a crushing defeat on that issue alone. literally overnight, i was there. if it is helpful, ontario is about 1/3 of canada's population and by far it's most important province (regardless of what quebec thinks). and for what it is worth, in 2007 maybe we overreacted. the issue was more complex, but the image of canada somehow giving money to religious groups was too frightening and disgusting for the ellectorate to stomach.
10 seconds of research on google gave these two links, which you may also find helpful.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ontario_general_election,_2007#Issues
http://www.suffolkhands.org.uk/node/523
but finally, as i said at the start, the topic of this discussion was america, not canada or anywhere else.
ps. i know what scott pilgrim is, but i dont understand the relevance. maybe it is just me being an old man?
Actually for the thread starter as well one good example for the OP topic is the webcomic Scandinavia and the World (http://satwcomic.com/). It's pretty much like the above except focusing mostly on the Viking countries, though they often bring others in. There portrayal of America is on the male/conservative side a large overbearing & hyperactive teenager (as the US is a young country), with his sister representing the Liberal side and being a Hollywood type big fake breasted blonde.Michael Howard said:
Anyways, there are a number of things good and bad I could point out, but one thing that I'm becoming more aware of and continues to bug me in recent years is America's instance that you're always "the good guys!" You're media plays a big part in this, and there was a time in WWII when you guys came in to help save the day against the Nazi's, and during the Cold War the USSR was kind of scary and won out in the end.
But in the aftermath of it all when you look back on it objectively without the fear of global thermonuclear war it really wasn't so black and white. America committed or instigated numerous atrocities of it's own, to the point that you have to wonder if both sides were equally dirty. Especially in the post-cold war, the 'good guy/bad guy' persona is still maintained yet in reality it's never quite so black and white. Why can't you view conflict how it really is, us vs them, rather than glorifying yourselves as the good guys?
Note that this isn't directed at any specific poster as there will always be people who think differently, but as a whole this attitude has always been there in America. And it's starting to get kind of silly when you're the worlds lone super power bringing war to back water 3rd world nations.
Stereotypically it seems that the majority of Middle America is where a lot of the image of stupid Americans comes from while on the fringes such as New York they are all smarter and more progressive. I don't mean to offend anyone but this seems like a widely held view.
Because elections are entirely truthful of the majority of the country. Come on man, America has one of the most corrupted governments in the world(which is also a BIG talking point that other countries like to talk about us with) and you're going to tell me that its just us Americans voting them all in just like that?BiH-Kira said:
A lot of people out here in the United States aren't even registered to vote because of how corrupt and looney our government is. Yes I know that is making the problem worse and letting these clowns get elected(I am a registered voter by the way and do not vote them in.)
But you can't sit there and say that its only the United States that has a corrupt government and all this scandalous stuff going on. It has happened throughout history with every major country that was given the power to do so. By the way those last two sentences are NOT implying that we are the best country at the moment but that we have been given a lot of freedom to abuse the world for our gain.
I don't mind if you dislike our country's beliefs but please stop including all of us other normal Americans that just live here and work every day and do everything you probably do in your country. Every country has done something to force on other countries since the dawn of history too so saying only the United States does this is pretty ignorant sounding. What if we bring up the imperialism that the British set forth throughout the world. I'm pretty sure a lot of the countries in Africa didn't like the British at all. We have a lot of douchebags here and a lot of great people also and I'm sure its like that in your country and all I'm pretty much asking for is to stop jumping the gun on us and labeling all of us idiots.
The stuff that angers me the most is the people without a real concrete reason to hate us and just seem to hate us because its cool and popular. I like my country because yeah it has a lot of bad things wrong with it but also a lot of great things and my life is going good for me. I like other countries and would love to visit others. I'm rambling now so I'll leave at please stop mashing us all into one big category.
Basically this and a whole lot more, oh and also because of people like this:jeremysaint said:
ROFL
I don't 'hate' America, but I view it as a very fucked up country.
In my opinion, the vast majority of Americans are perfectly respectable people who hold moderate views on religion, politics, race, gender equality and a whole host of other things generally associated with western prejudice, they are a thoroughly normal and unremarkable population with the only exceptions being a slightly exaggerated average body weight, due to the relative affluence of society, and a quite irritating inability to use the English language properly, due to their ancestors being gutter-mouthed English sailors.
However, there are those in America who let the side down, just as there are in every country. Therefore the stereotype commonly slapped on the face of Americans overseas is of ignorant, self-congratulating, overweight, lazy, loud-mouthed, over-patriotic, ill-educated, racist, sexist, far-right, warmongering, gun-toting, mega-religious, sociopathic nut-jobs with too much money and an annoying propensity to tell everyone else that they should be the same.
It's not fair, but that's how it is, and stereotypes are not born without progeny.
The main problem is poor education, you are taught from an early age of all the times your country has saved the world throughout history, because you have such overwhelming military power that you can't help but win every war you drop into and thus get the job of writing the history books, that coupled with the prominence of your films and music culture makes you seem like the sort of country that no-one should like.
My advice is that you should, as a country, wake the fuck up, realise you are not the centre of the universe, stop interfering in other people's wars, get a clue about cultures other than your own, stop eating as much, drop the 9.11 sob-story and let the normal, moderate, everyday American run the country instead of the wankers you currently elect.
And start spelling things right.
However, there are those in America who let the side down, just as there are in every country. Therefore the stereotype commonly slapped on the face of Americans overseas is of ignorant, self-congratulating, overweight, lazy, loud-mouthed, over-patriotic, ill-educated, racist, sexist, far-right, warmongering, gun-toting, mega-religious, sociopathic nut-jobs with too much money and an annoying propensity to tell everyone else that they should be the same.
It's not fair, but that's how it is, and stereotypes are not born without progeny.
The main problem is poor education, you are taught from an early age of all the times your country has saved the world throughout history, because you have such overwhelming military power that you can't help but win every war you drop into and thus get the job of writing the history books, that coupled with the prominence of your films and music culture makes you seem like the sort of country that no-one should like.
My advice is that you should, as a country, wake the fuck up, realise you are not the centre of the universe, stop interfering in other people's wars, get a clue about cultures other than your own, stop eating as much, drop the 9.11 sob-story and let the normal, moderate, everyday American run the country instead of the wankers you currently elect.
And start spelling things right.
As an American I can agree with all of those statements except the religious one. I mean, sure, we have some bat-shit [b/]insane[/b] vocal fanatics over here, but they don't stand for us all. Most Christians I know are pretty mellow about all that. Really though, how do your disagreements with others over metaphysical quandries add anything to this thread?fenrizz said:
We teach religious ideas at school out of "fairness" because evolution hasn't been completely proven (scientists haven't been able to create life out of nothing either, so the "creation myth" is still in). Once that "propaganda" has been proven 100% wrong I can guarantee it'll be thrown out (Not like it matters. My teacher spent all of 1 minute going over it compared to the 2 weeks we took to talk about evolution.)
OT: I think it's because the people that other nations see more often have more national pride than is normal or are massive dicks trying to assert dominance, which in my social experiences, is the bloody norm. Most people don't like others saying that sort of stuff, so they grow to hate them. Thus, the "problem" of America vs. the World. In the long run, it doesn't matter. Nations rise and fall, regimes change, but this kind of mindless classification never goes away. It has been an underlying factor in countless wars in our species past and it will have the same role for countless more in the future.
I think the thing is that anyone who chooses to can get on a soapbox and rant about what irks them, but the people who get the most attention are the ones who are vocal and kind of insane. So yeah we have ourselves pretty misrepresented.
No it's not. In Scandinavia there?s a mentality called "janteloven". It tells you there's always someone better than you, you are not the best and so on.Marik2 said:
Here is the actual thing
The ten rules state:
Don't think you're anything special.
Don't think you're as good as us.
Don't think you're smarter than us.
Don't convince yourself that you're better than us.
Don't think you know more than us.
Don't think you are more important than us.
Don't think you are good at anything.
Don't laugh at us.
Don't think anyone cares about you.
Don't think you can teach us anything
It's part of our culture and most of us are heavily influenced by this
i dunno, from what i see in forums;
- self obsessed enough to start a thread asking what the world thinks of you.
- opinionated about everything, yet dismissive of others opinions. I remember a thread about American health care and in response to opinions from non-Americans an American claimed no foreigner was going to tell them how teir country should be run (this is a world wide forum, is it not?). sums up what I think is the typical American mentality.
from being on holiday and seeing Americans; LOUD, annoying, and totally unaware of their surroundings.
These opinions are derived from checking the profiles of the peoiple who get my back up to see they are American and from a few small groups on holiday. i know they do not represent the whole nation, but I'm yet to see something to shift my initial opinions.
not that it's anyones job to have to change my opinion, but you did ask.
- self obsessed enough to start a thread asking what the world thinks of you.
- opinionated about everything, yet dismissive of others opinions. I remember a thread about American health care and in response to opinions from non-Americans an American claimed no foreigner was going to tell them how teir country should be run (this is a world wide forum, is it not?). sums up what I think is the typical American mentality.
from being on holiday and seeing Americans; LOUD, annoying, and totally unaware of their surroundings.
These opinions are derived from checking the profiles of the peoiple who get my back up to see they are American and from a few small groups on holiday. i know they do not represent the whole nation, but I'm yet to see something to shift my initial opinions.
not that it's anyones job to have to change my opinion, but you did ask.
I've only had one personal experience with America and it was overwhelmingly positive. I attended a music festival on a boat in the Caribbean. So not an accurate cross section of society. Other than that all I see is those people like Glenn sodding Beck who shout the loudest. I refuse to believe that is representative of ALL of the US either.
Regardless, you should not be concerned with what people think of your country. If a large part of your personality is your "national identity"then you need to get some more meaning in your life, seriously.
Regardless, you should not be concerned with what people think of your country. If a large part of your personality is your "national identity"then you need to get some more meaning in your life, seriously.
