Non-Americans: How do you view us?

[dark-mortality]

On a side note, to all americans, YOU DID NOT DEFEAT THE NAZI'S!!!! That was the British and the Russians, who lost more soldiers than you many times over, and when you destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki, devastating Japan and killing millions of innocents, War on Britain was already over in the main, Japan was mainly your war, and it was nearly won in any case. (Yes, I do dislike Nuclear Weapons)

Japan wasn't "nearly" won. Winning the war would've required a full scale invasion that could have killed EASILY the same number of people as the nukes did.

Was nuking them without warning or anything a bad idea? Yes, it was. The radiation and stuff was horrible, but it wasn't as unnecessary as everyone seems to make it out to be.

Yes, if we had done a full-scale invasion, most likely, just as many people would have died, BUT, at least we wouldn't have made two cities uninhabitable for many years, and at the same time escalate the cancer-rate, mutations and radiation poison. In the end, it would have been better with a full-scale invasion, despite the losses.

 

[Justanewguy]

All the Americans will insult the people who dislike America, and all of the people who dislike America will use that to prove Americans suck.
These threads accomplish nothing. I wish people would stop posting them.

Being British, I like to view people with contempt in my own head. People can't shout at me for being a bastard when I do that.

Thank you.

In reality the sterotypes that people like to throw at (we) Americans tend to be faulty. They also tend to be things that most Americans would be attempting to change. A vast majority of Americans tend to feel bad about being American on a fairly regular basis. That's really not America's fault, either. After you hear "Americans are bad" so many times, you do start to believe it. The "jingoism" that has been gripping some groups is really just backlash against this. People don't want to feel bad about being American, just as a Croatian wouldn't want to feel bad about being Croatian or a Canadian wouldn't want to feel bad about being Canadian.

So far I've seen a lot of people saying "all my friends from America tend to be pretty cool, but the country sucks." Have you guys stopped and thought that perhaps the country as a whole is made up of those people who are pretty cool, and just gets a bad reputation because it's such an ingrained reputation? Many Americans are pushing for good things, they genuinely want to fix a lot of the problems. Much of the international community also looks to America to lead in fixing problems. Unfortunately, the entire world is struggling in actually moving forward right now. Things like environmental problems, economic issues, and scientific stagnation are a world problem, and the fact that America isn't able to lead as well as it used to seems to frustrate people.

That said, this is my perception, and one that I admit is skewed due to my living in America. I simply can't know how people outside my country feel/are. Just the same, a person living in France/Spain/Great Britain/ect can't judge how Americans feel/are. I know you all like to believe you know what is going on in America, but I really don't believe you actually do. We're not bad. We're not great, but we're not nearly as bad as some of the comments in here try to make us out to be. Republicans aren't evil. Democrats aren't stupid. We're just a bunch of very diverse people who are all trying to do what we feel is best. We're criticized for having a broken system, but the reality is that in two hundred years we've managed to combat racism, sexism, environmental problems, economic depressions, and other major issues. The strides we've made are incredible, and though we haven't made any major changes recently, we normally don't. Almost all of America's major social legislation (legislation that in reality, probably shouldn't even exist. Regulating social lives is definitely one of America's worst problems) have been brought about in major leaps. The 1860s saw major reforms in America's social systems, after the Civil War. Then we didn't see much change until the 1920s with Women's rights. Then again we didn't see much big change until the 1960s with Civil Rights. After that we saw another major leap with Native's Rights in the 1980s (which we still haven't fully resolved). I'd imagine we're coming up on a major social revolution soon.

My point with this is that the perception of America has really soured in the past 40 years, since approximately the 1970s. We also haven't had any major changes in culture since about that time. We could be coming on a major cultural revolution, which could change popular opinion about America in a single moment. Popular opinion is finicky like that. Rather than throwing stones, try understanding that Americans are trying to make progress, just like every other country.

 

[Thedutchjelle]

WOW......Im amazed at the short memory of peoples in other countries. How much american blood has been spilled since the 1940's for the liberation of nations in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the middle east. We were asked because we were the only ones who could help or had the power to. When the world asks you to be the cops, or cries upon you to say you have the power therefore you have the responsibility to help dont ***** when we do take action because were not helping your favorite cause. Step up and take charge yourself or sit down and shut up.

As far as I know, USA doesn't recognize the International Court in the Hague. Kind of shabby thing to do for a "world police". You're not the world police, you wish to think you were. I was greatly disappointed when Osama was simply shot instead of arrested and put to trial.

I know US citizens aren't all stupid, but I'm it's getting very hard lately. They just seem so.. stupid at times. All focussed on celebrities instead of useful people, the right-wingers, the hate for your own government, the sueing for outrageous amounts of money for stupid little things, the overinflated self-pride..
Especially the hate for your own government baffles me. Every president is either a Nazi or a Communist, you only have two parties that constantly hate each other as much as possible, any good idea (like NHL, that was one of the best things I've heard about US lately) gets blocked because "OMG TAX MONEY" etc.

Obviously this doesn't count for all US citizens, but it's just, as many people said before, the stupid ones are the ones you'll hear the most.

 

[nklshaz]

Contrary to my views on the whole 9/11 thing I don't dislike America or the people dwelling there.

Quite the opposite, i've had 3 fantastic holidays there and never before have I come across a friendlier bunch of people than those I met while on my holidays.

Also during my time in the army I served with American soldiers and got on quite well with them.

I think America is the same as any other country. It has it's decent folk and it has it's dicks. You just find that the dicks in America tend to be twice as loud as the dicks anywhere else. It's a shame but thats how it goes.

British media doesn't paint a great picture of the states though. We do get a lot of your batshit nuts folks on our news. Mainly your incredibly insane politicians and some of your weird as fuck religious nuts.

While most of us know thats not the entirety of America there are people that view America as full of thick as shit crazy people.

But on the whole I do like America. You have your bad points and you have your good points but the people i've met and talk to have been friendly enough and thats all that matters to me.

Speaking as an American, I couldn't agree more with your point about us having the loudest dicks. Living in a country that emphasizes free speech as much as America does has the unfortunate drawback of making people think that their opinions about any given subject actually matter, and trust me, if you want to make a person feel smug and superior, make them think that their opinions matter. I'm sick of people from here voicing even the most insignificant opinions as loudly and obnoxiously as they possibly can. Aside from that and a few other issues, I really do like it here. (And yes, I do see the irony of the way I stated my rather judgmental opinion)

 

[Zeraki]

WOW......Im amazed at the short memory of peoples in other countries. How much american blood has been spilled since the 1940's for the liberation of nations in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the middle east. We were asked because we were the only ones who could help or had the power to. When the world asks you to be the cops, or cries upon you to say you have the power therefore you have the responsibility to help dont ***** when we do take action because were not helping your favorite cause. Step up and take charge yourself or sit down and shut up.

Just leave... now.

This attitude is exactly why people hate us.

Good day sir.

 

[KaosuHamoni]

uhmm just want to point out rugby is not the same as American football. the players are larger and hit harder.(theres a reason for the pads and "body armor")

Erm, fuck no? I once watched a guy have his ear torn off purely because he refused to go down. And he still scored that try. Rugby is fucking brutal, and SO fun.

OT: I view you as individuals, however, as a country, you don't really help yourself all that much...

 

[Ruwrak]

It's not that I dislike america, americans or anything USA related in general.
It's the... erm.. little things so to say.

Patriotism is a great thing. But somehow it strikes me that americans in general are so.. so.. extravert with it. Then again, this is generally that the media shows us. Americans doing somewhat less intelligent things, doing things blindly and generally not showing signs of brain activity (I.e. I am going to jump from my roof into my garbage bin and put it on youtube so everyone can see how I broke my leg. Like.. what..?)

Once again, I have nothing against the US or it's residents. It's just the media contributes heavily to a bad perspective on the USA. The people I know are one by one intelligent, bright and 'normal' in behavior, reasoning and logic. A sharp contrast with what the media shows us generally.

I wouldn't say the USA is #1 or the best. On the contrary, I find several things a bit double, odd and illogic. But I also think that of my own government so no argument there. I guess I view the USA as a bit of a very huge country that yells the loudest and thus gets the most attention. Attention wich is not always in a positive sense. But generally I just let it all pass by and shrug before moving on with my life.

 

[nklshaz]

I'm from America, and I definitely think it has some flaws. But, no country is perfect. Our foreign policy definitely needs some changing, and our dual-party political system is completely asinine. And we do have a lot of idiots, but I don't think the amount of idiots we have is significantly larger than the amount that other countries have. No, the thing that sets us apart is that we somehow ended up putting our idiots in command.

 

[Project_Omega]

So after reading the "what if 9/11 happened to another country?" thread, it seems quite a few people think that us 'mericans suck. I think I read one saying that we would laugh at them. And I am saddened by that. So I wonder: How do you view the U.S.A as a whole?

You guys need to step off your high horse, I mean F-16, I mean Tank, I mean Oprah.

You aren't the center of the world, and will never be.

 

[Torrasque]

I hate most Americans because they are the epitome of ignorance and selfishness.
I played WoW for about 2 years, and just about every single person that I played with, was American. Californian yes, but still American.
At first, I was "ehhh... I don't really like anyone", but after 2 years, I was really close to most of the people of my guild, and I consider some of the people I raided with, to be very good friends of mine.
So I can honestly say that I don't hate all Americans, just most of them.

Generally, the more an American uses the computer and the internets, the more likely I am to like them

 

[T8B95]

WOW......Im amazed at the short memory of peoples in other countries. How much american blood has been spilled since the 1940's for the liberation of nations in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the middle east. We were asked because we were the only ones who could help or had the power to. When the world asks you to be the cops, or cries upon you to say you have the power therefore you have the responsibility to help dont ***** when we do take action because were not helping your favorite cause. Step up and take charge yourself or sit down and shut up.

There's the tiny fact that you sat on your entitled asses until the Japanese pissed you off, whereupon you blew 200,000 of their civillians into ash just to make a point at a time when they were trying to surrender. You then proceeded to take credit for what was mostly a Russian victory in Europe. After that, you demonized the Russians and Communists in general for forty years, while your actions were at least as bad.

OT: The above shows why I have a raging hatred for the American government and political system. As for the people, some of them are dicks, some of them are alright, just like everywhere else. The difference seems to be, the Americans put their morons up on pedestals to display them to the world.

 

[floobie]

I'm Canadian. My view of the US in its current state, AS A WHOLE probably isn't very flattering. I think significant portions of the population are pretty entitled, and the government is just enabling that attitude. I think the Christian extremists are just as bonkers as Muslim extremists. I think the government, overall, is pretty much shit. I think American foreign policy is far too meddlesome, and that corrupt higher-ups in the government are just using war to line their pockets. I get the impression that a lot of Americans don't know a damn thing about the rest of the world, and basically see their country as the centre of the universe. I think "freedom" in America is mostly an illusion. I think patriotism or nationalism tend to be pretty destructive attitudes, and I think the US generally takes it well beyond reason. I think the military spending is completely ridiculous, and I have to wonder that if things get bad enough financially (in large part due to that insane military spending), if the government might use its insane military to go all imperialist on the world, and just start pillaging other nations. I think about 1/3 of you should really get some exercise

THAT SAID: I will NEVER pre-judge individual American people. Assuming that everyone from a place conforms to every negative stereotype about it is just crap. Similarly, I will never associate the mistakes of a government with the people that were being governed. I've met some truly stupid Americans. I've met some really cool, intelligent ones. That applies to any nationality, really.

America, as a land, I think is pretty cool. Some cool cities I'd love to visit some day, like New York, Chicago, or San Francisco. Loads of natural beauty as well... and quite a variety of it.

 

[David Hardigree]

my humble opinon here... america kinda sucks as a grop but the individuals seem to be the best we have. so which is the better question; what do you think of the country, or what do you think of the citizens. I kinda think the main reason 9/11 was made such a big deal is because, as a country, we felt invincible. Did the same think round december in the 40's. back then a whole country attacked the nation but this time... a tiny fraction of a small group of a percentage of the population of a foreign country. this whole "war on terrorism" seems dumb to me. you cannot fight an idea. its like the Red Scare of the 50's. I don't think the U.S. has learned from history too much. We seem to be repeating it. I am an american citizen and I do think the U.S. is nice but not the best. politics and media tend to makes us look bad... none more so than our own. It seems we created our own problems. I am a patriot and I love my country but to claim to be superior is a sure sigh of inferiority, wouldn't you all agree?

 

[chstens]

I have two issues with America, alot of you actually believe that America is the "greatest country in the world" and your country is run by complete morons, otherwise, you're okay. Just get over the "free healthcare is socialism!" thing. You may not realise this, but after USAs credit thing dropped from AAA to AA+, the only countries left in AAA, are countires that America would call "socialist". And government regulation is not a bad thing either, you let corporations ruin your nation! How is that good?

 

[Valkyr71]

TANK,

I am home and I know my history very well. Im not altering any facts and In alot of the 14 European countries ive traveled to or been stationed in there are cemetaries full of american servicemen who have died fighting for the liberation of a people not thier own.

 

[Iron Mal]

So after reading the "what if 9/11 happened to another country?" thread, it seems quite a few people think that us 'mericans suck. I think I read one saying that we would laugh at them. And I am saddened by that. So I wonder: How do you view the U.S.A as a whole?

Sadly the cynical reactions of a lot of people in that thread (mine along with them) aren't entirely unjustified (again, remember what a lot of American Facebook user's statuses were upon hearing about the earthquakes in Japan?).

Not all Americans are like this, I know, but unfortuneatly it isn't nessercarily a vocal minority either, sorry to have to tell you this but you aren't particularly well liked as a country and it isn't all irrational hatred or secretly being jealous of you either (more than a few people have legitimate and well thought out reasons as to why they dislike America, quite a few of them being Americans themselves).

 

[mitchell271]

Quite the opposite, i've had 3 fantastic holidays there and never before have I come across a friendlier bunch of people than those I met while on my holidays.

Not bashing the states here, but if you want really nice people, come and join us up in Canada sometime. Preferably Vancouver or Edmonton.

OT: Americans aren't bad people in general, but there are more dicks there than many other places (not per capita, just because there are more people). There are some very nice people and some very dickish people, just like everywhere else.

 

[Apprentice1994]

Like every problem I have with america I sum it up to one word. Media. I have had some delightful interactions with people who live in the States. But when you view them as a whole and how the media from them is basically showed through out the world we started to get a skewed perspective. Unlike most news I've seen the States seems to have a news force that counts itself as an important presence even though they don't REPORT they just give their opinions on the matter. But I kinda do agree. If a "terrorist attack" happened in another country it wouldn't have been such a big deal. Also like i said in another post...Much worse has happened.

There was a chart I say that had all the statistics from "lives lost due to" sort of thing. Terrorism was one of the lowest.

I'm an American, and I commend you for this. Thank you very much. There are a lot of Americans that think the same thing, but there's really nothing we can do about it. Whoever listens to what our media says is an idiot, and our country is apparently full of them.

 

[Aulleas123]

Normally I don't like to respond to topics that are asked every other week. However I enjoy taking something that I agree with and then adding my viewpoint.

We were asked because we were the only ones who could help or had the power to. When the world asks you to be the cops, or cries upon you to say you have the power therefore you have the responsibility to help don't ***** when we do take action because were not helping your favorite cause. Step up and take charge yourself or sit down and shut up.

This sums up my viewpoint. I've counted this same question asked in our forums way too much. Here's a question that I have for the OT, why does it matter? Do Brits sit around asking "Hmm... I wonder if the Belgians like me today?" No! They aren't so egotistical to continuously ask about themselves like a bunch of children.

This forum topic represents one of the major problems with America. There are too many self-conscious brats who aren't content with the fact that our ancestors have worked hard to do well for themselves and their descendants and need to ask the rest of the world "How are we today?" Seriously, grow up, get out of the high school mentality and quit asking the same question over and over again.

Post script, I'm not saying it's OK to be an egotistical patriot who is so obsessed with our country that we think that no one can even match us in anything we do. I'm just saying that we should just be be more mature, less self-conscious, and more respectful to others.

 

[Tron-tonian]

As a general population, I'm ok with Americans.

Sadly, it's not your average American international viewers see on the TV. It's the wingnuts and extremists. People who talk about how the Mid-East needs to be bombed back to the stone age, that the rich are "taxed too much" (while the USA enjoys one of the lowest levels of taxation in the world). The blowhards and absolutists who think that "If you're not with us, you're against us!" and that the only possible way to do something is the *exact* same way it's been done in the USA. The politicians who are so bought and paid for they should be wearing sponsor logos and look like a NASCAR when they step out.

It's those people who are your frontline PR for the USA. Is it any wonder that the US tends to suffer from an image problem abroad?