Fun idea but as someone from a country that has changed shape and occupation quite a bit last century (we also changed flags quite a bit) I find it a bit low on meat. It is conflating words or names with countries while doing a oh-so typical "let's drop lots of data into algorithms and visualize the result" dataviz for grabbing internet attention.
Countries that have preoccupied Americans the most since 1900
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Re: Countries that have preoccupied Americans the most since 1900
#42Earlier quoted context omitted.
> You'll know the names of the states. How many other foreign countries do you know the subdivisions of I prefer to compare the USA with Europe as a whole, its member countries as states. In that light, I wager many Americans would know quite a few. Norway, France, Germany, Poland, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Ireland surely would make the majority? Maybe even Belgium. Are we still allowed to say UK? Americans love to chast…
What percentage of Americans could confidently name one state of India or one province of China? Our education system somewhat talks about Europe, but most of the world is basically ignored.
Re: Countries that have preoccupied Americans the most since 1900
#43What's interesting is if you did this for just about any other country, there would be a wall of star spangled banners. If you ever travel outside the US, you inevitably hear about what the US is doing, what they're discussing, who the important people are, etc. The reverse is not true: - Everyone outside the US knows the top US politicians. You even know what issues they are discussing, like gun control and healthca…
For all it's flaws, I loved my time in the USA and appreciate the people and a lot of what it stands for. Despite of all the imperial crap that comes out of Washington D.C. the USA still represents a sense of hope for a lot of people.
America still has a lot to offer the world. It's role in the world is greater than Holywood or the government. Merry Xmas.
Re: Countries that have preoccupied Americans the most since 1900
#44What's interesting is if you did this for just about any other country, there would be a wall of star spangled banners. If you ever travel outside the US, you inevitably hear about what the US is doing, what they're discussing, who the important people are, etc. The reverse is not true: - Everyone outside the US knows the top US politicians. You even know what issues they are discussing, like gun control and healthca…
One little thing my American expat friends always find strange: maps are centered "wrong". As in the US is located at the top left and Asia is on the right. I'm quite sure this is the world standard map, but apparently many grew up only with one that has the states centered.
Re: Countries that have preoccupied Americans the most since 1900
#45Earlier quoted context omitted.
> You'll know the names of the states. How many other foreign countries do you know the subdivisions of I prefer to compare the USA with Europe as a whole, its member countries as states. In that light, I wager many Americans would know quite a few. Norway, France, Germany, Poland, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Ireland surely would make the majority? Maybe even Belgium. Are we still allowed to say UK? Americans love to chast…
Do be hard on yourselves, because the rest of the world isn't so proudly uneducated.
Re: Countries that have preoccupied Americans the most since 1900
#46What's interesting is if you did this for just about any other country, there would be a wall of star spangled banners. If you ever travel outside the US, you inevitably hear about what the US is doing, what they're discussing, who the important people are, etc. The reverse is not true: - Everyone outside the US knows the top US politicians. You even know what issues they are discussing, like gun control and healthca…
One little thing my American expat friends always find strange: maps are centered "wrong". As in the US is located at the top left and Asia is on the right. I'm quite sure this is the world standard map, but apparently many grew up only with one that has the states centered.
Re: Countries that have preoccupied Americans the most since 1900
#47What's interesting is if you did this for just about any other country, there would be a wall of star spangled banners. If you ever travel outside the US, you inevitably hear about what the US is doing, what they're discussing, who the important people are, etc. The reverse is not true: - Everyone outside the US knows the top US politicians. You even know what issues they are discussing, like gun control and healthca…
Re: Countries that have preoccupied Americans the most since 1900
#48What's interesting is if you did this for just about any other country, there would be a wall of star spangled banners. If you ever travel outside the US, you inevitably hear about what the US is doing, what they're discussing, who the important people are, etc. The reverse is not true: - Everyone outside the US knows the top US politicians. You even know what issues they are discussing, like gun control and healthca…
This is not entirely accurate, except in those same countries that appear in the US's collective conscious (e.g. Russia, China). The news in my country, for example, does not have the luxury of focusing a lot on other countries -- we have enough things to deal with domestically. Although India and China do come up a lot because it is believed that we're at the center of a tug of war between those two nations.
Re: Countries that have preoccupied Americans the most since 1900
#49Why was Germany not more prominent during WWII (but apparently during WWI)?
Re: Countries that have preoccupied Americans the most since 1900
#50What's interesting is if you did this for just about any other country, there would be a wall of star spangled banners. If you ever travel outside the US, you inevitably hear about what the US is doing, what they're discussing, who the important people are, etc. The reverse is not true: - Everyone outside the US knows the top US politicians. You even know what issues they are discussing, like gun control and healthca…
I agree that there is certainly a US focus in the world, but you could frankly replace “US” with any G8 member or China, and everything you’ve listed would be true for me. It would also be true for all our Scandinavian neighbours. I’m part of what you could fairly call the cultural elite of my country, and as such I’m not representative for every Dane, but knowing what goes on in important countries, is frankly part…