I have been in the US about ten times and I think one of the initial barriers is our that our perception of the US is formed through Hollywood. Some things that did not match my expectations/assumptions: - The average American is much poorer than I expected. Wealth is less evenly divided, than say West-Europe. - Americans are extremely nice and warm. Some Europeans say it is superficial, but I really liked when eatin…
Don't let appearances dictate your perception of wealth (well, in the midwest at least). A lot of farmers, business people in the midwest don't look the part, but have the bucks.
Getting to Know Americans
151–160 of 178 posts
Re: Getting to Know Americans
#152Earlier quoted context omitted.
I agree with you. My own "disappointment" is not with 'regular joe' Americans, but with educated Americans. Being from a large city in India, I know from personal experience that majority of the people with college education, especially technical education are knowledgeable about things outside their own country at least in a conversational level, if not they want to know more. I cannot assume the same with Americans…
It might be helpful to remember that historically, most people who came to America as a chance to start over and leave the past behind. People who were doing well usually didn't migrate to the US. In my family, the men's of "We were kicked around until we came here, then we did well," is very strong. So much so, that I'm the first one to travel internationally, except for military service.
Re: Getting to Know Americans
#153Re: Getting to Know Americans
#154One thing I've heard from several Europeans I've met (who are currently living in the US, either for work or school) is that Americans have a reputation for being very friendly but making a lot of empty social promises. One European I met at my local watering hole was a programmer and a very cool guy, so we made plans to get together for beers and nerd talk. He mentioned the whole thing about social promises and said…
My Singaporean roommate complains about this very thing. He thinks it's a politeness thing, as in, Americans will say "Let's do this again sometime," to sound polite, even when they have no intention of doing so.
Re: Getting to Know Americans
#155Earlier quoted context omitted.
You know, unlike English some languages have a sarcastic tense.
Fascinating. Sarcasm is inherent in the grammar? Can you give some examples? update: searched a bit, cannot find any supporting evidence for bioh42_2's statement.
Re: Getting to Know Americans
#156Earlier quoted context omitted.
"Not only did I pay attention in history class, I can also read." "Is there some reason you're being condescending?" Are you fucking serious?
I was asking someone else a question about their story, and you respond by acting like I've grown a second head for being curious, and giving me a definition of a basic term related to the discussion. So, yes. Yes I am being serious.
Re: Getting to Know Americans
#157Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yeah, he's a WW II vet. My dad passed away in December and he was a WW II vet. My dad fought the Germans and he never said a bad word about Germans or Germany. None that I ever heard. My girlfriend's dad? I've heard plenty from him about Americans (in a negative sense). My girlfriend's dad fought on the Eastern front and he tells stories about how uncivilized the Soviets were. He doesn't say the word but it sort of h…
I take it he's thrilled his daughter is dating an American - son of an Allied veteran, no less? Sorry if I'm prying, I'm just fascinated by living history.
Two months ago I had lunch with him, another former Wehrmacht soldier and three women from that generation. The other guy was extremely rude. He said many derogatory things about Americans and American prisoner of war camp guards (my dad was such a guard after the war). I don't speak German and didn't know about this until after the dinner when my girlfriend interpreted for me.
I was pissed at her for not letting me know what he said until after he left. She didn't want a scene to be caused. No one in the group said anything to the man or to correct him or to say that he was full of shit. They all kept cheerfully engaged in conversation.
What's amazing to me is that the great crime of that generation was silence. Few spoke out against racist talk. Few stood up against foolish rantings. Sixty years later here was a group of Germans from that generation still afraid to speak up. Still afraid of causing a scene (and my girlfriend too!).
It was absolutely shocking. I was really pissed because my dad had died a few weeks earlier and it was hard to hear this stuff from the likes of these people. No Wehrmacht soldier has the right to call another uncivilized and he did call Americans uncivilized.
The whole thing caused me to reflect a lot. It's something I'll never forget. My girlfriend's generation suffers from what I call "the German guilt thing". Her father's generation doesn't seem to have ever come to grips with what they did.
This is all anecdotal of course. But in my dealings with other Germans it's clear to me that Germans on a whole do think they are better (or their way of life is better) than anyone else. They won't say this anymore but deep down there appears to be an "uber alles" bent.
Other people have different experiences and come to different conclusions than me. This is all just my opinion. I guess the crux of what I'm saying is that it is easy to feel superior and such arrogance isn't limited to Americans. There are lots of examples in the history of the world of such thinking. It's bad whenever it occurs and the worst form of it is to ignore it in your culture while condemning it in other cultures.
Re: Getting to Know Americans
#158Earlier quoted context omitted.
I am Danish but "left" the country 7-8 years ago. The last few months I've been back to prepare for my move to the US, which will be my second time living and working there. It's remarkable how absurd the Danish world-view appears to me now after living abroad in several very different cultures. The social welfare system is more attractive than ever, but the provincialism, the we-are-the-best attitude, and the subtle…
I'm American but grew up in the Canal Zone. I've been in Germany a lot the past two years. My girlfriend is German and lives in Berlin. My impression is that Germans really do believe they are the best. They will never say so publicly but deep down they really believe it. My girlfriend's dad joked about Americans and hamburgers. I offered to make him one since he'd never had one. He emphatically said no. I'm a picky…
Re: Getting to Know Americans
#159Earlier quoted context omitted.
I take it he's thrilled his daughter is dating an American - son of an Allied veteran, no less? Sorry if I'm prying, I'm just fascinated by living history.
No, he doesn't seem to mind me. He does have his prejudices with regard to America. (The amis is the derogatory German term.) Two months ago I had lunch with him, another former Wehrmacht soldier and three women from that generation. The other guy was extremely rude. He said many derogatory things about Americans and American prisoner of war camp guards (my dad was such a guard after the war). I don't speak German an…
Whatever you do, don't ever visit Australia.
Re: Getting to Know Americans
#160Earlier quoted context omitted.
I take it he's thrilled his daughter is dating an American - son of an Allied veteran, no less? Sorry if I'm prying, I'm just fascinated by living history.
No, he doesn't seem to mind me. He does have his prejudices with regard to America. (The amis is the derogatory German term.) Two months ago I had lunch with him, another former Wehrmacht soldier and three women from that generation. The other guy was extremely rude. He said many derogatory things about Americans and American prisoner of war camp guards (my dad was such a guard after the war). I don't speak German an…