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I have had a few people engage me in this obnoxious slop here in China, one of them last night. Funny thing, he was Irish; we'd started talking when he noticed the lens on my DSLR, an old Nilkor-H that my uncle used when he was a combat photographer in Vietnam. He started referring to it as "The American War" because that's what they called it when he went to Vietnam and learned all about how evil America was... then he went on to rip the arrogance of Americans using the term American.
"Well, you're calling the war between the US and Vietnam the 'American' war, so does that mean that you're blaming all of North and South America for it?" I asked.
"You know what I mean," he said.
"Yeah, just like how you know what I mean, you're just being contrary and trying to bust my balls for god knows what reason."
"Look, sorry mate, its just every American I've met on Asia was some partying 21 year old, it didn't make your country look good."
"How do you think it makes your country look when you go to bars and start trying to make someone who actually agrees with most of your politics and shares interests with you feel like an a-hole over vernacular and history they don't have any control over?"
"... point taken, mate. I'll get you a pint for that."
It's a dumb argument, a really dumb argument. If you don't like it, write a letter to the governing body that's in charge of regulating international common vernacular... the USA is called "Meiguo" in Chinese, and "Meiguo ren" is literally "person from the USA." in Japanese, it's "Amerika" and "Anerika-jin," respectively, all transliterations of "America."
Oh, wait - there isn't one to complain to... tough luck.
Actually I think that it is more of an international stereotype. Most living in the USA are fully aware of Silicon Valley. Surfers and Valley Girls is more the international image.
Maybe fifteen or twenty years ago, but not really anymore. Whenever I meet people in Asia and they learn I'm American, they ask if I'm from California (and occasionally, LA, SF, or Silicon Valley directly) with excitement and bright eyes. They associate it with beautiful weather, big houses, palm trees, the Golden Gate Bridge, Hollywood, Google, Facebook, Apple, and money. There's far more interest in CA than any other specific part of the US these days.
Maybe fifteen or twenty years ago, but not really anymore. Whenever I meet people in Asia and they learn I'm American, they ask if I'm from California (and occasionally, LA, SF, or Silicon Valley directly) with excitement and bright eyes. They associate it with beautiful weather, big houses, palm trees, the Golden Gate Bridge, Hollywood, Google, Facebook, Apple, and money. There's far more interest in CA than any other specific part of the US these days.
My exact experience in Japan. The California brand is also popular over there, and associated with intelligent eco-chic, like the Swedish are here.
It's all just silly...nothing to get in an argument about with anyone.
I was talking to my cousin recently...she is from Mexico and was studying in Taiwan for a year, where she befriended many Latin Americans. She said that when she met an American (from the USA), she would instinctively just call them 'americano.' At which point her other Latin American friends (particularly the South Americans/Suramericanos) would scold her and remind her that 'we are all Americans, and what she meant to say is 'estadounidense'.
Truth be told, in Mexico they don't care...as everyone there assumes that when you say American or Americano, it refers to anything or anyone from up North, de los gringos. It is really more of a South American issue, and I wager that is due to their history going back to figures like Simon Bolivar that talked about one free, liberated and united 'america' (of course, referring to South America'.
“The United States appear to be destined by Providence to plague America with misery in the name of liberty.” - Simon Bolivar
So, South America has always had their own continental idea of what 'America' is. While in the north, our identities and cultures have always been different enough (British Empire Canada, Imperialistic America, Mestizo Mexico), and not until recently have we started to develop a continental identity, like the Europeans or South Americans, as North Americans. Nonetheless, that affiliation is rather weak and you will hardly ever hear anyone from the U.S., Canada or Mexico describe themselves as a North American, like South Americans easily identify as 'americanos.'
I agree 100% with you on this. In my experience it has been South Americans who bring this up as an issues.
Mexicans call Americans americanos, norteamericanos, estadounidenses, and gringos.
Everywhere I have traveled, people get very excited when I say I am from California. There is the idea that CA is 'cool' and 'innovative.'
It is
I figured that the main US place I'd hear or get asked about in Asia was NYC, but LA is definitely #1. People seem to think of LA as a combination of LA, SD, and OC overall. SF is widely known and loved because of its historic and current Asian influence, and Silicon Valley is well known enough that I've had people tell me in Chinese that they want to move there, that it's "so cool." I've even heard people mention San Jose, Mountain View, and Cupertino... Surprised the hell out of me.
I think part of the allure of CA is that it, or at least the perceptions of it, are actually fairly exotic by Asian standards. NYC is regularly compared to Shanghai, HK, and Tokyo, and so people tend to think of it as just that: Shanghai, HK, or Tokyo, just in the US. CA is much more interesting to most people here. Add to that the fact that everyone here has heard that there are tons of Asians and separate ethnic enclaves in CA and yup... There you have it.
The idea that Californians are naive and airheaded is lost here, the attitude is more one that people are cool, unique, clever, and live a good life.
That explains why 1 in 3 homes in the San Gabriel Valley (where new money mainland chinese are moving in droves) is bhought all cash. Also, a lot of the high end luxury condos in LA are being bhouhgt mostly by foreigners, with a good percentage of.them from Asia (Korea and China).
Do i need to move to Asia to make money and afford the good life in LA? Lol
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