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I met a couple of guys from Korea at my work today and they were pretty surprised at how crazy the U.S. (Oregon specifically) alcohol laws were. I had to card them and they had to go back out to their car and get their passports before I could sell beer and wine to them.
I had a friend who took in a foreign exchange student from Berlin. She said that she was shocked at the strict alcohol laws as well. She was 15 or 16 and could drink whenever wherever she wanted back in Germany. Here she felt like a privilege was taken away.
How overweight so many Americans are. How lazy they are and won't walk anywhere, even if there is a sidewalk. Want to drive everywhere. Also that many Americans don't even know where some of the states locations are. Canada being right above the USA, many don't know the names of maybe 1 or 2 provinces if that.
Blame their education system?
I've found that too even when I am visiting in laws they will ask what my first language is. I am shocked and say "I'm Scottish, English is my language" It's like many are not exposed to the "outside world" Its all America.
In Scotland people are totally not like that, even with the size of our country. I just find it weird, this is the 21st century.
How overweight so many Americans are. How lazy they are and won't walk anywhere, even if there is a sidewalk. Want to drive everywhere. Also that many Americans don't even know where some of the states locations are. Canada being right above the USA, many don't know the names of maybe 1 or 2 provinces if that.
When I say I am from Sweden, they are getting confused with Switzerland. Once at the airport, I said: When is the flight from Stockholm, Sweden comming. He said: Oh, from Switzerland.
They also think it's cold in Sweden, when Southern Sweden is by far warmer than most of Northern U.S.
- American's don't know anything about the world. Isolated.
My son was born and grew up in California. When he went into the Marines at 18 and for the first time in his life, was around guys who had been born and grew up in other parts of the country, he took a lot of ribbing for being a California native. When they found out he was a native Californian, the first question was usually, "Are you a fruit, a nut or a flake?" It was a real culture shock to find out how the rest of the country views California. He had no idea. TBH I didn't either.
So "culture shock" can occur within the confines of one's own country, if it's big enough.
Last edited by Cunucu Beach; 11-28-2009 at 07:57 AM..
When I say I am from Sweden, they are getting confused with Switzerland. Once at the airport, I said: When is the flight from Stockholm, Sweden comming. He said: Oh, from Switzerland.
They also think it's cold in Sweden, when Southern Sweden is by far warmer than most of Northern U.S.
- American's don't know anything about the world. Isolated.
- Overweight !! Big portions of food
- Never walks, drivers everywhere. Lazy
- Americans don't really care enough about the rest of the world to study every other country, unless its for their profession. Why do we need to know about sweden? Just cause smaller countries know about the US doesn't mean we should know about the small countries. We generally have good understanding of all the big countries in the world. Can you give me a good description of every small country that has no effect on you, and that is no where in your media?
-The majority of Americans are not over weight. Thats a fact. In the ancient times, being over weight was looked upon in a positive way. If you had extra weight it showed wealth because you could afford a lot of food.
-Most Americans don't walk to do all of their everyday things because most of us have the luxury to live on our own private land with bigger homes, open clean air, etc. So we kinda have to drive everywhere. That doesn't mean we aren't healthy. A lot of people walk/jog around their neighborhoods, are involved in sport clubs/ teams, and have memberships to gyms.
I think American knowledge about China, Russia, India, or Brazil is not too great. Is it better than Sweden's? Well judging from what I've read, I doubt it. Although maybe our respective knowledge of Brazil is about the same.
A big part of that is we are oceans away from most large nations and have no history of being invaded or nearly invaded. Japan is fairly ignorant of the world too as it's an island that hadn't been occupied until we did so. (Unless you count the Japanese themselves as occupiers of Ainu land, but then you could count us as occupiers of American Indian land) Still the Australians, Canadians, and New Zealanders are in a similar position yet they tend to come out more aware of the world than us.
On the driving though I do agree this criticism is a bit unfair. The US is a large nation where the population centers are spread out from each other. If you don't drive than you're largely sentencing yourself to live in one urban area and ignore the rest of your country. I think similar nations like Australia, Brazil, or Canada also drive everywhere. Possibly they use trains a bit more, but I think our individualism can explain the rest. Americans are more likely than most, but not all, nations to believe in "doing for yourself" and being self-reliant. So the car gives that independence whereas a train doesn't.
-The majority of Americans are not over weight. Thats a fact. In the ancient times, being over weight was looked upon in a positive way. If you had extra weight it showed wealth because you could afford a lot of food.
Really?? Where have you been, besides walking around blindfolded?
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Fat Americans
