A mind is a terrible thing to waste

[Cherub]

Yeah, well... Unfortunately the U.S. doesn't have the corner on the market for stupidity. Get that all the time here too.

A friend (who had lived in Japan and learned the language) told me that he overheard a group of Japanese tourists in Italy who were trying to take a picture of each other in front of a fountain and one said to another, "Try to get some foreigners in the picture. It'll make it look more exotic!"

(Not even realizing that when they travel outside Japan, THEY are the foreigners).

My dad got that once in Isreal however he was on the receiving end, an old lady pushed by him in the bank saying in hebrew "I'm not waiting for a D--m tourist" only to be told off in Hebew as my dad is fleuent having lived in isreal for 7 years in his youth.

[dfmacliam]

People, now matter where on earth you go, there are those who really makes you wonder. I knew a guy who had issues with me, because I had travelled all my life. I been from coast to coast in the States a few times, lived in England, Germany, Hawaii, on the Navajo Indian reservation, been to the Middle East, Spain, the Carribean, and Mexico... I asked him where has he been... His reply was Dallas.... Some 40 miles away... That's the furtherest he has travelled his whole life... How can you understand the World if you have only looked at it from his front porch? There are people just like him in every country in the World...

[The Barry]

I think that this is a natural side effect of living in large country--I'd like to have someone pluck a Chinese man or woman out of the center of the rural countryside and poll them on their knowledge of European cultures and accents and see how well they fare. And yet it is always the Americans who are held to the impossible standard.

Wow--I guess this is a button for me. Sorry for the rant, but I feel much better having gotten this off my chest.

I don't want to stir up trouble, but I believe that the real problem has a lot more to do with our complacency than our geography. People depict Americans as bumbling idiots because we travel the world expecting people to bow down to our wishes. I've traveled much of the US and Europe and I can attest first-hand to the arrogance and ignorance of my fellow countrymen.

Stupidity and ignorance are everywhere. But we don't have an excuse for it here in the states, we live in a country where education can be had by all. But we're just too damned comfortable and isolated to give two cents about other cultures. The "plucked" person from China doesn't have access to the freedom of information and learning that we do. There's no parallel there.

[/rant]

[ronstew]

News to me and I am canadian, not from Ontario CA.

It took me a while to figure out that NightHawk was pulling our legs. Check out his other posts in the thread. Hence my earlier deleted post.

[dfmacliam]

Besides it's Quebec that has the French Seperatists..

[turpin]

So what does it mean that John MacDonald, who guided Canada to independence and presided over the confederation congress in 1866, "brought British Columbia into the confederation..." in exchange for extending the Canadian Pacific Railway to BC?

[sathor]

I once talked to classmate after a "Psychology of Religion" class, and he asked me "What do the Greek Gods have to do with religion"? He looked at me confused when I told him they still have worshipers and temples in various places.

[Shanntarra]

I had the chance to live overseas in New Zealand for 6 months. It was an expereince I will never forget. Because of that I'm open to many more cultures than most people. I'm not going to say I didn't step in it a time or two, but I really try to respect other cultures. I can't say the same for many people, including my own parents.
I'm the first person in my family to move out of the county in 3 generations. I'm the first in the family to live outside of the USA without being in the military.

To be honest the only time we ran into someone who didn't like "yanks" was a guy who just didn't like anybody. He told my husband off for missing the recycle bin with his soda bottle. My husband was in the middle of picking it up when the guy let in on him.
My only problem was trying to explain to the kiwi's around me that yes I lived in Texas but I'm not Texas. I have a slight texan accent, but I loose it real quick when I'm out of the state. I'm Ozarkian, and proud of it. Some of them had a hard time understanding that Boston'ers, new yorker-er's, Texans, southerners, californian's , michicans, and midwesterns all have different accents from each other. They all have a different culture of their own. When I went to an "American's in New Zealand" social event i felt out of place. I had more cultural differences with them than I did with my kiwi classmates.

One thing I remember after we came back to the states we were on vacation at a Disney park. It happened we ran into a kilted Kiwi gentelman. He told us he was glad for a 'friendly' face here in the states. Apparently some one reported him for inapropriate apparel in a disney park. And it wasn't for his kilt. It was due to him wearing an All Blacks Rugby Tee. It read "All Blacks for the win for over 100 years." Or something along those lines. I was mortified for my own culture. He changed into a disney tee, but it still ruined his day at the parks.

Almost any day I would rather share stories over a pint with any scottsman, brit, irishman, Kiwi or Aussie then many of the guys in my office. One thing all of them know, is what makes a good dark beer.

[sathor]

Okay, smart guys. How many of you think (or have thought until corrected) I live in Canada?

The Columbia River part throws me, I figured it meant not CAN, but since I lack the drive to figure out which Columbia River it is... (Granted, there may only be 1 of them, but I was thinking there was one in SC as well. There are a few Rivers in the US that share names, there are at least 2 Stillwater Rivers, possible more than double that)

[ChattanCat]

I'm Ozarkian, and proud of it. Some of them had a hard time understanding that Boston'ers, new yorker-er's, Texans, southerners, californian's , michicans, and midwesterns all have different accents from each other. They all have a different culture of their own. When I went to an "American's in New Zealand" social event i felt out of place. I had more cultural differences with them than I did with my kiwi classmates.

Just goes to show that you have to speak and think like the yolk's. I've lived in several states:
In Boston, we were Bostonians (pronounced Bost-own-e-ins)
In Michigan, we considered ourselves Michiganders (Mich-e-gand-ers)
Virginia, Virginians. (like the old show)
Tennesee - Hillbillies (even listened to the hillbillies radio station)
Kentucky - Just the gateway to the south or so they thought, they are the south and don't admit it.
Missouri - Missourians (the split state, some go north, some go south)