How the World Views America - So Different From How America Views Itself
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An outsiders view
It is human nature to assume that everyone sees you in the same light that you see yourself. It can come as quite a shock when there is a difference between these two perceptions. America's international standing appears to be one such area and the gap, at times is wide.
This articles is about perceptions. Someof these perceptions will be more based on fact than others. Some may have little base at all. The question America needs to ask itself, in the event of a perception being incorrect, is "What caused this perception in the first place and what can we do to correct it?".
The following list seems to focus on the negative - and it does. That is because it looks at the differences between internal and external opinion. The positive aspects of America tend to have little difference.
Americans are famous for not having passports
Americans are not famous for travelling. The United States is a big country and there is a common attitude of "I can travel throughout my life and never see the same place twice in the United States. Why would I need to go abroad?"
Indeed it is true that America has much variety, but one does not get a balanced view of the world when television offers the only glimpses beyond the border. The issue of how many Americans have passports is commonly brought up around the world. Figures vary dramatically but USA Today quoted 27% in June 2008. This very low figure contributes to Americans being perceived as segregated and close minded. The United States is rightfully proud of its high standard of living, the rest of the world wonders why you can't afford to travel abroad
It is worthwhile noting that change is occurring. The number of passports issued has increased markedly in the last 10 -15 years. Maybe America is spreading its wings.
Gas Guzzling Environmental Vandals
America has the cheapest fuel of any developed country. The 'bigger is better' mentality is a major cause of concern around the world. Americans are seen complaining about $5 a gallon gas when elsewhere the price is double. Cheap fuel promotes the use of inefficient, large engine vehicles.
At the 1992 Earth Summit, George H.W. Bush declared "The American way of life is not negotiable". Add this to the fact that a country with 4% of the worlds population uses around 25% of its oil and the perception is that the United States is ruining the planet for the rest of us.
Rather than take the role of the responsible leader, the USA is refusing to make the hard decisions everyone else is making for the sake of driving their big cars.
Selfish / Heroes
The Americans are famous for telling the British "You'd all be speaking German if it wasn't for us".
In some ways this is true. But in others it highlights certain factors that result in the United States being seen as self-centered.
Hitler is the poster boy for evil. Probably the most famous villain in history. He had been rampaging through Europe for 4 years while America watched. The Holocaust continued for all this time and America watched. Tiny nations as far removed from Europe as can be fought against the Nazis. New Zealand had little more to offer than its fighting age men, but they were there from the start.
The Allies were begging the Americans for help but none was forthcoming.
When did America become involved? When they were attacked. 6 million dead Jews later and with both sides of the war on the brink of collapse after 4 years of struggle, the American ride to the rescue.
This point is a perfect example of the gap in perceptions. Americans think that all of Europe is grateful for their heroic actions. Europe remembers their contribution but wonders why the US sat on the sideline while some many died.
Fundamentalists
America is perceived as a very religious country - but not neccessarily religion as others know it. There seems to have been some dislocation of traditional religious values where being labelled a Christian does not always have a lot to do with the teachings of the Bible.
In his book Religious Literacy, Stephen Prothero makes the following observation:
"In other words, we had already taken one giant step toward the contemporary era in which morality is the essence of religion and the term Christian connotes opposition to abortion and gay marriage rather than faith in the incarnation and the redemption—an era in which having a relationship with Jesus is more important than knowing what he actually did, in which believing in the Bible matters more than knowing what the Bible has to say."
The foreign perception of America is a land where politicians must be 'believers' regardless of actual belief. Again, from Prothero's book:
"And then there was the hapless Howard Dean. When asked during the course of the 2004 presidential primaries to name his favorite book in the New Testament, the former governor of Vermont stammered and finally blurted out “Job,” a book located for centuries squarely in middle of the Hebrew scriptures."
The world wide community sees things differently. British Prime Minister Tony Blair summed up religion after he left office, "You talk about it in our system and, frankly, people do think you're a nutter." His former communications director, Alistair Campbell has been quoted as saying " We don't do God"
Many parts of the world see Iranians mixing religion and politics and see America in the same category. When people with bombs and guns speak religiously, most of the world gets scared.
It also seems that the War on Terror and its Islamic fundamentalists appear to being pitted against an increasingly Christian fundamentalist United States.
Again, this may or may not be the case, but it is how the world is perceiving it.
"10% of Americans think that Joan of Arc was Noah's wife"
Team America - World Police
As was highlighted by the movie - America has a reputation of being very involved in foreign policy. This is a huge are to discuss so in the interests of keeping it simple the international perceptions of Americas foreign policy tend to be:
They will get involved anywhere if there is something in it for them - usually oil, sometimes strategic positions.
They will no get involved in often more significant incidents if there is no direct benefit to the USA. This is regardless of loss of life / genocide etc.
In situations of no direct benefit, the United Nations are expected to step in.
When there is a benefit and the United Nations do not agree with the American stance, they are not 'invited'.
Obsessed with perfection
As the centre of the worlds entertainment industry, America gets more than its fair share of blame for the celebrity culture that has swept the world. Plastic surgery is closerly associated with America despite being a national pastime in Venezuela.
To me this perception is effectively blaming the United States for the worlds cultural changes. Many of the countries that would say this about America are just the same themselves. Britains obsession with 'celebrity' is a prime example.
Ignorant Geniuses
America has a reputation as being a land of ignorant people. This is one of the easiest arguments to refute as I believe I am right in saying that California is responsible for a large proportion of the world's patents. America is indeed a nation of technological advancements and centres for higher learning, unfortunately this is not how it is perceived.
All of the intelligent work is so easily undone by figures such as "20% of Americans can't locate the United States on a map". To make matters worse, headline catching footage like that of Miss Teen USA's South Carolina contestant offering her view on the subject, undo the work of a nations universities by clouding international perception.
20% of Americans can't locate the United States on a map - Discuss....
Healthcare
America is famous for its lack of health care for its poorer citizens.
The World Health Organization used to publish a table of the best health care systems in the world (It stopped doing this in 2000 due to the complexity of the task).
The Superpower that is America came in at 37th.
21 of the top 25 positions were European with France occupying the top spot.
The world sees the size of the American economy and cannot understand how there is no free health care system in place.
The current resistance to health care reform reinforces the view that large corporations have too much political power. It is perceived that the rights of the corporation go above the rights of the people to have access to health care.
Hard Reading
If you are American it is hard to read details such as these. What seems like page after page of criticism that in cases is lacking in evidence.
A lot of the points made are not true and a lot lack the full story. This article does not claim to be stating fact or judging America. The same exercise can be done with any country.
The primary aim is to inform American of the way there country is (at times) seen.
It is quite likely that your main reaction to this will be that anyone forming these opinions is themselves ignorant. That may or may not be the case, but ask yourself why they have formed this image of America and what your leader and citizens can do to portray the real side of American life.
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You are so correct here. This is what should be shouted from the highest mountain! I have lived on five continents and worked in 7 different countries. I have lived what you described here. Thanks for the hub!
The divide between one's own belief and outside perception might be greater where America is concerned than with any other country - it does exist everywhere though. Quite honestly, it's only after I spent time in the US that a lot of the perceptions I had faded. We tend to 'perceive' thanks to what we are exposed to most - American foreign policy - very often not a good yardstick to judge the American people by - as I learned :)
There are plenty of other examples but I needed to keep the length down. It should also be said that many Americans are aware of the perecption of others. I met a man in Argentina who described him self as a New Yorker, specifically saying that rather than American - mainly because of the reasons listed above.
That's an honest assessment mcbean, but the point you make is perhaps true of any country in the world...we never quite see ourselves as others do.
wonderful hub mcbean. I liked the way you hav put your thoughts across. Keep up the good work.
A brilliant hub. A little about its foreign policy e.g. lack of diplomacy under Bush, wouldn't have gone amiss though. 10/10.
Brilliant observations, whether based on hard fact or not. Your words constitute a wake-up call that will never be heard by most Americans.
We isolate ourselves from the rest of the world for reasons ranging from arrogance to ignorance to disinterest. Our media helps us do that, as do our schools, as do our politics. After all, we have the best of everything here, right? That is what we are told and that is what we believe, despite the realities of poverty, violence, and elitism. Why go elsewhere, or even think about elsewhere? This land is our land, and we know it's the best.
Welcome to HubPages...your view is refreshing and you have things to say that need to be heard.
In defense of this country, it's easy for countries the size of one of our states to criticize our shortcomings, however true, but there was a time when we were the envy of the world. Not that it should matter, but, we are aware of other's perceptions, and there are some of us trying to steer towards that again.
I agree with most of your Hub, and welcome.
Your post was good to say the least ... an improved education system can solve the problems with "ignorance", "isolationism" and/or religious fanaticism in my opinion.
Hi, mcbean! I think this is a great hub, and I particularly like the final Hard Reading section. Regardless of supporting facts, I think you managed to fantastically explain how America is perceived and why. Generally, perceptions spring from observations, and you just put down quite clearly the potential observations that make the world perceive the USA the way they do.
Welcome to Hubpages!
Thanks for the feedback everyone. I was trying hard not to come across as having a go at America as that is not what I am about. This hub came about from my own cultural observations and some of the heated debates on a few forums.
mcbean, quite insightful and quite true. of course, not entirely. I am American and I do have a passport and I agree that Americans need to travel outside of the country in order to see that there is a world out there with different cultures and amazing people. In some respects to Europe, we are still young, maybe preteen?? Enjoyed reading, you have a new fan.
just want to add something in light of perceptions. that's really all we have, correct? How anyone sees the world is with their own perceptions. Being American and living here, I see it differently than you, or even someone next door to me.
I don't think it matters if we're American, or English, or German, or whichever nationality we are, it's what has happened to us that shapes our belief system. I've traveled throughout the U.S., and people do live differently. It's part of what makes our country as diverse and wonderful as it is. I love America and I love living here, despite our weaknesses. There is an American spirit that is truly courageous and beautiful.
Regarding the US not getting involved where it doesn't benefit us...
Can you give examples of how other countries conduct themselves differently?
Hi JD,
One example would be the assistance provided to the East Timorese people by the Australian government. Their quest for independence would surely have failed and many more lives lost as the Indonesian government let militias slaughter the people of East Timor. America acknowledged the situation but decided against any intervention. The cynical would say there was no "up side" for them.
Mr. Best's class ftw
THATS RIGHT SONNN!! LETS DOO THIS!! CAFFINATED AND READYY!
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
You Know!!
Holdin it down in Nazi occupied poland!
BEST'D
Americanized and Bestized!
When I look at this article, I see that alot of diffrent thing happing like gas price Americans gas price are 5 dollars a gallon but elsewhere its like double and 20% of american cnt locate american on a map and dat like disrespectful and think that the us are bein seen ass the bad guys....
Good article. How would you seperate the views -- if you could -- of America with the American People?
I live in Ireland and I have a huge respect for everything good that the United states has given the World.
I have had mostly good experiences with American citizens. They can be some of the most polite and generous people yet the 'typical' American is never too far away.
I queued in line for an hour to see the statue of David in Florence and an American man in his 50's stepped in front of me and turned and said 'I only wanna go in see this damn statue then get the hell outta here'. That my friends is the typical American that Europe loves to hate. He soon discovered that an angry Irish man will put you firmly in your place.
More focus on education, more focus on the people rather than company profit, a bit more humility and responsibility and American will be the envy of the World.
American children need to be taught that through education and experience you earn the right for your views to be considered important and through hard work you earn the right to be comfortable and happy. You shouldn't be born expecting these things.
I found this hub again and read through the comments. I would have to say that Sean's typical American example is very sad.
I honestly do not know one of my America friends who would ever say that or act that way. Although we have our share of 'less desirables', I find it sad that that is how we are perceived. There are so many amazing people here, regardless of how differently we believe, Americans are very generous, compassionate people. If you've never been here, it's quite hard to have a true feeling for who we really are, just as it is for us if we have not been to your country.
Thanks for the comment Rebekah. I spent 10 years travelling the world and have had my perceptions changed by this. You never know a country until you spend time in it meeting its people. The worlds perception of America is very different from the reality of America and the American people. For me, America was in parts just as I expected and in others completely different. I think the great regional variations in culture add to the appeal of the country.
The best advice to people with pre-conceived ideas about the USA is to get on a plane and make your mind up from first hand experience.
I am an American and proud of it. But be honest with yourselves, what country will look at its own history and acknowledge its shortcomings? Everyones history is sterilized and glorified. Every country's interest is solely itself. This is EXACTLY why so many people die in ongoing genocides in Africa and throughout the world. If there were huge amounts of untapped mineral deposits in these areas, you can bet your ass that the whole world would be "coming to the rescue". As far as being isolated from the world, MAYBE GEOGRAPHY HAS SOMETHING TO DO WITH THIS. MAYBE WORK CULTURE HAS SOMETHING TO DO WITH THIS. I am a Customs Officer in a major US port of entry, and I see many, many people entering the US from all over Europe, especially UK. It boggles my mind how so many families can come to the US two or more times a year, yet be unemployed!!! Americans work their asses off, and are given very little vacation (holiday) time, not the "fortnights" you receive. Yes we enjoy our cars, large homes and our theme parks. We have a large part of a continent to ourselves and we also have our North American neighbors upstairs and downstairs. We have compromised and have preferred to obtain tangible goods in place of spending on international travel. Unfortunately the rest of the known world exists in your side of the pond. You have many neighbors and they are very accessible. And as far as socialized healthcare, our neighbors upstairs are doing just that, and it can take them MONTHS to get a dentist to remove an aching tooth. No thanks. Our educational system is lacking, but in my daily work experience, I see UK teenagers who cannot even fill out a Customs Declaration! This is more than just the governments fault. It is an example of how technology is making our youth stupid. Even though this article speaks of negative perceptions the world has of America, I can safely say that we on the other hand, love the Brits, English, Irish, Scots and everything in between. Outside of the UK, we like almost everyone (except the French and some parts of the Arab world).
You are so right! America needs an attitude adjustment and I think we are going to get one real soon.
There are several challenges for America that are not widely discussed; only becuase many Americans might not consider them factors in the global equation. By the way I am American, all be it foriegn born. I served in the US Military for 11 years and I presently employeed by a large company out of Washington D.C. America is still a predominately young society and country, considering some other countries have been in exsistence for thousands of years, with estblished laws and religions in place. America has evolved dramaticaaly compared to the rest of the world, which is a good thing, however along with social evolvement; America has also been reluctant to accept or embrace cultural diversification on a national level. I agree with the remarks made, that if its not in our best interest we want no involvement, Americans want other countries and cultures to bend and change to our satisfaction, however, America does not want to bend, change or assimilate for anyone. We have a way of justifying the term "Ugly American". Sometimes it is my opinion that we truly beleive that our issues will be resloved by throwing money at it. We are offended at some countries by the way they deal with there youth and thier criminal justice system, however, in many countries respect for parents and elders seem to be at the forefront. In some foriegn countries the criminal justice system as barbaric as it appears, provides protection for the victims and law enforcement; unlike here in America, where victims and law enforcement have to fight tooth and nail for rights and liberites taken away by our court system.
Folks, I totally agree that America needs to start with educating our children as to what the rest of the world is and has gone through, realize that the world didn't start here, and we are no better than anyone else. Most of our (America's) problems are ones we caused ourselves. Radical Islam? We created it. Take a look at the Iranian history during that 20th century and tell me Islamic terrorists are not our children. The further problem is academically, America is going backwards. Half of our country hears the word evolution and is entirely against it immediately. They want to teach that Adam rode a dinosaur. I want to be hopeful, but then I read some of the posts on this site and turn on reports of the tea partiers and think, yep, we're done, and we deserve it too.
I think its also important to note that America is a huge country. The values and ideas of people in New England are very different from someone in the south or someone in the north/south west. Also important to note is that the values of people are also VERY different in rural America vs. urban vs. suburban America.
Hi @Michael,
Any nation the size of America has regional variations and they tend to form a spectrum within a framework that defines the country. Australia has 90% of the country with next to no people residing in it. It is not dissimilar in size to America but has 22 million people. Perth in Western Australia are thousands of miles from the next significant city. Despite this the people of Perth fit in to the same spectrum of attitudes and values that apply elsewhere in Australia.
Country folk are different to city folk but it seems the same rules apply through the country.
I do find it interesting the way this works out.
Everything that was stated is, unfortunately, very true. But, I also think that America has the potential to turn all of that around.
I think the true test for America is yet to come. For many years it was the undisputed leader, a true world superpower. While in many ways this is still true the gap between the US and the competition is rapidly dwindling. China is not going to go away and I feel the whole Superpower thing is deeply ingrained into the American culture. How will America and Americans deal with being number 2 or still number 1 but only just? Time will tell but it is sure to be interesting.
Very interesting to read the perceptions the rest of the world has about America. It is easy for us to be so wrapped up in ourselves that we don't even think about everywhere else and what they think of us. Your points are all generalizations, however, and can't be applied to all individuals. All the same, I enjoyed reading this!
Another yank chiming in. I have to say that this list is the very things I have hated about many of my fellow Americans. About the only surprising thing on this list is regarding the passports. You are largely describing "red states" and its truly sad that the rest of the world views us based on that fact.
It was hard to write this without sounding like I was having a go at America. It wouldn't be hard to make a list like this for every country. The English in particular have a mountain of stereotypes based around some of their cultural characteristics. They too would have a significant gap between how they see themselves and the opinion of the global community.
mcbean - I found your article very interesting. You should probably touch up on your history though, as your entire section on America being Selfish/Heroes is just plain inaccurate. I suggest you research the Lend-Lease Act, and also take into account that the first concentration camp wasn't discovered until July 1944, by the Russians. As far as New Zealand's noble act is concerned, it's not like they had a choice.
I think the reason Americans don't travel abroad much is BECAUSE of what others think of us. I know a few people who would love to visit France, Italy, Germany ect. But it's impossible to do so without a Canadian sticker on your luggage. A lot of us are frightened by the thought of being harassed. Unfortunately for stereotypes, the way people see a country automatically applies to a single citizen. I've hardly met anybody who fits in these categories. But I guess it's really hard to change others opinions.. :/
Yes its true we are a bit self centered but I believe us Americans are starting to realize this and change the way we interact with the world community. Its great to be an American, were very fortunate.
Yes Yes, Go ahead and Bash America, The French asked Colonel Powell once, what do you ask of us? Powell answered we have never asked for anything except enough dirt to bury our dead here! So you look down on the greatest minds, greatest power on earth? All through history the entire world cries for the US to come to their aid! All the while the liberal European countries cant get their own houses in order nor build a military with any might because of their panty waist liberal ways! They have lost sight of individualism while uniting to screw their own governments into oblivion and bring down the rest of the world with them! Your hub is a joke my friend!
Objection noted.....
Sure you didn't miss the point?
You are a complete moron and this is probably the worst website I have ever been too. May God have mercy on your soul.
I value your opinion more than all others because a wise man once told me:
"When Chuck Norris goes swimming, he doesn't get wet. The water gets Chuck Norrised"
An old man, a young boy and a donkey are traveling across the country. As they arrive at their first town, the old man is riding the donkey and the young boy is walking. As they went through town the town folks say "what is that old man doing letting that young boy walk like that!" The old man say, "maybe they are right." And got off the donkey so the young boy can ride it. They arrive at the second town and as they were traveling through the town, the people there said, "what is that young boy doing, why is he letting the old man walk like that!" He said, "maybe the are right." He got off the donkey and now they are both walking. As they arrive at the third town, the people said, "what are they doing, a donkey is meant to carry, what are they doing walking like that?!" The old man and young boy said, "maybe they are right." And both got on the donkey. As they arrive to the next town, the people said, "look at that poor donkey, supporting both that old man and young boy. That's animal cruelty!" The old man and young boy said, "yeah, they are right." And got off and started carrying the donkey on their back.
You are worried about the image of USA...
The image of Brazil is 1000x more terrible than this. The worst thing is that the American media supply this destruction of the brazilian international image.
For example, CNN located Brazil in AFRICA, they said that Brazil is the country´s economy is based on BANANAS and SOCCER, and that the capital is RIO DEL JANIERO!!! JANIERO!! WE DON´T SPEAK SPANISH, FOR THE SAKE OF GOD!!
I didn´t mentioned the sensationalized news about "favellas" (again, in spanish), the street children (there isn´t more than 2.000 street children in Brazil, considering that the country has 200.000.000 inhabitants...)... Just because it´s easy to go to Rio, stay at the beach watching girls and drinking coconut water... And them chose a favela and film it, making the most horrible and irresponsible sensationalism that is possible.
I love america very much. But world war 2 the president wanted to go to war but congress wouldn't allow it and also we didn't need to go to war because it wasen't our, war why kill our army men when we really don't need to.Plus american's are always getting picked on but when we go to war other contries always ask for help and america always helps them, so what we didn't help first at world war 2 but when we did we kicked everyone's asses.We helped so many people but they can only remember the bad time's like when we didn't help them at first. Plus our ancester's fought so we could be free and most other contries moslty free.Plus don't put if you don't like the article than don't read it well it's a free country and I can do whatever I wan't becuase my ancester's made it so I could.So all the american's hwo agree with this article who actually don't agree you just don't want to get hated it's okay express how great america is it may not seem like it but you can do so much better thing's in this country than in others.That's why so many other races come to America becuase there getting held back in there counrty and they deserve a chance where they can get that and america helps them achieve that! And other people can say what they want becuase in amereica you can do that so I am very proud to live here and I don't hate ohter countries I just dislike peole who hate america for things that happend almost over a houndred years ago,or becuase we all are differen't or we don't beleive in the same things.And if you fought us in a war you should'nt still hate us you can do whatever you want like we fought germany but I don't hate germany it wasn't even germany's fault it was Hitler's so let's not hate others ok.
The sad thing is that I agree with this, and I am an American. The thing about stereotypes is that whenever you see them they seem proven right. Just don't bundle people like me in to the group. In my culture people who are smart get that are often quite and let the people with nothing to say outshine them. It really is sad.
Another point: My father went to China last week and my mother has lived in Rwanda for three or four years, and one of my friends goes to Spain every other summer. My neighbors have lived in France for the last two years. Europeans You have to remember that America is big, like fourth largest in the world, and that traveling out of country is a big deal.
I hate this article simply because it is right, and I wish I could change it. I can't even win an argument with my friend of an extremely rude joke that involved the Muslim religion (In my opinion all religion is sacred)! I can't stand how selfish some of my fellow Americans, and how just one group of people can change the way the world views us.
You forgot fat ;)
There are so many stereotypes in America based on a fraction of the population which is a shame. I still don't get why the government spends billions on the armed forces to protect use yet there is no free healthcare which is much more vital.
As for the education system, they need to stop focusing on purely American history and instead teach children about different cultures and how they help make the word a better place. If they were tought more about the world they might be more encouraged to travel and see those places for themselves.
Finally World War II was, in a sense, partly Americas fault. At the end of world war I the UK, France and America created the Treaty of Versailles which limited Germany's power. The gave away most of their land and had their army limited to 100,000 troops and they weren't allowed an airforce at all. They lost virtually all their power just so America would let cargo ships go there and stop millions from starving to death. It really is no wonder Germany were happy to let the Nazi party take control when their main aim was to get back what was once theirs.
America is a big country so it would be unfair to judge all Americans on a stereotype created by other nations.
*us
*taught
Sorry I'm 14 so I make a lot of typos -.-
It's a travesty that the US healthcare system is so bad for so many, and that the insurance companies rule the US congress. The arguement is that the government should not be in the healthcare business, but is'nt the gov. supposed to be the people? Maybe that's the problem.
meh stopped reading your article after you screwed up the history part so badly.
-US was helping UK from the beginning as far as i remember, with weapons and food and the such.
I also seem to recall Hitler not attacking UK right off seems like it was Poland and the checks and a few other smaller countries while UK and everybody else watched as well and did nothing.
pot calling the kettle brown?
US foreign policy is way different from what the people tend to want as pointed out in the above comments.
It is always a foolish move to judge a countries peons by what the blue collar and brass do/want.
The objective was to create discussion. Too bad nobody thought of solutions to any of these imperfections unless no matter what? No country is perfect ?
Thanks for the good read it helped me with my Social Problems paper greatly. Wish it had more indepth look but then that would have made my research to easy.
"The primary aim is to inform American of the way there country is (at times) seen."
*their
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
I'm a Brit who has worked, in the UK, for a large US corporation for the last 13 years. In my job I have travelled quite extensively to the US. Previous to my joining this company I travelled on business to a number of European countries, mainly north western Europe including Scandanavia. In non-english speaking countries I am, at first, concious of the fact that it is a foreign country but very soon feel comfortable. My expectation when visiting the US for the first time was that I would have none of this discomfort; they speak English (albeit a little different). Indeed, there was no initial discomfort. Got through the infamous imigration without any trouble and the taxi driver was pleasant and talkative. He did say how we Brits p***ed him off by not really valuing our National Health Service and I had to agree. After I had been there for a short while I began to realise that this was a very foreign country. The culture is markedly different. British culture is far more like that in France, Germany, Norway etc. than the US but don't expect that.
A simple illustration of this is a conversation I had with a US colleague. I had know him for a number of years and when he came over to the UK we always went out for a few good (as he put it) beers. On one such occasion I asked how things were and was his family ok. He said that they were but that they had a new priest (or vicar, pastor, I can't remember) at their church and he said "you know what an impact that has on the area." Well no, I didn't because if the vicar at our local church changed, 95%+ of the local population wouldn't even know. Here was a guy with whom I got on well, we came from similar working-class backgrounds, university educated and held similar, realtively senior, positions but came from places where the predominant view was massively different.
My point here is that the US is, to ALL other countries in the world, a very foreign place. Why should it not then be viewed as different. We don't expect countries in Asia to be the same as those in Europe so why America.
My personal view of the US is that it is like a quite bright adolecent. Strong, energetic, full of ideas, enthusiastic and sometimes headstrong and gulible (look at how many people profess to believe in creation!) but also lacking in true self confidence and wisdom.
Mighty Mom 2 years ago
I'd say you were a bit too lenient. Can't disagree with a single thing you've said about us Yankees. Must tell you though that I was expecting the line about California to end differently. I live here and yes, Silicon Valley and Intel and Apple, Google, etc. (and of course our brilliant friends who run Hub Pages) are all the exception. The average Californian is the product of an inferior education system -- another criteria you could have nailed America on but spared us.
Don't get me wrong. I love my country. I simply don't believe we are "better" than the rest of the world. That's elitist!
Great hub!!! MM