h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Love em, hate em, ambivalent? Tell me.
I need to write an essay about Americans, Why people seem to like them as individuals, but hate them as a nation. Their reputation. Reality. If you've never met one, tell me what you've heard. If you've been there or met them, tell me your impressions.
Thanks

Doesn't anyone want to help a student in need?

Great people
Immensely proud
In need of understanding and education to counter the insularity.
Tremendous 'can do' attitude
Warm and welcoming

I've lived in the USA now for 14 years.

What else would you like to know?

alec.

Lovely. That was great. I've lived in the USA for 17.9 years. IE: my entire life. They say we dont know anything about the rest of the world,
So, uh, what exactly is going on out there that i dont know about?

Anyone else? c'mon. Dont be afraid to sling the mud. I have an essay to write.

Most Americans i've met are great people.
Though sometimes i wish they would place a greater importance on education.

The thing i really don't like USA is it's Government, who are a warmongering and corrupt bunch of idiots. (this could also said about my own government here in the UK)

I love that one.
Europeans have been making fun of the uneducated American for about 200 years. Still, there is plenty of basis for it. We pour millions into education, but it gets lost in the beaurocracy.
Anything SPECIFICALLY likable about Americans?
Or, anything nice and nasty? C'mon. My sister was just in England and she said the biggest compliment she got was "Your not a typical American." SOMEONE must think we're all sleazeballs.

Is this merely about US-Americans, or also about Canadians, Mexicans, Brazilians, Chileans and all the other people living in America?

Never been to America, but never met an American (in real life) who I didn't like. Oh wait, two exceptions.

I think the insularity thing is spot on. I think it's because Americans tend not to travel abroad in the same numbers are people in other parts of the world. In Australia it's almost compulsorary to go to another country and work in a bar.... This tends to lead to a certain level of ignorance about people, places, and customs, which is often mistaken for stupidity. I'm told by people who have visited the US that world news coverage is virtually non-existent unless it concens the US in some way. Try comparing the front news page of some UK news sources (bbc.co.uk, guardian.co.uk) with some US ones and see what proportion of news is about other countries and see if this turns up any evidence. Good evidence for US insularity (or perceived insularity) is that successful TV series from other English-speaking countries aren't shown on mainstream US television, but are *re-made* for an American audience.

But what really puzzles me about the US is that there seem to be two Americas. One is a world leader in science, popular culture, academia and so on, and the other thinks that the world was literally built in six days by God...

well technically they are all americans, however if you asked them I think they would identify as "Canadians" "Mexicans" "Chileans" and so forth. Only residents of the USA call themselves "Americans," possibly because of the inconvenience of calling oneself a "United States of American".
Hope I clarified that.

Maybe you should just read the backlog of the "What's Wrong With Americans" thread. Pretty much anything that could be said about us citizens of the USA has been said there.

From a British perspective, the American is percieved as loud-mouthed, brash, arrogant and always in a hurry. A good esample is the film 'If it is Tuesday it must be Belgium'. This was about a group of Americans doing Europe in a week, so Great Britain involved Stratford-on-Avon in the Morning and London in the afternoon.
This perception was created before cheap flights became available, such that it would have mainly been wealthy Americans ( Texan Oil-Barons and New-York socialites for example) that where visiting in their loud check suits and cigars. To a degree this was true as I remember seeing them in my early Teens, however that does not hold true today. The main leveller has been Entertainment mainly in the form of TV, and to a lesser degree, film.
The biggest problem Europeans, IMO, seemto have with Americans is their insularity (I have been told only 10/15% of Americans hold a Passport, and only half have used it to cross the pond more than three times) and that if it ain't Mum's home made Apple Pie, it isn't worth eating. By that, the only good things are in the Good Ol' U.S of A.
However it is the Agression of American Government which, running the world's only superpower, makes others annoyed. To dictate arbitrarily over other Nations about the way they are run, and the manner in which they govern their resources, while being totally inured to their own faults is not the best way to make friends.
All that said, most Americans I have met are jolly descent chums, and appear to appreciate us Johnnys as well, to the extent that when they doget here and slow down enough to see a bit of our country, they actually enjoy it, and may even stay. At least they certainly did 60 years ago....

Hope that helps. I've plenty more, but I finish w*rk in 2 minutes

where is that thread?
And I also need some nice stuff.
Thanks

"My sister was just in England and she said the biggest compliment she got was "Your not a typical American." SOMEONE must think we're all sleazeballs."

It's partly culture clash. British people talk in much lower voices than Americans (generally), so Americans come across as 'loud' and 'brash'. Brits are typically modest and understated- you'll rarely hear anyone British saying anything like 'I'm an excellent golfer' - they'll claim to be 'useful' 'decent' or just cite their handicap.

The 'typical American' of stereotype is a fat man with a loud shirt, shorts, an oversize camera, a loud voice, short temper, and little or no understanding of where he is or what it's significance is. An example - I was in Bangkok visiting the Royal Palace. Anyone who's done any kind of reading or research would know that you can't go in wearing short trousers, and that even short sleaves are frowned upon. European visiters generally turned up correctly dressed, Americans were much more likely not to and have to borrow something from the tour guides.

I have never met a 'typical American' myself, but I've seen some

my opinion on US-Americans:

I like especially their TV-culture. If I was forced to watch movies and series of the German speaking area all the time I’d go nuts.

I don’t like their politics. I don’t like Austrian politics as well, but no one cares about us cause we don’t have an influence on anything anyway. So it’s not especially US-politicians I don’t like, but the fact that they have too much power on everybody else. (And power makes people obviously megalomaniac, no matter if they’re US-American, Austrian or whatever.)

And I don’t like about US-Americans that they call themselves American and expect anybody else to know that they’re from the US. That’s egotistical and self-centered. (But it’s the same with member-states of the EU. They consider themselves as “Europe”, and non-members are kind of alienated.)

Katkodl

That thread : F19585?thread=84337
Only 7000+ Entries...

the What's Wrong... thread is here: F19585?thread=84337

It started off pretty much the same as this one. It wasn't meant to be a flame magnet but simply wanted some opinions. It is currently over 7000 posts long and often filled with some very serious bile. Sadly there was also a suicide in it. Since then it has gotten fairly quiet lately. This thread could end up taking it's place. (Whether you meant for it to or not).

I think the think i most like is as other people have mentioned, the 'lets go do it' attitude. The best example of this is the NASA and the space program. Though admitedly there hasn't been as much activity on this front as there used to be.(though hopefully events on the X-prize will change that)
I think this may due to the attitude of 'Corporate America' of 'if there's no money to be made, it not worth it.'

I think it's the corporate part of the US that angers the most people. With its blatent disreguard for human rights all in persuit of a quick buck.

Had a look for the 'What Wrong With Americans' Thread, but can't find it i'll have another look.

Simpost...

Jinx Jinx you owe me a coke.

Count Zero, what do you mean by “There was a suicide in it”?

katkodl

Just that... one very vocal and controversial poster suddenly stopped posting... later his sister reported the sad news.