misconceptions and prejudices

[Emancipation 2]

Just have to watch Rick Mercer , Talking to Americans on Youtube, and you can see the kind of misconceptions some Americans have about Canada. WE're not talking about "stupid" Americans either *sigh*

I'm sure the way he asks questions throws them off too.

My personal fav was when he asked US university students and professors to sign a petition against Saskatchewan seal hunt!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talking_to_Americans

Edited August 2, 2007 by Emancipation

[Heracles 417]

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Edited August 2, 2007 by Boo-Yah!

[Heracles 417]

7oTRmOBSLSU

[nane1104 146]

The only thing that really bothers me is the fact that people (after asking where I'm from) keep saying "Oh, I'm half - German too".

Well, I read somewhere a long time ago that more than two out of three Americans can claim some German background. In light of that, it's not surprising that you'd hear that as often. Besides, having some German in you is a good thing. As I keep telling Nani: Living with a German builds character.

I'm part German myself. If you're a white American, the odds are OUTSTANDING that you have German, Irish, or BOTH in your background. I don't know why Germans would find this irritating; it seems sort of intolerant to me.

My point was the wording of this (and I discussed this with (US) colleague as well and they agreed). Americans seem to say this a lot (whether it's German or Irish or whatever doesn't matter) - I think Europeans would put this differently - they would probably say "I have German ancestors, too", or "My Grandfather was German". But I have never heard a, say, German with an Italian father say "I'm half Italien" unless they speak very good Italian, have quite a few family members still living there and go there every sommer.

Does that make me intolerant? Yes probably... Sorry you can't tolerate my opinion!

I hear you!

It doesn't bother me when I hear people saying it, I just think it is funny.Yes, I think, most germans/europeans would probably say "I am german decent" or "our family once came from Germany", "my family immigrated from Germany"

To me, "half something" means one of my parents is from this particular country.

Like, my family once came from Russia a few generations ago, but would NEVER in my life state that I am half russian and that has nothing to do with liking or disliking the fact.

So sometimes I wonder why they do it...is it to feel more "special" to know that they maybe still have family in that country? Or just to find something in common with me? I don't know but no, it doesn't bother me.

[Mel_and_Daniel 1]

The only thing that really bothers me is the fact that people (after asking where I'm from) keep saying "Oh, I'm half - German too".

Well, I read somewhere a long time ago that more than two out of three Americans can claim some German background. In light of that, it's not surprising that you'd hear that as often. Besides, having some German in you is a good thing. As I keep telling Nani: Living with a German builds character.

I'm part German myself. If you're a white American, the odds are OUTSTANDING that you have German, Irish, or BOTH in your background. I don't know why Germans would find this irritating; it seems sort of intolerant to me.

My point was the wording of this (and I discussed this with (US) colleague as well and they agreed). Americans seem to say this a lot (whether it's German or Irish or whatever doesn't matter) - I think Europeans would put this differently - they would probably say "I have German ancestors, too", or "My Grandfather was German". But I have never heard a, say, German with an Italian father say "I'm half Italien" unless they speak very good Italian, have quite a few family members still living there and go there every sommer.

Does that make me intolerant? Yes probably... Sorry you can't tolerate my opinion!

I hear you!

It doesn't bother me when I hear people saying it, I just think it is funny.Yes, I think, most germans/europeans would probably say "I am german decent" or "our family once came from Germany", "my family immigrated from Germany"

To me, "half something" means one of my parents is from this particular country.

Like, my family once came from Russia a few generations ago, but would NEVER in my life state that I am half russian and that has nothing to do with liking or disliking the fact.

So sometimes I wonder why they do it...is it to feel more "special" to know that they maybe still have family in that country? Or just to find something in common with me? I don't know but no, it doesn't bother me.

I think they're simply trying to establish some rapport. Afterall, if someone says they're Half-German the sense would be that they have more in common with Germans than someone who has German ancestors.

[Marilyn. 340]

SdYK13DUxkU

[Marilyn. 340]

ZEgHSseHkU0

The Peter Mansbridge

[Cassie 8]

C'mon the "Congratulations on the opening of the national igloo" was the best one!!

[Krikit 1,166]

My fave was getting people to sign a petition to stop the practice of setting our seniors on ice floes to die.

[Cassie 8]

My fave was getting people to sign a petition to stop the practice of setting our seniors on ice floes to die.

LOL I forgot about that one!!!

Kritkit, are you really from Pleasantville???

[Krikit 1,166]

Kritkit, are you really from Pleasantville???

LOL. No. I live in a neighbourhood that reminds me of the movie Pleasantville. Even visitors from Canada have mentioned it. Too funny.

[Cassie 8]

Kritkit, are you really from Pleasantville???

LOL. No. I live in a neighbourhood that reminds me of the movie Pleasantville. Even visitors from Canada have mentioned it. Too funny.

I only asked as I did grow up in a community called Pleasantville!

[jundp 191]

Oh gosh, people seriously asked me if the Nazi party still excists!!! Can you believe that? I am really amazed about the ignorance some people have when it comes to achive some knowledge about other countries and cultures...lol

And yes, it's like I have knowd Hitler in person, ya know?

And when I state that I probably don't want to give up my german citizenship (for many reasons), I earn looks like I'm insane. How can NOT want to be american? Why in the world can I be happy to be german?

It's almost ridiculous what you have to listen to when you are german....

Or marrying a German....

Who, btw Nane, doesn't want to give up his citizenship either, nor would I ever want him to. But we do plan on moving back there one day.

When people have made Nazi comments to me I just reply with "GW" that usually shuts 'em up. OFC I live in Seattle, and we're just a bunch of protestors here!

I've been to Germany a few times. Been to Munich but never during Oktoberfest. I equate Germany to quality engineering, fast cars, good roads, good beer, and well disciplined citizens.

Hee hee. My fiance always says "But it's the LAW baby."

Okay, fair enough question. Except she had this annoying habit of informing you she was an ARMY BRAT and has 'travelled the world' (the world meaning Germany).

Wait. Germany's not the world?! Kidding

So sometimes I wonder why they do it...is it to feel more "special" to know that they maybe still have family in that country? Or just to find something in common with me? I don't know but no, it doesn't bother me.

I think it may be the fact that Americans are such a mix of cultures. Now my ancestry is German on my mother's side and Portuguese/Welsh/Who Knows What Else on my dad's side. I was always more interested in the German side when I was younger b/c of my grandfather. But as I got older I realized that my dad kept alive some of the British traditions that were passed down in his family and the other cultures got washed out. So it might be that feeling of identifying with a culture, or even of wanting to identify. IMHO.

[Marilyn. 340]

My fave was getting people to sign a petition to stop the practice of setting our seniors on ice floes to die.

LOL I forgot about that one!!!

Kritkit, are you really from Pleasantville???

I think that one is in here...

GuyfmvnwoG8

[DeadPoolX 9]

Misconceptions and prejudices aren't merely limited to country versus country. There's a lot of that inside countries as well, or at least, within the United States (but then again, I live in the U.S. so that I's what I see the most; there could be a lot of that going on within other nations as well, but I wouldn't be privy to it).

Here's an example: I live in Texas. I knew some people in New York. Everyone see where this is going? I bet Homesick_American does. Anyway, one time these friends of mine decided to fly down here to Texas (Houston, to be exact) and make a little vacation out of it. They had never been to Texas before, so all they knew was what Hollywood had told them and what they had created in their minds.

To make a long story short, here's the result of the trip (my own comments are in RED)

• Asked me if I rode a horse to work - Within Houston city limits, only certain police officers are even ALLOWED to ride a horse; civilians cannot do this. Furthermore, riding a horse in Houston would be suicide, considering the level of traffic (and that probably a good deal of drivers in huge trucks would actually AIM for the horse).
  
• Asked me if I carried a gun on me. - While I do own a gun, I do not have a concealed gun permit. I don't really see the use in those, as most places don't allow you to carry the gun in with you, which means you'll have to leave the gun in your vehicle, and I don't see what good it does you there. Besides, while I do see the point in owning a gun for home defense, I don't necessarily buy the whole "an armed society makes for a polite society" idea.
  
• Asked me if I wear a "ten-gallon hat and cowboy boots." - Except for the few occasions in elementary school, where I was forced to wear "cowboy gear" for Go Texan Day (anyone who grew up in Texas knows what I'm talking about), I have never worn cowboy attire. I do own a pair of so-called "cowboy boots," but they are all black and lack any gaudy decorations on them, making the boots fit for dressy situations.
  
• Wanted to know where the desert and all the cacti were. - Texas has a ton of different landscapes. This includes deserts, mountains, forests, swamps, plains, etc. We have just about everything except perhaps rainforests and glaciers. Regardles, Houston (which is in east Texas) is anything but desert! It's hot, wet and humid all of the time... even in winter, which is really annoying. But, it's nice to wear short sleeves and shorts in December when most of the country is freezing it's ### off!
  
• Wanted to know why there weren't any "old west-style saloons." - There are bars, lounges, nightclubs and even a place on Richmond in Houston called "Wild West Houston" (no, I've never been there) which would probably satisfy anyone's urge to be a cowboy or cowgirl. However, there are no "old west-style saloons." Go grab a DeLorean and travel back to the 1800s, if you're that interested in finding one.
  
• And finally, they were truly shocked to find out that Houston looked like ANY other city. - This one really annoyed me. Houston is one of the four Alpha cities in the United States. For those of you who don't know what that means, Houston is the FOURTH largest city in the U.S., right behind New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. Houston is very much like any other very large city; in other words, it has all of the traffic, smog, population congestion, ever-constant construction (when will the Katy Freeway be finished?!) and other things as well. Of course, the flipside to all of that is, you can find practically whatever you want here as well too. But you won't find a small, one-horse town, like in the old west Hollywood movies.
  

Sorry about that. I guess I needed to rant a little bit. Misconceptions about Texas just happen to be one of my pet peeves.