Those Stupid Americans…
I was reminded the other day of how hated we Americans are. An admittedly stupid website was reporting that Pippi Longstocking is a Satanic character, and the visiting Swedes (Sweden being the country of Pippi’s origin) let their opinions fly:
- Another stupid American; the world is full of them!
- You’re probably a stupid American áššhølë!
- I wipe my ášš with the American flag and spit in your face.
Being an American myself, I was curious as the sentiment of others. So I decided to find some additional opinions by searching the Internet with Google, spelling (or lack thereof) intact:
- “The only thing Americans can teach is how to corrupt countries and take their money. All Americans are is greety báštárdš.” - I think countries have been corrupting themselves for centuries without the help of the United States. Also, most people worldwide work hard to better themselves and provide as much as possible for their families. Americans included.
- “[The] US is the laughing stock of the world. American cars suck, American people are stupid, fat and ignorant, your technology sucks.” - Yes, spoken out of prejudice and ignorance, Americans can be conceived as being the laughing stock of the world. So would whichever country happens to be in the economic and military lead at the time. Some American cars do suck, but the Yugo hasn’t won too many awards that I’m aware of. Oddly, the fantasy car of choice when I lived in Germany as a child was a Pontiac. Yes, some Americans are stupid, fat and ignorant. So are some members of any other country in the world. If Microsoft products are a measurement of our technology, then, yes, it sucks. But I haven’t seen any other countries that provide the number of major innovations that have stemmed from America in the last hundred years.
- “Americans are full of šhìt. ignorant, yet stuppied people. they are bvery norrow minded and veyr materiolistic.” - I already agreed that sum Amurikanz ar bvery stuppied. But not all — the first spell checking software was invented at UC Berkeley in 1972 by an American.
- “You have a handful of smart and educated people who drive the country, and then you have this humongous blob of utterly clueless people who are hardly able to make a living.” - Can’t really argue with that. But the same can be said for just about every other nation in the world.
- “You are all non-sensical inbred morons.” - Actually I don’t personally know anyone who can be accused of resulting from inbreeding, although it may be common in certain areas of the country such as Tennessee (pronounced “Ken-tuck-ee”, if you’re from Tennesee). You think inbreeding didn’t occur within the European and Asian royals of the past?
- “Americans are generally loud and stupid.” - Yeah, I hate American tourists, too. Again, I’d qualify that as “some”, rather than generalizing the population as a whole.
- “U.S.A is the biggest šhìt hole.” - Seems that lots of people on the Internet are calling every other country on the planet the “biggest šhìt hole”, too, based on results from Google. I say we just all take a vote and decide once and for all. After all, that is the democratic way.
- “I thank God that I’m not a stupid ášš-fûçkìng American.” - I’m glad I’m not a stupid ášš-fûçkìng American, too! I’m just a plain American of average intelligence, eking out a living, trying to live my dreams.
I’d rather be considered a stupid American than have to resort to pointless name-calling in a vain attempt to gain national stature. I am hardly a Bible-toting born-again Christian, but I find it difficult to disagree with: “The proud and haughty man, ’scoffer’ is his name; He works in the arrogance of pride… When pride comes, then comes shame, But with humility comes wisdom.”
Nice debate - some well thought out points. I feel the American government really should do something about education standards in inner cities. Black youngsters grow up with litle education and little to aspire to. As someone stated - America is a ‘young’ country, so too are americans of african origin a ‘young’ people in that they have few positive role models and little culture, having been robbed of this by slavery (i would not wish to lay blame for this) . Consequently blacks in America have made their own culture which is largely Hip-Hop culture. As a young man I greatly appreciated this form of music but now find much of it distasteful. I digress. Many black youngsters cling to rappers as their role models (many being from broken homes), these rappers usually ill educated themselves have no answers to offer these children - not that they should, being mere musicians. My point is that these people through the lack of positive role models now have a culture where learning and the acquisition of knowledge is seen as unfashionable. This creates a vicious cycle of educational decline. This culture is now spreading, being readily accepted by young black people throughout Europe, who to a lesser extent share the lack of role models. This problem culture is evident in white Americans too, possibly what is needed for the government to react, when it is on ‘their doorstep’ and not some distant ghetto.
Back to the earlier post on the question of “what is an American?”, I wholeheartedly agree with someone who posted this question. Americans nowadays composed of a vast majority of many ethnics in the world. It is the globe in one nation. I used to be a citizen of another nation, but could not stand the stupidity and greedy nature of my own countrymen that I renounced it. Personally, I think America has its strengths and weaknesses; however, its strenghts are much more implicated than its weaknesses. I’m a strong believer in United States Constitution for many reasons.
Could it be jealousy that those people around the globe hate Americans? Personally, I think it is. I’ve been around the world from Asia to Europe and see the states of those countries are in. Lack of water, space, transportation infrastructure, etc… You name it. At the end of the day, I’m wishing once again to be back to America. We are creating our culture since United States is relatively a new country. So there is nothing wrong with that.
Everybody is proud of their cultures and civilization, but cultures are not everything. Americans prefer practicalities. Nothing is wrong with that also.
To someone who said that United States is weakening. I will say to them: “Dream on”. Because as long as the Constitution existed and held sacred among American hearts, it will be far long before this nation collapses.
A foreigner who becomes an American.
Bit busy at the moment, but ‘as long as the Constitution existed and held sacred among American hearts, it will be far long before this nation collapses’ is about as naive a statement as you can get Nick, so I had to say a quick something. Sorry mate, but you have not been paying attention. The only constitutional right that hasn’t been abused is the right to bear arms and thats because the NRA pretty much support half the election campaigns. The constitution has been totally and utterly ignored in so many cases over the past half a century that it has become a bit of a joke to make a romantic statement like that. Wake up and smell the (Starbucks) coffee. I will post examples anon, although if you care to do even the lightest research you will find examples all over.
Cheers
Paul
You seem to agree that the people who run your country are smart people. I would tell you that those people aren’t in the White House. You didn’t elect them; they are oil tycoons. Unless you are suggesting that Mr. Bush is the brains of the operation…
I think it is exremely pathetic to have nothing better to do than to insult Americans! I admit there are some [bad] things that the majority of Americans have done (or supported), but that doesn’t make us all dimwitted!
ANOTHER thing! It hurts me to see English people insulting us. I have supported so many of you on various things and I even wanted to move to England. I LOVE England, but some of its people can be really ignorant! Why can’t we all just love each other and get along?! What have we ever done to you? Just because we beat you in the war that determined our independence doesn’t mean you should hate us. [That's] the past; this is NOW!
I think you’ll find that the French kicked us out of the US…
interesting stats that came my way.
Can you imagine working for a company that has a little more than 500 employees and has the following statistics:
..29 have been accused of spousal abuse
..7 have been arrested for fraud
..19 have been accused of writing bad checks
..117 have directly or indirectly bankrupted at least 2 businesses
..3 have done time for assault
..71 cannot get a credit card due to bad credit
..14 have been arrested on drug-related charges
..8 have been arrested for shoplifting
..21 are currently defendants in lawsuits
..84 have been arrested for drunk driving in the last year
Can you guess which organization this is? Give up yet? It’s the 535 members of the United States Congress. The same group of Idiots that crank out hundreds of new laws each year designed to keep the rest of us in line. Our politicians are only slightly better (excluding the WHOLE front bench and the tories) but just to say, it aint all your fault America, its your politicians. But then thats always the way isnt it? Its not the poor oled Iraqis, just Saddam and his cronies. What a world.
I hate it when people try and generalize a whole country like that, but many Americans are guilty of doing the same thing… it is a sad world we live in.
> Actually, history shows that the United States gained
> its status as a world superpower after the
> Spanish-American War, not after WWII.
Superpower should mean above other powers. I don’t think that applied to the U.S. prior to WWII. That war was a crucible.
If you ever see a book titled, “Dreadnoughts” by R. Mackie, look through the photographs. There is one in there showing a funeral procession — either Queen Victoria’s or her successor’s. Teddy Roosevelt is president. Work out the era from that. He can be seen in the picture riding in a carriage behind the main procession. Being a commoner, he isn’t allowed to ride a horse amongst the myriad royalty. I don’t believe that this would happen today nor would it have happened then if were the U.S. a superpower at the time.
As an aside, images such as this or what I’ve read about President Grant’s funeral make a mockery of modern claims that ‘never before’ has such a sight been seen when referring to someone like Princess Diana.
What I find frustrating about ‘Americans’ is the tendency to go along with politicians who preach thoughtlessness. This is the ignorance which is often used to label Americans. It’s a preemptive strike on thinking. The impending war with Iraq is the example de jour. The issues are complex but any time someone tries to discuss them, they are shouted down and accused of something ad hominem. (e.g. If you disagree, you are old Europe; if you agree, you are new Europe. If the U.N. doesn’t do as it is directed then it is irrelevant, yet it is meaningful if it obeys.) Complex issues are not discussed per se, they are expressed through simple, triumphant, angry emotion.
This impending war might offer something useful, the demise of Saddam Hussein. Fair enough. Is that worth the $50B it would likely cost? That sounds perverse to me. How many tens or hundreds of thousands might die in this quest? What happens after? What happens to the neighbourhood.
All these questions are being evaded. Worse, pap answers like, “We’ll bring democracy to Iraq.” are given. When questions persist, ridicule is returned.
The end result is that nothing meaningful happens. The U.S. has been involved in Iraq’s affairs directly for two decades now, perhaps longer, and what do we have to show for it? That only by vapourising the place can we fix it. That is a mark of terrible failure.
No discussion of cause and effect are permitted. Adherence is the only virtue. Journalists who do ask rude questions aren’t allowed to ask them of anybody who could provide answers. Bush’s father had the gall to use the expression, “Twice before in this century the world was convulsed by war…” Which newspaper or broadcaster responded with a heaping of scorn?
Anyways, enough ranting. All nations have similar problems even though publicly, the U.S. wears a badge of ignorance proudly on its sleeve (hey, you did elect Mr. Bush). There is a difference though. When Canada has such problems, and we do, they don’t cause 100,000 to die elsewhere in the world. We don’t drop bombs on Chinese embassies, shoot down Iranian airliners or start wars which last a decade killing millions because we think some Viet Cong shot at one of our boats. Nobody else suffers for our shortcomings.
Finally, the way the U.S. rejects outright any thought that doesn’t comply is almost guaranteed to invite negative emotions and reactions.
I could go on for a while (e.g. Bush was going to introduce fiscal responsibility to government, he was going to reduce the size of government. The press and the opposition march in lockstep though with nary a peep in protest let alone an idea of their own to present).
So… these are my musings on why the U.S. draws such heat.