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Valyooo (99.82)

Who are these hateful Europeans?

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September 28, 2010 – Comments (16) | RELATED TICKERS: USA

This isn't directed at anybody in particular or any particular post but I have read many threads on here, and on basically every other website I frequent, which imply that everybody else in the world hates the US.

Have any of you people with that mentality actually been out of the US?

I went to Rome to study abroad for 6 weeks.  I met people from Italy, France, Australia, Canada, Amsterdam, and Spain....they all treated me like a rockstar because I am from NYC, and because I am from America.  They all find it exotic.

You think that because Europeans are more stylish and have expensive things and great food that they think we are slobs?  No way...the Abercrombie and Mcdonald stores in Rome had lines 5+ blocks long at their grand opening.  Mcdonalds there is like a nice treat, because it is American.

Do I really even have to post evidence that Asians love us, too?

Maybe Iraq hates us, but if you think we are the punching bag of the world think again....we are the CENTER of the world.

16 Comments – Post Your Own

#1) On September 28, 2010 at 2:11 AM, Starfirenv (< 20) wrote:

Val- They love our culture, but trust me, our politics are hated. I travel and often claim to be Canadian. Did that mining priimer help you? Good stuff.

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#2) On September 28, 2010 at 2:13 AM, goalie37 (97.09) wrote:

I have travelled extensively and found the same reaction as you. 

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#3) On September 28, 2010 at 2:27 AM, Momentum21 (98.20) wrote:

Being from NYC is definitely an advantage...

And people around the world are smart enough to differentiate our politics from us...we have a harder time getting there with others...

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#4) On September 28, 2010 at 2:28 AM, whereaminow (70.26) wrote:

Arabs don't even hate Americans.  They, like everyone else in the world, just hate the American government.  

(Which is another reason I find it so hilarious that the American government gets so upset that some Americans hate it. It's not like they're universally loved or something.  Out-of-touch government. What else is new?)

I've had pretty much the same reaction, and I've traveled in at least 3 dozen countries and lived in a half dozen.  The only thing I don't like about Europeans is that, outside of France, they have a staring problem when they see an interracial couple. The Spanish were the worst.  They were just downright hostile to us. 

David in Qatar 

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#5) On September 28, 2010 at 2:31 AM, portefeuille (99.77) wrote:

they all treated me like a rockstar because I am from NYC, and because I am from America.  They all find it exotic.

...

we are the CENTER of the world.

 

 oh come on ...

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#6) On September 28, 2010 at 2:36 AM, whereaminow (70.26) wrote:

I almost said something about that, but bit my tongue (for once.) Port, I'm beginning to think you're more incorrigible than me ;)

David in Qatar 

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#7) On September 28, 2010 at 6:21 AM, KurtEng (33.05) wrote:

I was in China and I even spotted some American urinals. I agree, the rest of the world doesn't hate us so much.

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#8) On September 28, 2010 at 7:43 AM, Valyooo (99.82) wrote:

I am not overly patriotic, hardheaded, or believe America is the greatest thing of all time....but do you really not think that America is the central country in focus at any given point?  That the price of everything else doesn't revovle around the dollar?

And starefire, yeah good primer, thanks!

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#9) On September 28, 2010 at 9:07 AM, russiangambit (29.94) wrote:

A few things -  I would imagine most people are polite enough to not tell you they hate US polcies/attitudes in your face given that they know you are an american. Second, people certainly deffirentiate between the govenment and the people, they got plenty of that everywhere. I certainly wouldn't want to be identified with Putin, Stalin or whatever, I am my own person. Third, in poorer countries , even in poor European coutnries such as Italy they think US is a promised land, and if you just made it there all your problems would disappear on its own. They would naturally try to make firends with an american( with a chance to visit the US  on the back of their mind). If you tell them that US has its own share of problems, they won't believe you. They are also very curious about life in the US. It is not that their interest is motivated by their own self-interest , but they geniunly intrested in hearing about different countries and cultures. This is something that completely lacks in the US, btw, here everybody thinkls that US is the best and they don't want to know anything about how europeans or asians live. Only in the US there is no foreign news section in the news.

But nobody is a fan of US foreign polciies. Nobody likes bullies. It is a little bit better now since Obama is doing a very good job of presenting US as a civilized country vs.  "my way or highway" Bush style. Clinton was also very good at foreign politics.

> Maybe Iraq hates us, but if you think we are the punching bag of the world think again....we are the CENTER of the world

Yes, and they also think that all american women look like Julia Roberts  or Cindy Crawford. And all american men are as smart as Bill Clinton.

Glad you had good time in Rome, though. Beautiful city.

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#10) On September 28, 2010 at 9:58 AM, Valyooo (99.82) wrote:

Russiangambit....where do you live?  In most major cities (maybe not relevant for hicks) if anything, Americans are self-loathing...hence why I started this thread.  Americans always blaming republicans for things, saying we have no culture and others do, etc.  Why do you think we are a melting pot, moreso than most (if not all) other countries if we dont care about other countries?

And I agree with the news, BBC is a better news source.

 

Also, my Italian teachers/guides were telling me Italians love Americans, so it is not just that they are trying to get a free ride.

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#11) On September 28, 2010 at 10:19 AM, russiangambit (29.94) wrote:

#10 - what do you think the rest of the world thinks of americans when they see something like this? And there it is more widely reported.

http://afghanistan.blogs.cnn.com/2010/09/27/background-u-s-soldiers-charged-with-murder/?hpt=C1 

> Also, my Italian teachers/guides were telling me Italians love Americans, so it is not just that they are trying to get a free ride.

I agree. Most people don't , only some. They have genuine interest. What I was trying to explain is that most of the world doesn't really know who an average american is. They only know a glossy well-polished version.

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#12) On September 28, 2010 at 10:27 AM, russiangambit (29.94) wrote:

#10 - I forgot about where I live. I live in Houston. I also lived in Dallas and, Chicago. I worked/ in or visited in most major US cities, except for west cost. New York reminds me Moscow quite a bit in its attitude/ madness, only Moscow is much more beautiful. LA  is plain ugly. Though, the boutique cities around are nice, but who can afford them?

I worked in Rome also when I was still living in Russia.

> Americans always blaming republicans for things, saying we have no culture and others do, etc. 

Yes, culture and education are not really appreciated in the US. But I fail to see how it is republicans fault. In Russia it is hard not to get "cultured" when you literature teacher drugs you from one museum to the next, or this estate or that, lol. It is just different environment. I imagine Europe is the same. But it doesn't really contributes to prosperity. In US there is a culture of making money. I can see it in my kids already.

 

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#13) On September 28, 2010 at 1:15 PM, Valyooo (99.82) wrote:

NYC sucks...can you explain more of the similiarities?  Im intersted in the matter.  I agree with you from my limited knowledge but have never been to moscow

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#14) On September 28, 2010 at 1:47 PM, leohaas (93.60) wrote:

OK, being born in Europe (and having lived there for the first 30+ years of my life), I could not resist putting in my 2 cents (even though I am known here on CAPS to put nasty comments on blogs not pertaining to investing).

First of all, Europeans can be a hateful bunch. Growing up in Holland, it was quite common to refer to Germans using a term of abuse (sorry, Porte). So do many Brits and French, by the  way. The Flemish in Belgium get into fights with the Walloons over what language to use. The Serbs and Croats hate each other, even though they speak the same language (a fact they will deny). The Turks and Greeks like to drink each others blood, especially on Cyprus. In Northern Ireland and Scotland, Catholics and Protestants do not get along (do they anywhere else in the world?). Many people in some regions of Spain hate Madrid. Yugoslavia was formed to unite all South-slavic people; we all know how that ended. Many in France hate the Algerians (except Zinedine Zidane) and Moroccans. Not long ago in Germany it was en vogue to "encourage" Turks to return to Turkey. Do I even need to mention Hitler, Mussolini, Franco, and Stalin? Circling back to Holland: in what is generally perceived as one of the most tolerant countries in the world, a blatantly fascist political party got about 20% of the vote and is about to play a key role in forming a new Administration. So yes, Europeans can be hateful.

Unfortunately, many Europeans extend this hatefulness to the US and its people. Not many in Europe understand our obsession with guns, our fear of government power, why the richest country in the world seems to be unable to provide health care to all its people, why there are so many poor people here, why we keep on using fossil energy like there is no tomorrow, why we invaded Iraq (imagine having to defend that one), why our knowledge about the rest of the world is so limited, just to mention a few issues. As you can see from the list, this is not just our government...

However, as about half a dozen of you have testified here, when it comes to individual (or small groups of) Europeans meeting individual (or small groups of) Americans, things are very different. On a personal level, people like to know about each other. When making personal contact, hate disappears to the fringes. I believe that is just human nature.

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#15) On September 29, 2010 at 8:51 AM, russiangambit (29.94) wrote:

> NYC sucks...can you explain more of the similiarities?

The good - lots of museums, theaters, center of culture and creativity, lots of work opportunities

The bad -  too many people, overcrowded, not just very expensive but over the top expensive; people are stressed out , angry and rude with a man eats dog attitude, always in a hurry; horrible traffic.

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#16) On October 03, 2010 at 11:39 PM, BillyTG (32.66) wrote:

I've lived about 3 years overseas, traveled extensively.

I agree with the original poster. Here's my down and dirty outlook (all generalities of course):

The world loves Americans

The world respects American power

The first world countries (and some third world countries where people are better educated as to their repression) hate American politics

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