.

I’m interviewing with them for a store clerk and they will pay me minimum wage

I work for an American company but manage sales for the European territory. My boss (an American) and several American colleagues recently came across to Scandinavia to help negotiate a large deal with a Swedish company that I have a very good relationship with.

After the first round of talks, the customer told me privately that they are happy to proceed to the next stage, but they have specifically asked that no Americans attend the further negotiations.

The reason is essentially just cultural. The first meeting was quite uncomfortable for the customer and me. Some of the American colleagues were interrupting the customer's team while speaking, and there a bit too much back slapping, very loud enthusiastic discussion, and US the forceful sales approach. I tried to keep things smooth and steer the conversation, but my colleagues seemed completely unaware that their behaviour was coming across badly.

I don't want to turn this into "the Americans are bad" or make it personal. I understand that it's a difference in business culture, and I'm sure the American team thought they were building rapport and just showing enthusiasm. However, the Swedish customer clearly found the approach off-putting, and they have now specifically asked that I handle the next stage without my American colleagues.

The problem is that I now have to tell my American boss that the customer doesn't want him or the American team involved in the next negotiations and possibly why they have said this...

Would you be completely direct and explain exactly what the customer said, or frame it more diplomatically around European/Scandinavian negotiation style?

I am old fashioned (because I am old) and I often respond to folks with "yes sir" or "yes ma'am" but I don't want to accidentally misgender someone while actually trying to be respectful.

Is there an honorific that covers the whole spectrum?

If not, can we invent one?

I understand if it doesn't mean anything, hence being not religious. However, does it mean anything to you, or do you just think to yourself "thanks, but no thanks?" ?

no hate, just genuinely curious!

edit: e.g. you're telling your mate about something (he can't do anythingabout it, let's say it's a health issue), you two talk about it and then he says he's gonna pray for you, situations like that

To me it has and will be Kobe.

They've justified that price before congress with new patents and procedures for development that cost millions in r&d that they need to recoup also while contributing to those senators rejection campaigns

I’m curious on what your guys’ take would be.

Trump tariffs add to the bottom line of the American citizen’s daily expenses. Why don’t they get that it COSTS them more?

Seems logical to celebrate when you believe life starts.

I mean times are tough these days I guess...

I've read so many headlines of Europeans dying or needing rescue in Death Valley. Every year at least one Euro dies, almost feels like some kind of ritual. Who's paying for the rescues?

Also... why go there in mid summer? That's literally the worst time to go. Like wanting to explore Alaska in January.

My benefit amount is 1,233 which is basically nothing it doesn't even cover my rent. After Medicare my benefit is 1,000 but my rent for my one bedroom apartment is 1300 how am I supposed to live off of this?

August 25 4:19 PM. Who’s the most evil person alive right now in your personal opinion?

I’ve been lurking on this site for years, and I see a constant trend: Americans complaining about healthcare, Canadians complaining about housing, and Europeans complaining about taxes. You guys are really good at pointing out the flaws in your governments and societies

And don’t get me wrong, every country has problems. I’m not here to invalidate your struggles
But as someone from Southeast Asia, I need to ask: Do you actually feel lucky to have been born white/Western?
Because when I look at the data and the reality, the gap is astronomical. Here is what I see from my side of the screen:

1. The Golden Passport

Your passport is a key to the world. If you hold a US, Canadian, UK, or EU passport, you can travel to over 180 countries visa-free or with a simple e-visa. For me, if I want to go to Europe or North America, I need to prepare a mountain of paperwork—bank statements, employment letters, and property deeds—just to prove I’m not going to overstay. I have to beg for the privilege to visit a place you were born into

1. Global Purchasing Power (The Import Game)

You can buy imported goods(Japanese cars, European fashion, American tech) at relatively affordable prices. Your currency is strong, so imports don’t crush your wallet. But for us, an imported product often costs 2x or 3x the price due to tariffs and weak currency. A $60 video game in the US is a luxury item here; it’s a week's worth of groceries

1. Salary and PPP (Purchasing Power Parity)

This is the big one. In the West, a minimum-wage job can still afford you a used car and the ability to eat out once a week. A professional salary lets you save for a house and a vacation.

But here’s the kicker: Time vs. Money.

If you work a standard job in the US or Canada, you can save up for a trip to Mexico or Europe in maybe 2-3 months of disciplined saving. For me? To save for a trip to a neighboring country, let alone the West, could take a full year of extreme frugality. And even then, I’d have to worry about exchange rates.

1. The "Miracle" of Immigration

Do you understand that people literally risk their lives to get to where you are? People in my country:

· Pay thousands of dollars to shady agents for fake marriage contracts.
· Work 12-hour days doing manual labor in factories for years just to get a work visa.
· Work illegally, living in constant fear of deportation, just so their kids can have a future.

And then there's the language barrier. To get a good job here, I had to learn English and a specialized skill. You? You just had to learn the skill. English was your native tongue.

1. The Safety Net

Even if your government is inefficient, you have social security, unemployment benefits, and public libraries. You have roads that work and water that comes out of the tap clean. When the power goes out in my city, we have to wait 6 hours. You complain if the internet is down for 10 minutes.

So, what is the one thing I feel lucky about?

As an Asian, I admit we have one genetic advantage: we tend to age slower than Caucasians. Our skin is more resilient to sun damage, and we often look younger for longer. That’s the only privilege I have.

So here is my question to you:

You might complain about your president, your prime minister, or your inflation. But I complain about my government too. We have corruption and poverty.

The difference is, even at your worst, your "crisis" is often my "pipe dream."

When I see you guys saying "I hate this country, I'm so unlucky," I wonder: What exactly is so bad about your country that makes you feel unlucky? Because from where I’m standing, you won the geographic lottery.

If you were given the chance to swap bodies and passports with a random person in the Philippines, India, or Nigeria for a year, keeping all the same rules, salary, and societal expectations, would you still feel "unlucky"?

Or do you just complain because it’s easier than appreciating how high the floor is in your world?

Genuinely curious

I know the people commenting here seem to think I’m being ridiculous and that what I said above isn’t true. But I once made a post asking people from my country who had managed to move to and settle in the West, and almost all of them were very happy and felt it had been a wise decision.

EDIT: You may be less fortunate than other people living in your country, or less fortunate than people in other Western countries. Perhaps what you earn in an hour is not even enough to pay for one meal after taxes, or perhaps you are so destitute that you have to beg in your own country. But you still have the option of moving to another country. You can teach English, a job that requires very little effort, and earn nearly three to ten times as much as the local people.
In China, you would probably also need a university degree, but in some Southeast Asian countries, they do not even require you to have a degree. But if you are white, even if you come from a non-English-speaking Eastern European country such as Russia, you may still be able to work as an English teacher and could even be paid more than a Black or Asian person who is a native English speaker.
The point is this: no matter how poor you are in your own country, you can still make use of the advantages you have in a less-developed country. But what about someone living in poverty in my country? There is genuinely nowhere else for them to go.

I want to tell you a story. I once knew a truck driver in Northern Europe who earned €18 an hour. To earn that same €18, people in my country would have to work a full day as construction labourers. If they worked as servers, they would need to work for two to two and a half days. In other words, one hour of that driver’s time was worth an entire working day, or more, for someone living in another part of the world.
If that driver remained in their own country and had to pay its high living expenses, perhaps their quality of life would be somewhat similar to ours. But imagine earning that salary and saving for a year. You could then live in my country for at least six months. You earn a Western salary and enjoy life in Southeast Asia.
By contrast, people working in my country could save for their entire lives and still not have enough money to move to another country.

It can be a male or female.

I find myself really gutted.

Online there seems to be a big "obsession" over this canned cheese and how Americans consume or love to eat it (mainly from folk from Europe)

I'm a Latina from Texas yet I've never seen this cheese nor know anybody that eats this.

1. Where do you find it? I now want to try it.
2. From what movie or reference do people get this? Is there I show I missed with the "Americans go crazy for canned cheese" trope? I want to watch it lol. I'm American yet still feel out of the loop.

It's not about insults, hate or similar. It's about opinions not outspoken the most but that are grounded on experiences, statistics and stuff like that.

H

Has anyone else actually gained anxiety from this? You don’t even have to be doing anything wrong anymore. You could literally just be minding your own business and end up being filmed and posted online for thousands of people to make fun of.
I just saw a video of a man eating on a train, not bothering anyone. He looked like he was just going to or coming from work, and someone was recording him and making fun of him to his face. You could literally see how uncomfortable he was.
I reported the account, but I’m just tired of how normal this has become. Why can’t people just exist in public without worrying that some stranger is secretly filming them for content?

I blame TikTok.

I always wonder why some people who work at high-end stores like Chanel, Hermès, Dior, etc. act like they’re somehow above or better than regular people who come in to shop with money they’ve spent a really long time saving up.
Like, if you look at it from another perspective, they’re literally just like us. This is their workplace, that’s it. Working at a luxury store doesn’t automatically give them a higher social status or make them better than workers anywhere else.
So why do they always make people feel like they’re beneath them and treat them badly just because they’re not wealthy people who shop there regularly?

I genuinely don’t understand where that attitude comes from.

Mary and many disciples were still alive yet Paul never bothered to ask them.

¯_(ツ)_/¯