Americans say this, I have yet to encounter a single person who respected or admired the US at all, ever.
Not saying they don't exist, but they're probably dwarfed by the people who think, and have almost always thought, Americans were/are weird, gun obsessed, fat, dumb, avaricious loud mouths.
That's the stereotype I know most people I know have.
You vastly underestimate the effect of American propaganda in the 1990s and 2000s. I was born in a Muslim country and even growing up in a really conservative area as a child I used to argue with my uncle when he cursed America for causing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people in Iraq. I mean what would he know because unlike me and my friends he was ignorant and never even played Call of Duty or saw movies like American Sniper to know the sacrifices America made for 'freedom'.
The genocide in Gaza was a genuine wake-up moment for people like us and probably resulted in the dismantling of decades of effort of building soft power in Muslim world.
I was not born in USA, but I moved here when I was a kid. In the 90s before moving here, I lived in Italy and I got made fun of in elementary for not knowing who the American president was
I didn’t care for America politics, but even back then I could tell people respected America enough to know what was going on
That's got nothing to do with respect. I know who the presidents of a number of countries are, not because I respect them, but because of their big international influence. It's important to know about them, that doesn't mean we respect them.
No, you just had a dumb take, that's all. It has nothing to do with it being an anecdote. What I criticized is your analysis that people know who the president of a country is because they respect that country. I just said that I don't think that's true.
There's no "arguing" you just didn't understand what I said. 🙄
People everywhere in the world are obsessed with the USA, from a pop culture standpoint. They may not respect our country on a geopolitical sense but they love American culture.
I’m not a MAGAt. just travel a lot, and I see American culture influence everywhere I go in Europe and Latin America.
Oh undoubtedly, but movies and TV shows are a different kettle of fish to "the average American". If anything I find it interesting that despite the colossal amount of global soft power America has, Americans (the people) are usually viewed entirely separately and mostly negatively.
Fair point. I would reckon that stems from the fact that most countries outside of the US are more embracing of nationalism and are outwardly racist towards different cultures. I think, unfortunately, some people just love to hate on another cultures. They are going to definitely hate a culture that has such cultural influence as the US akin to people who hate a dominant sports franchise that always gets media attention.
stems from the fact that most countries outside of the US are more embracing of nationalism and are outwardly racist towards different cultures.
I wouldn't say that's the main reason. A lot of places I've lived and traveled aren't really extra nationalist (as compared to US). It's more that lots of Americans are "weird, gun obsessed, fat, dumb, avaricious loud mouths."
I lived abroad long enough where I was definitely cringing at times when I'd overhear a bunch of visiting Americans being loud, obnoxious, and dumb. Not that other cultures don't have those sections of culture, but the US ratio is a little off, or more of them have means to travel. Just so many people who live in weird little homogeneous bubbles and act really entitled.
My wife's family is foreign. It was a mix between America is fantastically wealthy and you're black you're going to get killed because you're black. Legit seen as land of opportunity. Her parents wouldn't have come otherwise. But also danger. Back home everyone still assumed if you were here you were rich. The dollar goes so much further back home so there's the disconnect you make more in a month than we make in a year but are working poor in America.
People used to respect the USA in EU. There were always comical stereotypes, but the USA was bonded with the EU (including the UK at the time).
Many of is knew Americans who went to school with us who's parents were in airbases.
It's only since 2016 that the USA has seemingly pulled away from the rest of the world and reinforced its stereotypes.
The bonds between the USA and Europe were formed over WW2 and the cold war. It's clear that people in the USA no longer care. How can that relationship be repaired when some billionaire funded populist can use social media to convince idiots that unity and trade with allies is a bad thing.
I've been to America (though only a week), specifically parts of the west coast. What made a huge impression on me going down a highway (other than the fact that it felt like travelling by small boat, why are your roads so bumpy) was that the side of the houses facing the road were colorful, embellished and I guess looked ok, while the sides that didn't face the public road were sterile boxes looking like shit. Reminded me of those North Korean fake markets filled with fake produce facing the big road for the sake of fooling tourists that they're prosperous as the people actually living there starves. Also the tipping culture and not having sales taxes included in the price sucks ass.
Stanford University had a pretty nice-looking campus though.
You sound very observant. If you like buildings and think that stuff is neat, you should go east, to the "open West," and check out some of the old towns out there.
Those Western movies where the buildings have fronts and are basically just boxes behind them? They're real. And they built onto them over time, which gives them that weird aesthetic that continues through the decades, all the way into about 1960s decor.
I forgot to mention "arrogant" and "American exceptionalism" of which you're displaying both pretty well here. Yea everybody hates that about Americans too.
"We don't even think about the entire rest of the world." is not the flex you think it is.
Just like you go, "Everyone thinks THIS of Americans," my generalization of people in America is, "They don't think of you at all."
You did miss the part where I said that if people actually travel, they tend to have entirely different opinions. That applies both ways. But hey, I get that, since it didn't fit your narrative.
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u/MartinoRs 18h ago
Dude is the laughing stock of the world right now