What do you think of americans?

Question

Hey I am american and people here are always saying that everyone else in the world hates us americans. I always feel sad to hear this because i really like other countries and i am pretty interested in the rest of the world. just wanted to hear your views on america.

Matthewg · Accepted Answer

Most opinions of Americans are based on prejudice. I've spoken to many holier-than-thou anti-americans, and on being pressed, most of them will admit to never having been to America, or never even having met an American. Many people condemn America for having no cultural background, no history. But the sad truth is, in many great European cities I've visited the cultural background begins and ends in the architecture, the music and the art: it doesn't continue into the people, who are lacklustre, smug and boring. I've been to America, and I think its a great place. Even the people are friendly and interesting, compared to the miserable few who berate them.

Sizofren · Answer

By Dahr Jamail, Journalist

In December 2003, for instance, a man in Baghdad, speaking of the Abu Ghraib atrocities, said to me, "Why do they use these actions? Even Saddam Hussein did not do that! This is not good behavior. They are not coming to liberate Iraq!" And by then the bleak jokes of the beleaguered had already begun to circulate. In the dark humor that has become so popular in Baghdad these days, one recently released Abu Ghraib detainee I interviewed said, "The Americans brought electricity to my ... (cutted by me) before they brought it to my house!"

[url="http://www.tomdispatch.com/index.mhtml?emx=x&pid=2109"]Please click to read the whole article[/url]

Sorry to be rude but let me ask you pantsdaddy, what would you think of someone if he brought electricity to your body while you were waiting for liberation. Is this liberation what the soldiers of the USA did?

And i never hate Americans, neither do other muslims. We hate only the people who kills others for their benefits. I am again sorry if i said anything that hurts you. I still have a lot of problems in describing my feelings exactly. Because i can not find the right word or phrase to tell what i exactly think and feel. So that i may hurt the others unwillingly.

Pandora · Answer

Frankly, I hate most of them. It's not their fault.
I hate BUSH , and I hate his face, thoughts...

Pandora · Answer

I'm totally agree with you about Americans and American goverment. I'm Turkish. People thought that Mslims are bad or dirty. Some of coutries are like that. But not the all.. PLease understand that

Matthewg · Answer

Pandora,

Please argue constructively. Why do you hate Bush? Why do you hate Americans? What has Bush done that is any different from the next national leader? I think the fact that the Americans are so ubiquitous makes them an ideal candidate for irrationally targeted hate. When people are upset, or are experiencing problems, they seek explanations for their woes. These people are known as the 'chattering classes', who base their arguments on the grabbing of random facts in the vain hope of putting it all together and constructing some sort of a pattern. The behaviour of a few American soldiers does not represent the general behaviour of an entire nation, and especially the behaviour of a nation's leader. This is why, on visiting France, you will notice that all Frenchmen don't actually prance about wearing striped shirts, berets, and garlic chains around their neck, while simultaneously holding a baguette, making love to a woman, and driving a Citroen Dolly. These are called stereotypes, another product of the chattering classes.

I live in Malta, and we have a lot of problems with desperate illegal immigrants who find their way (often mistakenly) to the island. Some of these are North Africans, and there are even some Turks. A lot of them resort to crime, and if I were close-minded person stuck swimming about in my own fishbowl, I would classify all Turks as greasy pick-pocketing kebab eaters, and would blame them for all my problems from reduced welfare to increased taxation. But my family's been to Turkey and they've told me about it. They've told me what a great place it is, and what the people are like.

Think before you say something. This basic skill could save you intense social embarassment.

I'm totally agree with you about Americans and American goverment. I'm Turkish. People thought that Mslims are bad or dirty. Some of coutries are like that. But not the all.. PLease understand that

Look at what you've said: People thought that Mslims are bad or dirty. Some of coutries are like that. But not the all. And likewise some people thought - and still think - that Americans are all a bunch of a redneck torturers, no different from the regime they came to depose. But, to use your own logic, some Americans are like that, but not all.

Sorry to be rude but let me ask you pantsdaddy, what would you think of someone if he brought electricity to your body while you were waiting for liberation. Is this liberation what the soldiers of the USA did?

Sizofren, what are you trying to insinuate by asking this question? That Americans really and truly believe torture is a form of liberation? That what a few soldiers have done is somehow legitimate? That is not a question, it is a passive insult masquerading as one. Of course it's wrong to torture someone, even the perprators probably knew that what they were doing was wrong. Like a kid stealing cookies from a jar, they just thought no one would ever find out.

Don't misunderstand my concern, this topic wasn't started so that people would be encouraged to comment only to be shot to pieces by an evil moderator. We aren't having a sociable drink among close friends here, this is a public discussion, and whatever any of us says is open to criticism.

Sizofren · Answer

Matthewq,

World everday is going from bad to worse. This is just because of the USA government and Israel. Everyday hundred of Muslims is dying, hundred of child is losing their parents. And this just because of the USA government and Israel. Everyone knows that the USA has no right to wage war on Iraq. But they did.

Bush said that they would liberate Iraq and they waged war on Iraq because they thought there were nucleuar weapons but still they couldn't find anything. And still there are some poor people who believe in that lie. I ask everyone that why the USA has spent 148 billion $ for war on Iraq. Is that just because of liberation? And Why do they still spend 9 billion monthly? I don't know how to say in English but we ask in Turkish, iraq is the other son of USA's father which means USA have no true reason to spend a lot of money for just liberation of Iraq.

Everyone knows that Iraq is full of oil reservoir and productive soil. And the reason of war is not liberation, weapons or Saddam. the USA and Israel want to benefit from Iraq's reservoirs.

And USA sent less money to help people effected by tsunami than they spent daily in the Iraq war. Do you still think that USA works for the peace of World?

So we wanted every Americans not to approve the government's works. But they again voted for Bush. I can see that there is a fear of 9/11 but everyone must know that 9/11 attacks was made by Jews and Bush approved attack before it. Because 9/11 attacks would give Bush the rights that he can do everything what he want. And as you see, it have given too. Bush is doing whatever he wants. He didn't need to take approve of UN neither for the war on Iraq. Bush forgot that in the world there are people out of USA and Israel.

A big majority of people in the world want Bush to go home. I think they hate because of that reason which i have tried to tell some. And noone in Asia hates Americans because of the reaons that you told in your first message in this thread. Only some europans hate Americans because of their culture and history. Only they think that Americans have no culture background and no history. The main majority in Asia never think like that some Europans. Asians only dislike them because of they again voted for Bush altough they saw that there were a lot of bad things that Bush did. And we are not anti-americans, or anti-any nations. We just want Bush and US army to go home back. UN can do what US will do in Iraq. Thanks.

Sizofren · Answer

While i was surfing on internet i have seen this news.

Michael Moore's anti-Bush documentary Fahrenheit 9/11 has won best film at the US People's Choice Awards, voted for by the US public.

I think the US people have started changing ideas about Bush. I hope they will not elect him again.

Matthewg · Answer

What you have just said smacks a great deal of something we call conspiracy theory. It is easy to find parallels between facts, between rumours that your friends and family tell you, between badly reported and grossly exaggerated news stories - such as those the BBC has been accused of airing recently - but on closer inspection, you'll see the patterns you've created fall apart as you realise how selective you've been in searching for information.

[url="http://www.EnglishForward.com/User/UserProfile.aspx?UserName=nona%20the%20brit"]Nona the brit[/url] put this very well on [url="http://www.EnglishForward.com/ShowPost.aspx?PostID=57129"]another post[/url] in this forum:

Unfortunately there is also a lot of misinformation [on the Web] and that can cause a lot of problems. I've been shown articles that people have got from the internet and seem to take as gospel, even though to me they are blatantly incorrect.

Be careful. I've heard a lot of people talking about how they read an article on the Web which said this, that and the other. The word article is a label which carries a lot of weight. It has connotations of truth and correct reasoning, and has no place being applied to what are actually weblog postings that aren't worth the bandwith they use up. A lot of the information on Web is written by normal people, people who have no knowledge of international relations and who are totally unqualified to speak on such matters. This is streetcorner philosophy, no different from the chatter between two housewives.

The ability to reason for yourself is not a gift or a talent, it is a skill you develop. It requires you to dispose of prejudice, to disregard conspiracy theory, and to question not just the opinion of others, but your own opinion.

Anti-semitism has no place on this forum. What you've said is an outright lie and extremely irresponsible, a hateful comment with nothing to back it up. Accusing Bush and Jewish people of planning the 9/11 attacks may be acceptable discussion among your friends, but if you say anything like that again on the forums, I will have to ban you.

Bush is doing whatever he wants. He didn't need to take approve of UN neither for the war on Iraq. Bush forgot that in the world there are people out of USA and Israel.

What on Earth are you talking about? This comment just goes to show how selectively conspiracy theorists choose information. After the tsunami hit Asia, while the UN and EU were sitting about procrastinating, America went right ahead and formed a coalition with Australia. They were the first nations to get relief to some of the worst affected parts of the tsunami disaster area. If you make it a point to ignore information such as this, you wont know that the BBC actually went out of their way to under-report this news. Needless to say, there were some people actually complaing on the Web that the relief packages had the mark 'USA' stamped on them. And that's not all, a UN official actually had the gall to call America 'stingy.' These people are beyong belief, and beyond correct reasoning.

Some people have a desire to be attached or connected to greatness, to importance. They like to be the bearer of important news, it gives them a feeling of control, of power. We saw this happen in England after the tsunami in Asia, with a few people who decided to send out false information to families who had lost relatives in the disaster.

The golden rule of gossip: repeat the lie often enough, and it becomes a fact. [url="http://www.EnglishForward.com/User/UserProfile.aspx?UserName=sizofren"]Sizofren[/url] seems to be spreading misinformation in the mistaken belief that his lies carry some sort of weight. This is the driving force behind anti-Americanism, and it's what allows the incorrect opinions to spread so quickly. If I had a dollar for every time I heard the "They only did it for the oil" rant, I'd be driving a Bugatti.

What are you achieving by hating America? What is the sense in it? What has that country done that is any different from the next?

Leandro_tami · Answer

I find very interesting all the opinions that, until now, I have seen on this thread. I must recognize this subject produces some kind of excitement on myself, so I'll express my opinion concerning the USA, which is by definition personal and not necessarily the truth, but it reflects my perception of the reality.

I realize I can't hate an entire country. I can't hate even an entire neighborhood. I find it unreasonable... irrational. Because every society is built with individuals, and they can't be judged unless you analize every person. What you can do is trying to detect some pattern that repeates itself, or behaviour, which is common for a society (but as I said not necessarily for all of its members). Since the question 'what do you think of americans?' is a question concerning a society, these are the patterns I have found and I think are good or bad. Please note that if you asked me 'what do you think about George Bush' or 'what do you think about Matt Groening'

the answers would be different.
Americans are blindly patriotic (I think this based on years of watching movies, TV series, and from the news). I don't think they, as a society, recognize their mistakes. In fact, I believe that recognizing a mistake can be easily confounded with anti-patriotism (which I don't think it should be). Americans were (and are) driven by a political class that sometimes doesn't seem to share the real interests of the nation they represent. I know, this is very common, but the problem is that the USA is a very powerful country, and I think that Americans gave the power to a very dangerous person, not only for the rest of the world but also for themselves. The combination results in something like giving a shotgun to a monkey.
They must understand that people from outside their country very often only see the face of their representants, and if they are bad, the image of the entire country will suffer. Most people from abroad can't travel to your country and meet the nice and decent people that live there. Then, you can't expect a nice answer to this question. Or you may expect some nice answers, but you must know you´ll surely receive several that you won't like.
The war on Iraq didn´t help in improving your image. On the contrary, I see the opposite reaction. I don't think a honest and good human being could ever like Saddam Hussein, but you can't kill thousands of innocent people only for removing it. By the way, Iraq is not just a country lost in the East... it's a country which is literally floating over oil. I don't think this is just a mere coincidence. That says to me that while the american representatives speak about restoring peace, and freedom, they are thinking in money and oil. They probably are thinking in power too. And this doesn't help to your image.
Americans are also quite ignorant about the rest of the world. But don't worry, Europeans are the same. In fact, the world is not only formed by the USA and Europe. I often see this ignorance about the rest of the world manifested on movies and books. And I'm not talking just about novels... I'm talking about the most prestigious newspapers of the USA, documentaries and text books.
I also tend to believe that most 'humanitary' help given by the USA, in fact, based on the desire of raising their poor image and of course once again money and power. I have seen that even in my country... you have to see it to believe it... we had a very important economical crisis and suddenly a former rich country become flooded with international aid. Do you know what Americans and Europeans sent us? Expired food, expired medications, medical trash, broken machinery... I have seen it. At the same time I saw CNN and during a brief moment they said something about the help sent to Argentina... but that was it. I know most Americans probably though this was good, and in fact this was good, but not for my country.. it was good for those american hospitals and supermarkets which sent trash and received a relief in their taxes.
Probably the saddest aspect of America is that they aren't in peace. They haven't been neither. I know can't imagine the pain of all those families which have lost relatives on all those wars. Considering this, you would say they actually had to learn something about the value of life, and that the USA should be the most peaceful country in the planet. But it doesn't matter how much I try to understand their situation or how much some of they try to live in peace, they just don't. When they are not into a war caused by a foreign country, they find a reason for wars or invasions, installing puppet governments or funding and supporting coups, which is quite a contradiction for they supposed ideals of freedom and liberty.
Personally I wish you peace because I know that if the USA finds peace, the world will be a better place. Peace is more than living in a country which isn't at war.
Finally I would like to add that I'm aware of several things made by the USA that helped the world and are good beyond any doubt. First of all, sending *** help to areas affected by disasters is very good, even if there are second interests, because that people needs help quickly. Second, their technology helped the world in so many ways that I can't count them.... it's sad, but when you are overwhelmed by bad aspects of a society, you forget quickly the good part. I don't hate them, but I don't love them. I don't like them as a society, although I'm sure there are thousands of persons in that country that are kind, nice, educated, and respectful.

I hope I was clear. I really don't want to sound aggressive. This is my opinion, from my point of view. As any opinion, is always subject to change, and it will surely change accordingly I continue growing up and accordingly the events you and I will continue watching during our lives.

Moltobella · Answer

I agrre with matthewg not fair you judge and lie that way

What do you think of americans?

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