what do you know, all of these "stereotypes are true. Even #6 is true with a gratuitous amount of mexicans living in their country...
I speak fluently: Russian, Slovak, English, German, I also speak Czech, Chinese and French fairly well. You may contact me in any of these languages. I have some basics in Japanese+Spanish --- Help others and your life will be more cheerful and pleasant.
Kenzu Milagro
@Kenzu
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What does number 6 have to do with Mexicans. Aren't we talking about American citizens?
At JohnnyUtah:
OMFG!! He thinks I actually give a crap what he says to me, How cute is that :D?
I'm not angry at him, I'm just expressing my opinion Jesus Christ²
Let me be, Capice?
O_o
He's just being crazy, like always.
Alot of those stereo types are true.
here are a few more American stereo types..
1) America is known as the land of Inventors.. First country to Drive, to fly, to go to the moon, and soon to mars
2) Americans are the most generous people on the planet.. first to give in times of crisis and usually the most to give....
<a href="http://www.nowpublic.com/world/americans-are-most-generous-people-planet">http://www.nowpublic.com/world/americ ans-are-most-generous-people-planet</a>
Americans invent more, grow more, discover more, share more and give more than any other people on Earth.
Whats the point of learning twenty languages, and going to 30 years worth of schooling if you are of no use or benefit to the ones around you.
BTW I have a question
is it true that Austria supplies the worlds pedophiles , with its highest case of Child Sex slavey in the country?
Is this stereotype correct?
It is true that there are many famous inventors who lived in America.
Most of "American" inventors haven't been born in America. They were immigrants who acquired citizenship after they arrived in USA.
I have never heard the stereotype that Americans would be generous. Except for some superstars and Bill Gates of course.
I'd say the police was able to uncover more of such cases now that the first case came out. As far as I know there was also one case in Poland, one in Italy and one in USA. All cases of child sex slavery.
=> Since there were more cases in Austria recently, somehow Austria might appear to be more dangerous. It is a stereotype, a wrong stereotype. 2 pedophiles aren't a representative proportion of Austrians. I guess this mental deviation is same everywhere, maybe 1 our of 1.000.000 has it, no matter in which country.
Therefore this stereotype is incorrect.
PS: Soviet Spaceship landed on the moon first and was also the first one to return back to Earth to bring moon rock samples.
a lot of this is pretty true in my experience (except for the whole flag thing)..
1 - the majority of houses (at least in the midwest) have two floors and a basement.
3 - most insurance policies cover most things, but it's really expensive unless you have a job with benefits, so a lot of people (who don't) go without it.
4 - very true, i could buy a house for less than my 4-year education at uni.
5 - mostly the ones who've never been to another country.
8 - i think it's a little of both..
How expensive would be a health insurance which covers even the most expensive operations?
1. No, most houses have more than 1 floor. Anyways, a lot of people do live in apartments.
2. Damn immigrants do
3. Depends on how much you feel like spending or is provided by your work
4. Not really, often you get a loan and then pay it back later once you get a job.
5. Yeah well that's defiantly hyped up by American TV but really it's just about as good as the UK.
6. This one is really not true as many of our citizens once lived in another country. And why would this matter anyway? You can talk with one language just as good as you can with knowing 2.
7. Well of course the good looking people are on TV, who would want to watch fat people? Not everyone is like that either. Anyway 100kgs is about 220 pounds and
That's not all that heavy.
8. We use representative democracy, which means we vote for people to vote for us. This is actually a fairly wise decision because the reps are very educated about each candidate.
9. Another generalization because I am very aware that 90 degrees Fahrenheit is about 40 degrees Celsius
10. Not at all, most Americans try to save money
11. No way, Americans know just as much as any other country basic math.
i don't feel like doing math right now and your lucky I got this done as i have ADD
6) Well, if you only speak one language, most people wouldn't hire you for a job in Europe, because almost everyone can speak 2 or 3 languages at least.
7) I think 220 pounds is VERY heavy. There is a simple standard which says that you should weight about 100 points less in kg than your height in cm.
So if you are 170 cm tall, you should weight about 70 kg
(6 feet 8 inches = 155 pounds)
If you are 180 cm tall, you should weight 80 kg
(7 feet = 177 pounds)
=> It's not healthy to surpass these. Increases risk of heart failure and other health problems.
Of course there are differences between men and women. Women are supposed to weigh less than men, even at the same height, because they have a different anatomy.
Thanks for your response!
Lots of questions :P
I'll say this much though. The majority of Americans, and people in general, do not excel in long-term planning. It's the reason most get in trouble with finances and what not.
The system here in America is focused more on "reaping what you sow" (if you are familiar with the expression where you live). The system can work here, but in the end, it is never Capitalism fault. Socialism puts more responsibility on the governments shoulders. Capitalism does the opposite.
For example, if a child doesn't take the time to study for an exam, then returns home with a 'D+' to show his parents, is the system at fault? Or is it more to do with personal responsibility?
We shouldn't blame the children for comming home with a D+. The problem is that the parents don't look after their children enough. they should study with their children, not let them play until they have done the homework and test them themselves to see how good their child is.
Teachers are here to teach children knowledge, they aren't responsible for raising children. Parents are responsible for teaching the child how to study and prevent it from becomming a lazy piece of fruit rotting in front of the tv.
Just like many children aren't able to take care after themselves, many adults aren't able to foresee the consequences of their actions.
MATHS not math. ;)
thanks for letting me know ^_^
"Most of "American" inventors haven't been born in America. They were immigrants who acquired citizenship after they arrived in USA."
Obviously, America is a new country and its built on immigrants and their ingenuity.
The real question is why do they feel they can do better in America, and not invent in their own countries?
as for soviets going to the moon first, thats just heresay, You can't Prove the Russians went to the moon first any more than I can prove the Americans went first.
Our history books say we went first. Either case its all bullshit, and so is stereotyping.
So let's see when Americans have arrived on the moon?
Who knows...
Hell, they didn't even have computer technology good enough to send a spaceship to the moon unmanned. Soviets landed on the moon without risking a single human life and they have researched an unmanned space shuttle too!
When did Soviets first land on the moon?
September 14, 1959
The first soft landing was on:
February 3, 1966
September 20, 1970 Soviet lunar landing
September 21, 1970 Soviet lunar lift-off
Other Soviet Achievements:
First human to space Yuri Gagarin on 12 April 1961.
First space station "Mir" 1986
My history books say Soviet Union won the space race in almost every single "discipline". First in orbit, first in space, first on the moon, first moon rock samples, first space station.
1) This is largely true, though many middle-class Americans buy houses with more than one floor (houses that many of them can't afford).
2) This is true.
4) Studying at a good university is expensive.
5) Having lived abroad for several years I can't answer this question.
6) Mostly true, though Spanish and French are taught in most public schools and some extend this to other languages. My school has a total of five languages taught.
7) There is a large amount of obese people in America (large, obese, funny), yes. It depends where you're from, though, and how wealthy your family is. Less wealthy people tend to weigh more.
8) Both. I didn't have a political opinion when I left the US, then when I moved to Europe I was extremely liberal, and now that I have returned to the U.S I am more moderately liberal (though certainly still liberal). There is a lot more conservative bias in the media in America (though a conservative would argue the opposite is true as well). I think I received a fairly balanced source of American-related news when I lived in the UK.
9) The first part is mostly untrue (though I'm sure there are some exceptions, and the imperial system is mostly used), though the second is likely true (though only because they don't know how to convert Fahrenheit to Celsius).
I think if they converted just like the british people would eventually get used to it. Especially if both numbers would appear everywhere for a decade or two.
I would say that a large portion of this is just "bollocks". Where I am from in the United States we learn business planing (9th grade), the metric system (in grades 5+), alg II and up (9th grade). Most houses are now made with steel support in in the framing of the exterior, most houses are not made cheap it is just a buyers market right now.
Many speculations are made about only tourists that many people from USA think make us look bad because they are mostly fat and ignorant.
it's funny to see that even though American tourists might be fat and ignorant, American students are usually slim and intelligent.
Seems you live in a nice city!
Holy Shit. Everything you just said is true.
I can't even count my fingers without getting a headache. :C
wow
It seems that if not all, majority of the points are true if I look on all these comments.
well, livin in the good ol' usa for my whole life, i can ancer a few of your questions.. 1) it depends on the person, but yes.. most people prefer to live in houses than apartmens, because of more room, more privacy, & above all, payments lead to full ownership of property, rather than paying rent endlessly.. & as long as you have a steady job, & no 'bad spending habits", all should be fine. carelessness leads to debt.
2) 40 hours a week is full time, anything over is overtime, were you get payed alittle more.. 25 days vacation is around it, depending on the job you work at.. & by regulations, if you dont work for the company, you get no pay. unless, you get retirment leave.
3) you can 'coustomize' your health insurance to meet your needs, or the injouries your likely to get, depending on what you do. & hospitals charge like crazy! so ANY insurance is better than nothing.. they'll still save you, but they'll get their money..
4) universities are KILLER on the piggy bank.. but there are many schollerships available.. you just gotta look 4 them.
5) about 99% of everyone i know thinks so..
6) thats a 50/50.. many speak other languages, but others don't care to, or want to..
7) to be on tv, you gotta look good. fat people dont look good, so too bad. almost all tv programers think this..
8) sorry.. not too sure..
9)true.. over here, we only use farenhieght, cause we forget things from school..
10) thats why the stock market's crashing..
11)many know math, but.. prefer that someone else does it.. i hate math, & dont wanna do it, but thats me.. almost everyone else here can do it... & im 17!
"I'd say the police was able to uncover more of such cases now that the first case came out. As far as I know there was also one case in Poland, one in Italy and one in USA. All cases of child sex slavery.
=> Since there were more cases in Austria recently, somehow Austria might appear to be more dangerous. It is a stereotype, a wrong stereotype. 2 pedophiles aren't a representative proportion of Austrians. I guess this mental deviation is same everywhere, maybe 1 our of 1.000.000 has it, no matter in which country."
As far as the pedophilia comments go, if the mental deviation was the same everywhere, the US would have a hell of a lot more cases brought up, due to its much larger population.
Also, pedophilia is probably largely due to both genes and environmental factors. With the US' larger population and smaller amount of cases to rival Austria, obviously you guys got the child-rape gene. So sorry, you will not be baby sitting my children.
As I said, 2 cases aren't enough to make statistics. I'm sure there are at least 100 other pedophiles raping their daughters somewhere in the world. We simply don't know about what's going on.
thats a negative i live in an aparment and cant seem to get to college recomdation
Is it not possible to study without a college recommendation?
Most Americans, like me, who live near the border go to Mexico or Canada frequently for vacations if they can afford it. I live just 3 hours north of Mexico, and many people go for spring break every year.
Also, 5&6 are completely true.
For middle-income families, it is usually hard to send more than one student to a university without taking out a loan.
Thanks for you information!
1. This is largely true, but I believe this makes Americans seem too fiscally irresponsible. People who can't pay off debt and are in credit crises make the news because no one wants to hear about people who are getting along just fine. Most Americans do have mortgages on their homes, but they are not overwhelmed by debt if they borrow within their means. Those who are in debt to credit card companies are simply irresponsible people.
Having an American flag displayed outside the home might be a bit stereotypical, but some people do it. It is more common on special occasions like Veteran's Day or July 4th. There are also many homes made of brick in addition to those made out of wood. It really just depends on the preference. I live in a brick house with one floor and an attic. Most homes in my part of the country (the South/Southeast) do not have basements because of the environment. There are plenty of houses with more than one floor. Apartments are also not as uncommon as you might think.
2. This is hard to pinpoint since different jobs have so many different policies. Teachers, for example, have about three months of paid vacation in the summer. Different areas of employment have different benefits and work schedules. I'm sure this is true for most developed nations.
3. Most, if not all jobs for college-educated people provide health insurance. There are many lower-working class individuals who don't have health insurance with their jobs, but no one is just going to roll over and die because he doesn't have good health coverage. There are many government and non-profit organizations that provide health care for the needy.
4. This is not true either. There are many state-funded universities in America that are not very expensive or difficult to get into. Private colleges can be extremely expensive, but they're private institutions looking for profit. I'm sure all universities in America offer financial aid to outstanding and needy students as well.
5. It is a bit unfair to cast this in a negative light. Who doesn't love living in his home country more than anywhere else? Almost everyone in the world has pride in his native country.
6. Most native-born Americans, including myself, only speak English fluently, but we have a large immigrant population, many of which are multilingual. There is also a rising effort to make the general population at least bilingual. I am studying foreign languages in my university. I've been learning Chinese for two semesters, and I've also studied Latin for years.
7. As someone said earlier, most people on television are going to be attractive. Not everyone in the country is obese or fat, although many people might be bigger than the average person of their height, gender, and age in other countries. I find this to be true among women more than men. I am male, 19 years old, six feet tall (so about 1.8 meters), and weigh 135 pounds (so about 61 kilograms), and am told by many people that I am thin.
8. I think someone else gave a good explanation earlier that most foreign exchange students are going to be younger people, who are usually more progressive. I suppose Obama would almost have to be more popular than McCain, or else he wouldn't be president.
As for Americans often vacationing within their own country, that is true, although many people who can afford to travel abroad do so. Leaving the country is usually much more expensive for Americans than it is for people in Europe and Asia since the only nations that America borders are Canada and Mexico. It's a lot cheaper for someone from Austria to travel to Germany than it is for an American to do so! America is also several times larger than any European nation, so there are a lot of different places to go with different subcultures, environments, landmarks, etc. Why leave the country when there's so much you haven't seen in your own?
9. This is also true. However, how many Europeans are familiar with the measurement systems Americans use? I really don't know the answer to that. Europeans might be more informed on that system than I thought. However, the metric system is taught in American schools. It's just not used very much in every day life because our culture has just always used these other measurements. I don't really think there's anything wrong with that, it's just different from what Europeans are used to using. To be honest, I could not tell you off the top of my head that 90 degrees Fahrenheit is equal to about 40 degrees Celsius.
10. Many people may not save money wisely, but I'm sure this is true for almost everywhere in the world. We would not have so many affluent people in America if we didn't know how to save money.
11. I don't think this is true, and I'll attempt to solve your math problem to prove it. Please bear with me, as I have not taken a math course for three semesters, so I might just wind up proving you right.
a) It's always better to buy your home if you can. This is a well-known fact that doesn't necessarily relate to this particular math problem. Owning your home gives you capital and property, builds your credit, provides you with a reliable place to live and raise your family, gives you more freedom and decision-making powers than renting, etc. I've never owned a home, so I can't really go on.
b) I'm assuming that all the money you don't spend on necessities would go into the bank, so that would be $1,800 a month. I also assumed that interest is collected at the end of the year, so after one year you would have $124,032 in the bank. After one year, the interest on the loan would have increased the money owed to $214,000. If you paid off your mortgage with all the money you had in the bank after one year, you would be left with $89,968 left to pay off. One more year of saving with interest would leave you with $22,032 in savings. By the end of the year, the interest on the loan would have raised it to $96,265.76, which I will round up to the nearest dollar for simplicity's sake. If you paid off the loan with all of your savings again, the remaining debt would be $74,234. After the third year, the debt would be paid off to equal $57,398. As this pattern continues, I'll count out each year with the remaining debt.
Year four: $39,384
Year five: $20,109
Year six: -$515
So, according to my calculations, it would take six years to pay off your debt to the bank.
c) Since the interest change doesn't happen until one year after you receive the loan, I'll assume that at the end of year two, the mortgage would be $98,965 with interest. If you subtract what you earn in that year, you're left with $76,933 left to pay at the end of year two.
Year three: $62,954
Year four: $46,821
Year five: $29,471
Year six: $10,386
Year seven: -$10607
So, it would take at least seven years to pay off your debt to the bank in this scenario.
As I said earlier, I am 19 years old. I hope this has shed a little light on your perspective of Americans, Kenzu. :)
Great that you learn Chinese!
8) I don't think Austrians visit Germany that often. The countries are too similiar to consider them a foreign country.
But I know that Austrians like to go to Turkey, Italy or Spain for the summer. Asia is getting more and more popular recently as a destination for vacation.
9) Well I know that a pound is roughly half a kg, and an inch is 2.5 cm and foot roughly 30 cm. to be honest I had to check how fahrenheit is measured and still don't know what a galleon of gas is. But the thing is, the American system is used only in USA and 2 other tiny countries. The metric system is used everyhwere else (over 150 countries).
a) In this math question renting is more cheap. If people did their math in real life they would know that buying a house usually pays of ONLY if you don't take on a debt, (have enough money to buy it straight away) AND aren't able to make more interest on the capital you invest in your house elsewhere.
b) The house costs 300.000$. You need to take a loan of 200.000$ so that in total with your own 100.000$ you can buy 1 house. Your calculation would have been correct if the house wouldn't cost 300.000$ but 200.000$ instead.
If it costed only 200.000$ then you need to lend only 100.000$ since you already have 100.000$
(It is 16 years if the house costs 300.000$ as in my example)
Thanks for such a detailed review.
I've had these types of arguments with two other European friends of mine, first off remember there are over 300 million people in the U.S. Two major cities have a higher population than most European countries. To answer the language question, geographically there is no reason to speak more than one fluent language, however Spanish is rapidly growing and is being taught in most elementary schools. The huge difference really does derive from the population number, when you say "most" Americans this and "most" that, it's really vague and doesn't relate to any particular region. Not all universities are crazy expensive, aside from ivy league schools state universities are generally affordable, and student loans are available. I won't say that the middle class isn't shrinking, however there are many internal issues concerning jobs, money/loans/savings/credit, infrastructure that are currently being dealt with the current administration.
I can't apologize for George W. Bush...he's the worst thing to ever happen to America, you can blame all the conservative religious nuts that live in the southern states.
Quite many european cities are larger than most European countries. That's because Europe has quite many tiny countries. Even Vatican is a country and has only 300 population (all male).
The biggest cities (over 10.000.000 population) in Europe are:
Moscow
Istanbul
London
Paris
A total of roughly 30 cities have population over 2.000.000
A total of 77 cities have over 1.000.000 population in Europe
What about the affordable universities, aren't they good enough? Is it harder to find a job if you studied at one of the "affordable" universities?
But the first Man on the moon was American, unless my history books are as wrong as yours. We got to see the moon with our very own eyes while you had to settle for rock samples......
I guess the point Im trying to make is, we will never know the truth. Your history books were written by your country as was mine, As human beings we must decide for ourselves what we believe is true or not.
and Its pretty obvious you aren't asking us about our stereotypes because you are curious, but because already believe them to be true.
you arrogance in your responses are more than apparent., and your narrow mindedness about us are just the same as ours to yours.
It is true that the first Man on the moon was American. No one can take that from you.
No, I don't think all stereotypes are true. I get conflicting views when I talk to Americans I personally know. Somehow it appears that the stereotypes are considered true by many Americans, but actually usually aren't true for those Americans I know personally.
Maybe I just play with you, since you also have quite provocative posts, like the one with sex slavery.
1)Your typical upper middle class family yes. And the lower lower class families since congress kept pushing people to be able to afford houses, and then You get such a situation.
2)Yes. Well, most places. Government jobs are quite cushy.
3)Not really. Health insurance isn't THAT expensive, but if you do have an accident, or shoddy credit, or have a crappy credit market like now, they will jack up the rates.
4) Yep. Of course a lot of people get aid, or some kind of scholarships.
5) Certainly better than Europe. No offense. Although I did enjoy Germany for the few months I was there. France, not so much.
6) I can't speak for others, but I think its mostly accurate. I have a few years of German, and I'm learning Japanese. For instance, Ich heisse Karl. Not the best example, but lets keep moving.
7) You haven't seen the Jim Carrey show have you? But yes, It's pretty accurate. I myself weigh in at about 75-76 kg.
8) More like the fact that university, and school teachers are WAY on the left side of the spectrum. Being a conservative school teacher is a bit of a stigma, and the teachers see fit to ostracize anyone who is, and force their opinions upon the students. this is especially true of the colleges, or universities. I guess that's why we are collectively so dumb. they spend SO much time forcing their politics instead of actually teaching well. It's a bit of an epidemic.
9) I had to learn it all back in 7th grade, and I'm one of all of 2 people in my class who still uses it, and still knows how to convert in my head. It's about 10-12 C here. Of course I've got my computer displaying F C and K. Pretty much just for shits and giggles.
10) I HATE credit cards. I only deal in cash or checks. I'm also one of the few people I know who use checks, for something other than bills.
110 Dood, I just took my PSSAs today. I'll answer tomorrow
So i would say that there is some truth to them, but also some BS. I'm sure I can drudge up a bunch of stereotypes about Europeans. For instance, English food sucks. Not true, because I know a place in England when you can get some of the best pork dishes in the world. Out in the boondocks too.
You say the insurance is expensive it it covers most things, HOW EXPENSIVE IS IT?
How much do you pay per month?
In Austria people have to pay roughly 350 Euro (500$) social insurance per month, if you have a job. It covers everything. If you are unemployed, you are still covered. It is expensive, but no one ends up indebted if they ever have some accident or health problems.
6) How many languages are compulsory in your school? At what age people start learning them?
PS: I know many stereotypes about Europeans, and I think most of them have some truth. I personally don't like British food much. I think it's really bad they don't have proper bread, but I eat bread every day!
JohnnyUtah
@ Leole11
jesus christ you handsome little bastard it's called a joke
Kenzu
Yu wont tu sei yu ar e jouk? Helo joukr!