This was posted before, but is also relevant to this thread:
Quote:
Originally posted by melon
It has a lot to do with our generic blob President and his generic blob policies. Unfortunately, if we want to tell the rest of the world to fuck off and go it alone, expect the rest of the world to respond accordingly.
Presidents and politicians aside, every nation has a habit of stereotyping. Most Americans probably don't have one good opinion about Middle Eastern nations. We also have a long history of stereotyping Canada and France derisively.
In other words, while it is not okay for the rest of the world to stereotype the U.S., we are also not immune from doing the stereotyping.
Melon
This is just what I'm talking about.
a.) Your political opinion is your own. Bush got more electoral votes and the popular vote, so not all Americans think he's a 'generic blob.'
b.) Not all of us voted for Bush. Nearly half voted against him. I, personally, have never told the world to fuck off. So the world should not tell me I suck. It's something quite different to say 'Bush sucks' and 'Americans suck.' Bush is one American in a country of over 280 million Americans. It's the difference between saying 'I hate Kobe Bryant' and 'I hate black people.' One member of a group does not represent the whole. This should be considered before anyone makes a blanket statement.
c.) "Most Americans probably don't have one good opinion about Middle Eastern nations. We also have a long history of stereotyping Canada and France derisively."
Again with this 'we' thing. Speak for yourself, not for me. You may have a bad opinion of Middle Eastern nations, or you may not. You may have a long history of stereotyping Canada and France, or you may not. But do not use 'we' unless you actually know what 'we' stand for.
d.) "In other words, while it is not okay for the rest of the world to stereotype the U.S., we are also not immune from doing the stereotyping."
I agree completely. But I haven't seen a lot of 'Germany sucks' or 'France sucks' posts lately. I am addressing a problem that seems to exist on this forum, in which Americans are considered stupid and ignorant on the whole, not just for electing a President not very well-liked by a majority of the outside world, but for not liking Pop, of all things. I believe America is a great country, for its own reasons, just as I'm sure many Germans have pride in their country, etc. I am not going to start tearing down other countries and their citizenry just because I may have a problem with a political policy their government might be supporting, or because some of them don't care for a particular kind of music. Stereotypes are bad. All the time. Ignorance just breeds hate, and hate is never a good thing in this world.
-Miggy