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That's one of the greatest comments I've read on here. 100% gringo here, UK-born Australian. About 10 years ago I started meeting latin americans online (also
by yesenadam 8y ago
That's one of the greatest comments I've read on here.
100% gringo here, UK-born Australian. About 10 years ago I started meeting latin americans online (also filipinos), I liked them so much I learnt spanish and was soon chatting online 95% with latin american friends. Played Clash of Clans in a colombian clan hehe, love watching online chess tournament commentary in spanish etc. Am starting to love Portuguese too.
I've come to hate the word "American" meaning estadounidense, its arrogance and effrontery; I try not to ever use it. (It was hard not to respond below to the many astoundingly ignorant, half-coherent comments on that subject.) I love the 'underdog' feeling of the online latin community. It's largely from the language barrier I guess, non-english speakers being 2nd-class netizens. And the people are happier, nicer, friendlier than those in the West.. I really got to disliking white culture. I noticed that in latin america, the darker the skin and less European the people, the more I liked them. The only really ignorant, ugly, self-deluded people I came across in the world, meeting people in many countries, were White/anglo people - UK, Australia, especially the USA. There seem to be whole towns there full of white people bigoted and ignorant way below anything I've experienced in other countries. (I can never stand this site very long, with its own superior brand of those same qualities. It's not an air I want to spend my life breathing.) I started warning latin americans who wanted to learn english to be careful, that it's poison. I didn't want them to lose their....total non-anglo-ness.
I'm not sure why it's like this. Maybe the Catholicism, the history etc. Maybe just that white people are crazier.[0] I'm not into "Proud to be nationality X", but maybe some latin pride wouldn't go astray here, or, you know, pride not being white anglos. Also, I saw in some movie someone saying that the greatest latin american contribution to the world is the latina; there's something to that. :-) I feel fortunate to have been able to make latin americans and latin culture a huge part of life, to learn that it's superior in many ways to the one I grew up in.
[0] See how cruel the whites look. Their lips are thin, their noses sharp, their faces furrowed and distorted by folds. Their eyes have a staring expression; they are always seeking something. What are they seeking? The whites always want something; they are always uneasy and restless. We do not know what they want. We do not understand them. We think they are mad. - a New Mexican Indian chief, to Jung
EDIT: Would the downvoters care to explain why? It's not a surprise :-) but hearing why would be....enlightening. Thanks.
- deleted 8y ago[deleted]
- hammock 8y agoYou love "Latin culture" and hate "white culture" that's great man... But your argument doesn't really make any connection to the parent comment about what is Western and what is not
- Bakary 8y agoIt's unclear to what extent your comment is serious or facetious but I want to point out that even if we ignore the explicit racism, your vision of Latin Americans is also implicitly bigoted and condescending to a very large degree. In "warning" them against Anglo culture you are essentially implying that they are akin to magical innocent hobbit incapable of making decisions for themselves and who should never change so that they can continue accommodating your fantasy understanding of their lives.
- ramblerman 8y ago> EDIT: Would the downvoters care to explain why? It might be that you are trying argue away one prejudice with another.
- badosu 8y agoExactly, I too agree with the grandparent, but I think parent has pushed too far on the other side of the spectrum. Saying that as a Brazilian that is astounded every time Latin America is implied to not be 'western'. I would feel offended, but I understand that is useless to me, the same thing with the term 'American'. Let them live in their happy bubbles, it's a disadvantage of their own creation.
- girvo 8y agoMan, go spend a couple months in Cuba. Prejudice and bigotry doesn’t really discriminate based on colour! They’re on the whole the loveliest people I’ve met, but go out rural and they’re basically the Cuban version of your racists white redneck
- username11225 8y ago