4 ms·

Carnegie was a teenager when his family emigrated to Pittsburgh, do Pittsburghers count him 100% as one of their own? I'd think the Scots would have something

Carnegie was a teenager when his family emigrated to Pittsburgh, do Pittsburghers count him 100% as one of their own? I'd think the Scots would have something to say about that ;)

jimbokun 17y ago
The Pittsburghers that worked for Carnegie certainly did not count him one of their own. In a local PBS special about one of Carnegie's libraries, an elderly gentleman said that he would go to the pool in the basement of the library when he was a kid. But his father would never darken the door of any place with Carnegie's name on it. The father called Carnegie a "son of a shoe," apparently a grave insult in the father's home country.
- kirubakaran 17y ago
  The coolest thing about different cultures is that the grave insult that can get you and your family killed and your brother-in-law's tractor dealership bankrupted in one, is funny or no big deal in others. A guy I know (here in US) got in trouble for beckoning a Fillipino coworker. Apparently only prostitutes are beckoned in the Phillipines as a solicitation. In some places in India, you -can- will get killed (or, if you are lucky, your dick cut off) for saying "Your sister is hot". In other places you will be considered enemy for life. In the US, I hear "Thanks man, I'll tell her". Cultural differences between families is also very interesting to observe. When I was a semi-kid, I heard one guy shout at his brother that he is son of a whore and my jaw dropped and remained dropped for a while. I wonder how shocking alien cultures will be. Zaphod was(is?) his own great-grandfather due to a time-machine mishap and a defective condom, if I remember it right.
  - _pius 17y ago
    In some places in India, you -can- will get killed (or, if you are lucky, your dick cut off) for saying "Your sister is hot". That's not the brightest thing to say to any guy, even in the United States.
    - kirubakaran 17y ago
      My friends must just be very laid back people then, I guess :)
      - _pius 17y ago
        Apparently. :) Of course, these things are probably situation dependent no matter what culture you're in. If you're good enough friends with someone, you can probably get away with saying nearly anything ... if they think you're joking.

Carnegie was a teenager when his family emigrated to Pittsburgh, do Pittsburghers count him 100% as one of their own? I'd think the Scots would have something to say about that ;)

jimbokun 17y ago

The Pittsburghers that worked for Carnegie certainly did not count him one of their own. In a local PBS special about one of Carnegie's libraries, an elderly gentleman said that he would go to the pool in the basement of the library when he was a kid. But his father would never darken the door of any place with Carnegie's name on it. The father called Carnegie a "son of a shoe," apparently a grave insult in the father's home country.

kirubakaran 17y ago
The coolest thing about different cultures is that the grave insult that can get you and your family killed and your brother-in-law's tractor dealership bankrupted in one, is funny or no big deal in others. A guy I know (here in US) got in trouble for beckoning a Fillipino coworker. Apparently only prostitutes are beckoned in the Phillipines as a solicitation. In some places in India, you -can- will get killed (or, if you are lucky, your dick cut off) for saying "Your sister is hot". In other places you will be considered enemy for life. In the US, I hear "Thanks man, I'll tell her". Cultural differences between families is also very interesting to observe. When I was a semi-kid, I heard one guy shout at his brother that he is son of a whore and my jaw dropped and remained dropped for a while. I wonder how shocking alien cultures will be. Zaphod was(is?) his own great-grandfather due to a time-machine mishap and a defective condom, if I remember it right.
- _pius 17y ago
  In some places in India, you -can- will get killed (or, if you are lucky, your dick cut off) for saying "Your sister is hot". That's not the brightest thing to say to any guy, even in the United States.
  - kirubakaran 17y ago
    My friends must just be very laid back people then, I guess :)
    - _pius 17y ago
      Apparently. :) Of course, these things are probably situation dependent no matter what culture you're in. If you're good enough friends with someone, you can probably get away with saying nearly anything ... if they think you're joking.