4 ms·

> In addition, there was a good deal of sarcasm and snark > directed at students > ... > I realize that sarcasm, impatience, and annoyance are a > way o

> In addition, there was a good deal of sarcasm and snark > directed at students > ... > I realize that sarcasm, impatience, and annoyance are a > way of creating a barrier between me and them. From a european point of view that is something the entire us-american culture embraces and grapples with vigorously, to the detriment of interactions among themselves and with other cultures. It would make sense that this is started and reinforced in school already.

moron4hire 12y ago
I think we're very stand-offish people. We tend to not engage in conversation with strangers. I think sarcasm is sort of a way to probe another person for where you stand with them, given a functionally retarded mindset towards personal interactions. You can say something, and if the person laughs, you know they are net-positive towards you, and if they don't, you can apologize and claim you were just being sarcastic.
- deleted 12y ago
  [deleted]
- learc83 12y ago
  >I think we're very stand-offish people. We tend to not engage in conversation with strangers. I have never heard that from anyone. What culture are you comparing the US to? I've heard the exact opposite from nearly every non-American I've ever discussed this with. If anything they think Americans are too friendly/chatty.
  - moron4hire 12y ago
    Come to DC sometime.
learc83 12y ago
>us-american There's no need to ad "us" to "american". While the Americas can refer to the entire new world, the term "American" is wholly unambiguous. When you say American everyone in the world knows to whom you are referring, including all the other people of the Americas.
- alphydan 12y ago
  Wikipedia doesn't agree with you (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American) American also means > Something of, from, or related to the Americas > Indigenous peoples of the Americas If you had lived in a Latin american country and spoken enough with the locals, you would know that many refer to themselves as "Americans".
  - learc83 12y ago
    If anyone refers to Americans, in English, without qualification, the understanding is that they are referring to Citizens of the U.S. Natural language is inherently ambiguous and you will always find edge cases, but the definition of "American" is as close to completely unambiguous as you're going to get. I also take issue with your assertion that Latin Americans often refer to themselves as "American". I've never met a Latin American who said they were from "America" or were "American". Unless it was someone on an internet forum with a specific agenda. I'm not saying that it doesn't happen, but I have quite a bit of contact with people from Mexico and Peru, and I've never heard it from them. I'm going to need sources before I believe that term is in common use. Regardless usage dictates the rules of language and in English the common term is "American" not "Usamerican", or "USian".
    - alphydan 12y ago
      I think the confusion may come from the Spanish version of the word. "Americano" and "American" seem to carry different connotations. See: http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uso_de_la_palabra_americano http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uso_de_la_palabra_americano or http://hispanismo.org/hispanoamerica/13746-usamerica-y-usamericano.html http://hispanismo.org/hispanoamerica/13746-usamerica-y-usame... for more details. Of course Natural language is ambiguous. It's also evolving and reflects attitudes, values and culture. It seems "American" == "US Citizen" has solidified, although the discussion was still going 60 years ago( http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/486658?uid=3739920&uid=2&uid=4&uid=3739256&sid=21104810979837 http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/486658?uid=3739920&uid... ). Our experiences talking to Latin Americans probably differ because of language. I have lived in Latin America, as a native Spanish speaker (which may have made it easier for Latin Americans to communicate their musings on identity, US-centrism and language). The USA uses the name of the continent to name its citizens (As if French said ... "We're Europeans, and the Germans? Bah, they are only German, they can't really call themselves Europeans ... everybody knows that real Europeans are French). In any case, it seems your use of the word is the accepted meaning in English, so I stand corrected. But for your information, this is not the case in Spanish.
e12e 12y ago
Pink Floyd would disagree that it's a particularly US centric problem...? We don't need no education We dont need no thought control No dark sarcasm in the classroom Teachers leave them kids alone Hey! Teachers! Leave them kids alone! All in all it's just another brick in the wall. All in all you're just another brick in the wall. I can't really imagine that French or Italian schools are much better - but I may very well be wrong. And it'snbeen a few years since Pink Floyd was in school, obviously...

moron4hire 12y ago

I think we're very stand-offish people. We tend to not engage in conversation with strangers. I think sarcasm is sort of a way to probe another person for where you stand with them, given a functionally retarded mindset towards personal interactions. You can say something, and if the person laughs, you know they are net-positive towards you, and if they don't, you can apologize and claim you were just being sarcastic.

deleted 12y ago
[deleted]
learc83 12y ago
>I think we're very stand-offish people. We tend to not engage in conversation with strangers. I have never heard that from anyone. What culture are you comparing the US to? I've heard the exact opposite from nearly every non-American I've ever discussed this with. If anything they think Americans are too friendly/chatty.
- moron4hire 12y ago
  Come to DC sometime.

learc83 12y ago

>us-american There's no need to ad "us" to "american". While the Americas can refer to the entire new world, the term "American" is wholly unambiguous. When you say American everyone in the world knows to whom you are referring, including all the other people of the Americas.

alphydan 12y ago
Wikipedia doesn't agree with you (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American) American also means > Something of, from, or related to the Americas > Indigenous peoples of the Americas If you had lived in a Latin american country and spoken enough with the locals, you would know that many refer to themselves as "Americans".
- learc83 12y ago
  If anyone refers to Americans, in English, without qualification, the understanding is that they are referring to Citizens of the U.S. Natural language is inherently ambiguous and you will always find edge cases, but the definition of "American" is as close to completely unambiguous as you're going to get. I also take issue with your assertion that Latin Americans often refer to themselves as "American". I've never met a Latin American who said they were from "America" or were "American". Unless it was someone on an internet forum with a specific agenda. I'm not saying that it doesn't happen, but I have quite a bit of contact with people from Mexico and Peru, and I've never heard it from them. I'm going to need sources before I believe that term is in common use. Regardless usage dictates the rules of language and in English the common term is "American" not "Usamerican", or "USian".
  - alphydan 12y ago
    I think the confusion may come from the Spanish version of the word. "Americano" and "American" seem to carry different connotations. See: http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uso_de_la_palabra_americano http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uso_de_la_palabra_americano or http://hispanismo.org/hispanoamerica/13746-usamerica-y-usamericano.html http://hispanismo.org/hispanoamerica/13746-usamerica-y-usame... for more details. Of course Natural language is ambiguous. It's also evolving and reflects attitudes, values and culture. It seems "American" == "US Citizen" has solidified, although the discussion was still going 60 years ago( http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/486658?uid=3739920&uid=2&uid=4&uid=3739256&sid=21104810979837 http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/486658?uid=3739920&uid... ). Our experiences talking to Latin Americans probably differ because of language. I have lived in Latin America, as a native Spanish speaker (which may have made it easier for Latin Americans to communicate their musings on identity, US-centrism and language). The USA uses the name of the continent to name its citizens (As if French said ... "We're Europeans, and the Germans? Bah, they are only German, they can't really call themselves Europeans ... everybody knows that real Europeans are French). In any case, it seems your use of the word is the accepted meaning in English, so I stand corrected. But for your information, this is not the case in Spanish.

e12e 12y ago

Pink Floyd would disagree that it's a particularly US centric problem...? We don't need no education We dont need no thought control No dark sarcasm in the classroom Teachers leave them kids alone Hey! Teachers! Leave them kids alone! All in all it's just another brick in the wall. All in all you're just another brick in the wall. I can't really imagine that French or Italian schools are much better - but I may very well be wrong. And it'snbeen a few years since Pink Floyd was in school, obviously...