Dare To Ask Talk And News About Our Differences - This topic has 14 replies, 15 voices, and was last updated 23 years, 10 months ago by
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Why is it that other countries know so much about the United States, like who the President is, our geography, etc., but Americans as a whole know very little about foreign countries?
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Name : Alisha, Gender : F, City : New London, State : NH, Country : United States,I think that one reason why Americans are so uninformed about what goes on in the rest of the world is that the country is geographically isolated from much of the world. There are only 2 countries bordering the US and huge oceans on either side of the country. We also have states that are bigger than independent nations in other parts of the world. In other places such as Europe, the countries are smaller and closer together; therefore, people are immediately effected by what happends in other countries. With the advent of better communication technology and the emergence of a global economy, Americans are becoming less isolated and more aware of the rest of the world and how it effects the country. It just takes awhile to change people’s perspective of the world.
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Name : Jacqueline-C20988, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 25, City : San Jose, State : CA, Country : United States, Occupation : Engineer, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,I have noticed the same thing. I can’t answer your question, but I have some suggestions: Use the Web. I have learned more in a few weeks than in 12 years of school! Go to links for education, cultures and foreign countries. I made a few foreign friends, and we share our knowledge regularly. You’ll feel less ‘ignorant’ after a few weeks!
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Name : Terri-K, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Agnostic, Age : 33, City : Collegeville, State : PA, Country : United States, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Middle class,The first is that Americans are self-involved, and that shows in our education. I learned hardly anything about foreign cultures through school, and I doubt things have changed much. The other reasons is that Americans travel less outside our own country. Europeans move throughout their own continent and overseas much more than Americans do. Travel is the best way to learn, and most Americans just don’t.
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Name : Andrew, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 35, City : Huntington, State : NY, Country : United States, Occupation : Reporter, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,I’ve lived abroad for many years and am always asked this question. Part of it is media-related … the local news just doesn’t tell you much about what’s happening abroad. And when was the last time you saw a film with subtitles at the local multi-plex? In other countries, there is lots of exposure to US culture via the media and entertainment industries. Also, the US’s leadership role as a military and economic power make government actions high-profile internationally. But I think Americans are unaware because they CAN be. Things that happen around the world don’t affect them directly, so why worry about them? After all, many Americans have never even met a foriegner, much less been to another country or learned to speak another language, which are the main inspirations for learning about another country and the events transpiring there. But don’t worry … it happens here in Japan, too. My Japanese teacher didn’t know who Tony Blair was (British Prime Minister), and 95% of my university students have no idea who Elvis was. I am hopeful that with the internet and some inspiration to explore, anyone can broaden their horizons.
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Name : Mary, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 28, City : Kanazawa, State : NA, Country : Japan, Occupation : English Teacher, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,It depends on what ‘foreign’ country you mean. I know quite a bit about Russia, China, Japan, Great Britian and Ireland. But if you referring to some small country in an out of the way place like Oman or Bolivia, no. We have a very interesting history. They would learn more about us because of our status on the planet. You have to remember we are one of the largest countries in the world plus a superpower. In school, there is not enough time to spend on every country. If someone wants to learn about other countries they can on their own time. Some Americans feel that some countries are insignificant.
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Name : Sean, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Methodist, Age : 29, City : Belle Vernon, State : PA, Country : United States, Occupation : Quality Control, Education level : Technical School, Social class : Upper middle class,I am often teased by my family for knowing a lot about the rest of the world. Their point is ‘America is the greatest country ever, who cares about everywhere else.’ That could be a direct quote. As for me, I’ve traveled all over Europe, Ukraine, Mexico and I have multiple immigrant friends, some have been here a couple months, others many years. And frankly, we usually all agree – there are some neat cultural customs elsewhere, but no other country can compare as a whole – democratically, our climate, diversity, freedom – look around, there just isn’t anywhere like America when you look at the big picture. So information about everywhere else just makes nice trivia.
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Name : Will-Schwab, Age : 31, City : Burbank, State : CA, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,Think about it. If tomorrow Canada were to have a revolution and become a Marxist-Leninist country would it impact your life? Sure maple syrup could become scarce but otherwise life would continue uninterrupted. But if America were to have a revolution…
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Name : Steve27591, City : Aliso Viejo, State : CA, Country : United States,It is really just a matter of the huge influence America currently has over the world. What America does politically impacts the entire world. There is really no other country that has that much impact. The other factor is the huge American media. American movies and TV shows are shown all over the world. Few media outlets of other countries are shown in America. So people in other countries see and hear a lot more about America the Americans hear about their home countries.
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Name : Haljimad, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Religion : Muslim, Age : 31, City : Santa Ana, State : CA, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,It’s a combination of factors that can be condensed into exposure and education. Media More US media (film, TV and now Web Content) is accessed by the rest of the world than the US accesses ‘foreign’ media. Education – Language English is taught worldwide as a second\third language, teaching requires context and that context is more usually America than Britain. Education – History\Geogrphy Ask yourself what where you taught in school? I was educated in England, so I have never been exposed to the US education system (if system is the right word to use in a country with out a national, or even State set curriculum, but that is another issue). In High School history class I studied Greek, Roman, Babylonian, Cretian, French, British, and early US History. In geography I studied pretty well the whole world including for example, why steel production in USA centered on Pittsburg, oil prduction in California and Texas and wine growing in California. Politics Of all nations in the world the USA is the most influencial. US foreign policy affects the lives of citizens in the rest of the world far more than any other single nation.
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Name : Simon, City : Oakland, State : CA, Country : United States,I think that many Americans know so little about other countries because the United States is the only superpower in the world. We have the dominant language, economy and culture. Some Americans may not think they need to go beyond learning about their own country, but how wrong that attitude is. My life has been enriched immeasurably by traveling to other countries, reading literature from other countries and eating foods from other countries.
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Name : Caryn32402, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Christian, Age : 38, City : Denton, State : TX, Country : United States, Occupation : paralegal, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class,I think that geography is the main reason that Americans have so little knowledge of other countries. The US is a huge country with only 2 neighbors. Everyone else is literally an ocean away. We have states larger than some countries in hte rest of the world. I agree that Americans would benifit from increased knowledge of other countries. The fact of the matter is that it is hard to keep up with everything that is going on in our own country, let alone the rest of the world.
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Name : Julianna-C27021, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 26, City : Santa Clara, State : CA, Country : United States, Occupation : Engineer, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,I have two theories why Americans seem more ignorant of foreign affairs than the people of other countries. First, being well-educated in world studies and/or multilingual is not a priority of our culture. Schools do not place much value in international knowlege, and more importantly, life in America doesnt require that knowlege. In many countries, being multilingual (especially being fluent in English) is a necessity for being considered well-educated, or simply to function in an academic or business environment. While being well-versed in international issues in America is certainly rewarding, it is much less of a necessity. Second, many countries focus their international studies on America. ‘Other countries’ may seem to all know something about America, but for Americans to know something about the all the other countries is a much larger task. It would require Americans to know a much broader range of international knowlege just to seem equal with the well-educated of all the various countries.
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Name : Samantha29425, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 19, City : Seattle, State : WA, Country : United States, Occupation : student, Social class : Middle class,I think the answer to this lies in the fact that most countries receive a vast amount of American TV/Film Programming. For example, in Britain, we receive most of the top American comedies and dramas, as well as all the major Hollywood films. And they are well watched. This tends to give us a pretty good background to your political and social system, although, of course, relying on TV does give us a stereotyped view of you. Conversely, how many foreign programmes/films do you receive in the USA? I believe that you can get certain foreign programming such as the BBC on cable, but it mainly consists of costume dramas and other programmes set in the past, and is not available to the wider public. In summary, we are immersed in American culture – you are not immersed in foreign cultures!
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Name : Mark Heaton, Gender : M, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 24, City : Manchester, State : NA, Country : United Kingdom, Occupation : IT Consultant, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,Alisha – You got it! Today, increased funding for public education doesn’t work. Public education is more interested in increasing its political base than providing a proper return on our investment.
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Name : Jim30693, Gender : M, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 64, City : Chapin, State : SC, Country : United States, Occupation : former teacher, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,
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