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#11
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Canadians, Kiwis, Aussies and their flags
zzyyxx wrote in message ... Why do they insist on putting their flags onto their backpacks and whatnot? I'm an American who's done quite a bit of traveling in Europe in the last couple years and haven't experienced any problems with people disliking or being rude to me. So why do they feel the need to proclaim that they're not American? Is this why they do it? It never occurred to me. Like you wouldn't be able to tell from their accents! You and I can tell the difference. The average non-first-language english speaker cannot. If I tell my colleagues the nationality of an english speaking foreigner, they ask how I can possibly tell the difference. (And yes, this seems strange to me as well) It's kind of insulting to me too, because they don't want to be mistaken for an American, like there's something wrong with being American. Presumably the paranoia that has caused you to believe this is the reason, is what is wrong. tim |
#12
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Canadians, Kiwis, Aussies and their flags
zzyyxx wrote:
Americans *rarely* display a flag on their backpack or whatnot. It is much more common for Canadians to do so, and even some Kiwis and Aussies. You have got to be kidding. I don't think that anything could be further from the truth. I deal with a lot of Americans on the job and live in an area where there are a lot of American tourists. It's not just the flags and flag decals on their cars, but the Stars and stripes motif is incorporated in hats, jackets, sweaters, sweat shirts, T shirts, shorts, pants, dresses, earrings. Like you wouldn't be able to tell from their accents! I assure you that almost no European will be able to distinguish between the accents of Canadians & Americans. Lots of Canadians sound just like Midwestern Americans except for the occasional difference in "out" ("oot") as in "about." True. But they should be able to distinguish between American and Kiwi/Aussie. |
#13
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Canadians, Kiwis, Aussies and their flags
Alan wrote:
Incidentally, very few of the Americans, when we travelled there last March, were even aware we were in Iraq, but then most of them were confused as to our location The Americans you ran into in Iraq were with the government and probably just being parsimonious with details. I'm sure they knew they were in iraq. Okay, okay, I know. But the way you wrote it... miguel -- Hit The Road! Photos and tales from around the world: http://travel.u.nu |
#14
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Canadians, Kiwis, Aussies and their flags
"Miguel Cruz" schreef in bericht ... Alan wrote: Incidentally, very few of the Americans, when we travelled there last March, were even aware we were in Iraq, but then most of them were confused as to our location The Americans you ran into in Iraq were with the government and probably just being parsimonious with details. I'm sure they knew they were in iraq. I am not so sure. These soldiers don't seem to be the most intelligent that America has to offer. It is probably more like "if this is Tuesday's war it must be Iraq". Sjoerd |
#15
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Canadians, Kiwis, Aussies and their flags
"Pete" wrote in message hlink.net...
No, it's the distinction from the American thing. Really? Have you interviewed a significant number of them to verify your claim? Australians do not need a flag to separate themselves from Americans as their accent is quite different. Also many Swedes, Norwegians, Swiss, Dutch, Danes, etc, put flags on their backpacks, which presumably has nothing to do with trying to avoid being mistaken for americans. I think it is a "small country phenomenon", since the French, British, and Americans seem to do this much more rarely. Bjorn |
#16
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Canadians, Kiwis, Aussies and their flags
| True. But they should be able to distinguish between American and
| Kiwi/Aussie. | That is why,, we dont want to be mistaken by "they" for someone who assumes that "they should be able to distinguish..." |
#17
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Canadians, Kiwis, Aussies and their flags
On Sat, 26 Jun 2004 22:35:07 -0400, zzyyxx wrote:
Why do they insist on putting their flags onto their backpacks and whatnot? I'm an American who's done quite a bit of traveling in Europe in the last couple years and haven't experienced any problems with people disliking or being rude to me. So why do they feel the need to proclaim that they're not American? Like you wouldn't be able to tell from their accents! It's kind of insulting to me too, because they don't want to be mistaken for an American, like there's something wrong with being American. Isn't there? :-) |
#18
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Canadians, Kiwis, Aussies and their flags
In my recent Three weeks in Europe I can recall but One person whom I
could ID as an American via 'patriotic garb'... Then of course where the Two ladies at Keukenhof whom I ID'd as American Mennonites (Amish) via their garb; while everyone else there thought them local workers 'in costume'...g Tim K "Dave Smith" wrote in message ... zzyyxx wrote: Americans *rarely* display a flag on their backpack or whatnot. It is much more common for Canadians to do so, and even some Kiwis and Aussies. You have got to be kidding. I don't think that anything could be further from the truth. I deal with a lot of Americans on the job and live in an area where there are a lot of American tourists. It's not just the flags and flag decals on their cars, but the Stars and stripes motif is incorporated in hats, jackets, sweaters, sweat shirts, T shirts, shorts, pants, dresses, earrings. Like you wouldn't be able to tell from their accents! I assure you that almost no European will be able to distinguish between the accents of Canadians & Americans. Lots of Canadians sound just like Midwestern Americans except for the occasional difference in "out" ("oot") as in "about." True. But they should be able to distinguish between American and Kiwi/Aussie. |
#19
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Canadians, Kiwis, Aussies and their flags
If it's any day of the week you can expect anti-American crap from
Sjoerd too... Tim K "Sjoerd" wrote in message ... "Miguel Cruz" schreef in bericht ... Alan wrote: Incidentally, very few of the Americans, when we travelled there last March, were even aware we were in Iraq, but then most of them were confused as to our location The Americans you ran into in Iraq were with the government and probably just being parsimonious with details. I'm sure they knew they were in iraq. I am not so sure. These soldiers don't seem to be the most intelligent that America has to offer. It is probably more like "if this is Tuesday's war it must be Iraq". Sjoerd |
#20
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Canadians, Kiwis, Aussies and their flags
[top-post fixed]
Tim Kroesen wrote: "Sjoerd" wrote in message ... I am not so sure. These soldiers don't seem to be the most intelligent that America has to offer. It is probably more like "if this is Tuesday's war it must be Iraq". If it's any day of the week you can expect anti-American crap from Sjoerd too... Good grief then, what are you saying- that they _were_ the most intelligent America has to offer? David -- David Horne- www.davidhorne.net usenet (at) davidhorne (dot) co (dot) uk |
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