Stereotypes

I bet you thought this was going to be a thread about how stereotypes are bad for the world and how kids today are too ethnocentric!

nothing of the sort!

what stereotypes have you experienced or heard about from parts of the world and how true did they turn out to be?


Switzerland: They're a bunch of liberal fruitcakes.

This one's true (case in point: http://www.maj.com/gallery/metalsluguy/MISC/swissrest.gif)

France: Stuck up, whiny, disagreeable pansies. The french are definitely not whiny or disagreeable. But much as I love French culture, they are rather stuck up as a nation. And yall can't win wars (sorry Vaxer)

The United States: Stupid (not true) stuck up (true) ethnocentric (true) ugly (present company excepted) crude (not true)

The Far East: primitive (definitely not true) poor (not as true as many think)


and so on

and what are you're opinions on stereotypes and ethnocentricity in general.

on a side note, You can visit parts of the world and go to the neighborhood starbucks, or you can (try to) do as the locals do
comments?

intergamer said:

The United States: Stupid (not true) stuck up (true) ethnocentric (true) ugly (present company excepted) crude (not true)

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A friend of mine from Yugoslavia, he actually blatantly said the US has the ugliest girls he has ever seen...

Us Scots are stingy, ginger, and eat nothing but haggis and porrige. According to a guy I had the misfortune to meet at uni, we also all have shiny noses... Hmmm...

intergamer said:

France: Stuck up, whiny, disagreeable pansies. The french are definitely not whiny or disagreeable. But much as I love French culture, they are rather stuck up as a nation. And yall can't win wars (sorry Vaxer)

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Oh French people can be very disagreeable (my dad for example! ) especially in restaurants and on the plane. As for winning wars I think we're underrated.
But we're definitly not whiny, that's for Americans)).

Wait, am I making generalizations!? I hate doing that...I'll stop.

I would say that the European girls are much cuter than American girls. (Then again that is coming from someone who makes a habit of dating European girls)

Illegal Mexicans make great gardeners. After visiting and living in So. California I can say that this is true.

Canadians love hockey, long underwear, and "eh/ah". The hockey is true, long underwear is true in the winter, and every Canadian I've met says "eh".

The French are egocentric and have short memories. Yes and no, the French that I have met are neither stuckup nor have they forgotten what happened over 50 years ago. However, I would as far to say that the French leadership fall into both descriptions.

Germans are all blond and blue eyed. Yeah, maybe 50 years ago. I know many who are not.

Poland

a) All Poles eat are sausages, and all they drink is vodka.
Poles do eat more than sausages, and despite what Finn thinks, we do have a good supply of food! I can confirm that they do like their vodka; I indulged a little too much.

b) The country is third-world.
No, I'd call it second-world. Poland has the highest unemployment rate (18%) out of all the countries in the European Union. I can confirm it considering that half of my family can't find jobs even as cleaners.

c) The government is still communist.
It's a capitalist republic. SLD is the old socialist party. I don't think they're coming into power anytime soon.

d)The majority of the population consists of old grandmothers in shawls sitting on their front porches.
The stereotype I loathe the most. Go here to see what Polish people are like.

Ameera, that's really interesting as I don't know that much about Poland.

Irish guys beat up their wives

White people love their mayonnaise

black guys can drive cars at high speeds

Catholic girls are easy

Webley drinks to much alcohol

Italian-Americans are often heard saying "Hey Vinny, put the body in the trunk. Yes and no. Although there are quite a few mobsters not all italians are one.

Irish people drink too much. TRUE. I am Irish, I know from family gatherings. Gulp Gulp

New Yorkers always say Fugedabotit (Forget about it). Untrue. Only the Gugines (Wannabe mob) do.

All americans wear ten gallon hats and Yell YEEHAA. UNTRUE, not even in Tenesee have I seen that too often.

Webley said:

Webley drinks to much alcohol

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no way. this is an urban legend.

Fat people are jolly

Gay guys love show tunes

Onya said:

A friend of mine from Yugoslavia, he actually blatantly said the US has the ugliest girls he has ever seen...

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I think it depends on the region you're in. I've lived in several locations throughout the States, and nowhere have I seen girls as beautiful as in the deep South.

Onya said:

A friend of mine from Yugoslavia, he actually blatantly said the US has the ugliest girls he has ever seen...

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That's is not so hard to understand why. Come to Yugoslavia (actualy any part of ExYuguoslavia) and you will see that it's just a trip downhill from there.
(fyi ExYugoslavia: Bosnia and Hercegovina, Croatia, FYR Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia)

temple of john said:

All Hungarian women have bad tempers...

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Hey! We do not have bad tempers! And you have no scars to prove it!

temple of john said:

Black guys like white women

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Don't forget
White guys like black women

Canada people are vere polite

So you want some true stereotypes???.........

(is this a real chance for temporary immunity to political correctness?)

Hmmmmm......Well,....if it weren't for whiskey.....the Irish definitely WOULD take over the world.

The Germans really ARE the Master Race, and are better and smarter at everything....than everyone else.

all Scandinavian girls are beautiful.......

Italians prefer to use knives

Americans (with some notable exceptions) are for the most part stupid, loud, ignorant, boorish, and culturally insensitive.

Muslims hate..........and want to kill..........EVERYONE.

Wow! This is fun................

OK, that's enough for now,......but I'll think of some more

This one might have allready been

All Americans are overweight

temple of john said:

And to add a thrid reason, they never can keep their god damned mouths shut.

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No, that's not just black women.

Um...

Archaeologists are always looking for their mommies/mummies.

Every archeaologist that tries to advance on a girl in a bar uses this come-up line: 'Say, I'm a professional archaeologist, and I must say, I can truly *dig* you".

Africans are said to have an (extra)large fallus.

Dutch people only care about their dykes and have a phobia of what looks like a blue, fluent matter.

Indian people dangle around in wannabe-pimp Punjabi, bright-color-decorated vans or are on the move smiling and singing 'Hare Krishna... '
Some are even said to worship Kali Ma ('Omnaim Shiva')...

If you'd bomb the Afghani's back to the Stone Age, they'll be happy for it because they'll believe they made an evolutionary upgrade.

Southern ('redneck') americans seem to care a lot for guns, most likely have a membership with the NRA, and a significant proportion is radically racist (KKK).

Mexicans sleep in their pueblos three quarters of the day and only get up to eat chili con carne or puerco pibil (anyone seen Once upon a time in Mexico ?) drink tequila, or occasionally just pick up a guitar to sing a Mariachi song in local, shady bars.

English hate to be inquired about anything personal, such as family (health, situation), religion or politics, so that's why you always get a avoiding 'How do you do?' to the same question and generally talk about the weather with anyone who they they are not very close to.

French can't do without a good pair of frog legs as first dish.

The Danes fiercely defend the right to free press, even when uphauling cartoonists want to endanger national security by insulting some so-called 'retarded religious groups' profet (I do not believe montheïstic, orthopraxial religion to be downright naïve or anything, for the record)

Australians talk about 'the Lympics', frequently spot 'a roo in the bush' and take a leak in 'the dunnie'.

Greek people have a way with dishes (smashed) on wedding days.

And last some self-stereotyping: Belgians eat a lot of french fries (they're not french, they're Belgian!) with mussels, beef stove or steak; brew great beers (Leffe, Stella, Duvel, a handfull of trappist beers), are rather modest (don't brag to often) and have generally a 'Bourgundian' cuisine (dunno whether you might call it 'gourmet', I for instance like good plain homemade cooking - meatballs in tomato sauce and potatoes/fries - and occasionally some experimental stuff like turkey filet with a sweet sauce made of orange parts, almond snippets, Mandarin napoleon liquor added with vanilla extract - I guarantee it's a delight!)
Known export products: chocolate, sprouts, asparagus (!), waffles.
Damn, this isn't a food topic I'll move over to that one to continue aye?