Is it correct to call oneself a "US American"?

Wintereis   Tue May 13, 2008 1:51 am GMT
Guest, did you read the full text of what I wrote before. I guess not. You would have seen that I indicated that political correctness should be moderated--to neither subsume language itself nor be an imposition to individual rights. Yet, I think a modicum of understanding and respect for others is, indeed, positive and can only help us to live without strife. For some reason people believe that it has to be one or the other--freedom of speech or political correctness. It really does not. You are allowed to say what you wish, but there are always consequences and there have always been consequences. For example, if you use a pejorative, I will lose respect for you. Yet, you are well with in your legal right to do so. I've never heard of an instance where the use of a pejorative could be punished by the government except when accompanied by some other crime where in hate is established as the motivation for the crime. I think being reactionary and polemic can only limit our understanding; there is always nuance to every subject.
Guest   Tue May 13, 2008 2:05 am GMT
<<I've never heard of an instance where the use of a pejorative could be punished by the government except when accompanied by some other crime where in hate is established as the motivation for the crime.>>

Isn't Holocaust denial punishable currently as a crime in certain European countries? (it's not strictly a case of pejorative speech, though.)
Invitado   Tue May 13, 2008 2:27 am GMT
Okay being serious, I'm willing to call you Americans as long as you stop with this "America" thing, "I'm from America, America is the best, etc." that shit just pisses me off cuz that's like denying that your country was named after the continent and not otherwise.
Guest   Tue May 13, 2008 2:36 am GMT
I thought the continent was named after the USA.
wintereis   Tue May 13, 2008 2:45 am GMT
It is not a case of pejorative speech at all. And, I believe, you were referring to those existing in the United States, not in Germany. There are such cases in the United States, however. Correct me if I am wrong, but I do believe that it is illegal to verbally threaten the life of the president of the United States, even if one is not serious. This, indeed, would be a limitation of the freedom of speech.

Invitado: I am more than willing to do so, but you had better ask the other 400 million of us to stop referring to the United States as America.
Guest   Tue May 13, 2008 10:45 am GMT
I find find that they call themselves as Americans and their land America, they can do so of course, but sometimes I get angry reactions because I use words such as united statians or usans. Don't I have the right to use the words I want as well? The important thing is t understand to each other and united statian is a very comprehnsible word.
hurrrrrrrrr   Wed May 14, 2008 2:32 am GMT
<<Guest Tue May 13, 2008 12:48 am GMT
Come on, your culture is Paris Hiton and Hollywood movies. You don't even have buildings like churches or cathedrals older than 200 years. Travel to Europe and you'll find real culture.>>

US culture is more like the computer you're using, the technology behind the internet that lets you post on here, the medicine in your cabinet, the tools in your hospital, the music on your radio (just because it has a different accent and a funny new name doesn't mean it didn't come from the US originally).

As far as "old stuff" goes, 400 years is probably closer to what you mean, that's when Euro-American culture started. I just think it's funny that Europeans as a whole make that same attack, that their "old buildings" makes their culture superior to that of the US. The problem with that is, most Europeans were peasants for what, 20 or so generations, and now eke out some dreary lower middle class life with the help of the government dole.

What pride is there in that? You come from a heritage of peasants, but the place where you were born has some old stuff that you and your ancestors were and always will be excluded from. Big deal.
Guest   Wed May 14, 2008 2:42 am GMT
<<
US culture is more like the computer you're using, the technology behind the internet that lets you post on here, the medicine in your cabinet, the tools in your hospital,>>

Haha, there are a lot of smart Americans, I'll admit it, but this is not culture. Do people go on weekend tours of the hospitals for relaxation and to admire all the spectacular American made medical tools? And as for the internet, for the majority of the population it seems like some kind of magic. So, no, the technology behind the internet is not American culture.
Guest   Wed May 14, 2008 2:43 am GMT
<<You don't even have buildings like churches or cathedrals older than 200 years. Travel to Europe and you'll find real culture.>>

Sometimes, the best places to live are those newly-settled and uncrowded areas that don't have hundreds or thousands of years of heavy-duty human inhabitation and culture. Compare living in Northern Europe, with perhaps only 1000 or 2000 years of intensive civilization (big cities, etc.) to living in Egypt, Syria, Iraq, China, or India with 3000 to 5000+ years of intensive civilization.
Guest   Wed May 14, 2008 5:19 pm GMT
We say Americans because appart from US, both Americas are our Empire.
Guest   Wed May 14, 2008 5:39 pm GMT
Theres definately a culture in the U.S and its probably the most pervasive the world has ever seen.
Guest   Wed May 14, 2008 5:54 pm GMT
You mean invasive.
Guest   Wed May 14, 2008 6:02 pm GMT
<<You mean invasive.>>

I doubt it's the most invasive. I think the old Euroepan colonial powers (France, England, Spain, Portugal, Netherlands etc.) outdid us in terms of invasions. Didn't they collectively invade most of the world?
Guest   Wed May 14, 2008 6:07 pm GMT
<<You mean invasive.>>

No, PERVASIVE, and influential.

Nobody is forced to watch American Movies, TV shows, learn American english, listen to our music, etc...they choose to.
Guest   Wed May 14, 2008 6:46 pm GMT
"Nobody is forced.."
True, but it's impossible to avoid it. I FEEL invaded.