All this talk on message boards about how Europeans hate America and how Americans hate Europe.

Does anyone remember a time when it was polite to hold your tongue regarding disdain of a nation? When we'd speak in less insulting manner?

When someone says "I hate America/Americans" it is a personal attack on Americans reading. People here conversing. Individuals who are of a different culture, yet equally desrving of the same respect and consideration regarding cultural differences, as say a Uzbekistani goat herder.

In the past I attempted to try and put the shoe on the other foot, and posted a derogatory hatepost against Britain, in an attempt to show what damage it can be to a person reading.

Remember, that Ziroc, Cloudbringer, Skywalker, Sazerac, Chewbacca and Ladyzekke are not George Bush. They may not have even voted for him. Why tar these guys with global brushstrokes?

It's not a matter of not criticising policy, it's using sensative language.

Sept 11. occurred for a myriad of reasons. The single most import one being the volition of the suicide highjackers. Blaming America for the attack, is like blaming a woman for being raped. Yes she can wear provocative clothing, walk down the wrong part of town, take some mind numbing drugs. But at the end of the day, the bastard that rapes her is solely responsible for committing the crime.

Now we all know the policies of the American government we hate. The dangers of environmental destruction, gun ownership, premeditative invasions, world policeman etc. But let's, in our criticisms, stick to the policy. Argue the policy, not the country or the people. America is so large, so complex, and so diverse, that a single word hardly encapuslates it, as so many images can come to mind.

So what I'd like to perhaps discuss, is these images.

What is the first picture you see when you say aloud the word America?

If you are judging the whole nation by that picture, if you are basing feelings on that picture, you can bet your bottom dollar, there's vast amounts of conflicting, contradictory pictures that make those feelings unnecessary, obsolete and generalisingly boxed.

I'd simply ask us, myself included, to remember diplomacy on the internet. Wars, real wars can and have errupted over international hatreds, misunderstandings and disdain.

Let's ask ourselves, would we really want to see a war between Europe and America. Such a situation, given the way history works, is not so unusual. What were Australians doing invading Turkey? What were Germans doing invading Egypt?

Let's look upon our words with greater significance.

Do we want to sow peace? Then speak words of peace.

Thankyou for reading.

-Yorick.

[ 10-31-2002, 07:27 PM: Message edited by: Yorick ]

Since you asked...

America? Hold on, how the hell did America come to only mean the US? As far as I know, native americans are quite a bit more american than the european immigrants, and don't lie, you know you are. I'm actually quite proud of a significant of Scot Irish blood. As of now America means the darn continents, the US is the US. Blah"

That's what I thought of when I heard America... heehee... Give me a few minutes to think and I'll give you a real response.

I see one image when I say the word America .....

http://library.educationworld.net/st.../us-lgflag.gif

It represents everyone who has bled for it's ideals, the good intentions of those ideals (even if the implentation is not always perfect), the freedoms (for the most part [img]smile.gif[/img] ) that everyone under it's aegis enjoys, and the people that strive to make reality the not quite perfected ideals.

I proudly defend it and everyone protected by it.

[ 10-31-2002, 07:48 PM: Message edited by: Night Stalker ]

Um, what comes to mind when we hear america? Well, we'd have to say, nothing, cause we are american, but we don't think nothing of it, we just wanna live a normal life, grow up to try and be rich, and have a big house, with a red, 67 corvette...

<font color=pink>But when people say the word 'America', they are refering to the US, they're not saying South, Central, or Northern. Because we are the United States of America. Canada is part of North America but they do not call themselves American, because theyre Canadian. I happen to be 25% Aussie 2 generations back, making me only 75% American blood. But who cares. I love my country. And I see our American flag whn I hear the word America.</font>

When I here the word America I think home, and I don't hate Europe or Europeans. I thought we were friends The only thing I hate is other countries blaming all their problems on The United States. All we do is send our money to their leaders so that they can make life better for their people and then their leaders spend it on themselves and tell their citizens that America doesn't care about them and it's all Americas fault that they are starving.
No I don't hate any citizen of any country. Now their leaders thats something else. maybe the people of this planet should all get together and hang our leaders ALL OF THEM from every country including America then take all their underlings that have helped their countries leaders and strip them of their rank and put them behind plows and have them start planting food for all the starving people on this planet them maybe we would have taken the very first step toward world peace and placed the hatred in the toilet where it belongs, maybe not, it could just make things worse.
For now when I hear the word America I'll just think Home. When someone puts my home down I take it as putting me down and I have never done anything to anybody in any other country except buy their products and donate to their poor to try and make their life a little better, alot of Americans are just like me and don't understand what's going on in the world to make them hate us if some one out there has the answer let the rest of us know>

Heehee, I'm coming off very agressive and confrontational today, not quite sure why. Whoops.
I'm wondering how that came about. A lot of other countries, and definetely every Spanish country calls us (yes, us, from WVA) "estadounidense" (United Statesean I guess). Doesn't make much sense to me, for a lot of reasons. Mainly because we're the Native Americans, as in Americo Vespucio discovering people who'd already been here American, not boatloads of European immigrants under Brittish rule who decided to rebel American.

I ate too much candy today, I was just bouncing that way. :D

[ 10-31-2002, 08:56 PM: Message edited by: Dodo ]

I grew up in Washington DC so I think about the diversity of our country. Montgomery County in MD is the most ethnically diverse county in our nation, and I am used to it. I am second generation American (grandparents came over on the boat from the Ukraine) but this is the only home I know. I have lived overseas in Sicily, and I loved that.

There are things wrong with the States, but we already know what they are. We live here. We do not need to be constantly barraged. I never say a bad word about Europeans, I like it there and want to go back and visit a few more times.

I feel very strongly that Yorick has the right of it in his post. The policies we have are what we have - that is what Congress is for. We make our voices known as individuals either by letter or at the voting booth. But our representatives are not us. They also can make decisions based on their beliefs and perspective.

When I hear that people hate Americans, I think what a shame. They don't know us and yet they have made up their minds to hate. Pity.

<font color="#00ccff">
Unfortunatley I don't even comprehend people who can say they hate americans, or germans, or puerto ricans. I have never been anywhere in the world where the people were all the same, and forme hate is such an intense emmotions, I would be exhausted if I tried to hold onto it for longer than 15 or 20 mintues.
I just htink it is sad forpeople to waste so much energy on such a negative emmotions. (who'd a thunk you would hear me say something this mooshey?) </font>

Yorick, why keep bringing this up ? I'm sure most people that visit IW don't even think about the US- Europe issue, the only time they think about such a thing is when there's another thread here to remind them. I don't think there are Europeans or Asians or whatever here that hate Americans, and i don't think there Americans here that hate Europeans or others. If there were such people here, they would have found out soon enough they're in the wrong place. Why are we even talking about this ? And when i think about America, first thing that comes to mind is baseball... or Michael Jordan, but that's just me. :D