zombie84 said:
It isn't ignorance when it's based on the existance of institutions, national policy, and daily encounters with individuals from said countries espousing those views. Again, I'm not saying every American is, for example, obsessed with guns. But as a nation...well, your country is obsessed with guns. That's based on the general cultural views you have as well as the existence--and widespread public support (it is a democracy after all)--of the national and state gun laws, as well institutions like the NRA, and also some really scary statistics. You have the highest gun ownership rate on the whole planet and one of the highest gun crime rate in most if not all of the western world. As a Canadian, the majority of my media is American--newspapers, television, and movies. I travel to the United States on a regular basis and have American family members.
It is still ethnocentrism. There are many cultural reasons for why Americans are the way they are, it isn't cut and dry, plain and simple, there is a lot of complexity to it. It is ignorance because you don't attempted to understand American thinking or the cultural and historical differences, rather you simply judge the hell out of it based on how unlike you we are.
But you hear of public shootings in the US all the time, and you don't hear of that anwhere else--I think you guys have actually become desensitized to it to not realize how bad it is.
There was a pretty big shooting in Switzerland a few years back, you'll hear of others from time to time. China has this crazy thing where lunatics run into schools with knifes and start slashing at children. America doesn't have a monopoly on senseless public mass target violence done by crazies. But yeah, it is obviously a problem here. However, saying we are desensitized to it is yet more ignorance on your part. You don't know how we feel about it. All you know is what our shitty over the top news media throws at you about it. Every time one of these shootings happen the next several days are usually pretty gut wrenching for us. You can't escape it, people sorrowfully talk about it where ever you go.
Why do you think there aren't "anti-Canadian" mentalities widespread across Europe?
Because Canada is a ridiculously low impact country. You guys don't really do anything or get involved in anything or export anything spectacular or noticeable. The important or notable things you do take part in go mostly unnoticed. As far as important players on the figurative Risk board of the world goes, Canada simply doesn't rank very high. During my years living in Europe you never really heard Canada's name mentioned. Once during my travels I mentioned a trip I took to Canada to an acquaintance and they asked me if it was a city or a state.
United State policies effect the world, in good and bad ways. The world gets billions from us in aid annually. Americans branch out all over the world providing benevolence and or stirring up trouble and anything in-between. Our movies, our television, our clothing, our restaurant chains, and our brand names are rammed down the world's throat, and a decent sized percentage of them are thrilled about this. America is extremely high impact.
I don't have near as many people who hate and can't stand me as Justin Bieber has. I also don't have near as many people who absolutely adore me. I don't have masses of idiots ragging on my every move regardless of what I do, "Damn you Bieber for dating American pop star Salena Gomez!", "Damn you Bieber for dumping American pop star Salena Gomez!". Poor Bieber is doomed to piss people off no matter what he does, regardless of his actions, someone out there who likes him isn't going to like it. I get to dump, be dumped, make horrible or wise decisions with only an extremely small handful of people really caring about it or being impacted by it in any way.
Bieber is high impact, I am practically non-existent impact. No matter what America does, you'll find people who are going to absolutely hate it and others are going to absolutely love it. It'll be this way until America doesn't matter anymore. During my time living in Europe I ran into a lot of anti-America types, I even had a violent encounter with one. But I ran into even more who absolutely loved us. During my time traveling I ran into plenty of girls who were all over me for my accent and wanted to talk about what it was like in America and if things are really like they are on tv and in movies.
So, are you saying most of Canada is ethno-centric bigots? You see how the problem is. It's not my fault the United States does the things it does and happens to be right beside me to give me full knowledge of all this stuff. I wish it didn't.
No, not at all. I'm sure I never once used the word "bigot". And no, I'm sure not all Canadians are as ethnocentric as you. However, most people in most countries see the world through severe ethnocentricity. It is just how it works, it is rare to fine someone who sees the world beyond their own nose, and even then, even if they are really trying to be open minded, they are going to adhere to degree some ethnocentrism. Some are just a little bit better at hiding it than others.
In fact, I think it is impossible to escape ethnocentrism. After all, what standards do we have for seeing if not those we've been given? Green will forever be green to me, because it is the name given to it by my language and culture. Any other words for the same color will forever merely be a translation to me.