Are Americans arrogant?

[kindlychung]

Some people say Americans are arrogant, and don't care about other countries. Is it the case? What about yourself?

 

[InterestedAtheist]

Mmmm...I certainly think there is a portion of American society that is complacent/arrogant. But I also think that Americaphobes are motivated largely by jealousy.

Perhaps none of us anywhere in the world have societies that are shining examples - but the problems in America are more important to all of us because America is so powerful.

 

[Eudaimonist]

Some people say Americans are arrogant, and don't care about other countries. Is it the case? What about yourself?

I'd say that this is not true. Americans are not so much uncaring about other countries as they are uneducated about them. American schooling has a tendency to ignore the close study of other nations.

This in itself has nothing to do with "arrogance". It probably arises more from historical circumstances -- for much of America's history the felt distance to most other nations was very large. Schooling never quite caught up to the shrinking of the world tranportationally and politically.

I think you'll find that Americans generally wish other nations well, and are certainly caring about them. The amount of charity, both governmental and private, sent out to other nations is large.


eudaimonia,

Mark

 

[RealSorceror]

Its not that I don't care, its that my knowledge of other countries is superficial at best (and I consider myself better informed than many people).

 

[trunks2k]

I'd say that this is not true. Americans are not so much uncaring about other countries as they are uneducated about them. American schooling has a tendency to ignore the close study of other nations.

I'd generally agree that it's more ignorance than arrogance. Our education really does leave out a good portion of the rest of the world, as well as important portions of US history. We barely go beyond the Civil War. Anything post civil war that we are taught* can be boiled pretty much down to:

-Look at all the railroads!
-Lusitania caused us to get involved in WWI (which is wrong).
-We kicked German butt, those silly French couldn't fight them off but we could.
- Now everyone is poor.
- Hitler.
- [wash my mouth][wash my mouth][wash my mouth]** Pearl Harbor!
- Normandy
- We kicked German butt, those silly French couldn't fight them off, but we could.
- BOOOOOOOM!
- Really important stuff that is responsible for shaping the modern world and would be important to understand happened after world war II? No way. Nothing happened after WWII. NOTHING.

Obvious hyperbole, but I just get irked at having to go over the American Revolution and civil war ten times, while the modern stuff that has really shaped today's world gets a passing mention.

But the problem is that I think this ignorance, especially the way in which we are taught it, causes arrogance. Just look at the not un-common view of the French as, to quote the Simpsons, "cheese eating surrender monkeys". That comes a lot out of how we are taught about WWI and WWII. Nevermind that in both wars, we got to sit on the sidelines and sorta prepare ourselves against an enemy that's already been fighting for several years. Especially in WWI, it was at a stalemate, both sides had fought themselves ragged, no wonder that a fresh US army was able to be so effective. But I digress.

Anyways, yeah, I think it tends to lead to a sense of superiority and that we are somehow special because we are American. That's not to say other countries aren't arrogant too. Other places are arrogant in a different way.

*As per my experience with public school through 8th grade. After that I went to a private school and was taught a lot more stuff in depth. But I'm told by people who went to public school, that History class was just a re-hash of stuff they already had been taught with a bit more detail.
**That's censored??

 

[BibleMadeMeDoIt]

I'd say that this is not true. Americans are not so much uncaring about other countries as they are uneducated about them. American schooling has a tendency to ignore the close study of other nations.

You nailed it! We are pretty much taught only about major events that involved America and taught only one view of it, the view that makes America look good. Anything involving other nations that are not are "friends" is always taught in a way to show how bad those nations are. Also strong Christian influences in school districts can have a horrible effect on what is taught about other countries and what countries are even mentioned in classes.

 

[LittleNipper]

You nailed it! We are pretty much taught only about major events that involved America and taught only one view of it, the view that makes America look good. Anything involving other nations that are not are "friends" is always taught in a way to show how bad those nations are. Also strong Christian influences in school districts can have a horrible effect on what is taught about other countries and what countries are even mentioned in classes.

So you are suggesting that more should be taught about the history of Israel. Interesting

 

[BibleMadeMeDoIt]

- Really important stuff that is responsible for shaping the modern world and would be important to understand happened after world war II? No way. Nothing happened after WWII. NOTHING.

Exactly same thing was going on in my schools. It's like the rest of the world just disappeared and only the US existed anymore lol.

while the modern stuff that has really shaped today's world gets a passing mention.

And then when things in the world go bad, Americans are so confused on who did what and when. Then they usually just go with whatever side the government supports.

 

[RealSorceror]

Nothing happened after WWII. NOTHING.

No kidding. Everything I know about the world I know from my 6th grade history class, and from the Discovery channel.
Every other history class I ever took was re-learning the coloniel era thru WW2 over, and over, and over, and over....

 

[gengwall]

You nailed it! We are pretty much taught only about major events that involved America and taught only one view of it, the view that makes America look good. Anything involving other nations that are not are "friends" is always taught in a way to show how bad those nations are. Also strong Christian influences in school districts can have a horrible effect on what is taught about other countries and what countries are even mentioned in classes.

You lost me there. Do you have an example? I am unfamiliar with this experience in both my education (private college prep school) and my kids (large public school system with urban, suburban, and rural populations)

 

[gengwall]

Some people say Americans are arrogant, and don't care about other countries. Is it the case? What about yourself?

This kind of makes me laugh. I think America can be both caring and arrogant, kind of like how Democrats care about the poor. Lol.

 

[BibleMadeMeDoIt]

So you are suggesting that more should be taught about the history of Israel. Interesting

I see someone failed at reading comprehension. Where did I mention Israel in my entire post! I did not actually mention any countries, go back and READ!

 

[Pogue]

I don't really think it works to make generalisations about so many people, and the very few Americans I've met face to face have been really friendly. But then, I've been told on these very forums that I'm not allowed to debate about 'American' issues, like the Iraq war, because I couldn't possibly know about it, as I'm not American. So, like in every other country, there has to be a mix of people.

 

[MoonlessNight]

I don't even care about what's happening on the coasts of the US.

 

[Arnold_Philips]

It can seem that Americans are arrogant because Americans don't really have any reason to care about what's happening on either side of the oceans. Pair this with nationalism, and you get the stereotype of the dumb arrogant American.

 

[gengwall]

It can seem that Americans are arrogant because Americans don't really have any reason to care about what's happening on either side of the oceans. Pair this with nationalism, and you get the stereotype of the dumb arrogant American.

I can see that, and yet it does not coincide with our actual real care about what is happening elsewhere. We are certainly not isolationist. In terms of caring, is America not the most generous nation in the world when it comes to external distribution of both human and tangible resources?

 

[EnemyPartyII]

I can see that, and yet it does not coincide with our actual real care about what is happening elsewhere. We are certainly not isolationist. In terms of caring, is America not the most generous nation in the world when it comes to external distribution of both human and tangible resources?

Per capita? No. I believe Australians are...

 

[Pogue]

I can see that, and yet it does not coincide with our actual real care about what is happening elsewhere. We are certainly not isolationist. In terms of caring, is America not the most generous nation in the world when it comes to external distribution of both human and tangible resources?

Per capita? No. I believe Australians are...

According to this, it's Luxembourg:

http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/eco_eco_aid_don_percap-economic-aid-donor-per-capita

That's per capita. I think the US give the most in total, but to be fair, they have the most to give.

 

[gengwall]

According to this, it's Luxembourg:

http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/eco_eco_aid_don_percap-economic-aid-donor-per-capita

That's per capita. I think the US give the most in total, but to be fair, they have the most to give.

I can accept that - but is that not still generous? Of course, there still is a disconnect in the original question. We are not asking if Americans are greedy. I still maintain we can be arrogant and still care for the problems in and of other countries.

 

[trunks2k]

I don't really think it works to make generalisations about so many people, and the very few Americans I've met face to face have been really friendly.

Were the ones you met people that you met outside of the US? That might explain why they were all really friendly. In all seriousness, it is my personally impression that the act of leaving the US on vacation or something filters out a lot of the annoying ones.