Kat wrote: > Second, people- and I still say Americans in particular- *don't* act in a > way that would be considered civilized in *any* country; that's the > problem. They seem to believe that since they're in a different country > they can be complete jerks. I once heard an American couple, while > sitting in a Kiwi resturant, having a very loud conversation about how > "quaint" and "backwards" these folks were, and how they didn't have any > "real" cities, and all their silly little quirks like using metric and > driving on the wrong side of the road. A couple of the students I was > around during orientation tried to sneak into the Maori marae to take > pictures even though we'd been expressly told it was forbidden. That kind > of thing is, well, disrespectful. To say the least. And I doubt it would > be considered good behaviour *anywhere*. I'll repeat what I said in an earlier post - I've seen European tourists act the same way here in the states. When I was in England, I saw a group I assume was French (based upon the fact they were speaking French) taking photos *right in front* of the big sign at Canterbury cathedral saying, "Please do not take flash photographs here" in English, French and Spanish. When I lived in Atlanta, a friend that attended Ebeneezer Baptist Church (MLK's old pulpit) told me of several instances of tourists (of almost every conceivable origin) walking into the church in the middle of Sunday services to take pictures and observe "black church". I've heard visitors to the rural area my parents live in make loud jokes about inbred southerners and the KKK. I've been accused by Brits I know online of being a member of the KKK myself, based solely upon the fact that I'm (a) American and (b) convinced OJ is guilty as hell. Rudeness crosses national boundaries, and, as you mention below, is especially prevalent in some tourists. I'm sure that the quiet tourists tend to fade into the background, while the jerky ones stick in the mind. To assume based upon the actions of a tiny percentage of the population of a country that the entire nation tends to a certain sort of behavior is, in the words of my grandmother, "Ticky-tacky." > To be fair, it seems to be a tourist trait more than an American trait. > But I had someone say to me yesterday, "I would have thought all > Americans were loud and annoying if I hadn't met you" and people > routinely assume I am either a) Canadian or b) Dutch (why Dutch? I don't > know. Because I'm blonde or something?) and express considerable > incredulity when I say I am an American- usually because I'm too "nice". Darn those Kiwi bigots! ;-) IIRC, Brin discusses some of these issues in _Earth_. My copy's loaned out, but I'll see if I can find the reference. Adam C. Lipscomb [EMAIL PROTECTED]
