Testing character through hard times. My newfound sense of patriotism.

Pi-r8

DoctorArch wrote:

Hell, the U.S. has major cultural shifts within each state.

Major cultural shifts like shopping at a different brand of grocery store?
Sorry for being snarky, I'll write a proper reply later.

spacekungfuman

Pi-r8 wrote:

DoctorArch wrote:

Hell, the U.S. has major cultural shifts within each state.

Major cultural shifts like shopping at a different brand of grocery store?
Sorry for being snarky, I'll write a proper reply later.

I am originally from New Jersey, and northern and southern NJ are very culturally distinct. They use different words for the same foods (such as sub vs hoagie), people are more urban in the north and have a more rural mindset in the south, and most important of all, north NJ is oriented around NYC, while south NJ looks to Philly as its cultural mecca. They each have more in common with the city they serve than each other.

lonelyahava

spacekungfuman wrote:

Pi-r8 wrote:

DoctorArch wrote:

Hell, the U.S. has major cultural shifts within each state.

Major cultural shifts like shopping at a different brand of grocery store?
Sorry for being snarky, I'll write a proper reply later.

I am originally from New Jersey, and northern and southern NJ are very culturally distinct. They use different words for the same foods (such as sub vs hoagie), people are more urban in the north and have a more rural mindset in the south, and most important of all, north NJ is oriented around NYC, while south NJ looks to Philly as its cultural mecca. They each have more in common with the city they serve than each other.

Rural my foot.

Well ok, I guess if you get out of Camden and collingswood and stuff and head down south towards national park and the shore, then yeah, that's rural. but pffffftt.

Kalkino:: I absolutely love it here. The only thing making me crazy is immigration. But I guess that's true of any government agency anywhere.

spacekungfuman

lonelyahava wrote:

spacekungfuman wrote:

Pi-r8 wrote:

DoctorArch wrote:

Hell, the U.S. has major cultural shifts within each state.

Major cultural shifts like shopping at a different brand of grocery store?
Sorry for being snarky, I'll write a proper reply later.

I am originally from New Jersey, and northern and southern NJ are very culturally distinct. They use different words for the same foods (such as sub vs hoagie), people are more urban in the north and have a more rural mindset in the south, and most important of all, north NJ is oriented around NYC, while south NJ looks to Philly as its cultural mecca. They each have more in common with the city they serve than each other.

Rural my foot.

Well ok, I guess if you get out of Camden and collingswood and stuff and head down south towards national park and the shore, then yeah, that's rural. but pffffftt.

Kalkino:: I absolutely love it here. The only thing making me crazy is immigration. But I guess that's true of any government agency anywhere.

If you can smell pig farms, you're in a rural area in my book!

Quid

Like, if someone went first to Miami and then a vacation later to Portland, I would not scoff at them for going to pretty much the same place. These are not going to be similar experiences if the plan is to immerse yourself in the local culture.

mcdermott

Quid wrote:

Like, if someone went first to Miami and then a vacation later to Portland, I would not scoff at them for going to pretty much the same place. These are not going to be similar experiences if the plan is to immerse yourself in the local culture.

Seriously, about the only reason these two aren't as culturally distinct as two European countries is the shared language. Absent that, our regions would develop even larger cultural differences than we already see.

Tastyfish

spacekungfuman wrote:

Pi-r8 wrote:

DoctorArch wrote:

Hell, the U.S. has major cultural shifts within each state.

Major cultural shifts like shopping at a different brand of grocery store?
Sorry for being snarky, I'll write a proper reply later.

I am originally from New Jersey, and northern and southern NJ are very culturally distinct. They use different words for the same foods (such as sub vs hoagie), people are more urban in the north and have a more rural mindset in the south, and most important of all, north NJ is oriented around NYC, while south NJ looks to Philly as its cultural mecca. They each have more in common with the city they serve than each other.

I think this is also something important to consider about diversity, far more than the various percentages of immigrant populations when looking at a culture as a whole - whilst you might have a difference in North and South New Jersey, in Europe you'll be looking at those differences as you move across counties, or in neighbouring towns. The US just hasn't had the same amount of time with regions cut off by mountains and rivers with their own unique languages. All that's kind of spread out due to the different population density.


Lets have some Stephen Fry;
This is somewhere 3/4 the size of New Jersey, and even has recognisable surnames.

Bagginses

mcdermott wrote:

Quid wrote:

Like, if someone went first to Miami and then a vacation later to Portland, I would not scoff at them for going to pretty much the same place. These are not going to be similar experiences if the plan is to immerse yourself in the local culture.

Seriously, about the only reason these two aren't as culturally distinct as two European countries is the shared language. Absent that, our regions would develop even larger cultural differences than we already see.

Of course, a lot of western Europe is just dialects of Romance.

Apothe0sis

durandal4532 wrote:

Also yeah they're still in Sydney because a thriving economy, free health care, maternity leave, vacation, etc outweigh the fact that Australians are kind of annoying.

Why are we annoying? I thought we had a reputation for being laid back and friendly.

lonelyahava

Apothe0sis wrote:

durandal4532 wrote:

Also yeah they're still in Sydney because a thriving economy, free health care, maternity leave, vacation, etc outweigh the fact that Australians are kind of annoying.

Why are we annoying? I thought we had a reputation for being laid back and friendly.

most of the aussies I know are friendly.

But I think that Kiwis have you on the laid back thing. I mean, the aussies I know are laid back too, but they've been living in new zealand for most of their adult life. It kinda rubs off.

spacekungfuman

I thought it was a good time to bring this thread back, because, once again, there is an incredible amount of negative sentiment on the board about America. I understand these misgivings, and share in many of them myself (especially the NRA's reaction to Newtown) but I continue to think that we are a great country, and I thought it would be nice to talk about the good things that have happened recently.

1. I am very proud that the US is on the way to having one of the most equal armies in the world, with the end of DADT and women being able to serve in combat roles.

2. I am also proud that we were able to prosecute 2 wars plus without instituting a draft, and that we have shown the restraint to not do so indefinitely (even if they did go on for a very long time).

3. I am proud that we have avoided austerity while our peer nations pursued that path hard, and that as a result we are in full on recovery mode now (just look at the jobless numbers) while other nations are heading back into recession.

4. I am proud that we have finally overcome the tax aversion of the last two decades and actually raised rates and increased revenue for the first time since the GOP began the no tax increase pledge.

5. I am very, very proud that bigotry is becoming less and less acceptable here, and that the type of casual sexism or racism of even 10 years ago is Verboten. We are also increasingly seeing women and minorities features prominently in tv shows and movies, and while we have a long way to go, this progress is very welcome.

6. OWS didn't go silently into the night and they didn't go out violently either. Instead, they made the leap into a more serious group of young people energized for change, through programs like their debt forgiveness and Sandy relief efforts. When you consider that it is largely made up of members of what is seen as an apathetic generation, this is really a great achievement.

Please add to this list with things about America that make you proud.

Loren Michael

America has the best absolute number of quality TV and movies in the world, year on year.

America's Voltairian free speech tradition, while imperfectly adhered to, is in my opinion the best approach to speech.

I'm not proud of these things, but I am glad that the accident of history that made them so has put them in a country as populous as America so that as many people are able to enjoy them as do now. I wish that more countries would be like the US in these respects.

redx

I like that America is a leader in technological innovation. A fairly large portion of new technologies get there start right here, both from our enterprises and our universities. It is the sort of thing that gives me hope that the things I hope for and dream of will one day be a reality.

I was kinda raised to fear nationalism and to view myself as an individual apart from the country where I live(I like our freedom of religion as well), so proud isn't really the right emotion. These are the actions of other, who belong to some of the same groups I belong to. I find it something close to inspiring and they give me hope, just not really pride.