In Defense of the American Tourist

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(The following is slightly tongue-in-cheek, so spare me the aggrieved comments.)

Why do so many American travelers feel the need to denigrate their own country?

"I'm sorry, I'm just a dumb American, I don't speak your language or understand your culture."

Translation:

"I'm sorry, American's are just a bunch of beer drinking rednecks who watch NASCAR all day. Not ME, of course, I speak 3 languages (not yours) and am highly civilized. But for the rest of them, I deeply apologize."

Now, I am not exactly a world traveler (Canada, Mexico, Italy, Jordan, Israel, and the Caribbean), but I do live in a city that allows me to observe visitors and immigrants from every corner of the earth, and here is what I see:

LANGUAGE: Foreigners learn English, plain and simple. No one need apologize for that, its just practical. There are far more words in the English language than in any other language, hundreds of thousands more than French, the language with the second largest vocabulary. Now, some wise guy (Mattias) will point our that Americans don't USE most of those words, but so what? My BMW can go faster than his Saturn, even if we both never break the speed limit. The potential is there, waiting to be used when needed.

The Mexicans, the Italians, the Jordanians, the Israelis I met, 90% of them spoke English, many of them fluently. Am I obliged to learn Spanish, Italian, Arabic, and Hebrew to show my respect? Of course not. I learned Spanish, the language of our most important neighbor. My daughter learned Spanish, my wife learned French, and my 1st grade daughter is learning Chinese. Most Americans I know, the vast majority, study at least one foreign language, and plenty of folks I know speak 3 or more languages.

CULTURE: If the rest of the world adopts a great deal of American culture, how is that our fault? Why does the ubiquitousness of McDonald's, Coca-Cola, Nike, Levi's, to say nothing of American television, movies, music, and software, count against us? The world wants our products because they see value in them. You will see Sponge Bob and Mickey Mouse everywhere in the world. Like it or hate it, American culture sells.

When it comes to foreign cultures, America bends over backwards to accomodate everyone. In the name of multiculturalism and diversity, the United States has welcomed more immigrants and visitors than any country in the history of civilization. Yet somehow, it still gets accused of xenophobia.

HISTORY: Maybe the reason our kids know so little about their own history is that we spend so much time teaching them foreign languages and multiculturalism. But honestly, does the rest of the world understand history so much better? Who are these people? The Canadians? The Canadians are just bitter New Englanders. The Mexicans? Half the Mexicans are already living in the US, so it can't be them. The South Americans? Most of them would move to the US, except they aren't even allowed into Mexico, and the rest think Hugo Chavez is the new Simon Bolivar. The Chinese? The Chinese media doesn't tell its people the truth about their own country, much less the rest of the world. So who, I ask, who are these immensely educated and cultured people? The Africans? The Russians? The French? I have a hard time believing that their grasp of history or current events is significantly superior to the average American.

In conclusion, an Israeli I spoke to said "American's should stop studying business, and learn about the rest of the world, study a foreign language." I tried to stop laughing when I realized he was serious. The one thing people respect about the United States is, if you work hard, you can be successful. It doesn't matter who your father was, or where you were born, or what religion you are. Anyone can make it if they study and work hard. That is nothing to apologize for.

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Comments

[shaunda]

soapbox
who gave you a soapbox?!?!?!?!?!

[mom]

first things first- dad's report came back good again. of course we're thrilled. we are totally enjoying not only your comments and great pictures, but everyone elses comments as well. i'm with Shaunda on the hat situation. Couldn't you just leave it there as some tangible proof of your visit? looking foward to your return. Love to all.

[L. NTUK]

great post
Myself and 2 brothers (raised in African and American cultures) are laughing at this post. We're here in Spain so are in total agreement about some of your observations of American tourists. I side with you about the cultural issue, but I think Amer. history is so "young" on the world scene it's important to learn about more than just national history. There are more xenophobic cultures around the world, but you're speaking from the perspective of a highly educated, relatively advanced US city. Outside of the urban centers I'm sure you'd be hard-pressed to find a large community of multi-lingual persons. (Think Jeb, from north Missisippi) Nonetheless, why wouldn't a world power solely be concerned with its own self-preservation? Personally, I think traveling allows us to get a better understanding, and greater appreciation of people's lives in far away places and makes us more compassionate, well-rounded individuals.

[Lana Jones]

about vocabulary...
If you play scrabble..and are GOOD at it, you actually use of most of the English language, especially if it is either a 2 or 3 letter word..or contains an X,Q or Z ;-)