Do you personally follow the stereotype of your nation?

June 23, 2007 7:25pm CST
Well this isn't actually stereotype. I couldn't think of the right word but I thought it would give you the general idea of what I was meaning before opening the discussion. I am Scottish and we are very known for having short arms and long pockets. We try our best not to pay for stuff and are always looking for a little freebie. The thing though I was actually thinking of though is that the Scottish, by actual statists are not complainers. If something upsets us and we are either being mistreated or ripped off then we as a whole say nothing and just get on with it. Against other nations we will be the ones that get skipped in queues, get served bad food, get over charged and under changed but yet we will more often than not be the one to apologise. I suppose this really isn't a good image for us. Anyways, I must say, if I think I am being wrongdoed then I will say, in fact I wouldn't even take a gasp before launching into my complaint and normally will make it a formal one. I was brought up by a strong single mother (strong in mind, not just arms!) so she has alwasy taught me to stand up for myself. We had quite a tough upbringing in the sense that we had very little and I have watched us grow in wealth by my mother being "one to say something" I never have any hesitation in phoning to complain regarding something I have been sold, returning stuff to shops, complaining about service, etc. I am not a nasty person but I always think that I should get what I am entitled to and people shouldn't try and take advantage of the smaller person. I look forward to seeing your responses regarding either complaing or what your nation is known for.
5 people like this
8 responses
@lilaclady (28207)
• Australia
24 Jun 07
I am an Australian and I guess I have a little larrikin in me like most true Aussies, I believe in sticking up for my rights but I am better at sticking up for others that I think are being given a raw deal, I have done this many times, all my life I seem to collect lost puppies so to speak, I always picked up people who just didn't seem to fit in with a A class of groups, I remember when I was working the IN crowd would have parties and they would only invite the IN people when I first went out into a flat I started having parties and I would invite all the not so IN people and I used to have great little parties, I guess what I am trying to say is I always go for the underdog which is something Aussies are well known for.
24 Jun 07
I am actually veyr much the same. I never really had much respect for the incrowd or for fashion or anything that was classed as cool. Growing up I always had friends who were not so socially accepted but at the time did not realise because they were basically my friends. It just so happened that these were all people who distanced themselves from what was in probably more through force than choice.
2 people like this
@lilaclady (28207)
• Australia
24 Jun 07
yeh I think the incrowd people didn't impress me very much anyway as they were like sheep anything that was the in thing was the cool thing to do, I did my own thing I guess I liked to me an individual or maybe unique hahahaha....
2 people like this
24 Jun 07
Do you know what I used to call it. "Individualistic!" I even made up my own term for being an individual. I love to against the grain and have always secretly relished in being a shocker.
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@Stiletto (4579)
24 Jun 07
I would say I fit with the Scottish stereotype to some extent - I certainly like a drink although I'm not "careful" with money at all. Quite the opposite in fact because I waste it all the time! Oh and I love seeing the English get beaten at any sport but football's the most satisfying one. I think that has something to do with the commentators though. As for complaining I don't suffer in silence if I think I'm being mistreated or ripped off although I used to put up with a lot more when I was younger. Actually what you said about your mother raises one of the least acknowledged aspects of Scottish culture and that's strong women. When I think back to my childhood all the people that stand out as strong characters for one reason or another were women - whether it was female family members (and some of mine were nuts!) or just women that lived locally. We Scottish women don't take sh1t off anyone lol!!
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@Stiletto (4579)
24 Jun 07
Noooooo!! Consider me appalled!!! Haddington is about 18 miles from Edinburgh.
2 people like this
24 Jun 07
Stiletto I have something to tell you that will appaul you. I thought you were English and the amazing thing is I liked you too. I really thought that Haddington was in England. Hmmm....well that shut me up!
2 people like this
24 Jun 07
Yeah well I thought it was in England. I was on my way to barcelona once on the plane and still thought I was heading to the bermuda triangle area. I was quite disappointed when I realised it was in Spain. Right Im off out now.
2 people like this
@rosie_123 (6113)
24 Jun 07
Hmmm - well I am English so I guess that means you must hate me! LOL! No - seriously - not sure if I fit a "stereotype" - my Mum was Belarussian for a start, so I suppose I am pretty mixed up anyway - but if I'm honest I suppose I do fit some English stereotypes. I'm very reserved for a start - not shy at all, but just not the kind of person who starts up conversations on trains or buses - I prefer to keep mtself to myself. Also - I hate "scenes" and anything that draws attention to me in public. I would never, ever complain in a restaurant for example, and I get really embarrassed by fighting, loud voices, rows in public etc - and I would rather die than be involved in a "scene". Mass hysteria or anything "over the top" scares me, - I guess I'm your typical Brit who sits in the crowd at Wimbledon quietly saying "C'mon Tim" to Tim Henman and never shouting, screaming or losing control! LOL! Oh - and I almost certainly prefer animals to people - so yes - I stand up and admit that I am a stereotypical, snobbish, English, former private schoolgirl!!!!
@rosie_123 (6113)
24 Jun 07
LOL! Tennis is the only sport I enjoy. I go everywhere to watch it - not just Wimbledon! It isn't necessarily an Englsh sport though - the best players, and majority of fans worldwide, are generally from Spain or South America! And glad you don't hate me really, eve though I am a Sassenach!!
2 people like this
24 Jun 07
But I still do enjoy hating your country as a whole. Lol.
1 person likes this
24 Jun 07
Lol even the fact that you like tennis makes you so English. I personally don't understand tennis and think that Wimbledom is just daft lol. But that is me being Scottish and thinking that anything that is aimed at the English is rubbish. Lol. Only kiddin! I don't actually hate the English at all but get me drunk and I can sit and tell you how much better Scotland is than England even although I know nothing about politics or economy or nothing. I just like being patriotic. Lol. I love scenes actually and I love creating them, Im one of these people that push people too far but I am sure you are well aware of this already.
2 people like this
@urbandekay (18278)
24 Jun 07
Well, stereotype sounds an appropriate enough word to me, though you might have used archetype. Well, that came as a shock to me that Scots don't stand up for themselves, that's not the impression I had but there you go. Anyway, good on you! all the best urban
2 people like this
@urbandekay (18278)
24 Jun 07
he he he he he he he he he Excellent! I wonder what the rich horse riders think of us, I always ride with the grooms and other peeps that work with horses. I really hate the snoby element in it though. A lot of grooms and stable workers I know are passionately anti-hunt, course they often can't admit that to the stuffed shirts and the like. They usually tend to be better riders and care more about the horses welfare than their owners. all the best urban
2 people like this
24 Jun 07
And what about you you horseriding English gentleman!
1 person likes this
@fizzytom (752)
• Maribor, Slovenia
24 Jun 07
Until the other day I did not think I was typically British but i was at a foreign airport and people started pushing in (not British people) when the flight was announced and I got really annoyed. It was then i realised I'm more British in attitude than I like to admit. I definitely have that British thing about queuing etiquette - I often think British people see a queue and join it regardless of whether they know what is at the end of it.
@fizzytom (752)
• Maribor, Slovenia
24 Jun 07
In Cuba they don't queue in line, they just stand all over the place. But what they do is when they arrive somewhere like a bus stop or the bank, they say "El ultimo?" meaning "Who is the last one?" and that person makes themselves known, and so on. So you know the person just before you and thenext person knows the person before them. Looks like there isn't a queue at all but it does work.
2 people like this
24 Jun 07
Oooh I like that idea of El Ultimo! Funny thing is that here no one queues up to get the bus and if any of us do then some foreigners comes and skips us all. In the city I am in we have alot of people over hear seeking sanctuany or looking for work so they don't follow the same system as they were brought up differently.
1 person likes this
24 Jun 07
I know! British queue even whether the place we are in has implemented a queueing system. Even if we don't like to admit the british queue at a bar just by keeping an eye on who they are behind and when someone doesn't obey that everyone gives a tut. I think it is funny how many places we have put up barriers and whathave you just to make sure we all know about the queueing system. Just like our driving too. We all feel that at junctions there are queues of who is to go first even although in Europe they just go by the fattest is first.
1 person likes this
@mssnow (9484)
• United States
24 Jun 07
I guess the typical American (from others point of view) is a person who uses a lot of credit card sand has money to spend. A nice home 2.5 kids. A new car or mini van etc. Thats not me at all. I am one of the por Americans. The one who struggles daily to keep my head above water. But i do say my piece when need be. I don't depend on men to get what I need. I am very independant.
2 people like this
24 Jun 07
To tell you the truth the way I perceive the Americans is by being very loud and demading but this is just from what I have seen in the movies!
1 person likes this
@gardengrrl (1445)
• United States
24 Jun 07
Unfortunately, Americans have got ourselves the image of being large, loud, selfish bigots and xenophobes - not to metion politically retarded! So, how do I stack up? I am large, but I'm only loud when necessary, not too often. I understand that living in one of the richest countries in the world give us a certain obligation to the poorer ones, although the way we currently go about giving aid is not too satisfactory. I express these things to my elected representatives. I'm neither bigoted nor xenophobic - I'm active in seeking a just solution to the immigration issue, not the retarded, illogical rhetoric being spouted by both extremes. I guess I'm pretty far from the "average" American - but that's a good thing, in my book!
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@xquisite (156)
• United States
24 Jun 07
i'm japanese and i'm pretty much an asian woman stereotype...i wear size 0 and got good grades in school, i'm shy and giggle a lot...ya. (but no, i dont play any musical instruments and i'm not a math person;)
2 people like this