While this is true we really don't have much else to show off about considering how very deeply fucked up our economy is, and our education system.
Prime example of the educational system failing, right here. The USA has had the world's largest economy for almost 150 years. OK, you can't rely on schools to properly educate you, but at least take advantage of the gross number of privileges living in the USA gives you and educate yourself.
Cowboys are one unique thing I love about the USA. The whole Wild West - both the romanticized and the historically accurate versions - are just awesome.
Then there's gridiron football and I don't even mind calling it "gridiron" because I think that sounds totally badass! An effect which serves to accurately differentiate our game of football quite well.
Also, the ability to be totally, unrepentant arrogant about our country. I mean, it is obnoxious and we really shouldn't do it, but when it comes down to it, USA! USA! I always imagine living in some small but modernized western democracy and having to say things like "yeah we have a very vibrant cultural history and blah blah blah blah blah". Whatever. The USA has been kicking ass all over the globe ever since we first broke in our boots on the biggest ass in the nicest pants: the British Empire. We strap billions of dollars worth of machinery to billions of dollars worth of bomb and blast it all into space and we sometimes stick people on there, too, and we do it just because it is awesome and we can and, shoot, we got all these bombs and money just laying around so we might as well. And if we find some cultural aspect of another country that we like, we just steal it. Most people won't even care where it came from because they don't have to care. Same goes for foreign politics - we don't care because we don't have to. Shoot, there are two whole continents with the name "America" and they are full of countries, but if you just say "America" everyone knows which one you are referring to. Then a lot of foreigners will start talking about "wealth distribution" and "crime rates" and a bunch of statistics that, again, US citizens don't have to care about in any kind of country comparison sense because we are on top of the mountain and our ass is far to fat for anyone else to fit.
I guess what I am trying to say is, is that one special/unique thing that I like about the United States of America is that WE'RE NUMBER ONE! WE'RE NUMBER ONE!
Many many Koreans still believe in fan death. According to Wikipedia, "Fan death is a widely held belief (and misconception) prevailing in South Korea in which an electric fan left running overnight in a closed room can cause the death of those inside. Fans sold in Korea are equipped with a timer switch that turns them off after a set number of minutes, which users are frequently urged to set when going to sleep with a fan on."
On June 21 2011 04:47 Coolbeans wrote: Ireland has a pretty unique sport called hurling which is played all over the country and in our biggest stadium.
and I guess Guinness?
What i find unique about scotland/ireland(here we have shinty, which came from hurling) is when you compare the sports to the us/canada equivalents.
American football: Helmet and pads Rugby: Shorts and a shirt
Hockey: Helmet and even bigger pads Shinty/hurling: Shorts and a shirt
tellin you, these american/canadian folk need to man up
Would also like to say, that for Scotland, we have a ridiculously high number of important inventions considering how small the country is.
It's amusing how a funny idea quickly turned into "list all the things everybody knows (or can easily find online) about your country". Some people seem to have a tad of a problem with the word "unusual".
Not to mention the unnecessary "political" debate. Way to ruin a fun thread, guys, congratulations.
On June 21 2011 13:05 True_Spike wrote: It's amusing how a funny idea quickly turned into "list all the things everybody knows (or can easily find online) about your country". Some people seem to have a tad of a problem with the word "unusual".
Not to mention the unnecessary "political" debate. Way to ruin a fun thread, guys, congratulations.
Im Polish and half of your original post sounds made up
On June 21 2011 13:05 True_Spike wrote: It's amusing how a funny idea quickly turned into "list all the things everybody knows (or can easily find online) about your country". Some people seem to have a tad of a problem with the word "unusual".
Not to mention the unnecessary "political" debate. Way to ruin a fun thread, guys, congratulations.
Im Polish and half of your original post sounds made up
Which half? I'm Polish and living in Poland, nothing of what I wrote sounds made up to me.
We have some crazy dudes in the northern mountains who are naturally gifted super marathon runners. Often, they get drunk before races. They're the 'raramuri', known as tarahumaras in spanish/english. They are so poor now that they make sandals with thin wires and slices of car tires.
We had the ruling party steal for 75+ years and when the 2nd most powerful party took over, they openly said to them through advertisements and banners 'steal all you can but go away already'. They were eager to get right back to work lol.
One of the first guys to cross the entire american continent by bike...including the deadly malaria-ladden swamps in panama/colombia was stopped in mexico by some random fellow who threw him a brick, destroying half his face and rendering him unconscious. When he woke up, his bike was gone (ofc) and he had a long way to go with reconstructive surgery, let alone resuming the trip...
Our minister of education said on national television that cheesy soap operas (the ones fostered by the state to keep people stupid and ignorant) have cultural value.
We made some wrestling/adventure/action films mixing mexican wrestlers with mummies and crazy shit like that back in the 60's or something like that. The directors intended the movies to be serious. When they reached places like France, they were hailed as masterpieces of surrealist art. LOL.
It is easier to get illegal documents to cut down an entire forest than it is to cut a small, ugly ass dead tree in your backyard.
Sports athletes only get sponsored once they've accomplished international success.
We invented colour tv. Yeah, thank us for that fuckers.
The U.S. 'stole' through war a great part of our northern territories. Now, through illegal immigration, we're getting them back ahahaha.
More than 20% of the nations raw income comes from illegal immigrants in the U.S. sending the money back home
Our ignorant drug dealer masters build incredibly cheese mansions with greek columns, roman arcs and neon signs.
Lots of folk singers compose songs for famous drug dealers
We complain about the way the US treats our illegal immigrants but we treat those of south and central america with much less 'care' and 'respect'.
Gee I don't know - the only 'unusual' things about Mexico are mostly negative. We have pretty cool stuff too but I don't think of it as unusual. Someone correct me please =O
On June 21 2011 03:11 bonifaceviii wrote: We buy milk in plastic bags, which Americans think is the weirdest thing ever.
...yeah, that's about it really.
what... plastic bags?! O_______O. i don't think it's weird. okay i lied. that's pretty odd. haha
meh, i wouldn't say we've YET invented, but my university is one of the leading research facilities for tissue engineering in the world. guess i chose the right school =P.
my austrian professor invented LASIK eye surgery, but he did it in the U.S... so..?? O___O how about one point for austria and the US? haha.
On June 21 2011 13:23 akalarry wrote: unique to my area
mmmmmmmmmmmm
HELL YES CARNE ASADA FRIES! So cal? God. makes me want to get some right now.
Hmmm The US is fairly large place so I'd rather talk about the place I currently live.
Firstly the Tamiami Trail which goes from Tampa to Miami. Thought of in..1915 and having a rockey development it created two other counties due to the original Lee county being unable to actually afford to complete it's section of the roads. One of the early opportunities to bring travel to Miami other then the Train and show off the Everglades(ironic considering it later damaged it by blocking water flows)
An engineering marvel at the time of it's finishing in 1928 it spawned many of the original "tourist traps" some of which even still exist today. In particular the Skunkape(Sasquatch but in Florida) research center.
Next we have a a sad but also a reminder that great tragedy causes great change.
The 1928 Okeechobee Hurricane. The second most powerful Hurricane to have been recorded it literally caused the famous Florida watermass to flood killing over 2,000. It was such an event that the Author Zora Neale Hurston wrote about it and the aftermath in parts of her book "Their Eyes where watching God".
However due to these events modern building codes and construction where founded.
While perhaps not the most amazing of things I find this kind of stuff fascinating and something most people don't know about the State and in turn the nation ^_^!
I'll try to come up with more awesum unknown stuff later but this is all I can think of right now.
Well, Australia does have the highest ice cream consumption per capita, as well as the highest percentage of internet users in the world. Australians invented such things like the motorized lawnmover, Wi-Fi, the black box and the spectrophotometer.
And Madoga, you're thinking of Australasia, not Australia. Australia governs all of Australia, obviously, as well as several neighbouring islands. We gave independence to PNG and East Timor.
And the largest explosion ever made before the nuke was made by a group of Australian war heroes, who dug below enemy lines and shoved a tonne of TNT under them.
On June 21 2011 13:39 quirky2000 wrote: Australia:
We have... umm... a kickass rock?
Yeah, go Australia.
Australia also has sooo many other unique things, in most countries saying that you were walking down the street in your thongs would be taken very differently than us, we will make words longer as slang Read: Chuck a righty here. instead of turn right here.
We are a country founded off of both Convicts and richpeople who wanted part of a fresh land, yet considering we have a low crimrate.
Being a bastard can be a term of endeerment.
Being pissed is generally a sign of someone being drunk instead of someone being angry.
In Australia someone will ask you how you are and you will usually reply with how you are not. i.e I will say How are you. you reply "Yeah I am not bad"
On June 21 2011 13:39 quirky2000 wrote: Australia:
We have... umm... a kickass rock?
Yeah, go Australia.
Australia also has sooo many other unique things, in most countries saying that you were walking down the street in your thongs would be taken very differently than us, we will make words longer as slang Read: Chuck a righty here. instead of turn right here.
We are a country founded off of both Convicts and richpeople who wanted part of a fresh land, yet considering we have a low crimrate.
Being a bastard can be a term of endeerment.
Being pissed is generally a sign of someone being drunk instead of someone being angry.
In Australia someone will ask you how you are and you will usually reply with how you are not. i.e I will say How are you. you reply "Yeah I am not bad"
On June 21 2011 13:39 quirky2000 wrote: Australia:
We have... umm... a kickass rock?
Yeah, go Australia.
Australia also has sooo many other unique things, in most countries saying that you were walking down the street in your thongs would be taken very differently than us, we will make words longer as slang Read: Chuck a righty here. instead of turn right here.
We are a country founded off of both Convicts and richpeople who wanted part of a fresh land, yet considering we have a low crimrate.
Being a bastard can be a term of endeerment.
Being pissed is generally a sign of someone being drunk instead of someone being angry.
In Australia someone will ask you how you are and you will usually reply with how you are not. i.e I will say How are you. you reply "Yeah I am not bad"
Yeah, but mainly the kickass rock.
Not to mention I can say incredibly rude words such as 'root' and 'fanny' and not be banned. Love these international forums. Yet it's still hilarious when foreigners say they are 'rooting' for someone, it always makes me lol.
On June 21 2011 15:00 exog wrote: In norway almost every kid and adult pack food in the morning to eat for lunch, its called a food-pack.
Noone sits next to another person on the bus if there are more free double-seats, some still dont sit next to anyone and stay standing.
EPT
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