The King Prawn · April 21, 2012 at 7:59am

This picture was posted on facebook with the question "Ya think this is how Europe views the USA?" I think maybe. Thoughts?

texas

Comments:


Southern Pessimist
Joined
May '11
Southern Pessimist

Of course, Canadians from the eastern provinces would think Myrtle Beach was a large state in its own right.

Southern Pessimist
Joined
May '11
Southern Pessimist

Is there a better song than "Little Sister"? Hard to say. I like Rufus Wainright's take on that theme.

Edited on April 20, 2012 at 4:40am
Bern SHN
Joined
Dec '11
Bern SHN

Valiuth

Ethan Safron: Phew, my state (Illinois) can finally have some fiscal responsibility. · 3 hours ago

Not in this life time...we are doomed my friend. · 4 hours ago

It's absolutely brutal.  Just had another in a series of conversations with friends about us getting the you-know-what out of here.  We don't have California's weather so it's only family ties keeping my wife and I from fleeing.

My brother-in-law and his family are making the move to the Nashville area as soon as the kids are finished with school in June.  (I hear North Carolina's nice.)


Joined
Apr '11
D.B. Little

I have lived in Texas all my life and talked to a fair amount of Europeans who wandered in on vacation (there was an outdoor cafe in the Cowtown of Fort Worth where the French all congregated together so they complain about how gauche everything was-- it was COWTOWN; what did you expect to find there?)

Manhattan is, as far as I can tell the only place they seem to think of as Real. Hollywood, Disneyworld, Washington DC, they are all amusement parks to them as far as I can tell.

Jesusland is a good designation for the rest of the country otherwise, but no-- Texas, Texans, the rest of you might be Godbothering idiots, but we do it at gunpoint and are Proud of Ourselves, while we're at it.

I think I would be hardpressed to decide if Alabama or us could find more detractors there or stateside.

Aaron Miller
Joined
May '10
Aaron Miller
flownover: So Southern ~Is there a better song than "Little Sister " ?

If not for Lynyrd Skynrd, I doubt many Europeans would be familiar with Alabama.

When my sister mentioned to someone in Trinidad that she was from Texas, the man asked her if she knew John Wayne. I hear some Yankees think we still ride horses to school.

Nanda Panjandrum
Joined
Nov '11
Nanda Panjandrum

As ever, spot on, King...oops, I mean, Your Majesty.

Pablo
Joined
Mar '12
Pablo

Spot on. Only Disneyworld and Las Vegas missing as most people mentioned already. I will show it to my British co-workers on Monday so they can correct it in case we missed something here. Just one last question, the red color for Texas is because of the blood of all the inocents killed by the gun crazies, isn't it? I am sure my dear british friends will ask.

Ethan Safron
Bradley University
Ethan Safron

Bern SHN

Valiuth

Ethan Safron: Phew, my state (Illinois) can finally have some fiscal responsibility. · 3 hours ago

Not in this life time...we are doomed my friend. · 4 hours ago

It's absolutely brutal.  Just hadanotherin a series of conversations with friends about us getting the you-know-what out of here.  We don't have California's weather so it's only family ties keeping my wife and I from fleeing.

My brother-in-law and his family are making the move to the Nashville area as soon as the kids are finished with school in June.  (I hear North Carolina's nice.) · Apr 19 at 10:14pm

Yes we are doomed, but the good news that we are all doomed.

Forget moving to a different state, we should work on colonizing Antarctica. Or the bottom of the ocean.

Edited on April 21, 2012 at 9:22am
Not JMR
Joined
Nov '10
Not JMR

D.B. Little: 

Manhattan is, as far as I can tell the only place they seem to think of as Real. Hollywood, Disneyworld, Washington DC, they are all amusement parks to them as far as I can tell.

Funny, considering midtown Manhattan is about as real as the Champs Elysees. Does anybody really shop at the M&M store? Really?

Charles Mark
Joined
Aug '10
Charles Mark

Substitute Alabama/Mississippt for most or all of Texas (which still has a certain cachet, GWB notwithstanding) and call New England Boston, and the map would be closer to the mark, at least as far as my part of Europe is concerned. The satellite version would show those structures visible from the moon, such as the Great Border Wall and moat and all those mega churches.

Red Feline
Joined
Apr '12
Alainnah Robertson

TV has an influence along with movies and music. So, think Dallas, friends and Hotel California back when we all watched TV and listened to the same songs around the world. I thought Canada would be a cross between Happy Days and The Love Boat.

Wade Moore
Joined
Jul '11
Wade Moore

I see a fair number of Europeans in Chicago during the summer, so you could include that.  I am sure they don't know what state it is in, so having it in Texas would be fine. 

Regarding Florida, it would consist of only Orlando and a strip along the coast near Miami.

And California would just be a strip along the coast and Las Vegas.


Joined
Apr '11
D.B. Little

Mississippt as a substitute is probably pretty good, but that is just Jesusland after all.

And as for Yankees thinking we still ride on horseback, it isn't just  that-- they think we live on the backlot of Universal, riding around on horses. Nothing but desert and cactuses. More than one of them has said they couldn't believe that, on debarking from DFW, there weren't cactuses all over the field and horses everywhere.

I do find one thing strange and that was my folks had raised cattle (nothing surprising around here; I had to learn how to there as well) and not one of them had used horses since trucks had been invented because horses are skittish and profoundly expensive beasts and you could not find a horse around unless there was some rich guy who just liked to have them around.

But now that the Yankees and the Califonians have come, most the Fort Worth area--  which is the fastest growing area in Texas now- - they have horses in their backyards like a dog or something back there.

HeartofAmerica
Joined
Aug '11
HeartofAmerica

Not just Europe views the USA as such. I work with a number of Indian contractors whose parents regularly call them to check on their welfare. They are very worried that their sons are fighting Native Americans, dodging cattle and watching gunfights in the streets. Apparently they think we all live in Dodge City circa 1865.


Joined
Feb '11
eyrkos

One of my good friends taught English in Korea for a few years during the 90's. When he was asked where he was from, he'd answer, "Texas."

The Koreans, almost to a man, would always answer back, "Ah Texas; bang bang," while making pistol motions with their hands.

Yep.

The Great Adventure!
Joined
Dec '10
The Great Adventure!

I'm constantly amazed at the reaction I get from a lot of people east of the Rockies.  

Easterner: Where are you from?

TGA: Portland

Easterner:  I've always wanted to see Washington - I hear it's beautiful.

Later (even after I've corrected them that it is in Oregon, not Washington), Easterner speaking to someone else

Easterner:  Oh, he's from Washington.

I mean really!  What would be their response if they told me that they were from St. Louis and I told them that I thought Kansas was a remarkable place?

The King Prawn
Joined
Dec '10
The King Prawn

TGA, I feel your pain. It's difficult for people to comprehend that I live near Seattle but not in it. You should see me trying to explain that even though I physically live less than 15 miles from Seattle it still takes an hour and a half to get there. Geography confounds many. Being from Texas but not having an accent also throws people for a loop.

Sisyphus
Joined
Jul '10
Sisyphus

Ethan Safron

...

Forget moving to a different state, we should work on colonizing Antarctica. Or the bottom of the ocean.

Finding Nemo?


Joined
Apr '11
Boots on the Table

From the looks of it most of our problems would be solved if we let Mexico have California and let Canada have New York. 

Alaska should be RED and we'll keep Hawaii and call it vacationland.


Joined
Apr '11
D.B. Little

I, frankly, don't want to start any precedents by allowing Mexico have anything, and I wouldn't even give Manhattan to Canada. We do still need to petition from a position of strength. 

I think we should go take Cuba back and call it Vacationland, just like the old days...


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