Honestly I don’t meet the Yanks all that much regularly. I have a couple friends who I see semi frequently, and they’re obviously ok. The Americans here at Hexbear are super cool. Since Covid lockdowns are breaking, I’ve been seeing more of them randomly. And in the conversations with them, I’m seeing a lot of mean-ish comments along the lines of “haha, you did something I’m not used to”.
For example, in the past month, I’ve gotten called out for:
- asking a guy at a literal commie beer event if he was a “comrade”
- using the metric system
- moving away from a boring conversation topic by asking a person what their job is, without a good convo transition
- saying colonisation changed African countries
- saying conservatives care more about aesthetics
- joking that I pray to Lenin every morning (thank you lib for pointing out that this isn’t what socialism is)
Honestly sarcasm is good and fine with friends. Like, if the love is clearly there, then ya tease me a bit. Dunno, but it feels like these people treat conversations as a competitive sport. Oh ya, these people are all massive libs as well.
Are you encountering these Americans in the US or in another country? If it’s the latter, I would say you are engaging with wealthy Americans who are high on their own bullshit and used to getting their ass kissed regardless of how they behave because they have money. If it’s the former, I’d probably say the same thing . The whole “what is your job?” thing is pretty ubiquitous in the US though. American culture dictates that one’s employment defines them as an individual and is a both a class marker and a reflection that vocational training constitutes the vast majority of education here. It’s entirely possible that someone might not have much to contribute to any conversation that isn’t at least tangentially related to their career, regardless of how “educated” they perceive themselves to be. This also explains the very distorted and superficial comments you’ve observed regarding politics, history, anthropology, etc. The humanities are very maligned and chastised as being “useless” in the US. Pretty gross and sad… I consciously avoid talking about my occupation with anyone unless there is a very specific reason to do so and relish the opportunity to engage in a decent conversation that doesn’t devolve into the slop you posted about.
