Quote:
Originally posted by texas*princess
Am I the only one who finds this amusing? The "Go Canadian" thing was started off when someone jokingly said they'll pretend to be Canadians so they don't have to deal with political BS on their vacation...
...As far as "rethinking" our behavior -- I am a productive citizen. I don't have a crimial record, I pay taxes, and all that jazz...but I'm only one person. There's not much I can do to change the way thousands of other countries' citizens feel about my country or their generalizations of my fellow Americans...
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This is not a "Bush thing". Like RACooper said, this has been happening for quite some time. Not just since Bush took office.
Also, my suggestion that one "rethinks" their behaviour was not directed at you or anyone on this board. It was a general statement. If anyone thinks it is necessay to pose as a citizen of a different country then maybe it's because they are poorly behaved on their travels. One will find that if they are polite, resepectful, co-operative, etc. then they will be treated the same way. This also is not just an American thing. It applies to everyone. If you are a courteous traveller, then you will most likely be treated with courtesy.
And there are things that you can do as one person to change other views of your country. The problem with stereotypes is that they are partially true. Some people, somewhere are living up to them. You, as a single individual can not get caught up in the stereotype (and I am in no way suggesting that you perpetuate any kind of stereotype).
Basically, all I am saying is, if you (that's a general "you"), as a traveller, have found yourself to be treated badly along your journey, then maybe it's something you did, i.e poor behaviour, and not your country.