“America is a large friendly dog in a very small room,” observed British historian Arnold J. Toynbee. “Every time it wags its tail, it knocks over a chair.”
And Spanish poet Federico Garcia Lorca said, “The only things that the United States has given to the world are skyscrapers, jazz, and cocktails.”
Opinions of America are like bellybuttons — everybody’s got one.
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As part of Project Xpat – an exploration by NPR – we asked Americans living abroad to tell us in 10 words or less, how they would answer the 10-word question: What Do People In Your Host Country Think Of America?
Here are some of the responses:
“Has a limited worldview and is absolutely crazy about guns.” –Andrea Eagleman, 33, New Zealand
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“Americans: violent, no culture; but you: humble, kind and different.” — Chantal Mpezo, 27, South Korea
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“America, the land of optimism, excess, economic and political decline.” — Yasmine Qureshi, 28, England
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“Most find America delightful. Tourism dollars help quite a lot.” — Brian Blakely, 30, Morocco
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“Fashion labels, excess money, beauty, USA means beautiful country.” — Renee Baker, 37, China
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“Full of contradictions: confusingly progressive yet behind the times.” — Thomas Mosley, 25, Spain
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“A place to gasp at, but not to go to.” — Holly-Nicole Nwangwa, 23, Japan
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“Americans are very patriotic and all have guns.” — Carly Erickson, 25, Italy
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“Americans are aggressive, paranoid gun-hoarders who don’t want social healthcare.” — Towy Vaughn, 38, China
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“Cheap iPhones, rap music and better movies exist in America.” — Brenna Bethancourt, 28, Russia
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“Gun-loving but fun-loving; hard working but spoiled and fat.” — Anastasia Primbas, 47, Hungary
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The Protojournalist: Experimental storytelling for the LURVers – Listeners, Users, Readers, Viewers – of NPR. @NPRtpj
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