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OT: America doesn't = U.S.A(non-political,please)


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Why is it the U.S citizens always call the country America, and refer to themselves as Americans? Everybody in South and North America are Americans. It's something I always thought was weird. IMO, God Bless America, refers to both continents.

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It's a good question. But nevertheless, a lot of people overseas refer to this place as "America", not just, er, us "Americans"! :D
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Oh, almost forgot - we don't want to leave our Central Americans out of this, either!!! When I go to Peru, the Peruvians love to joke and say that we are both Americans. Norteamericanos y Sudamericanos y Centroamericanos...todos nuestros Americanos es uno...(bad grammar)
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[b] [quote]I've always thought this was an example of our "Manifest Destiny" way of thinking.[/quote][/b] Nope, just plain 'ol American arrogance! :D Really though, I don't think the US started it. It's a European thing that will never go away. Hawaiians have the same problem when tourists say "they are going back to the states". Locals want to scream in there face "where do you think you are?" Ask a Kansan to pronounce Arkansas and it will not be ar-kan-saw, even if the rest of the country does. etc. etc. etc.

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Ummmm... Just because the citizens of OTHER nations of the "America's" are ALSO Americans... I DOESN'T mean that citizens of the US AREN'T also AMERICANS. So, we can call ourselves that, and be right... :thu: guitplayer

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[quote]Originally posted by guitplayer: [b]Ummmm... Just because the citizens of OTHER nations of the "America's" are ALSO Americans... I DOESN'T mean that citizens of the US AREN'T also AMERICANS. So, we can call ourselves that, and be right... :thu: guitplayer[/b][/quote]Yeah, I agree with you. But I also think that US citizens don't really think of Canadians, Mexicans, Panamanians, etc., as "Americans" even thought they are.

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Alright, even more picky. This is the United States OF (of = belonging to) America. America is the country. The CONTINENT is NORTH America. With Canadians and Mexicans, we can all call ourselves "North Americans" much like France, UK, Germany, etc. are "Europeans". Panamanians are also Central Americans, but they don't seems to use it. A similar problem: What about New York? A "New Yorker" seems to be one in NY City, but can someone in Buffalo be a Buffaloian and a New Yorker? Is someone in New York a New Yorker AND a New Yorker? In Seattle, we are Seattleites, but also Washingtonians. TMI, TMI
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[quote]Originally posted by paostby: [b](of = belonging to) [/b][/quote][i]Of[/i] has many uses. in this case I use it as [/i]belonging to[/i] which can also be [i]part of[/i]. Either way, America is the country. North America is the continent. Canadians aren't Americans. They can be North Americans, as all on this continent can be. Of course, it all depends on what the definition of [i]is[/i] is.
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Sweet G.M. Chrysler, you're just lucky the continent got labelled with a first name and not the last name, or you'd be a bunch of Vespuccians. God Bless Vespucci. Vespucci, love it or leave it.
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For once, I agree with you, Sal. We are a myopic country with regards to the rest of the world. Let's face it, we have 2 major sports that ignore the rest of the world. 2 others only recognize Canadian teams along with U.S. ones. Our participation in soccer, the world's most popular sport is barely visible in the sports pages. When it comes to films, we barely acknowledge the rest of the world exists. In music, we tend to adopt everything that fits the U.S. mold of what's popular, even when a specific trend originated elsewhere. So yes, we have a tendency to roll over the rest of the Americas with our use of the word. Paost, you can slice and dice the semantics all you want, but what you've written makes no sense. We are the United States of America. The, "united states", means we're individual political areas bound as one. "Of America" indicates we're located on one of the American continents. America is recognized as our country, but in a strictly definitive sense, that's a misnomer. I tend to liken it to use of the word, "gyped", when I was a kid. I had no idea this was a swipe at the stereotype that Gypsies were all scam artists. So I used it.. until I found out what it meant. Using "America" to refer to the United States isn't really derogatory in the way "gyped" is, so I don't think we'll move away from it any time soon. It's become part of our vernacular, for better or worse. I don't think most other American people worry too much about it unless they have another issue with the U.S. They know where they're from. :D

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fantasticsound, Actually I had a Guyanese roomate in college, and it always used to irk him when people would say stuff like "So, are you going to become an American," or "How do you like it in America,".

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...because there's no other fuckin' cunt-ry within North, Central or South America with the name "America" in it... Let me double check.. Belize. Argentina. Suriname. Chile. Peru. Venezuela. Falkland Islands. Guatemala. Ecuador. Panama. Mexico. Columbia. [i][b]Jamerica[/b]...(oops, fuck 'em - they smoke too much weed anyways)[/i] Costa Rica. Paraguay. Bolivia. Uruguay. Canada. San Francisco. French Guyana. Honduras. El Salvador. As you can clearly see, not one of these places has "America" explicitly laid out in it's name. --- Americans are a self centered (narcisstic) bunch though. --------------------- Memo to self: Quit agreeing with Neil.
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According to Webster's dictionary, America: 1)- either continent (S. America or N. America) of the western hemisphere 2)- [i]or[/i] "the Americas", the lands of the western hemisphere including N., Central, & S. America & the W. Indies 3)- United States of America United States of America, or United States: 1)- country, N. America, bordering on Atlantic, Pacific, & Arctic oceans; a federal republic 2)- the United States of America with dependencies & possessions American ([i]adjective[/i]) (1598): 1)- of or relating to America 2)- of or relating to the U.S. or its possessions or original territory 3)- of or relating to the division of mankind that comprises the Indians of N. America and S. America American ([i]noun[/i]) : 1)- an Indian of N. America or S. America 2)- a native or inhabitant of N. America or S. America 3)- a citizen of the U.S.
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[quote]Originally posted by Jeep: [b]According to Webster's dictionary, America: 1)- either continent (S. America or N. America) of the western hemisphere 2)- [i]or[/i] "the Americas", the lands of the western hemisphere including N., Central, & S. America & the W. Indies 3)- United States of America United States of America, or United States: 1)- country, N. America, bordering on Atlantic, Pacific, & Arctic oceans; a federal republic 2)- the United States of America with dependencies & possessions American ([i]adjective[/i]) (1598): 1)- of or relating to America 2)- of or relating to the U.S. or its possessions or original territory 3)- of or relating to the division of mankind that comprises the Indians of N. America and S. America American ([i]noun[/i]) : 1)- an Indian of N. America or S. America 2)- a native or inhabitant of N. America or S. America 3)- a citizen of the U.S.[/b][/quote]What a guy! Thanks, this clears it up. :thu:

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[quote]Originally posted by paostby: [b] In Seattle, we are Seattleites, but also Washingtonians. [/b][/quote]You can't be a Washingtonian. People from Washington, D.C. are Washingtonians, and we certainly don't need any more! :p
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[quote]Originally posted by Falcon: [b]Ask a Kansan to pronounce Arkansas and it will not be ar-kan-saw, even if the rest of the country does. [/b][/quote]How are you supposed to pronounce Arkansas?
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