Why Do Europeans Dislike Americans? (What is Happening in the US?)) 

Hi there. Do you find this accurate or would you disagree?

Europe is not just Germany and France

333 million Americans, I think it's more politics than people. Loud people get noticed quickly, so you're more likely to come across 'brash Yanks'....rather than Americans who are decent, quiet and less ethnocentric. The loudest one in the room is the weakest one in the room....I have met both types, living in Lublin.

Good Morning ! I don’t think Americans care if they are disliked. :)

I have been lucky to spend a lot of time outside the US. I am a Army veteran. I signed up to defend this nation. Yet, this place is a mess and I am stuck here, as I am over 50. We could be so much better. I am quiet when I travel. I am not self centered, but I am not what you see in American media. Many are like me, but we don't get noticed. Hopefully, we grow up as a nation. And soon.

As an American who has spent much of the past 50 years living in Europe, I have a couple of things to say. One, as far as thinking they are the best in the world, the French take the cake. Two, what most Europeans have a hard time understanding, the U.S. is geographically a very big country and is not one culture. There are many parts of the country where I do not feel at home and attitudes of people in one area towards those in another area are much like, say, the attitudes of people in one European country towards those of another. Belgian jokes in France = West Virginia jokes in northern states, etc. It seems to be human nature to make sweeping generalizations and stereotype others and mock them if possible. The world would be a better place if we all just took each person as a representative only of themselves, but I don't see it happening.

I think some of the harshness in the criticism the US gets for their policies also results from disappointment. We expect more from people we like and somehow, maybe unconsciously, idealise. If they fail (in our eyes) they often get more criticism than someone we didn't think much of in the first place.

As an indigenous American with tribal citizenship, (that means am a dual citizen)I always found these view points about America having no culture so limited and quite frankly uninformed and ignorant. We have over 169 indigenous languages here that are actively spoken. Along with 326 sovereign nations with their own government to government relationships, constitutions, treaties, police force, tax policies, etc. there are currently 574 federally recognized tribes. We have HUNDREDS of rich living cultures within turtle island (United States). It has been my experience in Europe that they understand our native cultures are departed and reduced to folklore, which is largely propelled by media propaganda. We have our own philosophies, ways of life, culinary knowledge, ceremonies, name places, rights of passage, relationship to the land that many foreigners don’t know or care to seek out. Every time I travel to Western Europe I find myself schooling folks about our history that was here LONG before the doctrine of discovery was implemented. The first part of the American story and its laws is based upon us. Even our women’s suffrage came from the women of the consulting of the haudenosaunee women. Good Grief! Let’s do better !

I've worked with a lot of people internationally and I have to say, I don't really meet people from other countries who seem to dislike Americans in particular. Sure, I suppose they could keep it to themselves since I am American, but I usually try to discuss their country, their people, their history and also my own and the verdict tends to be that Americans are interesting, capable, and most of all friendly. I've actually been very surprised by the number of different cultures that have told me Americans are the friendliest people they've ever met (and in a good way, not uncomfortable way). From Brits to Persians to Chinese... I think your experience has been a selection bias. Just like there seem to be many extreme leftist opinions emanating from the US now, and they exist, but they're a vocal minority. I can't think of a place I'd rather live, honestly. We've got our flaws, no question, but I'm happy to be an American.

As a half German, half American I have become more and more irritated by my European friends and family as well as the younger American generation. America is more than just McDonalds, and I find it ironic that Americans today join in on the cultural stigmatization of their own country. It's like in order not to be perceived as the "ignorant American", expat Americans embrace a European position of ignorance towards America. Everybody's ignorant; open up your minds and put your resentments aside.

I just discovered your channel. You can tell I am an American, because I would describe it as, Awesome! LOL. A couple of things - Yeah, we suck. (sigh) Oh, brother, we got that out of the way. We live in 2024, but people forget context, and by that I mean history, and that is how each of us on this planet got to this very day, regardless of who is reading my comment on your video. Americans are people that are not defined by geography or ethnicity. Americans came to this continent as explorers, adventurers, slaves, indentured servants, fleeing political or religious persecution, searching for a better life, a second chance, or they were kicked out their home country. This trend continues to this day. Americans have very close ties to the home country of their heritage, whether real or imagined, as annoying as it may be to those still left in the "Old Country." This is why we became involved in two world wars, (remember who started them) and the Cold War, not to mention the bloodbath in Ukraine and the Middle East, and still have US military all over the world. Considering the conflicts of the last 110 years, would Europe and Asia want us to pack up our boys and girls and toys, and come back home? We don't spend $700 billion a year to protect the US, but to protect you. Yeah, we don't have culture, we are a bunch of rednecks, entitled loud obnoxious, fat ignoramuses. The United States is the oldest, oldest, continuous representative constitutional democracy in world history. Thank you, Britain, for your traditions and language in laying the foundation for this achievement. Yeah, we have a lot of conflict. Every day. Living in America is like constantly arguing with your wife, friends and family and being in court. Remember the American Civil War, or the War of Northern Aggression, depending on where you are from - 650, 000 men Killed in Action, plus our best President, Abe Lincoln, assassinated. Eventually, we resolve our conflicts and come up with a solution and move on. Thank God and our forefathers for the Constitution and the rule of law. Our culture is a rich stew made up of all peoples from all over the world. American music, innovation in all fields and endeavors of science, engineering, art, are because of the talent of immigrants who became citizens, slaves who became free, and the world that celebrates the gifts these Americans gave us. And our culture bounces back across the world and comes back and is refined and improved and sent back out to the world. American music is the best example. Many Americans would state that The Beatles and The Rolling Stones are an American Band. Nothing more American. They are, of course, British, who were influenced by American Black blues, rockabilly and country, they made it their own, revolutionized and sent it back our way. So many examples of so many endeavors where this has happened. Something about America where this freedom of creativity can happen. I guess because people have the freedom to fail here and then find redemption. But, the real thing that is the unspoken or very difficult to express reason, that people all over the world do not like about Americans and The United States is this - You can move to France. You can move to China. You can move to Germany, or Egypt or any other country in the World. You can get a passport and be a legal citizen. You can be fluent in whatever language in your whatever adopted country. But, y'all, ain't ever gonna become a Frenchman, or Chinese, or German, or Egyptian, I don't care if you renounced your citizenship, or how well you blended in. However, you can be from India. You can be from Nigeria. You can be from Vietnam. You can be from Italy. You can be from El Salvador, or any other country or place on this planet. Hell, you can be from the UK, even- And you can become an American. An American, just as American as me - true American, an American as John Wayne, George Washington or Vivek Ramaswamy. That is what makes us different- We are not defined by geography or ethnicity.

It's the richest kids with the most options that are most upset.

Another interesting presentation. I look forward to your videos. As for today's topic, I'm an American who, like most Americans, has my roots from somewhere else. In my case, my entire ancestry comes from northern Germany and is not far removed. I knew my German grandparents. When in Germany, we visit old family areas where we blend in and appear not so much as tourists in that our 'Americanism' is not apparent. That interaction has shown us that average people living their day to day lives don't differ much between the U.S. and Germany. We experience things beneath the cloud of media representations of what 'life is like'. The U.S. is a place where citizens can make or let the country be whatever they act or choose not to act on. To some, that process is too slow and feel they need to 'escape' the current conditions. In closing, a thought entered my mind at the end of the video: "Americans, you can't live with them and you can't live without them."

There is no general “European culture” just like there is no general “American culture”. As a German-born who has lived in New England and now the Deep South, I can assure you there is a wide variety of culture, well-known and not so well-known. And modern American culture has produced more than just Google, Apple and Tesla. The intersection of cultures, mostly European and American has dominated what the world has achieved over the last 150 years or so (building on what was before) - and yes, that includes setbacks. What would music and literature and art in general look like today without America? Just think about that alone. So let’s enjoy what is available and continue to learn from each other perhaps?

To answer you question in the video's title: in the 1960s, the marxist intelligencia decided that Americans were too fat and happy to have a proletarian revolution. So, our education system has slowly been subverted to emphasize self hatred to bring about a communist revolution.

What Europeans get wrong about American culture is that it’s a culture that didn’t emerge from urban concentrations (citadels and towns) with their surpluses of wealth devoted to non-productive activies (such as arts and crafts) and religious patronage that built enormous cathedrals, but it’s a culture that emerged from capitalism, and specifically (and no surprisingly) entertainment. So it’s a culture that needs the market validation and it’s limited by it, and that gravitates around, heavily I’d say, imagery and spectacle, whether films, tv, musical shows, theme parks, etc. Even food in America is often portrayed (and sold) as a show, with 3 inches of cheese on pretty much everything and burgers the size of a lorry. Just saying that they are different cultures misses, in its self-evident rhetoric, a crucial element. Not only they are different, but their parameters and values system are in opposite axis. Europeans value their culture because that’s what they have been fed with, literally. But taking the same parameters in the absence of historical circumstances and judging other cultures in terms of their worth is ridiculous and frankly ignorant. The real question to me is whether we will be watching and admiring old American films, or any other visual artefact for that, in a century from now in the same way that we admire and rejoice on a centuries’ old cathedral, castle, and generally the architecture in Europe. I don’t have a crystal ball but that to me, the passage of time, is the only judge I’d listen to.

Hi, a thought provoking video once again.! Great. As to the outgoing, less shy americans you have met or encountered while traveling, or are now living abroad, it is the type of personality that eagerly WANTS to travel, see new things, experience new cultures, are aware of the differences, good and bad. While I lived in the USA -in my teen and young adult years-, only about 1% in high school and 2% in college who "dared" to take a year abroad / go on an exchange programme. Most of my school and college mates had no passport, or had only gone to Canada or Mexico if at all out of the USA. Most of my friends were, like me first generation born in America or had arrived as children. We lived a dual culture every day. The now more concentrated media landscape (only 5 major corporations now where it used to be over 200 3 decades ago) gives a false and skewed picture of the USA when we consume any media stemming from them. Much is aimed to a 12 year old level. (Alas!) I too am grateful for many innovations and technology out of USA.

Funny thing about the political leaning, for me as an American living in Germany, when I met my SPD-voting in-laws and extended family, at first they probed my politics to see if I was a Trumper, and they found out not and were initially relieved, but after a few more minutes of probing my politics they realized "oh, he's to the left of us... by a lot... by a lot a lot."

At the moment, with a view to November, it is perhaps more fear than dislike.

Culture, in the simplest definition, is way of life. To say that there's no culture is to say that there's no life. I think it's more on the perception that one's culture is dominant/better than the other. If you look at it in the lens of arts, music, traditions - they do exist in the US. In fact, it is often mimicked around the world. It's so easy to form stereotypes in a country that is heavily observed around the world. But if you go down to the nooks and crannies of it - there's so much of it that you don't know.

This is a thoughtful video, but I have to say, in shame, that Americans have been treated appallingly by Europeans in the past 50 years or so. Europeans do indeed think that their culture is superior, but just look what it had decayed into by 1939. Dictatorship was the continental norm in so many European states. American tourists in Europe are frequently ridiculed by pompous conceited Europeans to an extent that would be regarded as racist if it applied to people from other countries. I am absolutely no sympathiser with Trump, but chickens are starting to come home to roost. There is a genuine feeling growing in the U.S.A. that they have been wasting their money on the defence of Europe. Some are returning to the isolationist opinions that dominated U.S. politics before 1941. Meanwhile, Europe is starting to realise that they have run their armed forces into the ground and would be highly vulnerable if Putin decided to put N.A.T.O. to the test. Fear of this possibility could force Europeans, by necessity, into appeasement. The E.U. is starting to look increasingly absurd, as it is the first empire in human history that has been constructed without any concern for its defence. The worst culprit here is Germany. For such a successful and wealthy nation to ignore the possibility of external dangers is almost criminally negligent. I would like to think that 2022 woke up Europeans, but even on this thread of replies I notice a stupid comment blaming the Americans for the invasion of Ukraine. The pointless bigotry against the country paying the bills for European defence continues. Future historians will have the final word on this sorry tale.

I am an indigenous American, as in having pre-Columbian roots here, and I always cringe a bit when people describe America as young and having only a shallow, short-lived culture. We've been here since prehistoric times. Furthermore, modern American culture owes a lot to us, including much that we have exported to the rest of the world. The engineering principles behind suspension bridges and other structures that rely on tension rather than gravity alone? That was us. Supercrops that other people still can't figure out how we bred them, such as corn and potatoes? Also us. Even the modern concept of democracy, that enfranchised people who didn't own land, we did that (granted, the Scandinavians had something similar, but lost it to feudalism. Greek democracy and the Magna Carta didn't even come close to shedding the concept of hierarchy. We invented real democracy.) Quite a few subtle attitudes that distinguish Americans from the rest of the world come from us. And we are ancient.

Why is it that when people compare American culture to European culture, they always take current American culture, or American culture since the 1950s, and compare it to European culture from hundreds of years ago? Believe it or not, American culture did exist before the 1950s. I am a student of American culture in the 1800s, and when someone mentions American culture, I think of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the short stories and poems of Edgar Allen Poe, the short stories of Nathaniel Hawthorne, the songs of Stephen Foster, the songs of the Civil War, the speeches of Abraham Lincoln, the poems of Walt Whitman, the essays of Ralph Waldo Emerson, etc. These products of American culture are worthy of great respect, esteem, and study. So, when I hear Europeans say America has no culture, I want to bring up these and other cultural works of the 1800s, not McDonald's or Walmart or recent television shows.

As young man I saw the US as the good guy. Then I grew wiser and learnt what they have done to divide Europe with orchestration of the war in Ukraine. Than they blew up nordstream and now I dislike the country I was once born in.

Hello dear. I'm working at the airport Frankfurt. Here is what I observed in the past two years: In 2022 the overall impression and experience I made was that the majority of American visitors seemed to have forgotten how to behave as a guest in a foreign country. All stereotype were checked marked on a daily bases, when I interacted with them. Last year it got a lot better. Just here and there you had to take a deep breathe, if you know what I mean. Now this year so far, I can tell that American visitors seem to have done some research before they travel and it has been a pleasure to host them. I can still spot them a mile away (clothing for example), but the other stereotypes, such as being loud, obnoxious, etc. aren't really present. Thanks you for your great videos. Always enjoy them.

The irony is some Europeans don’t like us but they do enjoy American products from Apple gadgets to American movies and shows on Netflix/Amazon Prime/Disney+/Max/Apple TV to shopping on Amazon and spending time on RU-vid.

There is no single American culture. American cultures vary depending on what part of the country is being examined. Cultures in the US are an amalgam of indigenous cultures and the cultures brought by people who came from Europe, Africa, Asia and other parts of the world. Many of the imported cultures evolved further in the new nation from their original forms.

Interesting take, America isn't loved by many Americans. Many of us still love the land and people and aspects of the many cultures here and we have so many reasons for critiquing ourselves. Some of us need more exposure to the world, but many people in the USA just need to appreciate what we have and make it better rather than allowing radicals to destroy and manipulate us from the inside out. We've fallen for the BS and love to hate eachother and punish eachother for our different beliefs. We've got a lot of culture though. Culturally, the South is different in dialects, food and bahavior than the West or North. The homogenous aspect is on the surface and tends to be very blunt, but there's more to us than that. We are asking to be disliked, however.

A huge issue is that perceptions of the USA are formed based on coverage of the Northeast US and the West Coast as what the US is like. The entirety of the middle of the US is ignored in news, and popular culture, other than to paint those of us in the South or the middle of the country as rubes.

Amazing video, hits the nail quite well! Greetings from Germany :)

I think my country should have a pause on helping other countries. We are damned if we do and damned if we don't.

Disinterested = impartial, unbiased, neutral; Uninterested = having no interest in.

Thank you for this fair and even-handed assessment, which was very refreshing. As a US citizen, I can say that as a country we do have a sort of collective sense of inferiority, contrary to what people think and what our image portrays to the world. I have traveled extensively in Europe and S. America and the thing that frustrated me most was that so many people have stereotypical views of who Americans are -- both positive and negative. I understand why many Europeans feel negatively toward us, but many of them have never been to this country and don't understand that many of us do not fit their pre-conceived notions of who we are.

Ironic since so many American traditions are German in origin.

I don’t, and I think people who think “Americans” are stupid aren’t the brightest bulb in the socket either

Spoiler alert: we dont care and will try to carry on without you

I guess because most other countries only see the superficial, consumerist world culture America exports, Europeans think America has no culture. The US actually has very diverse subcultures, and the culture varies significantly by region. The demographics are different, and even the way people speak or what they eat.

I’ve found also as bourne out in the vid that the more Liberal left-leaning people are, the less they like Americans..I agree it’s a lot to do with their own self-loathing, Scots and Irish have a similar hatred of the English.. it’s the same of modern migration in the US and Europe, those coming with their ‘hand out’ don’t like Americans and Brits. Which is odd! I like American self-confidence, but I also like the modesty of Western Europeans. I find Eastern Europeans a bit brash and vulgar.

I have been working in a company which was part of several US corporations and had to comply with export and trade regulations of the US. I find that Germans and to that degree Europeans make a point of not knowing how intertwined with the US their own history actually is. E.g. the Ottoman empire had pirates who regularly raided ships in the Mediterranean to enslave people and European countries merely paid tribute to them to keep seaways safe. It was the US who put an end to this by dispatching troops to Northern Africa and and completely raiding a pirate city at a time when European countries considered such an action inconceivable. Or did you know that Kaizen is not a Japanese management technique but a US American one introduced to Japan to enable Japan after WW2 to recover and meet the productivity expectations of the US? As to different mindsets: "Asterix and Obelix" was a hugely successful comic series not just in France but throughout Europe. In the US it failed. When researching why it was found that US readers identified themselves not with the heroes of the story i.e. the Gauls but with the Romans who are made fun of in that series.

Yes, it is true that the USA has no culture. I saw American films in 90s years and I have got to this conclusion. I am a Russian from Russia.

Its not just europeans, most people dislike intolerant people who look down on other cultures, Americans are wired to think this way of other ways of living. So naturally people from other countries dislike them.

I lived in Canada for a while so was used to a lot of criticism of the US. I would not live in the US due to 3 main factors; healthcare is not universal, too many guns on the streets and the use of capital punishment.

American exceptionalism meets any form of valid criticism and reads it as dislike ;)

As a Brit abroad (Mexico). I meet many Americans who are vibrant yet dull, I put it down to an innate self confidence and an indifference to that beyond their own borders.

07:00 very subjective and moot point. They just have a different culture.....claiming otherwise would just be arrogant

Most Europeans including me do not dislike americans! And don´t forget Europe is much more than France, Germany and the UK!

My comment got deleted. So much for democracy and freedom of speech on a US platform.

That feeling you had in Australia of awkwardness, wasn't awkwardness but humility and self-awareness. It's so important to remember that you're not the center of attention in the new country. I love my American friends, but it's always quite tiring seeing an American immigrant in Europe, bringing that "I'm special" aura about them. I know several Americans at work, and I actively avoid them when I can, that toxic positivity is nauseating, along with ingrained brown-nosing of higher ups.

European are critical on the US because they care. Other countries, we couldn't care less.

well thats not an easy question while its an easy answer at the same time.i do like americans as in american people even they are a bit shallow and good weather friends they are fun to have around..but politically i dont like america at all . first ... the americans were never a political friend of germany and even ww2 was ages ago we are still a slightly american occupied country and lets be honest...american politics are slowly getting insane and america turned into the bully of the world

Nothing much has changed basically. I left the US in 1977. Everything that has happened there since and everything I've experienced here since, has only confirmed, that I made the proper personal choice for me at the time. No regrets.

Well, Skype was Estonian, wasn't it? Just bought up, as they do!

Foreign policy is always for the better of your own country. You may want to be painting it as giving democracy, better living, freedom or whatsoever but at the end it is to strengthen your own country’s position, influence and strength. Is it as I wish it was or I think it should be? Absolutely not!!! But we live in the world we have and changes take place slowly, very slowly only. Is the USA the hero it saw itself and still sees itself today? Sometimes they try to do good and if it fits their own interest the more likely they are going to do it. Do I disagree or even hate them for things they do? Yes! There are things that they did which I hate from the bottom of my heart. Especially when they lie and abuse others to put them to pull their carriage to achieve their goals. Do I like them for things they do? Absolutely! I admire them for their “We can” attitude for example. For their attitude to see failure just as a part of the learning process. Do I not understand them at all for their religion hardliners, their anti-social attitude and everyone for himself attitude? Yes. And I fell sorry for them to not understanding the concept of social welfare to, at least try, to give a baseline support and hopefully enabling those that had fallen into poverty for whatever reason to return to a status where they can be a helpful part of society. Btw: I did not use the often preferred “productive part of society” description because it implies usually working for money and excludes any work or engagement you are not receiving money for.

I've been to Europe a lot over the last 20 years and I'm headed there again in 3 weeks, if I wasn't interested I wouldn't go. But over the years, especially the last 10 years or so, I've gotten the distinct impression that a lot of Europeans get mad when you don't bend the knee to their culture. As an American, I'm interested in different European cultures, but I'm not obsessed with it. I don't think it's better than my own culture. A lot of Europeans can't handle that. I think that there's also a bit of angst in Europe about how internationally ineffectual their countries have become. That's not the fault of the US. It's just a matter of different priorities. You can make any value judgment you want about that, but that's the reality of it. And I've always found it interesting. How Europeans latch on to some of the trashiest elements of us culture and then blame it on Americans. McDonald's isn't all over Paris because there are so many American tourists who can't do without McDonald's. It's full of McDonald's because Parisians love it. We do have great, homegrown, American food but that's not what Europeans are buying. They're buying the garbage and then they're blaming it on us. There's plenty to critique about us culture and politics. But that's not what you usually wind up hearing from people. I've met a lot of incredibly rude people on trains, restaurants, bars, parks- all over Europe. People hear you having a private conversation (not a loud one) And feel entitled to give you their misinformed opinions on us culture and politics as if they're experts. Yeah, a lot of the Lefty," I hate America" crowd Is annoying but at least they have a leg to stand on and skin in the game. I don't need to hear a German tell me about our healthcare system or maternity leave.

There are two United States of America. There are American citizens, ordinary people, who may or may not be "confident"or "proud." Then, on the world stage there is the "America" that you speak of, which is actually the government/military/industrial monolith that continuously drags the American people into wars and disturbances. It is not the children of the politicians, generals and corporate CEO's that die in those foreign conflicts and we wish they would FIRST send their own children.

It’s interesting. As a descendant of non-European immigrants to the US, I see the US, a bit from the outside looking in, as an extension of the historical European particularly British push to be number one on a global stage. “The sun never sets on the British Empire” is now “USA! USA! USA!” When I talk to South Asians / Indians who live here, most talk more fondly about Americans than the British (disdain for Churchill, colonialism, less overt classicism in the US vs. in England [or in India for that matter] etc.). When I talk to Native Americans, they understand that white Americans furthered their colonial European ancestors’ agendas e.g. regarding Manifest Destiny. When Europeans see Americans, they literally are looking at an extension of themselves and the realization of the value systems they propagated for the past several centuries. The rather non-interventionist and pacifistic mindset prevalent now in western Europe is more of a modern anomaly than the historical norm. I see the US, as a young country, continuing to mature and improve given its economic and geopolitical advantages. A lot of what started in post-US Civil War Reconstruction and carried over to the Civil Rights era (which is still going on) is being turned up in heat by modern social media. That’s fine. I expect the technology is shaving decades if not centuries off of the process needed to reach equilibrium. So yes, I’m an American who’s optimistic about the country now and going forward (even factoring in some kind of massive correction in cost of living vs. earning power that’s already long overdue and will impact the whole developed world). Now if I can just get my kids to be boisterous highly interpersonally interactive Americans and get off their social media!

Have a good Sunday, Ben and everyone else! The real reason the US wants to ban TikTok, in my opinion!

In my opinion, Europe has a great many left leaning people. But, having said that, what I saw in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the UK, France, Spain is that Left leaning and Far Right believers converge in many aspects. One is the love for Russia, another is the hate for Americans. Also, most Europeans believe themselves to be the pinnacle of human civilization and above reproach. I was in Germany when Trump was there in 2018 (if I'm not mistaken) and torpedoed Angela Merkel over buying 65% of Germany's energy needs from Russia and that NATO allies were spending too little on defense (less than 2%). I was never a Trump fan but I thought he had hit the mark there. I discussed that with many friends in Germany and the UK. They all ridiculed Trump and Americans in general. Now, after Brexit and the Ukrainian war in full swing, the mood is different. But it is still easy to find the pro-Russians ...

USA peaked late 50s into the 60s.

Europe is more than France, UK, Germany, Belgium or Netherlands.

you asked "what has changed?". To paraphrase Clinton...."'its the internet, stupid".

It doesn't matter what they think

Quite complicated due to many levels you can touch or ignore. You always will miss one cause you simply was not aware. Best example: you say the USA had invaded Somalia and had been totally defeated and needed to retreat fully. Guess how upset they will be: WE NEVER INVADED SOMALIA ! HOW CAN YOU .... And then you have to remind them nicely with HOLLYWOOD. It really needs Hollywood to make them think twice (at least most of them): BLACK HAWK DOWN Blockbuster title to remind them that US forces had been in Africa and that this operation is the symbol for a total defeat cause if you invade you have to accept the way the domestic citizens will fight. But the american public could not bear the news nor pictures and the USA hat do retreat, therefore a total defeat. Just one example how bad the education is and the awareness about foreign policy at least. Americans tend to convince and have a message - where the europeans can assume that it is not for their benefit. USA warns Europe about gas while the americans later sold their gas as LNG not for cheap, quite the opposite. They usually believe they can easily fight the russians and have no clue that they are like the roman empire beyond peak already. Too fat, too slow and weak and torn society , in the population and in the whole party / congress mess. The americans would get an even far more bloodier nose in the Ukraine than the Ukrainians. Why ? Cause their society can not deal with huge losses of lives, they never really could and the will for sacrifices is in russia 10x bigger than in the USA cause we call all the american adventures or rather invasions total defeats when they had to retreat. If you have to retreat after a single Helicopter crash and the following fights (be aware that people now believe in the pictures Hollywood had brought into their homes, but back then, when it had happened, there was not so much footage) then Ukraine is not the battlefield where americans could achieve anything better fighting the russians. Vietnam, Somalia, Iraq, Afghanistan were total defeats and ended in retreats where the Americans had destroyed whole cities and societies cause Iraq had not violated the UN sanctions, they had no biiological or chemical weapons as the US had said as the reason to invade a country and destroy it at the end. There are just a few successfull people that are travelling the world and aware of all the issues.

I've spent a lot of time in the US and I recall very well the first time I went there back in 1986 when we were told in our "welcoming speech" we should not be confused if people asked us where we came from and they would not understand the answer, so we should rather say "where all the Mercedes, Audi and Porsche come from than to say "from Germany" and we should not be confused because 80% of US citizens would not find the US on a world map. When travelling the country, I found this to be the case again and again - and I've been to almost all states. As someone put it so nicely: Many wars could have been prevented if it was mandatory that the president who wants to start that war would have to find the country he wants to attack on a world map first.

Old German here. Living in the Western part all my life. I had a very positive attitude towards America / USA in general for at least 40 years, maybe without criticism at all. The last 30 years my view has become more specific. I do look more critical on US politics and politicians, especially their attitude towards war and military conflicts. I do differentiate much more, trying to take into account individuals and their personal view in much greater regard. Though I do know there are many great and good people in the US, I also loathe those who are willing to start wars and bring havoc even on their own fellow citizen.

Skype is from Estonia and the Web was invented at Cern in Europe. Key technical and scientific leads are often from abroad, since to few Americans can pay the qualifications. what they have is a culture of risking business opportunities.

Here's what almost nobody knows about the US: 1. Compulsory public schooling was instituted in the late 19th century to assimilate non-Protestant immigrants but was soon commandeered by industrialists and social scientists to stratify the members of society into managers and armies of incurious workers who are never exposed in all those years of education to the necessary knowledge and skills of participating in republican government as the Constitution of the United States ('We The People...') requires. 2. Evangelical, liberal theology, post -millennialist Protestants, mostly members of the northeastern Protestant Ascendency (America's upper class) succeeded finally in subduing the country by recasting their faith as civic action and gov't policy after heavy doses of Prussian statist takes on German Idealism. When they did this, government became essentially a church with science remade into a moral justification for government policy. Sounds too fantastic to be true? That's why nobody can accept the facts even though we all agree that 'truth is stranger than fiction. References: John Taylor Gatto: A Short Angry History of Modern Schooling (RU-vid) 'Illiberal Reformers: Race, Eugenics, and American Economics in the Progressive Era' by Thomas C. Leonard (2016)

I think it's a stereotype. I think let's of Europeans adore Americans. Just like many Americans adore Europeans. I mean, it's where America originated from, Europe.

There is a saying: 'Being Unknown makes being unloved.'. However, my personal experience gives me in to have evolved this into: 'The more I got to know America, the more it repulses me and make me despise it'. In my case, I could hardly be called 'a Lefty'. Coming from a staunch Calvinist protestant background with a firm belief in thrift, honesty and diligence to be constructive to wealth and ethical growth as well as personal achievement, but I have become more nuanced and in some ways leftist thinking by being exposed to life in the US. When confronted with the shallowness of commerciality and the raw and uncaring, damned be the consequences, ultra capitalism, coupled with the slavish compliance to the violations that the financial services places on the average US inhabitant, I felt I had no ther choice than be repulsed by it. The overarching celebration of ignorance, rejection of knowledge and avoidance of deeper thinking revolts me to my core. I loathe the mindless flag-waving and ridiculous indoctrinatory practices that serve as a very obvious fig-leaf for jingoism, class-stratification and racial-discrimination in that society. I am annoyed by the US unjustly taking credit for achievements made by others, where foreign knowledge, art and academic achievements are purchased or more often purloined and inculcated into the National achievements with no mention or sometimes downright denial, of its origins. I loathe the 'Might makes Right' and the adoration of violence and death, indiscriminate harm-doing and destruction under the guise of rules and laws that are purported to be equal for all, but in reality are NOT. Wealth will invariably buy you the freedom from justice. The unnaturalness and the repressive enforcement of such under the guise of biblical but entirely counter to Christian morals in what are by their nature to be joyful and free relations and life-choices, appals me in its hypocrisy and the harm and damage it visits upon the individual and his/her presumed freedom and liberty. By now It instinctively makes me choose the path of 'resistance and reduction by subversion.' The average US inhabitant appears to be inexorably geared towards choosing against his/her self-interest or even self-preservation. I lived there for 22 years and yearningly bided my time until my kids would become adults, so that I could honourably return to where I came from. I did so and happiness and contentment returned to my life. I have absolutely no desire to ever re-visit the US under any circumstance, even if my life would depend on it. I would rather die with dignity and in freedom than be what I see US inhabitants be reduced to.

For what it's worth, I would like to go back in history a bit. In Germany of the 50s and 60s, the US were usually seen as the saviour of civilisition, mainly because they had stopped the USSR from moving further west and guaranteed the iron curtain. Any possible animosity stemming from WW2 was gone; at the latest after the Berlin airlift operation and the Marshall plan. But this also led to an enormous dependency on the US, which not everyone felt good about. No German governmet ever dared to critisize the US and their demands were always fulfilled until 2003, i.e. the Iraq invasion. Personally, living just 20 miles from the iron curtain, I did not feel terribly secure from American nuclear missiles directed at the East of West Germany (yes, this was the official strategy to deter an attack from the USSR), but most people saw this as necessary to deter "the evil Russian". I guess this ambivalence continues to this day; perhaps even refreshed by Russia's attack on Ukraine.

Hello Ben, another really though provoking video from you. You're tempting me to write a seriously long comment -- but this time I have to keep myself a bit more under control. Just a few remarks: Unless someone appears to be excessively opinionated I assume that people critisize what they love. I would regard that as a part of exercising the right of free speech - one of the fundamental rights respected in what's considered the west. Considering myself as a moderate left I'm always a bit disappointed if people assume they would have to emphasize their credibility as a "lefty" by critisizing the USA along the lines of some pretty stereotypical patterns - regarding the USA as a kind of self-appointed policeman of the world being one of them. Of course the USA provides reasons for critisism from time to time. On the other hand people like to sweep critisism of Europe from the USA aside too easily sometimes. That point of view that the USA wouldn't have culture irks me quite a bit. Music is an obvious example. I grew up with as much Beethoven, Händel, Bach, Mozart, etc. as with Glen Miller, Duke Ellington, Bob Dylan, Tom Waits, Frank Zappa, Leonard Bernstein, Sammy Davis Jr., B.B.King, etc. And then art designers like Milton Glaser, Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Jackson Pollock, Man Ray, Edward Hopper, Keith Haring, etc. Cinema: Steven Spielberg, Woody Allen, Barry Levinson, Jim Jarmush (Down By Law, Night on Earth, ...) I really have to stop now before I'm loosing control...

Why Europeans are so overly critical and harsh towards the US in their criticisms? 1. "US number one" - We know what the sentiment inside US is about itself and we think it's super annoying. It's even more annoying when some Americans display that same attitude outside their own borders. 2. We're constantly being bombarded with everything American, including it's values, which most Europeans find troubling to say the least. 3. We feel we've been betrayed. Many people at some point believed in American media, which portrayed American life in s very unrealistic manner, showing only the prosperous and good sides of the country, and exaggarating how well ordinary people live. 4. American military operations all over the world with quite flimsy excuses. 5. Inferiority complex - despite many people believe genuinely that their lives are better where they are now, there's still this feeling that Europe is in the shadow of the US, and Europeans feel that the US needs to be taken down a bit. For some reason we bark all the time at the Americans, even those who are objectively very nice, if the context is cultural differences. This is the behaviour of people who have an inferiority complex and thus a great need to prove themselves. The unfriendliness of Europeans at times towards the US can be amazingly harsh, even when the US person never said anything offensive at all.

6:47 "The largest platforms in the US tend to be left-leaning" - I'm not sure about that one. The US right critizes the US MSM as being leftwing, but it's not exactly true. The US MSM is in reality center-to center right, especially from a European perspective.

Interesting video with good perspectives on current perceptions on how the perceptions of some Europeans disliking America tend to be just as (or even more sometimes) a reflection Americans who dislike the country. I think this is an issue within the USA that is often not covered or is handwaved by different people. The issue I feel is not that Americans shouldn't have or be allowed to talk about what they dislike within the USA, we aren't and have never been a perfect country, but often there is this overly cynical outlook by people in the US, something I would argue stretches across political isles, that feels like their is absolutely nothing Americans should feel proud of or is unique about their country. Whether that is actually how the majority of Americans feel or if it is a loud majority amplified by various forms of media I can't say, but it often feels like the majority of Americans now a days feel this way. It seems almost like this attitude is necessary to adopt in some sort of way if you want to be taken seriously in a conversation. People seem to dismiss you as a "flag worshiper" if you otherwise don't, at least in the communities I've found myself in. One thing on the subject of "The US has no culture" part of the video I wanted to say though, I tend to believe that consumerism and convenience are not reflective of any countries culture since it can be found across countries. Sure, their is something to be stated about how widespread or extensive consumerism is in the USA when compared to many other countries, consumerism tends to cross cultural boundaries and take on various forms which makes me view it as disconnected from culture. Its like whenever people bring up the picture of the large amounts of fast food restaurants all huddled together next to a highway in the US and state that it somehow reflects our greater society/culture. In Japan, they have vending machines spread out everywhere, sometimes even small "restaurants" consisting of them where you buy something and sit down to it eat inside. from my understanding, most Japanese would not consider this a reflection of their society, some show of how consumerism has become apart of their culture or anything. their just vending machines, built to offer a quick service to one demographic or another that is on the move and needs a drink, food, etc. real quick and at most as a cultural reflection sell goods familiar and liked by the society. Similarly fast food restaurants as I and many others I know do not represent "American cuisine" beyond the fact they serve a popular, convenient, and well recognized food in society. There a place you go when your craving a taco and don't have the money to buy or make the good stuff, or your hungry from a long trip but its the middle of the night and 24/7 joints are the only open option. Consumerism can take on different flavors from country to country, depending on the demographics, but I personally cannot see how it is meant to reflect culture when as a concept it is meant to be so indifferent and disconnected from culture. Sorry for the long comment and maybe I'm just talking to the wind, but I bring up that last point because on consumerism because I am honestly interested in your thoughts. Maybe I don't know what I am talking about relative to consumerism, or have some misunderstanding. Do you in your experiences believe that consumerism in Germany or the UK accurately depicts the cultures? Is it just a surface level aspect of society that we shouldn't view as representative of places or people as a whole? I would love to get answers from anyone else reading as well.

Europeans should stop thinking of the U.S. as (1) a singular entity and as (2) an extension of Europe. I say that as an American who has spent most of the last two decades in Europe.

What has changed? The USA has changed, especially very drastically since 9/11...and then very drastically again since the political appearance of Trump and his MAGA Cult as well. Just my personal time witness view of the last 4 to 5 decades

I do not appreciate US politics, but concerning culture, i.e. music, arts, literature there have been very interesting and innovative things coming out of the USA and still are. It is just that most Europeans do not know them and I am afraid most Americans neither.

Although you present some important insights here, I saw no acknowledgment in this video of the extraordinary polarization currently gripping the U.S. There is a lot of criticism flying around from Americans, ourselves, but with the exception perhaps of our expats, the criticisms are generally not so much a blanket condemnation of our homeland as they are expressed frustrations with specific social forces (and their influence) with which we personally feel deeply at odds. That dynamic is probably common in most countries. I just see the deepening polarization in the U.S. as raising the visibility of that dynamic. We are a society at war with ourselves right now.

No, of course the US is not asking to be disliked. It is just that it is so self-referential, inwardly focused, navel-gazing and powerful that it doesn't have to consider the situations of others if it doesn't choose to and "soft" power is not a substitute for real power in a competitive world.

In all honesty: the story of the greatest country of all is one i never believed. All the other achievements are pretty impressive. But as a PolScience Student, why would someone hold someone else accountable for the laters government?

Regarding how Europeans perceive Americans, in my own experience: The UK: Neutral. Germany: Friendly. Finland: No more or less cold to Americans than anyone else, but they like American culture. Spain: Neutral. France: They really do hate us. Kosovo: They love the fuck out of us for reasons I can't even begin to understand.

3:42 "DISINTERESTED" You mean neutral and unbiased one way or the other? Or do you mean 'UNINTERESTED'?

“Is the U.S. asking to be disliked?” I am an American who lived in the UK in my youth. I have travelled extensively throughout Europe over the years. I am almost 60 years old. In my view, there is an arrogant entitlement that is characteristic among many Americans. I think your question is important for Americans to consider. I say this because too many of us are like a bull in a china shop and don’t care. I think the answer to your question is borne of indifference. I am open to persuasion regarding alternatives to that. I think the US needs an extended period of social isolationism. The world needs a break from us as we self examine. My political orientation is on the right.

USA still has the best social mobility for foreigners, you can come as nobody, from a country nobody knows, and if you have good ideas, are hard working and talented, you can "make it big" in a short time. Nobody cares even about your age. The eternal American optimism is envied by the whole world. I myself love American culture too, the big beautiful cars of the 50s, the music, movies, I even prefer a diner somewhere in the desert of Nevada to an overpriced, crowded southern European tourist destination.😂

So, who would Europeans prefer was "the policeman of the world"? Somebody will self appoint themselves to this role if the USA abdicates and Europeans clearly aren't prepared to do this themselves, as their relatively low defence expenditure shows.

You compare a place, Europe, that was first settled in the Bronze Age 5000 years ago, to North America, a place that was a virtual wilderness 200 years ago, and you notice that Europe has more history, more distinct cultures, and a better food culture? That's an amazing discovery.

Since I began (as an American) to travel in and live in Europe since 1967, what I found was a mixture of admiration and obvious envy disguised as contempt

Yes, modern technology has offered us many benefits and things we didn't even dream of when we grew up but there is a big misconception in the minds of most of us: Contrary to what most people believe, computers have NOT increased productivity. Economist Robert Solow famously said in 1987 that "the computer age was everywhere except for the productivity statistics." and this has not changed until this day despite of the hype generated about machine learning which many falsely refer to as "AI".

I’m a patriotic American who agrees with a lot of the criticism from Europeans. I would prefer an America with mixed-use development, public transportation that would displace the automobile and socialized healthcare. I’m patriotic because America is at the vanguard of government by consent. None of the problems and contradictions of the country are insurmountable by democracy. If you take the longer historical view, you see the inexorable progress towards liberty and justice for all. My shoulder is at that wheel. We’re at an inflection point where the traditional powers of patriarchy and white supremacy are having their death throes. We all adopt frames that emphasize some points and diminish others.

Native Americans live on reservations and rarely travel outside the United States 🤔

I agree with everything except the part where you claimed that only the majority of leftist hates the US online; whereas I find that it is generally the case if the politically left-leaning EU countries get highly conflicted supporters to the US. And the countries that I think can be somewhat viewed as more centered or right, examples like Germany (cuz they are under watch for being 'extremist' Nazis) and Poland, respectively, would be at least objective or mixed in their support of the matter of affairs in the states. So overall, I think that the internet really basically gave minority of people a larger platform to spread their voice of displeasure and that's exasperated by media to become pervasively present in our interaction daily with the world online. Also, I think the data about Germany looks weird, at least from anecodte experiences - they really don't give a fk that much about US, mostly the only EU countries that can also speak English enough to comment or reports on US have from what've noticed been just England and Sweden. Or any EU country that the US reports on would be involved in some of the publicized discussions, with small majority of leftist there to do what they do. However, maybe there's a bit of leftist thinking left in the people as well here commenting online.

Because we do

Because it’s all they tend to talk about it.

I am a lefty and I love my country with all it's problems and political devision. As far as culture is concerned, we have a very diverse regional culture. Anyone who has truly traveled around the USA can appreciate. The USA is an amazing country of beauty that has defended many of our allies time and again. What if we

At least they are thinking about us. Someone should inform them we do not think about them. Why in the hell would we want to go where we are hated? Then you hear that if you do not speak the language, they are offended. Why go to the effort to learn a language that you will use one time in your life. Hell we cannot afford to see all of out own country so we sure as hell cannot afford to see theirs. They need to understand just how big the USA is. and it is not like other countries where things are the same everywhere in that country. The US is like 50 small countries with different foods customs and even the english used is different.

I'm American here I don't care what anyone says about our country I really don't they don't affect my everyday living as simple as that who cares if we are overly positive it doesn't even really even matter and if they're trying to bring Wars into this most of us being against Wars if anything else and if other people dislike us well then that's just too bad get on the hate train and be like the other ones and pretty much life will just go on it doesn't matter if you treat us with respect we're going to treat you with respect as simple as that and if anyone in the comment section who has a problem with that all I'm going to do is just ignore you that is it

Europeans thinking the things you mentioned as stereotypes and critisism often haven't even been to the US

You looking for a real culture and very friendly people in America! Then go to the over hundred Red deer scent native American indigenous tribal Indian reservations in the entire USA. In every us state there are many very great Indian reservations there. My great inspiring wisdom for today. Have a great fabulous wonderful day.😀

From a European perspective, I find the US very very interesting and so many levels

So......no culture here???? We have the same history & culture as the Brits until 1776, and we merged with many cultures like Mexican, French, Italian, German etc plus cultures like th e Navajo that have been here thousands of years.