# Are Europeans really unfriendlier than Americans? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 29, 2015, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105 "2015-05-29T11:36:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/41 "2015-05-29T18:48:24Z")
> [@Lord\_Ashtar](#): > > **protoboard** , the problem is probably you. You should probably start planning a move to somewhere else. This has been the overwhelming response to every one of his “nobody likes me because they’re all big meanies” threads. He refuses to consider the possibility because of excuses. ---
**Author:** ![Missy2U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@Missy2U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Missy2U)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/42 "2015-05-29T18:49:54Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > It’s your region. America differs greatly from region to region. > > Northwest and Northeast = unfriendly; Midwest and South = friendly. It’s always been my experience that if you’re a douchebag and a whiny, constantly bitching pain in the ass of an asshole, you’re a douchebag and a whiny, constantly bitching pain in the ass of an asshole wherever you live, so I’m a -thinkin a cross country move may not solve **protoboard’s** - er - issues. No matter what the region. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/43 "2015-05-29T19:00:56Z")
Obviously there are friendly and unfriendly people everywhere, helpful and arrogant people everywhere. Nevertheless, there are modal personalities that do vary from one locale to another. But Europe is too large and heterogeneous a place to seek such an “average personality.” One stereotype I’ve confirmed, via at least a dozen personal anecdotes as well as opinions of others, is that many Parisians are extremely arrogant. (I’ll ask in advance that any Doper who objects to this characterization tells us how many Parisians he’s interacted with.) ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/44 "2015-05-29T19:30:11Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > Not Kim Jong-un, then, too short . . . The Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal? ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/45 "2015-05-29T19:50:32Z")
> [@Missy2U](#): > > It’s always been my experience that if you’re a douchebag and a whiny, constantly bitching pain in the ass of an asshole, you’re a douchebag and a whiny, constantly bitching pain in the ass of an asshole wherever you live, so I’m a -thinkin a cross country move may not solve **protoboard’s** - er - issues. No matter what the region. As an Oregonian, I strongly disagree. I’m sure the problem is nothing more than location and he should move far, far away. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/46 "2015-05-29T20:02:37Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > One stereotype I’ve confirmed, via at least a dozen personal anecdotes as well as opinions of others, is that many Parisians are extremely arrogant. (I’ll ask in advance that any Doper who objects to this characterization tells us how many Parisians he’s interacted with.) I spent a couple of weeks in Paris during college and met at least thirteen people and garnered a personal anecdote from each of them and they were all pleasant and not arrogant at all. So, stereotype, mythBUSTED! ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/47 "2015-05-29T20:28:29Z")
The United States is not a monolithic culture. Stereotypically, Southerners and Midwesterners are the most friendly, New Englanders are jerks, New Yorkers will walk over your corpse, and states in the Pacific NE and along the Canadian border will be superficially friendly but give you the cold shoulder if you actually try to be friends. I think people blame this on Scandinavian heritage, apparently it’s the same way over there. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/48 "2015-05-29T20:36:46Z")
> [@TroutMan](#): > > As an Oregonian, I strongly disagree. I’m sure the problem is nothing more than location and he should move far, far away. Problem is, he’ll continue to come in here and bitch about wherever his new home is every time somebody makes a frowny face at him. He makes little money and lives in a shitty apartment and can’t afford to go out and do things that are fun. I get it; probably most of us have had that same experience. I don’t ever recall blaming everyone around me because my life sucked at the time. Suck it the fuck up and find a life. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/49 "2015-05-29T20:56:31Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > (I’ll ask in advance that any Doper who objects to this characterization tells us how many Parisians he’s interacted with.) I was in Paris for about 5 days. I ran into 1 person who was very rude, several that were _extraordinary_ kind and helpful (probably around a dozen), and a metric ton of people just doing their thing. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/50 "2015-05-29T21:00:23Z")
> [@Drunky\_Smurf](#): > > I spent a couple of weeks in Paris during college and met at least thirteen people and garnered a personal anecdote from each of them and they were all pleasant and not arrogant at all. So, stereotype, mythBUSTED! Interesting. Many of the “arrogant anecdotes” I have come from professional and executives (not all: e.g. waiters and street criminals also often seem arrogant). But working-class people tended not to be arrogant. Can you give us social class data on your thirteen experiences? Or (judging by “couple weeks” – I lived there for a year) was yours just a joke post? ---
**Author:** ![protoboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/fbc32d/32.png) [@protoboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/protoboard)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/51 "2015-05-29T21:20:20Z")
> [@El\_Kabong](#): > > Europeans are so unfriendly that massive, years-long, continent-spanning wars break out there every few decades, for no obvious reason. The OP may have heard of some of these conflicts. I’m a bit hazy on the details, but I think some of them may have had something to do with soccer. > > Rather than go to Europe, I suggest the OP calibrate his friendliness meter by spending a couple of weeks in St. John’s, Newfoundland. If he has any issues after that, it’s fairly certain the problem is internal rather than external. Actually my Canadian friend from BC lived in Newfoundland for a while and said the idea they are friendly is a complete sham and they’re actually very arrogant and hostile to people from off “the Rock” as they call it. Then again, that friend can be sort of an abrasive and rude person himself, and maybe he was being arrogant. ---
**Author:** ![protoboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/fbc32d/32.png) [@protoboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/protoboard)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/52 "2015-05-29T21:25:23Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Problem is, he’ll continue to come in here and bitch about wherever his new home is every time somebody makes a frowny face at him. He makes little money and lives in a shitty apartment and can’t afford to go out and do things that are fun. I get it; probably most of us have had that same experience. I don’t ever recall blaming everyone around me because my life sucked at the time. Suck it the fuck up and find a life. You sound like a real ray of sunshine, Chefguy. Wanna hang out? ---
**Author:** ![protoboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/fbc32d/32.png) [@protoboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/protoboard)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/53 "2015-05-29T21:29:24Z")
> [@TroutMan](#): > > As an Oregonian, I strongly disagree. I’m sure the problem is nothing more than location and he should move far, far away. Exactly. I’m actually a really friendly and positive person in general. I almost never complain or show dissatisfaction with anything. Like if I have mediocre service at a restaurant, I’ll still tip fairly if not generously. But people in the Pacific Northwest _are_ very smug and humorless, not that there aren’t exceptions. I don’t think people are exactly like Oregonians everywhere else in the world. It’s a well-documented phenomenon that Pacific Northwesterners are not the warmest or most charitable people. I find people elsewhere in general where I’ve traveled are way more receptive to things like small talk, have a better sense of humor and aren’t so damn afraid of people they aren’t related to or haven’t known since kindergarten. I would almost describe Oregon and Washington as being culturally incestuous. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/54 "2015-05-29T21:38:04Z")
I think my irony meter just exploded again. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/55 "2015-05-29T21:47:08Z")
> [@protoboard](#): > > Actually my Canadian friend from BC lived in Newfoundland for a while and said the idea they are friendly is a complete sham and they’re actually very arrogant and hostile to people from off “the Rock” as they call it. > > Then again, that friend can be sort of an abrasive and rude person himself, and maybe he was being arrogant. Hmm, looks like post # 5 called it. ---
**Author:** ![actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e79b87/32.png) [@actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/actualliberalnotoneofthose)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/56 "2015-05-29T21:55:23Z")
My experiences, like the OP, are probably very colored by my own personality and issues. That said, I am from the United States and most of my friends and all of my girlfriends (prior to my Midwestern US wife) are/were non-Americans I met during a period of time when I worked with a diverse group of international co-workers in America. I think that has something to with me- I am convinced there is something about my looks and/or personality that is attractive/inviting to only non-Americans- as well as the environment (the Europeans and others were guest/visitors and probably more friendly than the “native Americans” in these situations). I suspect if I visited Europe I would probably be about as invisible as I am here. Or at least not treated more favorably. ---
**Author:** ![protoboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/fbc32d/32.png) [@protoboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/protoboard)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/57 "2015-05-29T22:01:13Z")
> [@actualliberalnotoneofthose](#): > > My experiences, like the OP, are probably very colored by my own personality and issues. That said, I am from the United States and most of my friends and all of my girlfriends (prior to my Midwestern US wife) are/were non-Americans I met during a period of time when I worked with a diverse group of international co-workers in America. I think that has something to with me- I am convinced there is something about my looks and/or personality that is attractive/inviting to only non-Americans- as well as the environment (the Europeans and others were guest/visitors and probably more friendly than the “native Americans” in these situations). I suspect if I visited Europe I would probably be about as invisible as I am here. Or at least not treated more favorably. Yeah, a part of me wants to think the grass is greener. Another part of me fears that people are dicks everywhere and I might as well just stay put where my family is. Even though hell, my own family looks down upon me and seem embarassed by my poverty. I think people don’t realize how cruel Americans can be until they experience poverty. I’ve heard that in Europe there is at least less stigma about being poor so in that sense I have a feeling I’d be treated better there. In America you are pretty much a leper. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/58 "2015-05-29T22:02:11Z")
> [@protoboard](#): > > You sound like a real ray of sunshine, Chefguy. Wanna hang out? Not on your best day. If I want a downer, I always have the news on TV. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/59 "2015-05-29T22:12:33Z")
> [@protoboard](#): > > Exactly. I’m actually a really friendly and positive person in general. I almost never complain or show dissatisfaction with anything… > > But people in the Pacific Northwest _are_ very smug and humorless, not that there aren’t exceptions. I’ll give you this, there are exceptions, with you as a great example. That first bit about you being friendly, positive, and never complaining is the funniest thing I’ve read all day. ---
**Author:** ![protoboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/fbc32d/32.png) [@protoboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/protoboard)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105/60 "2015-05-29T22:15:44Z")
> [@TroutMan](#): > > I’ll give you this, there are exceptions, with you as a great example. That first bit about you being friendly, positive, and never complaining is the funniest thing I’ve read all day. I only complain online and to close friends. In general, I am very easy to please and rarely have anything bad to say about anyone or anything. Of course we live in a society that expects people to bottle any negativity up, unless we are being outright aggressive in which being negative is actually encouraged. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-europeans-really-unfriendlier-than-americans/721105.md?page=4)