# Attention European Embassies in America: Use American Style Dating on Your Official Notices! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 7, 2012, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945 "2012-09-07T02:49:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Simple\_Linctus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Simple\_Linctus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simple_Linctus)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/21 "2012-09-07T13:17:35Z")
> [@cckerberos](#): > > Frankly, everybody should just switch to the YMD format. Then there’s no confusion. What? Why? There is no confusion for anyone apart from Americans in DMY. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/22 "2012-09-07T13:25:45Z")
> [@gamerunknown](#): > > 12/10/12? 😛 That either happened two years ago, 2000 years ago, 2024 years ago, four weeks from now, three months from now, or twelve years into the reign of the next megalomaniacal Third World dictator. All are equally plausible. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/23 "2012-09-07T13:44:38Z")
> [@cckerberos](#): > > Frankly, everybody should just switch to the YMD format. Then there’s no confusion. > [@shijinn](#): > > 10Aug2012 > [@alphaboi867](#): > > Actually they shouldn’t be refering to the month numerically at all in formal writing. Yes. Really, these days, there’s no reason to communicate with another human being using the all-numerical format, whether formal or informal. Use letters for the month. Always. > [@grude](#): > > My file has been lost because of it numerous times in immigration, I think something official has my birthday wrong because USA birth certificates and passports of course use day/month style dating Unless I’m misremembering, U.S. passports use the 10 AUG 2012 format. So that would be European-style order, but unambiguous because the month is in letters. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/24 "2012-09-07T13:48:30Z")
> [@amanset](#): > > … the US national day is always referred to in the international way (“The fourth of July”). Not at all. I’d say you hear it about half one way, half the other. ---
**Author:** ![Death\_of\_Rats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a6a055/32.png) [@Death\_of\_Rats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Death_of_Rats)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/25 "2012-09-07T14:13:54Z")
I think the most reasonable, long term solution is for the USA to crush all of Europe under our imperialist bootheel and reduce them to a vassel state status, thereby eliminating the problems of incorrect dating systems, the metric system and drivng on the wrong freaking side of the road. Soon, they wil all learn that life is much smoother if you do things the way we tell you in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/26 "2012-09-07T14:34:55Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > Not at all. I’d say you hear it about half one way, half the other. Take your word for it. Can’t say I’ve ever heard it the “normal US way”, but then again I am not American. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/27 "2012-09-07T14:35:57Z")
> [@Death\_of\_Rats](#): > > and drivng on the wrong freaking side of the road Seeing as the vast, vast majority of Europe drives on the right, I’m assuming you are saying they should change to the left, yeah? ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/28 "2012-09-07T14:40:51Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > Not at all. I’d say you hear it about half one way, half the other. > [@amanset](#): > > Take your word for it. Can’t say I’ve ever heard it the “normal US way”, but then again I am not American. I’d say that the vast majority of the time (but not all the time) people say “the fourth of July” when they mean the holiday, but “July 4th” when they just mean the date. ---
**Author:** ![Algher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Algher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Algher)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/29 "2012-09-07T15:50:40Z")
So I was taught to use the 07SEP2012 during my brief experiment in military aptitude. That is the only thing that really stuck with me. When I filled out the paperwork for my son’s birth certificate, it was rejected by the City of Los Angeles for not being correct. My wife had to take our infant downtown to re-do the paperwork to get his short form birth certificate to be issued. So lets add on a “Fuck the City of Los Angeles” for also not being able to handle a date format that is eminently logical and easy to understand. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/30 "2012-09-07T15:54:08Z")
> [@Algher](#): > > So I was taught to use the 07SEP2012 during my brief experiment in military aptitude. I find the absence of spacing in that style extremely annoying. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/31 "2012-09-07T16:15:14Z")
I’m not clear on why you would show up in late August when you thought the due date was August 10, 2012. That said, as someone who normally works in accounting, I hate all the date confusion. Canadians are _supposed_ to write dates as YYYYMMDD - it’s even pre-printed on all of our blank cheques from banks that way. We still find a way to use every day format imaginable, which presents problems when you get cheques dated 06/10/12. So, was this cheque for Jun. 10th, or Oct. 6th? Is it an older cheque that we can cash right away, or a post-dated cheque that you’re going to scream and yell about us cashing right away? I too always write my dates unambiguously - May 10th, 2012. There. No problem. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/32 "2012-09-07T16:37:13Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > I’m not clear on why you would show up in late August when you thought the due date was August 10, 2012. I think he thought the due date was October 8, 2012 ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/33 "2012-09-07T16:48:47Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > I think he thought the due date was October 8, 2012 I’m still confused - if the paperwork was done by the end of August, it would have been done before the October deadline. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/34 "2012-09-07T16:57:13Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > I think he thought the due date was October 8, 2012 > [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > I’m still confused - if the paperwork was done by the end of August, it would have been done before the October deadline. But October wasn’t the deadline: August 10 was. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/35 "2012-09-07T17:16:35Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > I’m still confused - if the paperwork was done by the end of August, it would have been done before the October deadline. The ACTUAL deadline was August 10, the MISUNDERSTOOD deadline was October 8. By going down in late August, they thought they were being early, but they missed the actual deadline. ---
**Author:** ![Sandwich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/22d042/32.png) [@Sandwich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sandwich)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/36 "2012-09-07T17:22:02Z")
> [@MEBuckner](#): > > Why? I guess I missed the part where the OP said “Unlike our clearly superior American embassies…” If some European somewhere got screwed over or just inconvienced by some bureaucracy of the U.S. government using an ambiguous dating convention on a time-sensitive communication, then by all means let 'em post a pissed off message about it somewhere on the Internet. Right here on the Dope even. I still don’t know whether the appropriate response to this thread is to commiserate with this poor American who has been so mislead by his own country’s shining example of courtesy and consideration that he has been let down by perfidious foreigners who fail to extend the same courtesy, or, to castigate him for being a stupid whining moron who thinks his own country can make up its own rules and expect foreigners to give a shit when that works out badly for him. You seem to be assuming the latter? ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/37 "2012-09-07T17:50:31Z")
> [@gamerunknown](#): > > 12/10/12? 😛 2012-10-12. ---
**Author:** ![cckerberos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@cckerberos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cckerberos)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/38 "2012-09-07T17:54:21Z")
> [@Simple\_Linctus](#): > > What? Why? There is no confusion for anyone apart from Americans in DMY. What, no sympathy for the people in Belize? But seriously, it’s not just Americans. If you showed the date “8/10” to most Asians they’d think it was referring to August 10th. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2012, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/39 "2012-09-07T18:17:17Z")
In Canada, I never know when I see something like 10/08/2012. We use the international method, but so much of our correspondence and trade is with the US that it’s hit-and-miss as to what a date like that means. Therefore I always check. ---
**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:** [September 7, 2012, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945/40 "2012-09-07T18:17:59Z")
For an important appointment date, why in fucking tarnation would anyone except a moron use either 10/08/2012 _or_ 08/10/2012 ?? :smack: Is the cost of ink so high that writing “10 Aug 2012” would be a burden? (Admittedly some Americans are stupid enough to be confused by “10 Aug”, so “10 Aug (i.e. August 10th)” might be preferred if you’re getting ink at a discount.) OTOH, how can any sane person not be surprised that a country smart enough to put a man on the Moon is also stupid enough to use the MM/DD/YYYY system? When giving time, do we say “9:15 and 23 minutes” when we mean 15 seconds after 9:23 ? I hope that was gruff enough. I just read a Pit thread Pitting Pitters for not Pitting harshly. > [@cckerberos](#): > > If you showed the date “8/10” to most Asians they’d think it was referring to August 10th. Cite? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-european-embassies-in-america-use-american-style-dating-on-your-official-notices/633945.md?page=3)