# Misconceptions about USA **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 19, 2003, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510 "2003-09-19T00:33:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2003, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/141 "2003-09-21T16:01:20Z")
I meant to say “Kern”; not “San Kern”. (Didn’t backspace enough.) ---
**Author:** ![racinchikki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/eada6e/32.png) [@racinchikki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racinchikki)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2003, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/142 "2003-09-21T16:12:47Z")
> [@](#): > > Or you could drive from, say, North Carolina to NYC to catch your flight - it would take 2-3 days _THREE DAYS_ to go from North Carolina to NYC? Maybe if you have kids along and you have to stop every hour and a half to let them stretch their legs and go to the bathroom, but I can drive from Massachusetts to Texas in two days. ---
**Author:** ![spogga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ab097/32.png) [@spogga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spogga)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2003, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/143 "2003-09-21T16:46:56Z")
Rashak Mani: I must disagree with you about the US coffee being undrinkable, I thought it was terrific and I’m a confirmed black coffee addict ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2003, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/144 "2003-09-21T16:58:50Z")
> [@](#): > > the disappearance of many, many pets is chalked up to coyotes. Also in the outlying areas, you should keep an eye out for rattle snakes. I’ve seen a coyote trotting down Yorba Linda Blvd at about 5am, past the grocery store shopping complex. In Ventura, where my parents live, it’s not wise to let your cats and dogs go hunt in the hills behind their neighborhood. There’s a good chance they’ll just not come back some day. Oh, and I was “flying like a bat” in a car. It’s a metaphor. ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2003, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/145 "2003-09-21T17:05:45Z")
Actually, I believe it’s a simile. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2003, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/146 "2003-09-21T17:10:45Z")
> [@](#): > > I’ve seen a coyote trotting down Yorba Linda Blvd at about 5am, past the grocery store shopping complex. I was landing a Cessna 172 at Fox Field in Lancaster (northern L.A. County) one day. I was had just estavlished my base leg when the tower broadcast: “Attention all aircraft. Caution, coyote traffic on the runway.” (I didn’t see it when I turned final.) [You can see](http://pw1.netcom.com/~heliboy/n61413crop.jpg) that coyotes might be a problem from time to time in this area. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![labdude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/5fc32e/32.png) [@labdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/labdude)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2003, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/147 "2003-09-21T18:05:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by spogga \* > \*\*But…hang on a minute, I thought all Americans were rich who thought nothing of lighting their cigars with a $10 bill 😉 \*\* This brings up another good point. The amazing income disparity between americans. To many people in the USA $500 for a plane ticket to Endland might as well be a million dollars. To others $500 is not enough money to worry about. ---
**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2003, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/148 "2003-09-21T18:09:30Z")
I think the most common question I got in Europe about the US was: Why do you have all those tall buildings? My Answer: Umm … I don’t know. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2003, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/149 "2003-09-21T18:32:43Z")
**Johnny L.A.** , you can look at all the maps you like, doesn’t change the fact that people in the Bay Area consider themselves to be _Northern_ Californians. I would say that the southern line would be at San Jose, because when I lived in Santa Cruz we called it the Central Coast, a region that extends down to Santa Barbara. After that, you get into Hell, er, Southern California. ---
**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2003, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/150 "2003-09-21T18:42:57Z")
I would have to say people in CA probably score the lowest, of any state in the union, on standardized geography tests. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![spogga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ab097/32.png) [@spogga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spogga)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2003, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/151 "2003-09-21T18:58:34Z")
LABDUDE: ENDLAND? You being funny pal 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2003, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/152 "2003-09-22T01:14:42Z")
> [@](#): > > **Johnny L.A.** , you can look at all the maps you like, doesn’t change the fact that people in the Bay Area consider themselves to be _Northern_ Californians. Nevertheless. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2003, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/153 "2003-09-22T03:49:06Z")
To answer **Johnny LA** ’s speculation about the Land Run phrase “jump the gun”… it probably is urban legend. There were several different land runs here in Oklahoma. Each time a new Indian Territory came open, there would be a land run. Imagine a long distance harness race in the wilderness. That’s what a land run was like. Horses were purchased and trained for these specific races. However, corruption and cheating seems to be a way of life in OK (politically, anyways… look at the OK Turnpike Commission and the Corporation Commission. The average guy is a right nice fellow), so the runs were not all just races. Some people snuck in or paid off territory officials so they could stake a claim before the run would begin. They got there _ **SOONER** _ than the others. Yipper, that’s where we get our state nickname and the team name for the University of Oklahoma. From thievin’ cheatin’ bastards! 🙂 Just remember that there were several different land runs, not one big quick settling of the Sooner State. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2003, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/154 "2003-09-22T04:01:00Z")
To answer **Johnny LA** ’s speculation about the Land Run phrase “jump the gun”… it probably is urban legend. There were several different land runs here in Oklahoma. Each time a new Indian Territory came open, there would be a land run. Imagine a long distance harness race in the wilderness. That’s what a land run was like. Horses were purchased and trained for these specific races. However, corruption and cheating seems to be a way of life in OK (politically, anyways… look at the OK Turnpike Commission and the Corporation Commission. The average guy is a right nice fellow), so the runs were not all just races. Some people snuck in or paid off territory officials so they could stake a claim before the run would begin. They got there _ **SOONER** _ than the others. Yipper, that’s where we get our state nickname and the team name for the University of Oklahoma. From thievin’ cheatin’ bastards! 🙂 Just remember that there were several different land runs, not one big quick settling of the Sooner State. ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2003, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/155 "2003-09-22T06:36:01Z")
> [@](#): > > Actually, I believe it’s a simile. In that case, I amend my statement to: “flying along in a manner reminiscent of a bat.” So there! ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2003, 10:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/156 "2003-09-22T10:21:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by racinchikki \* > _THREE DAYS_ to go from North Carolina to NYC? Maybe if you have kids along and you have to stop every hour and a half to let them stretch their legs and go to the bathroom, but I can drive from Massachusetts to Texas in two days. You know, that’s not surprising to hear from a “racing chicky” 🙂 Yes, quite a few people have kids to consider. Also, people with bad backs who need to get out of the seat every 2 hours or so, old folks who need to pee frequently, and so forth. And yes, some of us _do_ drive the speed limit. Not everyone is capable of driving 12-16 hours straight, either. ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2003, 11:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/157 "2003-09-22T11:38:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Johnny L.A. \* > \*\*As L.A., Orange, and other Counties sprawl farther and farther out, there have been more and more contacts with the local wildlife. While it doesn’t happen every day, and it’s uncommon enough to make the local news, animal contacts _do_ happen here. There have been mountain lion attacks in the local mountain areas, brown bears taking a dip in someone’s swimming pool or hot tub, and the disappearance of many, many pets is chalked up to coyotes. Also in the outlying areas, you should keep an eye out for rattle snakes. > \*\* White Plains, a decent sized city, settled 1683ish, in the state of New York, every so often has a problem with brown bears wandering down Main Street. NYC has coyotes. There’s deer and wild turkeys and raccoons and god knows what else in the area. Jersey has bear problems too. People think that the Eastern Seaboard’s all built up, wall to wall city. It’s not. Some of it’s still pretty darn wild. ---
**Author:** ![booklover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@booklover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/booklover)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2003, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/158 "2003-09-22T12:55:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by spogga \* > \*\*breakfast at Cracker Barrel or Wendy’s is a delight but rather strange to get pancakes with bacon. \*\* Sorry for the hijack–do Brits only serve eggs with bacon? What do you eat with pancakes, then? ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2003, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/159 "2003-09-22T13:30:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by booklover \* > \*\*Sorry for the hijack–do Brits only serve eggs with bacon? What do you eat with pancakes, then? \*\* They were traditionally only sweet. The standard “filling” was a dusting of sugar and a squirt of lemon juice, or perhaps some jam, or chocolate sauce (when I was a kid). However, as more French-style “creperies” have opened, we’re getting more adventurous with different sweet and savoury fillings. But we still wouldn’t eat them for breakfast (though I do when I’m stateside!). ---
**Author:** ![Neurotik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/91b2a8/32.png) [@Neurotik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neurotik)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2003, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510/160 "2003-09-22T13:50:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ccwaterback \* > \*\*I would have to say people in CA probably score the lowest, of any state in the union, on standardized geography tests. 😃 \*\* To continue the SoCal/NoCal argument, as someone who grew up in Orange County, it’s safe to say that anything above Bakersfield was considered northern California. Between Bakersfield and Los Angeles was Central California, and LA down was southern. San Bernardino was the last outpost before the wilderness to the east. And San Luis Obispo was on the hippie frontier. A buffer state between civilization and the barbarian lands of the north. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misconceptions-about-usa/202510.md?page=9)