When I was a kid/teen, I had it in my head that every last European was 100 percent all-in on football (soccer). As in, French children kicked footballs before they walked. Italians talked about football around the dinner table more than they talked about their jobs or their families or whatever. British babies were born wearing the kit of their parents’ team. Germans would ask their beloveds about their favorite soccer team before discussing marriage. Etc.
I have since come to learn that, while Europeans are (of course) far more into soccer than Americans are (and considerably more than we were at the time when I was a kid/teen, when Americans weren’t interested in soccer at all), it’s not universal. Sure, a large chunk of the population is all about football, but a significant-enough percentage of them aren’t into sports at all, or are into sports but not football, or what have you.
Pretty much all of them. When I was a kid, I thought and acted like a kid and repeated things that I heard said about others, often from my own family. Once I left that behind, my notions about people changed drastically. Sorry I can’t be more specific.
While some stereotypes could be said to be based on a “nugget of truth,” a lot of them are dismissive or bigoted against a certain group. Even those stereotypes which aren’t bigoted, like the OP’s “every European is a big football fan” are overly generalized, and, of course, aren’t even close to being universally true
But consider this: when I was a lot younger, there was a time when my coworkers asked me to spring for some liquor, and I obliged, and this prompted someone to note that, well, you know what they say about Jews having plenty of money to spend…
Some time later I got asked to spring for some liquor, and didn’t oblige. This prompted someone to note that, well, you know what they say about Jews being tight with money…
I’m struggling with the concept of a “true” stereotype, or how anyone would ever know?
Someone who had only communicated with me by writing once told me, after meeting me, that they were surprised by my appearance. I didn’t ask for more information, but I assumed that it was because they had been letting some stereotype work on their expectations.
It’s certainly a very small percentage of Jewish people who have ever had any interest in being a Holllywood producer.
But this is not the same as the percentage of prominent Hollywood producers who were/are Jewish. I don’t know what the numbers are now, but back in the early-mid 20th century I’m pretty sure it was higher than the percentage of the general population that was Jewish.
Not really. I know a lot of artists. My son is an artist, and is married, has a kid, and works a 9-5 job with a long commute. My favorite non-related artist is a mom who’s celebrating her 50th wedding anniversary next month. The best musician I ever knew was a lawyer in state government who retired to Florida. and the second-best was a computer programmer.
And I’m pretty sure at least one, and possibly two, are Republicans.
In my experience, as a pedestrian, anybody at all can be a bad driver, due to a) not being very good at it, b) being aged or too mentally unfit to be allowed behind the wheel, or c) being a dickhead who never takes responsibility for their own risky actions. Also accidents and singular mistakes happen, which can be unfair to condemn anyone for.
By definition invalidate. But seriously I find the construct of “I never met an X who fit the stereotype of X” to be troubling in its own way. If that makes sense. I’ve come across plenty of dumb women. And plenty of very smart women. Some of each have been blonde. Of course.
. Half of everybody is below average intelligence by definition.