Government & Politics

americanisation of other countries

Government & Politics

Posted by: leloo

17th Jun 2015 10:32am

sick of seeing an Americanized world :(


Comments 15

godsbaby
  • 7th Jul 2015 05:53pm

I agree. A statement of fact. They are not the people they were, Americans expect everyone to follow their rules and ways but they can not rule themselves. They accept that they are killing off their own people through guns, gang violence and such but can not accept a flag. They take over everything and try to make it like their own country. America is a Bully who is now being made to pull their horns in as other countries come out from under their thumb.

Dei
  • 7th Jul 2015 04:58pm

We make the choice to allow it or to hang on to our own language & it's colloqualisms. I choose to use Australian terms and correct misuse ie the American term 'off of''.
If we want to keep our unique language we need to be vigilant.

Granville
  • 7th Jul 2015 07:58am

I read a story many years ago where the main character had died and went to … well I guess Heaven. Because everyone wanted something different; bright sunshine/thunder storms, mountains/seaside, daytime/nighttime; what they had was a flat, grey "world" in perpetual diffused light!

This is what worries me about trends English. English is a living language so will change and develop over time. But I hate that we seems to have lost so many colloquialisms. These odd expressions add so much texture to our "common" tongue. Unfortunately with the spread of mass communication and social media it is almost inevitable regional variations will fade.

Mind you I guess if you look back through the history of the English language this change has been a constant companion. Has anyone read Chaucer in his original Middle English? I did and struggled and failed.

Still it is sad to see the passing of a friend, as so many expressions from our childhood seem.

Violetpatricia
  • 6th Jul 2015 04:21pm

We have a choice on the words that we use. We are also able to advise our children in the correct use of the English language. I am also annoyed about the incorrect spelling of our words and positively hate to be referred to as a guy which I constantly am. For e.g. at coffee with 3 friends (all female) and the waitress asked "what can I get you guys?" whatever happened to "ladies"?

Skylark
  • 3rd Jul 2015 06:10pm

Ditto. I don't mind Americans saying 'airplane', but when Australian media use it instead of 'aeroplane' it gets my goat.
Its nothing new, even in the late 19th century, some English people were railing against Americianisms creeping in even back then.

I confess I sometimes find myself thinking in American terms. I blame it on spending time on American car forums. You have to translate some terms, its no good asking about a boot lid! Got to say 'trunk when asking.

mare
  • 3rd Jul 2015 03:20pm

Yes and we are following them blindly - I lived in Colorado for 3 years in the late 90's and we are catching up fast

Hazie
  • 4th Jul 2015 12:52pm
I really dont know how anyone who has a basic knowledge of history can say American has been good to the world??/

They started in rebellion, the refused to use English and started their...

It doesn't really matter if they refuse to use English, I mean, it's just an adaptation, there's nothing wrong with that. It shouldn't just be America that God should help. It should be every country. I'm not going to say there's nothing wrong with America, because that's a bit like saying there's nothing wrong with Australia. But America is not that bad.

l0lapx
  • 3rd Jul 2015 05:20pm
Yes and we are following them blindly - I lived in Colorado for 3 years in the late 90's and we are catching up fast

I really dont know how anyone who has a basic knowledge of history can say American has been good to the world??/

They started in rebellion, the refused to use English and started their own version.

They impose what they want on other countries whether they want it or not, and are basically and bunch of ignorant and arrogant idiots.

They still treat the Negro people like slaves in the south, etc etc, We went there in the 80's as a favour to a friend and my opinion from 1955 which was America is and ass and we dont want to be like here, and she has nothing to give the world has not changed.

They wreck everything they touch, English, countries etc, GOD HELP AMERICA..... if he can, and us as we are following them like there is no tomorrow..

YES their film industry has given some Australian a career in that area, but other countries has given more Austalians careers than American every will as they on give when they will get more back.

My 2 bobs worth, sorry if anyone is offended, but maybe spend some time reading different history books and find out what America is really like.... the biggest terrorist this world has ever know and gotta feel sorry for them, When your country is born in rebellions you really got no way to go but down :)

leonewaau
  • 3rd Jul 2015 03:00pm

It's the wording (language) which the younger people speak that annoys me. I feel as if we are loosing simple everyday Australian words. It's biscuit not cookie, footpath not sidewalk, garbage not trash, petrol not gas. Quite sure that you have words to add to the few mentioned here.

Like Jimmyboynsw, I totally agree with you. It is very annoying when a website refuses to accept the English spelling of words.
Same goes for software, I'm always having to change the spelling from English USA to English UK whenever I open the software programme to compose a new letter. Even though I'd previously set English UK as my default setting and keep adding English UK spelt words to the dictionary, the programme keeps defaulting back to English USA whenever I spell an English UK word.
Actually timed how long it took to type a letter compared to writing the same letter via longhand. With having to keep changing the default grammar and spelling from English USA to English UK, it was quicker to write the same letter in longhand! Thank goodness the education I received in the 1960s had handwriting, spelling, grammar and composition as a major part of the syllabus, thus I'm able to hand write legible and descriptive letters where the spelling is correct.
So much for computers making life easier.

Stit
  • 6th Jul 2015 10:32am
It's the wording (language) which the younger people speak that annoys me. I feel as if we are loosing simple everyday Australian words. It's biscuit not cookie, footpath not sidewalk, garbage not...

I agree with you and I also hate it when typing a letter or email and I get the little red lines under word I know are right and have to correct (Add) the word to the Dictionary! Also hate the way people call their or other children - KIDS, Hate to say but KIDS are goats so everyone has goat in their house. The other one that gets me is wouldn't it be great if people couldn't say their words correctly like Would Not or Could Not. When did we loose the English language??

June
  • 3rd Jul 2015 10:36pm
Losing* not loosing. I wouldn't be concerned about the change in words, because people can't help it especially where they're from. I may use some American terms (due to my Filipino background) but...

I don't think people are referring to the pronouncing of words, but rather the words that are used such as "guys" etc. I personally do not like people calling their parents Guys for instance also it is so silly to be referring to women as Guys. I always understood that this word was used about American servicemen There are many other things too like the baseball cap being worn all the time especially backwards. Guy is actually a name as is often seen in historical figures such Guy Fawkes. It possibly originated in France, I am not sure, but the fact is it is an American slang word. Slang has always been used in all countries and I am all for countries using their own instead of losing their identity, which I am sure most Americans would think also.

Hazie
  • 3rd Jul 2015 03:08pm
It's the wording (language) which the younger people speak that annoys me. I feel as if we are loosing simple everyday Australian words. It's biscuit not cookie, footpath not sidewalk, garbage not...

Losing* not loosing. I wouldn't be concerned about the change in words, because people can't help it especially where they're from. I may use some American terms (due to my Filipino background) but I still use centimetres and Celsius and kilometres because I grew up here. I do spell some words the American way, others the Oxford way, but it does depend on the background. As much as I like to keep Australia's heritage alive, I think one of the pros of 'Americanisation' is the ability to pronounce the letters, particularly the r's, e.g. 'caRR' not 'cAH' (but I have an English mixed accent). Point is, each to their own. There are more pressing things that matter other than spelling and words. It's a good thing that we have HECS and Student Help, and good gun laws, although I'm guessing it's not the Americanisation that leloo was talking about.

Mr.
  • 2nd Jul 2015 02:30pm

My dear leloo,

Could not agree more.

It is, unfortunately, a prime example of laziness in both thought and imagination.

It also a side effect of the fact that information is now so instantly and overwhelming available. That the overwhelming majority of such information is useless, celebrity based trash is the unfortunate part.

Jimmyboynsw
  • 1st Jul 2015 04:27pm

Know how you feel, but the worst is websites in Australia that won't accept the English / Australian spelling

woolysmissus
  • 1st Jul 2015 03:39pm

Very vague statement. You should clarify what you don't like. America supports many countries in various ways. It also supports many. Actors and music artists from Australia. Without the billions of purchases of Aussie exports and goods where would Australia be? There are other countries influencing the world as much as America. Especially here in Australia.

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