Path of Thought - a Collection of Personal Thoughts & Experiences

I Know Why Many Americans Want Nothing To Do With Other Americans Overseas

I was born & raised in the USA and I spent all of my life there until last year.

Because I lived in the USA for decades, I was ready for something different.

I've encountered Americans over here in Southeast Asia and I generally try to avoid them.

Yes, I am definitely a friendly easygoing person. And I almost always say hello to them IN PASSING.

I'm thinking I will do that less the longer I am here.

In fact, I will very likely become "one of those" kind that are talked about in YouTube videos... the Americans who just completely keep to themselves and the locals and do not even acknowledge other Americans.

WHY?

I (we) avoid socializing with other Americans because we've encountered too many who are intrusive, presumptuous, boastful, and competitive - the same bad traits so common in the USA.

I've realized that was a big reason I moved thousands of miles overseas. To be around a different kind of people!

The main issues:

  1. Nosiness - They ask personal questions about my background, family, and life choices. I'm a private person, and this probing feels invasive. I prefer to just "keep to myself".

  2. Entitlement - They ask for my personal phone number or social media without hesitation, assuming I want to maintain contact. It comes across like they just expect immediate access to me and my life - a complete stranger - without considering that I might not be interested in staying connected with them at all.

  3. Self-centeredness & The Ego - After grilling you with personal questions, inevitably sooner or later they begin talking about their accomplishments, their travels, their connections basically positioning themselves as having all the answers. They seem to genuinely believe they're smarter, more experienced, and understand... well everything 😅 ... better than everyone else.

  4. Competitiveness - Many Americans can't help but compete, even when it serves no purpose (other than feeding their EGO). They move thousands of miles to a different country but bring the same mentality... constantly positioning themselves against others, especially other Americans. They disguise insults as jokes and offer backhanded compliments, always performing, always jockeying for status.

It's kind of difficult to even really describe it but I think those 4 aspects give a fairly accurate view of it.

These are not traits of a good person in my view. Perhaps a big part of it is it's hard to really trust any person who acts that way.

I've just had enough of this brand of arrogance, ignorance and bad behavior that seems to be uniquely American.

Anyway, THAT is what I want a break from. It truly just gets tiring dealing with this stupidity. Different faces and voices but the same crap over and over. 😁

I'm not saying all Americans are like this, but enough are, or display at least some combination of these traits, that I (and MANY others overseas) prefer to avoid the group entirely.