The United States is the third largest country in the world with a population of more than 335 million, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Here, a child is born every 8 seconds.
In addition to Indigenous Americans who were already living there before the Europeans discovered it, the country was built on immigration.
Because of this, the United States is one of the most culturally diverse nations in the world. It is sometimes described as a "melting pot", in which different cultures have contributed their own distinct "flavors" to American culture.
But as much as the distinctiveness fascinates foreigners, it also has them raising their eyebrows. This is especially evident in a recent Reddit thread, started by user 421continueblazingit, who asked non-Americans on the platform to share which of the local customs make no sense to them.
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Why is medical bankruptcy not at the absolute f*****g top of this list?
Kids beauty pageants.
Parents are willingly sexualizing their children.
It’s weird.
Why do politicians finish their speeches 'God bless America' and similar? It gives me shivers! Theocracy is not a good thing. Let's have separation between church and state and between religion and politics, shall we? I believe, in fact, that your country was actually built on the principle of that separation, was it not?
I also hate it when they call the u.s. “the greatest country in the world”. No it’s not, and I’m American.
Cashiers who aren't allowed to sit during their work
Like.... Why??
The rational is that customers will think they are lazy and just sitting around, which is dumb. You can still tell if they are working, even if they are sitting.
Calling a team "World Champions' of a sport that only your country competes in.
Home owner associations dictating the smallest details of your own home.
Having to find somebody to cover shifts when you're off on leave/sick.
Isn't that literally what the manager is there for?
Normally the manager does take care of it. I never worked a job where I had to take care of it myself. But low-paying jobs often don't have sick days or sick leave, so that would probably be where that would happen.
Gender reveal parties, I couldn't give a f**k what you're having and you shouldn't give f**k what I'm having. I hate that it's slowly becoming a thing in the UK.
Maybe if we start calling them sex celebration parties, they will die off
Paid maternity leave not being legislated as a basic employment right.
The tipping culture. Working a job and then having to depend on charity seems extremely wierd. I don't understand how people put up with that, having employment but having to basically beg for money to survive.
Tye s****y thing is if you protest this in the US, and you don't tip, it only hurts your server, and not the establishment that employs them.
Fear of anything 'not capitalist' being somehow 'communist' . E.g universal healthcare. Yet at the same time being terrified of 'big pharma'. It literally works in 100s of other non-communist countries.
Most of these people couldn't tell the difference. A comedian hit up a MAGA rally recently and started pitching ideas from Marx's Das Capital, without using the words, communism, socialism, or capitalism and found some very enthusiastic supporters in red hats.
American flags literally everywhere.
The number of people who keep large 'collections' of rusty cars & farm equipment in the garden.
The startling difference between the attitudes to sex & violence. Kids will see literally 100's of violent deaths on TV and no one bats an eye, but god forbid they should see a nipple.
Sex and bodies all perfectly natural bit hey let's not show/talk about it but violence, shootings yeah let's promote death and misery
Sales tax not being included in the price already. Wild.
I know - here (Aust) it's illegal to not include GST (sales tax) in the retail price.
How owning, buying and carrying guns is not more controlled and supervised.
mindlessly voting along party lines, even though the party's candidate is a complete fool
More the having to pre-commit to a party despite the rotation of candidates. The 'undecided' voter thing. Shouldn't that be everyone, each election?
Commercials for drugs. That you can't even buy yourself. But 'ask your doctor!'
I’d say the weirdest thing is how many side effects that are listed with them
People enthusiastically defending the health-care system that bankrupts people, sometimes even in reddit threads where people show off their horrendous medical bills
I like that the picture is from Breaking Bad. Another commenter in another thread pointed out that this show’s premise probably could not have existed in another country, and I can’t forget that
At 18 you can join the army, carry guns, f**k, drive car. But buy and drink alcohol only 21???
If I remember correctly it had something to do with reducing the number of fatalities from teens driving drunk. The statistics were pretty high. I could start drinking legally at the age of 18, but a few years later they changed the age to 19, then 21. My poor sister kept missing the boat.
The pledge of allegiance things at school. What in the actual f**k?
When I was in 5th grade there was a student who refused to pledge allegiance to the flag. He was made to stand in the hallway every morning because of it and was rumored to have detention once a week because of it, too. From what I remember, he never gave in.
Ironically, that would make him a real patriot for his country's liberties (because he's actually standing up, not knuckling under).
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Oh, we had a similiar thing here in Germany! During the 30's and 40's....
That's what I've been saying when my youngest went to elementary in the US.
Load More Replies... Samer reason "America is the Greatest Nation on Earth". Indoctrinate them when they're young.
Its brainwashing young minds, and I've had teacher's prove it. Im fully aware you're probably downvoting this right now but there's a reason i never stood myself
Very much so. And it will get worse iof the MAGA types succeed in their plans to take over school boards.
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Yup. As someone who’s family is american and later moved there after living abroad, i expected it to be a thing of the past but no its real and creepy as hell.
Load More Replies... I do not pledge allegiance to the flag of the divided states of America. Nor to the oligarchy for which it stands. One nation, separated, with liberty and justice for those who can afford it.
My date was so PO'd that I didn't rise to sing the national anthem at a sports game and whinged about how I "ruined everything!" and was an embarrassment for the remainder of the evening. Whereas, I figured I dodged a bullet.
I'm a teacher, and i do not pledge. I don't even stand. Take "under god"out and I'll... still not do it, TBH.
Ugh. Thankfully, at my school, we don't get in trouble for opting out of the pledge. We also do the Texas Pledge and (School Name) Mission Statement. I choose not to do any of them and I haven't gotten s**t for it yet...
In Colombia we have something similar, juramento a la bandera. In my son's first school, they never taught the kids about this "tradition". When he started fifth grade at a new school, he heard it for the first time and came home shocked and telling me the teacher would call me because he refused to repeat it. He actually cited his social studies teacher a fundamental right in our constitución, conscientious objection. The teacher never called. I mean, he was a 10 yo telling his teacher about his rights.
I just started sixth grade and my teacher makes us do the pledge every morning, even on assembly days where we do it anyways. I hate it. I just mouth the words.
when I was at a summer camp in America, the Pledge of Allegiance was always recited in the morning. I refused to join in because I'm not American. after a bit of discussion, I was allowed to leave it alone. As an Austrian, with our nations history, I find such display of nationalism always a bit questionable.
I would recite the pledge but would omit the words "under god". I started this when I was 10 years old.
"under God" was not in the original pledge. It was inserted during the McCarthy Red Scare period.
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I always closed my mouth during "under god". My Catholic PUBLIC school teacher berated me. My mother was not kind.
I dont now what is not to love about the pledge of allegiance. I think in every great nation they do or did that. Like North Korea, Nazi Germany and so on
In south africa,, we have to sing our national anthem aswell as a school song and then at the end of school assembly a completely different song. And if you don't sing,, you get detention :)
When the anthem plays at the high school games I attend (the kid is in the band, i could not care less about seizure-ball), I remain sitting down eating a hot dog or whatever I was doing. Ngl I'm always very scared someone is going to confront me and my spouse for it. But f**k those meaningless attempts of patriotism.
From middle school on I never did the pledge, I have also told my son he doesn't have to if he does not want it. I find it absolutely ridiculous.
I don't see why anyone would not stand for the flag. We are Americans. We live in this country & we should respect it. If you don't like it- leave.
Yeah. Used to have to also say a prayer before we could eat. This was elementary btw. In Junior High we had to also stand for the national anthem every Monday. Now in high school, we still listen to the pledge every day and have a moment of silence. I kinda understand the moment of silence, just because of the amount of violence that happens on a daily basis in the US.
I don’t stop what I’m doing for the pledge. If I’m sitting down and reading, I’ll just keep doing that. If I’m having a conversation, I’ll stop it so that the other person can say it, but I won’t. I get glared at a lot.
It's always given me cult-y vibes. You *really* shouldn't need to try that hard to get people to be loyal to their country. I would go so far as to say that's not fostering loyalty, that's indoctrination.
Better the pride that resides in a citizen of the world than the pride that resides when a colourful flag is unfurled. (copyright Neil Peart RIP)
I salute to the family members that sacrificed their lives for the sake of mine. Maybe just once in a while thank all of the wonderful citizens that gave you this country even if you don’t agree with every aspect of America.
You can do that by contributing to funds for wounded soldiers. Reciting the pledge does nothing to help anyone and indoctrinates children
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Apparently there's a pledge of allegiance in Disneyland as well and you're supposed to join in
Western Europe having lots of immigrants but no cults song at school : 😐
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The electoral college. WTF?
The opposite of democracy but the Republicans love it because Otherwise they would always lose.
Doing your own taxes, and being punished if you get it wrong by mistake.
Average UK tax paying person: 'Oh look, new financial year'. Carries on with their day knowing that the tax office will tell them if they've been paying too much or too little tax.
Televangelists springs to mind, there is one absolutely morally repugnant one with a massive house and private jets whose name I can't recall. I vehemently dislike organised religion at the best of times but why people actually listen to the ones that are very obviously money-grabbing lying scum is totally beyond me.
Edit: The one I was thinking of was Kenneth Copeland, seems to me he might be "worst among equals" as it were.
Oral Roberts was an evangelist from the '60's and '70's. My grandma sent him over ten thousand dollars. He sent her a Bible with our Lord Jesus Christ's words in red-- and Oral Roberts' name embossed in gold. Other than Roberts' name, I could have gotten Grandma the same Bible for less than ten bucks.
Black Friday. You spend Thanksgiving saying how grateful you are for what you have, and then have a massive free-for-all over stuff you want.
Putting quite a bit of sugar in things that don't require it, like bread and casseroles.
refusing to use metric
It is confusing for many of us too. A lot of our technical work does try to use metric instead
Having one week of paid vacation or sometimes not any time at all
Anything and everything related to belonging and participating in a Fraternity/ Sorority. ESPECIALLY the selection and hazing. ETA: actually, the selection and hazing are the problems
Absolutely. Fraternities and Sororities used to have a purpose, now it just seems like an excuse for bad behavior.
Baby showers. Here in Sweden it is generelly considered bad luck to give baby gifts before the baby is actually born. When the baby is born and the parents have gotten a few weeks alone with their newborn they usually start inviting people to meet them, but one or a few at a time, and then you bring a gift.
Pickup trucks as daily use cars. Of course I know that at this point most pickups are just SUVs with a small open bed in the rear, but it still boggles my mind how many people believe they absolutely need a pickup.
Mainly in certain parts of the country, and often in rural areas. To be fair, in rural areas they have their uses, but it has also become a status symbol in parts of the country, like the South.
The level of monitoring expected around children is wild to me. Over here, six-year-olds walk to school alone. (Of course within reason.)
It’s not usually anything the children are doing that causes this. ☹️
A lot of the High School stuff, like all the formal dances, Football, cheer leading. They’re such a big deal in the USA.
College sports. Why are they so popular, especially among fans who never attended any university, let alone the one they cheer for?
Not sure if it's a custom but i hate the fact that all children are expected to leave their family's house and live on their own by at least their 20s.
I come from the middle east where it's very common to live in multi generational houses. You'd probably never leave your family's house unless you are getting married or they literally just kick you out or something lol.
Actually many people choose to remain in their family's house even after marrying and having kids and what not. It's very normal here for a house to have like 3-4 different generations of the same family in it.
There are advantages and disadvantages to each system. The kind of system described here works well for a communal society, but it can also be stifling. I wouldn't have wanted to continue living with my very dysfunctional, overprotective and critical family far into my adulthood.
The whole "building credit" thing. Not sure it's a custom or just plain stupid. The amount of money that I can borrow is a reflection of my income and what it is that I want to borrow money for. The idea that you can't get a mortgage because you didn't pay for groceries with a credit card 10 years ago is absurd.
I suppose part of it is how the housing market works, it weird that if you can't pay your mortgage, then you can just drop the keys in the mailbox and it suddenly becomes a problem for the bank. Here if you can't pay your mortgage it's still your house and your problem. Sure the bank can use the law to make the government force you to sell to pay of debt, but that's different.
Paying your rent or your normal bills doesn't show up on your credit report is stupid.
Everyone is unbelievably so patriotic but also incredibly proud of their Irish or Italian roots. It’s fun to be American until someone mentions your natural tan.
An American lady once said to me '...of course, i'm Swedish'. She had been born in the US, no-one in her family had lived in Sweden since the late 19th century, she'd never been to Sweden, and spoke no Swedish. But, she maintained that she was 'Swedish'.
Putting ice in every drink no matter the temperature, season, or anything.
Whenever I can I actually avoid getting ice because it just waters down the drink
Ah, thank goodness! Another America bashing thread. I was worried since its been 5 days since they posted the last one
We should always boycott them - only way they'll stop. Trouble is people went to comment and defend, not unreasonably. Ignoring it completely would be the only way to deal with it really. BP only care about advertisers and want clicks and comments.
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yaaaaay the weekly America sucks to foreigners article. such talented writers at bp
I had a small break from the internet, it was rather nice, now I’m back and BP hasn’t let me down. An article listing all the things I already knew about tiny bits of life in the U.S. that are both predictable and repetitive. FFS BP move on, let’s have a 50 things in the U.S. that’ll make you smile.
Yeah, why not something positive for once? Why not include good things from all aver the world?.
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My god has this site become a hate filled cesspool. So Rokas, you think it’s funny to constantly stereotype you readers?
That you are more likely to be shot attending school than being in the armed forces
Sadly, this one is heartbreaking and true. It deeply saddens me and I know so many people who are trying to change this and are receiving nothing but pushback from hyper conservatives in the government.
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I am getting oh so f-ing tired of the abundance of America bashing threads on this site. One of these days will be the last straw, and I"ll decide this site is no longer worth my time. There must be plenty of other things to write about.
Stupid gross generalizations. The US is pretty large and diverse regionally and state by state.
Maybe there are so many American bashing posts because this country is quickly turning to hell in a handbasket and people want to rant about why the U. S. sucks 🙃
The differences are in some cases legitimate, some cases stereotypes maybe based on watching TV? Most of the comments are pure snark from ignorance.
Come on you two, you can do better. Your stuff is typically good now you're going for low hanging fruit.
Pffft, BoredPanda has been good since the pandemic. All they do is repost listicles from Reddit about angry Karens and AITA posts. Plus, they have some of the worst censorship I’ve seen. What other site censors the words die, prostitution, blood, twat, c**p, and w***y in their “listicles.”
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It's funny the amount of defensive people on here. Such small minds. What BP wrote another article pointing out absurdities in America!?! No way. You mean they write this that got clicks and then repeat the concept. No way it like that's how entertainment businesses work. Doing things to get attention. Mind blowing. Oh no BP doesn't do "yay American yay"... oh wait it does! Oh no BP only picks on America... oh wait it doesn't. Sorry to burst your bubble but your bubble is tiny and misses a lot.
An English language website that supports hatred of the country where over half the English speakers live. Maybe generates the clicks that attracts advertisers, but not if they look closer.
How is stating facts "hatred"? And I'm sorry but just because BP is in English doesn't mean only English speakers visit it. Typical American viewpoint.
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@Emma S, it's a religion here. I've never understood it myself. I live in Michigan and the newspapers are lousy with stories about the college teams.
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Yeah, sure we 'forget' despite having history lessons making it possible for us to see where you've got it wrong. Actually, most Europeans don't think about America much at all, certainly not to the extent BP would make it seem.
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No, you can't get hormones at age 5 or own a gun at age 2. You're an idiot if you actually think that, especially about the hormones.
Load More Replies... Ah, thank goodness! Another America bashing thread. I was worried since its been 5 days since they posted the last one
We should always boycott them - only way they'll stop. Trouble is people went to comment and defend, not unreasonably. Ignoring it completely would be the only way to deal with it really. BP only care about advertisers and want clicks and comments.
Load More Replies... yaaaaay the weekly America sucks to foreigners article. such talented writers at bp
I had a small break from the internet, it was rather nice, now I’m back and BP hasn’t let me down. An article listing all the things I already knew about tiny bits of life in the U.S. that are both predictable and repetitive. FFS BP move on, let’s have a 50 things in the U.S. that’ll make you smile.
Yeah, why not something positive for once? Why not include good things from all aver the world?.
Load More Replies... My god has this site become a hate filled cesspool. So Rokas, you think it’s funny to constantly stereotype you readers?
That you are more likely to be shot attending school than being in the armed forces
Sadly, this one is heartbreaking and true. It deeply saddens me and I know so many people who are trying to change this and are receiving nothing but pushback from hyper conservatives in the government.
Load More Replies... I am getting oh so f-ing tired of the abundance of America bashing threads on this site. One of these days will be the last straw, and I"ll decide this site is no longer worth my time. There must be plenty of other things to write about.
Stupid gross generalizations. The US is pretty large and diverse regionally and state by state.
Maybe there are so many American bashing posts because this country is quickly turning to hell in a handbasket and people want to rant about why the U. S. sucks 🙃
The differences are in some cases legitimate, some cases stereotypes maybe based on watching TV? Most of the comments are pure snark from ignorance.
Come on you two, you can do better. Your stuff is typically good now you're going for low hanging fruit.
Pffft, BoredPanda has been good since the pandemic. All they do is repost listicles from Reddit about angry Karens and AITA posts. Plus, they have some of the worst censorship I’ve seen. What other site censors the words die, prostitution, blood, twat, c**p, and w***y in their “listicles.”
Load More Replies... It's funny the amount of defensive people on here. Such small minds. What BP wrote another article pointing out absurdities in America!?! No way. You mean they write this that got clicks and then repeat the concept. No way it like that's how entertainment businesses work. Doing things to get attention. Mind blowing. Oh no BP doesn't do "yay American yay"... oh wait it does! Oh no BP only picks on America... oh wait it doesn't. Sorry to burst your bubble but your bubble is tiny and misses a lot.
An English language website that supports hatred of the country where over half the English speakers live. Maybe generates the clicks that attracts advertisers, but not if they look closer.
How is stating facts "hatred"? And I'm sorry but just because BP is in English doesn't mean only English speakers visit it. Typical American viewpoint.
Load More Replies... @Emma S, it's a religion here. I've never understood it myself. I live in Michigan and the newspapers are lousy with stories about the college teams.
Load More Replies... Yeah, sure we 'forget' despite having history lessons making it possible for us to see where you've got it wrong. Actually, most Europeans don't think about America much at all, certainly not to the extent BP would make it seem.
Load More Replies... No, you can't get hormones at age 5 or own a gun at age 2. You're an idiot if you actually think that, especially about the hormones.
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