On This Instagram Page, People Share Unpopular Opinions And Here Are 50 Of The Most Polarizing Ones (New Posts)
Everyone is entitled to having their own beliefs. Some people keep them to themselves. Some like to blare them out every chance they get. And others have views so unconventional, they completely go against the status quo.
When not every opinion is greeted with open arms, we’re lucky to have the internet where we can spark a discussion with complete strangers. There’s an Instagram account dedicated to sharing some of the best posts from the popular subreddit called Unpopular opinion. From electric vehicles to stuffed animals, members of this community have something to say about virtually any aspect of life.
So get ready to dive into some of the best posts this account had to offer. Upvote the ones you agree with, and, if you want to stir some emotions, share your own disputable views in the comments below. Psst! After you’re done, be sure to check out Part 1 of this post right here.
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I agree, too many times people feel entitled due to their age. You don't owe anyone anything. Congrats on the souvenir and the story you will be able to tell your friends and family.
In Finland, speeding tickets are income based. Just as an example.
Sometimes, we're discouraged from expressing our unpopular opinions because of the adverse reactions we might get from the people around us. Whether we’re talking about politics, religion, or popular culture, sharing our deepest beliefs can make someone feel pretty irritated.
However, while some end up scratching their heads from confusion, others see a like-minded person and gladly show their support in heated discussions. After all, a controversial point of view does not instantly mean that it’s uncommon. When you push your fears of being the odd one to the side, it’s much likely you'll encounter others sharing the same thoughts as you.
Brandwatch, a digital consumer intelligence company, was on a mission to investigate the most popular unpopular opinions on social media. They looked at consumers’ mentions from January 1 to June 30, 2020, excluding news, retweets, and shares. Results showed that 1.6M people shared their controversial beliefs in this period. Also, there were 34% more mentions during the lockdown compared to the four months prior.
Greed and narcissism... it's sad, but it's human nature. The majority of the people out there are fake as heck, and will do things like posting videos of themselves crying on the internet as PR moves, to help promote and enhance their brands, to help them gain those clicks, likes, follows, and subscribes. Even more sad is that there ARE the odd few out there who honestly have no one and no where else to turn to, and are using the internet to reach out. But those odd genuine few are usually buried and overshadowed by all the loud popular influencers out there, with their TikToks and viral videos and their memes.
Harassment is the right word. What happened to Diana and other famous people with the paparazzi actually haunting them, spying and giving no Fu*ks. But here's a thought: Who the hell buys those rag mag's is an accomplice bc if they stop buying that filth then the paparazzi will (nearly) go away or at least be way less.
When it comes to the topics people touch on, the top ones were about characters in pop culture, TV shows, dislike of fandoms, and books. People shared their complaints about some of the bestsellers of the century and aired their grievances about how some shows have become outdated. For example, 34K mentions called out Friends "for being hugely popular, despite some aspects not being acceptable today."
The researchers also looked into Reddit, where 958K users shared their gripes. "It seems like lockdown got to Reddit users, too. Posts to r/UnpopularOpinions increased 105%." They found that many of these mentions touched on things that happened on the platform itself. Most of them were focused on sports players, subreddits, and seeing change as not being good.
I read a quote before, wouldn't it be safer to fire blanks at someone than fire bullets at someone with a bullet proof vest
So while it can be fun to share your controversial views online, they also let others say opposing views, have heated discussions, and see things from different perspectives. Anna Akbari, P.hD., is a sociologist, writer, and speaker who shared her thoughts on why unpopularity isn’t necessarily a bad thing in a piece on The Psychology Today.
She explained that if we want to be happy, successful, and feel of service, we don’t actually need to appeal to the masses. "See, we’re complicated beings, each with our own unique experiences, full of biases and contradictions and, hopefully, a point of view," she wrote. "Having a point of view is a good thing, even when that view isn’t universally embraced."
You ruined it with "sure they're cute" because that's the whole point, they're NOT cute, people have just been trained into thinking they are. People need to realise that inbred dogs with serious health problems are the exact opposite of cute.
100% - the cheater is the one at fault - unless the people they cheated with is also someone who you have a relationship with then it's equal blame as they both owe you loyalty. I've never understood the blame being passed to the person they cheat with, and it's usually women who blame the other woman when their guy cheats - I sure there's a patriarchal link to all that that could be deciphered but seriously, they're just a shitty person if they knew he was involved with someone - if they didn't then they're just as much a victim in it all. This idea that men can't help themselves if offered sex has to stop - you don't accidentally have sex - yeah, you may regret it after but you totally know what you're doing while you're doing it.
While we can wholeheartedly stand by one issue, we can also not see eye to eye on another. "Agreeing to disagree on most things in life is fine—assuming it doesn’t restrict the liberty or human rights of others. It’s when we start to think that we need to agree on everything all the time to merely function together that we get into trouble," Akbari mentioned.
Needless to say, popularity isn’t essentially bad. Lots of things that are commonly and generally accepted by our society are considered as "safe". Akbari explained that we don’t have to immediately or categorically reject the popular stuff but rather "selectively embrace it, or at least occasionally challenge it."
Yes, it really should be free. I have been in therapy on and off for years and it has been free (/paid by taxes). It's due to mental health issues so free healthcare = free mental healthcare. I learned a lot and cope much better. I wish it was available to all who needs it. To hear that people live with anxiety, ptsd, depression etc and can't afford therapy to learn how to cope better is really, REALLY sad.
I don't use those sites anymore. If you want me to subscribe, or permit adverts in my ad blocker, or click a cookie thing every time, I just bounce. Enjoy your bouncerate and zero ad revenue. ALSO. PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD stop with the f*****g animated adverts. They drive my poor ADHD ass crazy. I can't stand it.
However, if your views are not clinging to the mainstream popular or if they tend to stir some unexpected or even rude reactions, "don't despair. You don’t need to bend toward conformity, and you may even be able to cash in—financially and socially—on stepping outside the conventional bounds."
She mentioned two rules that people who tend to lean into unpopularity should remember. The first one is that you should actually believe what you’re saying or doing. "Disagreeing for the sport of it is annoying and, rightfully, no one likes or respects you if you do that. So stop it," the sociologist advised.
In many cases I would agree but in many I would not. For example If an employee of mine turned out to be a KKK member, or they were videoed ridiculing a disabled person I would fire them without hesitation.
Retired teacher here, so let me weigh in on the realities. For elementary school kids, I'd overwhelmingly vote yes. Younger kids want to please the teacher; they want to be around the teacher, around other kids, in class. HOWEVER, as someone who taught middle and high school for 26 years, this does not work at all. By that time, there are a lot of kids who are looking for any way to leave the classroom. Yes, there are times they need to use the bathroom, but quite often they also want to socialize. There have been groups in certain years (not all by any means) that texted and met up in bathrooms and fought, too. It helps if a teacher has a sign in/out pass, or gives a certain number of tickets per month. Other children who don't have to use the bathroom COULD give a classmate a ticket if they felt generous.
"The second rule is to embrace your unpopular opinions with the knowledge and grace that not everyone shares your point of view," she continued. This rule can be quite tough since we humans have a general tendency to want others to agree with us. After all, it makes us feel heard and valued.
However, following this guideline "starts with a promise to both give up convincing other people to buy into your less popular opinions and to stop shaming them for their own thoughts and actions."
My previous boss (who was an absolute jerk!) used to say "there's a line of people waiting to take your place, if you quit." I did quite eventually. Seven years later and... my place is still unoccupied. And not just mine - two other people also quit from that office, and replacements could never be found. Or someone would start and then quit a month later due to the conditions. I guess the line of people for my spot turned out to be a bit too short ;)
Or, stop suing everyone for making mistakes. Yes there are serious negligence cases, but they're a lot less common than the cases where "negligence" is claimed, but it's just an honest mistake. Americans really need to stop that s**t.
We have to get rid of the phrase "unskilled labour". A janitor needs practical skills far above average (at least a good one does), and the working conditions of courier drivers or fastfood workers require a great deal of stamina and resilience. In any job you can go from beginner to master, working your job better or faster. Even more important, the economy absolutely depends on the jobs we tend to call "unskilled". Usually, in any company, if a middle manager is absent for some days, work continues more or less as usual. If the cleaning lady is absent, you notice the problems after a day or two the latest.
After that, it’s all about trusting yourself. If you believe that some things are just not right, don’t be shy and share your views with others because, chances are, there are people out there just like you. According to Akbari, there is value in dissent. "There’s often truth at the fringes and insight in unpopular perspectives. Greatness comes neither from blindly following nor from knee-jerk rejecting."
"Many of our greatest historical figures held really, really unpopular opinions. They did stuff that made people cringe or even retaliate against them. Going against the grain takes guts. And that courage is admirable, even if we disagree with what they’re saying or doing—but only when executed with integrity from a place of personal honesty," she wrote.
If you don't trust your partner, then you don't trust your own choice of partner.
We switched my kid to a Montessori school because they got to 6th grade and there was no AP option so they were just sitting there bored. It costs a good bit, but I have no reason to think public schools will be better for my kid than they were for me.
I'll probably be downvoted, but this also applies to the African American label. Your distant ancestors were from Africa,you were born in the US therefore you are American. You don't hear people of Asian or African ancestrysaying they are Chinese English or Ghanian Scottish,they are English or Scottish or just plain British.
I kinda think this too. A lot of American people like to identify as Irish-American or Italian-American especially. Even if they've never even met a relative from those countries. I used to live in America and it's one of the only countries that seems to be like that? As if just being American isn't enough? I'm British (English/Welsh & Irish background) and have an Irish passport but I'd never say I was Irish-English. That sounds stupid anyways :P Anyways this is just my opinion, please don't downvote me as it upsets me :P
It's because of racism and xenophobia. Over the generations, the U.S. has seen a lot of immigrants. Generally, we hate whoever is newest with overwhelming rage. (300+ years of this, and we Americans still haven't learned.) In the past, immigrants often tried to set themselves apart from other immigrants by making it clear they weren't, for example, Irish-Americans, they were [insert country here]-Americans. After hearing that for years and years, now it's just common.
Load More Replies...There's probably more Americans identifying as Irish than there are actual Irish.
Reminds me of a co-worker of mine whose parents immigrated from Italy. He said he once asked them, "Why don't we keep Italian culture? Why don't we speak Italian at home and eat Italian food?" And he said his father replied, "If we liked Italian culture, we would have stayed in Italy."
You get one generation born in the US, then quit that shiz. My great grandparents (and earlier) immigrated to the US, and literally NO ONE ELSE cares where they came from.
I’ve never understood why Americans do this either. Why claim heritage of a country you know nothing about, have never been to and have no clue about the customs and/or people or language?
why do you assume that they know nothing about the culture? Something like 30% of Canadians have at least one foreign-born parent. I guarantee you, these people know their heritage well.
Load More Replies...Post genetic testing, I have found that many Americans who calls themselves Irish/Italian/whatever, were completely wrong about their origins All of the white Americans I knew that claimed Cherokee or some Native heritage had none. Like a certain American politician who kept claiming Native heritage, she had 1 percent, which is going back around 8 generations or so. I also remember that Skip Gates did a bunch of DNA testing in the southern states and found a whole bunch of white racists who had a significant amounts of black heritage which tickled me.
Native heritage rarely shows in dna! Look it up! Thats rarely how it’s determined, more so by tribal affiliation and records
Load More Replies...My mother identifies hyphenated, but her parents are from another country, she spoke that language (still does), was raised in that culture as much as America, so.... I give first-generation people a pass on this.
Totally agree. They can usually physically touch the person from that previous country. After that just say I'm American but my ancestry is from X, Y and Z. People have no problem with the curiosity and desire to retain old customs and cultures either. Be who you are but be happily of the country you are born in.
Load More Replies...I agree. My mother is Belgian, my father Italian. I was born and educated in Italy. I am 100% Italian. I act and think like any Italian. My great grandmother was French, but my mother never said that she is French! People moved a lot in Europe: invasions , migrations, etc. If I go further back I will maybe find some Danes (mom) or Longobardic (dad) ancestor, and before that Gaul (mom) or Roman, and before Etruscan (dad) till the African ancestors that we all humans share. The Americans that I met were all really and only Americans. Color and grandparents origin did not make any difference. They had a very similar out take in life, same way of thinking, education, values. But of course mine was a small sample of people and I may be very wrong! Please do not get offended but to many of us you are all very USA people with nothing of European. Maybe for Americans from other continents it is different?
This always gets my mother going. My grandmother came over from Mexico when she was 16. She did not pass on any culture, religious beliefs, or language from her origins. She instead adopted all American ideals, culture, and nothing but English was spoken in her home unless her mother or sisters came to visit. When my mother confronted her about this lack of passing on her culture/beliefs/language my grandmother said, I came to America to be an American and that's what I did. I researched my genealogy with my aunt but it was all done out of fun and curiosity. Neither one of us really did anything with it but sit at the table and drink too much while laughing about our wild speculations as to why some of the ancestors had soooo many kids. Good times had by many I suppose.
Sounds sensible!! I think it's great to be curious about culture and heritage - just why claim to be something that got left behind (and probably for a reason).
Load More Replies...I'm a white African, my family has been here since the 1700s. The German in me has been diluted - nothing left.
Ever watch "Finding Your Roots"? Most Americans are mutts regardless of what they think their ethnicity is.
Aren't they always talking about heritage, not nationality? I mean, nobody thinks that they're German American, therefore they are also a citizen of Germany. They're talking about the culture they grew up in, which is a blend of birth country and heritage. To say that i'm Canadian because i was born in Canada and therefore have the same culture as my Haitian Canadian neighbours is silly. We share some culture, but other parts are very different.
Yes, and heritage is not nationality. It is culture and custom. Saying you are Irish-American is claiming two nationalities and that might be true for some who do have dual nationality of course. They have the right to say that and are a distinct group. If someone wanted to move to Ireland and claim citizenship there are strict rules to follow. You couldn't just go there and say I'm Irish based on any distant relative. You would have to prove that ancestry was recent enough and THEN make an application requesting to be granted citizenship. So unless you have a dual passport and can move freely between the two, you can't claim to be Irish-American. It is a legal distinction. You can of course say you are American with Irish Ancestry. Keeping the customs from that heritage isn't what people are disputing or bothered about.
Load More Replies...By making a distinction between American (I presume meaning white) and African/Asian American, aren't you putting an additional psychological barrier to belonging in?
I understand your point. But the Romanian runs thick in me, and our family is well aware of our heritage, and our last name is rare and originated in what is now county Alba in Romania. We definitely don't claim to be Romanian/American as we were not born there, but our ties still exist, our surname is our right to claim descent.
I don't think anyone should have a problem with that. I think people have every right to be proud of their heritage. To keep their customs and culture if they so wish. Officially, we tend to belong to the country we are born in and that's an inescapable fact.
Load More Replies...I've never understood this myself - I was born in Scotland to Scottish parents with Scottish grandparents, I'm Scottish - technically my mother was also Canadian as she was born there and has dual nationality - but I don't consider myself Canadian in the slightest. Neither does mum really, she's a Scottish person who happened to be born there when her parents had an extended stay over there for a few years. Anytime I talk to an American I get the my great great granny twice removed's aunties, cousins pet fish was from Scotland so I've got Scottish heritage - then the accents start - oh dear lord please stop that! Oh and the do you know the "Mackenzie's" -thats their clan - just stop! Maybe it's the lack of history and roots for white Americans - all their ancestors came from elsewhere and at most it's just a few generations removed - maybe in the next few generations it'll stop being such a big thing to them?
Many are finding out that's true when they get their DNA traced.
Load More Replies...I love to study my heritage, and talking to people about theirs. But, I never claim that as my nationality. When we lived in the US, my German wife was still German. I have been in Germany for about 20 years, I'm still American. And, as for my heritage, my ancestors on both sides of my father and one side of my mother came to the British colonies in the 1600s so I'm as American as you can get outside of being Native, my mothers grandfather is the exception, coming from England in the early 1900's.
I've never understood this. Eileen Gu was born in America, raised in America and trained in America but is representing China. Andy Ruiz Jr., knocked out Anthony Joshua and was applauded for being the first Mexican heavyweight boxer. Dude was born in America, raised in America and other than starting his amateur career in Mexico, he trained in America. I don't get this "I'm Irish," because grandma is from Ireland. I don't always like what America does, and we have a dark past, but I'm proud to be an American, and anyone should be proud of their nation of birth.
Hear, hear. Though, don't feel bad about the dark past. Most countries have them and it is not the fault of the people today. We can only do our own best.
Load More Replies...If you are born in a country, that is what you are. If born in the USA, you're American! Accept it and be proud!
I really don't understand the hatred for this. Among other americans, the terminology doesn't come across as saying you're literally from those places. It's a paraphrase for 'of x heritage'. For one thing, groups of immigrants brought their cultures to America, where it had a large impact on different regions even as it became something distinct from its country of origin. The Pennsylvania Dutch are an example of this. Irish is actually another good example. Irish Americans, who were usually Catholic, had distinctive red hair, lots of children, etc, were heavily descriminated against in early America. I've even heard it put that they were basically the 'black people' of their time, meaning that they were a minority with fewer socio-economic opportunities, and that they were quite literally not counted as 'white' by the protestant majority. So, knowing where your great grandparents lived and what race they were gives people a better understanding of what their lives were like IN AMERICA. Record keeping was poor and photos were not always available. Some Americans are not close with their families, and in a large country where everybody is just sort of the same without any real culture, I imagine being able to tie themselves to their heritage gives them some sense of belonging. I remember when my grandma got really into researching her family's history because she didn't know much about who they were. If it makes someone happy and it's not bothering you in anyway, being annoyed by it honestly just makes you sound like a jerk.
Yes, you can have Irish heritage but you are still an American. Period.
Load More Replies...What if your parents are from [country], and you've been to [country], still have ties to family in [country], celebrate traditions specific to [country], and other similar stuff, then is it okay to call yourself [country]-american?
You were born in that country so, officially, you will be of that country. I personally think there is little wrong with saying you are [country] American when you are the first generation born but if you had children? Not so much. Then you say our ancestry is xxxx. Just my opinion though!
Load More Replies...history lesson time......according to you, if born in say Germany or France or wherever then you're a German or Frenchman or etc......I absolutely guarantee you that somewhere on the history there are ancestors from different countries, or nationalities that mame up the Heritage, you're exactly like Americans, , whether you like it or not n.btw, you'd be surprised to know that allot of Americans are.Irish, German or whatever bc alum of their.ancestors cave from the same country, no-one is a pure bred anything, only the f*****g Germans thought they were the master race, the world corrected that
That's the point they are making though. That we are of the country we are born in and our ancestry may well be anything. People born in the US are Americans with Irish, Dutch etc ancestry. My ancestry is from many places. I am officially of the country I was born in regardless.
Load More Replies...I was in a tour group a few years ago. There was a man born in Romania who hs now a citizen of Israel. To me, he was a Romanian-Israeli. His birthplace and his nationality. There was a couple born in China but now American citizens. I refer to them as Chinese-Americans, and tgeir teo children - born in tbe United States simply as Americans. Same with the woman born in China who us now a Canadian citizen. She is Chinese-Canadian. Her Canada-born son, however, is simply Canadian.
People do this as they still cling to the racist code of where did you come from?
The American experiment started falling apart about 30 or so years ago when claiming to be a hyphenated American started becoming just a thing with no validity behind it. By the very nature of it the person claiming it is putting their adopted heritage/culture/identity before their born heritage/culture/identity. Eventually, sometime in the mid-90's, society started believing America is a melting pot of cultures so there is no single American identity. Look where we are now. We're now a country of factions easily turned on one another by a politician or some asinine social media post.
Many countries are melting pots - stacks of immigrants from many different nations. The people born in those countries will call themselves the nationality of that country - that is what they legally, officially, are. They may still celebrate their cultural heritage but that has no bearing on their nationality.
Load More Replies...American here. We're almost all mongrels over here, my ancestry has Scottish, English, Irish, Dutch, Cherokee and gods knows what else. And if I wanted to get petty, I'm royalty (decended from Robert the Bruce).
Most people are descended from Royalty - a lot of them f-ucked around like rabbits I'm afraid!
Load More Replies...As a Canadian who had lived in Europe for over a decade, I used not get why this bothered people over here, it seemed so normal to me to identify with one's heritage, but now I get it. It's confusing and annoying. "Oh, your Irish! Beautiful country where are you from? What's that? You've never actually been to Ireland?🤨"
This is a dumb one that I see from euros a lot. There's a difference between nationality and ethnicity. When American say that are 'Irish' they mean they are ethnically Irish, not that they are from Ireland. And as this guy writes, when confronted with that they double down with "well you should say that you're an American of Irish Heritage". Broski, you already understand that what they're saying your just being salty because you don't like the fact that there are more people of "Irish Heritage' in America than there are in Ireland. And wow, a country of immigrants talks about where their ancestors came from more than countries with stable ethnicities. What a shocker.
In the meantime when I meet tourists & immigrants to the US many of them will ask me where my family came from. My DNA results tell me I am one percent Sardinian. That confuses them since most of my DNA is very northern European. (UK & Ukraine).
I have similar issues with these kinds of attitudes. I see things this way....If you were born in and of African parents and you moved to and became citizens of the USA, THEN you have the right to call yourself an African-American. However, it should be noted that Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Sudan, and many others -Are- In Africa. THEY would also have the right to call themselves Aftrican-American. Ask yourselves this....Would 'God' care what we call ourselves and each other? No? Then why should I? As for me? I am a Human Being; THAT is my race. I am American; THAT is my ethnicity. And, I am a child of God. Why would I want to be anything else except being a better person than what I was yesterday.
I learned pretty quick it was a lot safer to say I was Canadian than from the US when traveling alone as a woman in Mexico. So safety says otherwise.
I always find it interesting to hear about people's cultural backgrounds and some of the traditions they continue to honour. Favourite family recipes are a good example, as are dances, handicrafts, special occasions .... Our family history is important in the bigger context (mass migration from various countries for any number of reasons) as well as the day-to-day, and help define us (to ourselves, if no one else).
Naw cuz see my Grandmother and Mom are from Germany, therefore I AM GERMAN! Also it's called a bloodline. The only true Americans are the ones that were here before Columbus got lost.
The African American label, to be honest, has a rather special origin though. The Africans who were transported as slaves to America were not asked if they wanted to become American, they were just there as possessions and labourers. That an African American calls themselves that is up to themselves, and how their feelings are about their own heritage. And I think we're all interested in our own backgrounds, to see how our ancestry has migrated through the ages and the geography, and I think we can all agree that no matter where we've been during our human adventure, we all started out in Africa.
The US government actually enforces this ridiculous "nationality" bs via the Census. You're asked what nationality, and if you answer as I did, American, then expect a lot of hemming/hawing and dead air. Why? American isn't offered as a response.
It's an interesting hold over to the rampant racism in America. It used to be very very important to know what kind of American you were. Now people take pride in this tribalistic BS while at the same time they claim to be against racism. You can't keep perpetuating that humans can be split up into different groups by physicality or ethnicity and claim you aren't racist. That is the original definition.
My husband and I were in France and about to step into a cathedral and a priest came out. He asked if we spoke English and we said yes. He asked if we were Americans and we said yes and he said you speak American.
Not the people born there - need to stop treating people based on the actions of their ancestors. Literally not their fault.
Load More Replies...I partly disagree. I am Hungarian born Slovak. Born and live my whole life in Slovakia. My mother tongue is Hungarian, at home we speak Hungarian. Studied Slovak schools though (even we have Hungarian schools in Slovakia). My official nationality is Hungarian, but i have Slovak citizenship (here in Slovakia you can define your nationality how YOU feel/want). I have a remote heritage also in Hungary. So by my opinion yes! you can choose your nationality how you want for f*ck sake! ☺️
But that's different - you actually speak Hungarian at home, your official nationality is Hungarian. It's not like Irish Americans speak Irish at home and have Irish passports.
Load More Replies...I’m an American, and I agree, but ! Remember, many Americans still have, or remember, family members that were born in another country. Conversely, how far back would most Europeans, or English, etc. have to go to find an ancestor who was born somewhere else? Or even know that they had “foreign”ancestors?
But the point is that we don't claim to be Irish because we had one Irish grandad who died before we were born! If that were the case I could out-Irish any Irish-American, but an actual Irish person would be horrified at me making that claim because I didn't grow up in Ireland, and while I have a basic understanding of British history I have not experienced what it is to be an Irish person! And neither have 'irish' Americans!
Load More Replies...Culture Clubs used to be prevelent back in the day. Grandparents belonged to the German American club. Parent's belonged and we belonged. We spoke the language, etc. But by my generation, fewer of us spoke the language and after the grandparents paßed on, it was no longer an obligation to be a member. My kids speak the language because we still have a home in Berlin and travel there often. My generation and my kids generation are completely americanized.
This is a genuine question for someone not from America to answer because I'm confused now hahah What if my great great grandparents were both from Switzerland? I never met them but their son (my great grandpa) died when I was 13. I visited him every Sunday, he spoke fluent German, (I speak broken German and continue to learn). I've celebrated Swiss holidays, eat and make Swiss/German food, and know both Swiss and German Folklore and cultural norms. However I have never been to Switzerland, and only been to the Berlin airport. Am I no longer allowed to say I am Swiss because I was born in America?
What does it say on your passport? It's the officials that tend to have the real say on this matter after all! Born in America you are, according to the laws of your country, American. Or am I about to learn that the US happily labels its passports Swiss-American etc? You do have swiss heritage. That's something you should enjoy and celebrate.
Load More Replies...This is the same to some extent in Australia. It is bizarre to me (as a European, from Europe).
My mom and her entire side of the family is Hungarian…born there, lived there, etc. however I was born here (USA) and lived here my whole life…heritage-wise I’m Jewish so I’d be a Jewish American. Nationality abs heritage can also be different from each other
Isn't this fundamentally different though. Being Jewish is a faith and your ancestry. You aren't claiming to be Hungarian American, which would tally with this post. There are Jewish people in other countries who would describe themselves as 'Jewish *country*'. Absolutely nationality and heritage can be different, that's largely the issue. The confusion of culture and nationality that is going on in the comments. Culture, customs and so forth can be passed on down the generations and people should keep these things alive. However, nationality is where you are born and live. That can change of course, people do move permanently to other countries and nationalise there but, again, that's not really what people are talking about here. Hope that makes sense 😕
Load More Replies...I find this unfair. My family still practices and embraces our heritage but we know our nationality is Canadian. That doesn't make our bloodline any different. Having only one known ancestor being Indigenous doesn't count as claiming to be fully Canadian and stripping all of our other cultures. I'm not saying we get married with full traditional wedding garb, but we technically could, or that we're Ukrainian or Irish like we came from those lands. We, or at least I, will say it like "Well, my mom's side is x and y, my dad's side is z. I'm third generation on that side and about 4th generation on the other side". I know it's a longer explanation but when people ask.... I have had grandparents very much practice and observe the cultures and traditions of their parents, and they would like those traditions and cultures passed down through the family tree. I don't see what is so wrong with that.
Literally no-one is saying there is anything wrong with practicing and embracing heritage. That is not nationality. You can celebrate and retain the culture of your ancestors. That's lovely, not a problem. Calling yourself the nationality of a country you were not born in, never lived in, don't intend to live in - that's the issue. You don't have dual nationality - though some people do and they can use both. Those who ARE of those countries find people saying eg 'Irish-American' generally find it offensive, it's claiming to be something you are not. What does it say on your passport? THAT is your nationality. Explaining your ancestry can be a detailed affair and that's okay - for most of us it's longer than a couple of words. Culture and nationality are different.
Load More Replies...I can't say for others, but for me I think my desire to claim heritage stems from my love of history. America is a fairly new country, and a hodge podge one at that. I'm not even sure what our culture is. Capitalism? Glorifying war and the military? Hollywood? A country of opportunities and colonized for religious freedom? Our history is basically genocide of the Native Americans. Europeans have their culture steeped in folklore and history that goes back thousands of years. I don't know. Maybe I romanticize other countries.
Why do people in the US not recognise that mass immigration happens in other countries? Has for centuries and STILL is happening. Culture is not nationality. I don't personally remember 1000s of years of folklore. If I emigrated to another country my roots and ancestry would still remain the same. People in the US can look back at their ancestry and keep customs if they wish. Doesn't alter the nation you are born in and therefore belong to.
Load More Replies...Americans don't have a lot of strong ties to the land itself and we're purely an immigrant country. We like to know where we come from. It's nice for the Europeans to comment that you're all Scottish and Irish and British but you also have thousands of years of history to work with. We don't. We have a couple hundred years at best and in the grand scheme of things, that's a drop in the bucket.
Here are plenty of second and third and even fourth generation immigrants in various European countries who don't go around identifying themselves as xxx German or xxx Spanish. It's purely a desperate attempt at attention from Americans
Load More Replies...It’s because we are almost all colonizers who are benefiting from genocide, to put it bluntly. We’re not from here and we know it.
You were born there though I assume? You, yourself ARE from there regardless of how it came to be. The country has existed for a long time now, nearly 250 years is coming up to TEN generations. Older than quite a few other countries now. Even if you were only 2 or 3 generations in you are still American. You might have strong cultural ties and customs you keep but that is so very different to nationality. People are saying 'it is just a shorthand' way to describe but how lazy do people have to be to struggle with 'i am American with x ancestry?' Particularly as it is often more than one country but two or three. Everyone already knows that Americans WILL have other ancestry after all, it won't be a shock! What Americans forget is that it is often the case for people in Europe to have mixed ancestry too.
Load More Replies...I'd say if you're practicing the culture then its fine, as I know people whos family haven't lived in India for generations but they still consider themselves (area I cant remember) Indian and practice traditions from that area. If you don't practice the traditions I personally don't think you have much of a leg to stand on.
Practising a culture has zero to do with it. You are born in a country and your passport will show you are OF that country. People from India might identify as Sikh, Hindu etc and practice those customs. They could say they are Sikh American etc. They would not be Indian (or area you can't remember) American, but they would have that Ancestry. Certainly after first generation people need to accept that they are the nationality that their Government would insist upon on legal documents. It's reality. That doesn't mean that their culture and customs would cease to be important to them, that's so very different to nationality.
Load More Replies...They are unlikely to have been. I suspect you mean their ancestors!! Still American, just further segregating them still today.
Load More Replies...British doesn't = white. What gave you the idea that it would whitewash anyone? Besides heritage is NOT nationality. You explained it here "I'm British with afghan, pakistani, kazakh and tajik anscestors" (sic) and people understand it perfectly. You didn't say I'm Afghan-Pakistani-Kazakh-Tajik-British. THAT would be ridiculous.
Load More Replies...Read the answers - there are plenty of explanations. Those nations own those nationalities.
Load More Replies...But not wrong to say 'I'm American'. You are born in America. It would say American on your passport. You can hold onto the HERITAGE but you are not the nationality. You don't have to explain the 'second generational' aspect - certainly wouldn't be apparent from saying the 'original' plus current nationality eg Irish-American anyway (so not sure why that got included). Also, there ARE going to be genuine Irish-American's - people who emigrate in this generation, people who have dual nationality. So it would be incorrect when considering people who DO have that current right to use those terms. You would be American with Irish Ancestry - and if you seriously find that two long to say then that's laziness beyond belief. You don't own the nationality, it's your heritage. Stop offending those nations - they actually DO mind.
Load More Replies...I am Italian and my country is around 150 years old. We have a lot of history, but not as one united country. I think your country it is not that young any more.
Load More Replies...What about people with dual nationality who can legitimately claim to be German-American? They then have to give a longer explanation when they are literally German-American and all the others are not. They can't say I am from Germany if they aren't. The only Americans who can say they are from Germany would be people who have emigrated and naturalised or the dual national who was born there but, that won't always be the case. These categories actually exist and it ends up making life more difficult for those groups when explaining who they are. So verbal shorthand is actually inaccurate, confusing and a poor excuse. Hardly a hardship to say American with German ancestry.
Load More Replies...You can identify your heritage and celebrate it, that's not wrong. Not a single person has said it is. However, it doesn't alter your nationality. If you are born in America you are American. You may have Norwegian heritage but countries don't put that on passports. Nationality is a legal status.
Load More Replies...So basically you don't want to be called just "white" inside America so you claim to be affiliated with a culture you know nothing about. Interesting. I mean I have a great-great-great ancestor from Greece and enjoy the occasional gyros so maybe I should learn Greek on Duolingo and call myself Greek-Romanian. Sounds way cooler. But wait, my grandma was Hungarian and I live in Norway so maybe it could be Greek-Hungarian-Norwegian-Romanian. Oh but my grandma was actually half Austrian half Hungarian despite being born in Hungary so perhaps Greek-Hungarian-Austrian-Norwegian-Romanian would be best? Help me out guys, what should I do?
Load More Replies...That works both ways. Maybe people should try and understand why it's offensive to the people of those nations. Americans have explained it and explained it and we have read those explanations here in these comments and many times before. However, we STILL don't agree that it's an accurate way for people to describe their nationality. With good reason - they don't have any current claim to to those countries. They don't vote or have anything to do with the running of them. It's a claim to something that isn't theirs. No-one is trying to deny these people their heritage. They aren't trying to deny their ancestry. You can have Dutch heritage and follow the culture. However, your nationality is a different matter, it's a legal status. Nationality can be changed of course. You can move to another country and be nationalised, but that is a process. It is not about someone pointing to a long dead relative and still following the customs of a never-lived-in land.
Load More Replies...That's okay!! Obviously Americans won't mind being told that they shouldn't keep saying their heritage is the same thing as their nationality then. It isn't, they are American of whatever ancestry. However it is a dumb thing that isn't worth being outraged about.
Load More Replies...Give YOU a BREAK? FFS! What makes Americans so special that we should give you a break? Of course other countries care, they have a strong national identity and it is theirs. We hear USA, USA enough and clearly it's strong enough when you want it to be. You can have and share the heritage absolutely, but not the nationality. You are American. "My teacher asking everyone" is up there with the least relevant reason. Stop muddling heritage and nationality.
Load More Replies...Well this is obvious, it also applies to many of the "50 years of driving and no accidents" type people... Yes Mrs Miggins, but only because everyone has done such a good job of avoiding your ass
I swear a lot, but it's very very rarely AT someone. I'm not doing it to offend people, it just comes out :P
Jeans and hoodies get washed maybe once a month (or three) unless something has got on them. You don't need to smell like washing powder, and constantly washing everything is bad for you, your clothes, your bank account, and the planet. End of discussion, downvote me all you like I think you know by now I don't give a s**t.
My husband and I have slept in separate rooms for over 10 years (due to his loud snoring keeping me awake). We are very happy together and have no real problems in our relationship - we just both like a decent night sleep. People assume that we aren’t intimate and/or that our whole relationship is falling apart, which couldn’t be further from the truth.
It's not brave it's natural. This if my face. Don't like it. Screw off
Yup. I've been a passenger while the driver just drove around and around waiting for one of the "good" spots to become available. Finally I said, "If we had just parked in one of the far spots right away, we would have been inside the store by now."
Urgh. My ex-husband used to say that all the time especially during arguments. "No one cares" or "no one feel that way". Well, I do. You can't decide on what to care about or feel based on your feelings and use that as the only truth. Blah.
They say money doesn't buy happiness, but I think this is it...this is the happiness money can buy.
I feel like the human approach to "what to do with the waste/recycling of electric vehicles" will (and probably is) treated similar to the problem of what to do with nuclear waste, and unfortunately, our approach seems to be to sweep it under the rug and let future generations figure it out.
Note: this post originally had 108 images. It’s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes.
Unpopular opinion: almost none of these posts are unpopular opinions or controversial in any way
Yep, kinda signing off most of them. Basic common sense of human decency.
Load More Replies...Unpopular opinion: people are getting so trigger-happy about calling people Karens that it's making more docile people afraid to speak up, especially women. I've never heard the word 'entitled' get thrown around like it has until recently. It's getting to the point that people are saying someone is entitled just because they did something that was a slight inconvenience to them. If that's not entitled, I don't know what is.
I agree. Some people (men and women) act "like a Karen". But nowadays its used mostly to harass women everytime that they are assertive
Load More Replies...Nah I think a lot of these are pretty uncontroversial and some are really arbitrary. I think the person is targeting more conservative people, or just trolling (like the one about juice).
I have an unpopular opinion. I don't think anyone should be able to have pets or babies until they have passed significant psychological testing. I don't care about rich or poor. Some people should never be allowed to have responsibility for other living beings. If I ran the world, I'd be very unpopular, because I would be a terrible dictator and not tolerate most of the s**t that goes down in the world.
Well, we do license for driving but not parenting...
Load More Replies...Unpopular opinion: BoredPanda reposting Instagram that is reposting/stealing Reddit. How deep can we go?
I don't understand why these are considered unpopular opinions I agree with almost everyone
You want something unpopular? I love human much more than I like animals. And pets. It doesn't mean that I dont like animals, or that I will harm them. But if I have to chose between a human an an animal, human will always come first. And I'll strongly judge you if you don't do the same.
Well, the top part of the list were again not unpopular opinions. The extended list was pretty lame. Not sure why I read to the end.
Unopoular opinion: men and women being half naked/in tiny outfits and dancing “sexy” on TikTok shouldn’t be allowed. Want likes and maybe money for looking like that and doing sexy things? Fine. Make an OnlyFans account. TikTok is used by SO many kids and they should not be watching that. I’m so afraid of my bf’s 8 yearold niece seeing a - way too - skinny girl in a bikini dancing sexy and getting thousands of likes, and thinking “that’s what I need to look like. But I don’t, so I wont ever get that many likes and nobody will ever like me!” And the same for young boys, for that matter. Both the “girls should look like that or nothing will do!” or “I don’t have a six-pack like him, so no woman will ever like me!”
Calling out a brand, business or company on something they are doing that is fraud, like for example, randomly adding extra data and thus money onto your internet bill, gets people called as Karens all the time. And these scammers get off scot free. They don't cancel your plan, when they were the ones calling you every week when you weren't a subscriber. They don't cancel or change your plan back to what it was unless you call them five times.
People commend Poland for taking in so many Ukranian refugees - yet African, Indian and literally any non-white students in Ukraine were restrained at the border, some were even beaten and abused. Poland doesn't need to be glorified for doing what is expected of them as human decency.
So this time BP copied an instagram account that copied reddit instead of copying reddit directly
I’m smiling and shaking my head at the fact that the hockey puck post was upvoted the most (of all topics discussed). Does this means that’s it’s the least polarizing of all the polarizing posts? Maybe the one thing we can all stand united on is that if we witness someone catch a ball or hockey puck at a game, we celebrate their win and let them keep it, guilt-free? 😁
Ieva ... been a fan of Bored Panda for many years. This is one of the best posts I've ever read! Thanks for sharing. - Ed Kelb -
Unpopulair opinion: Bubble tea is a waste of space and only popular because people say it's popular.
This s**t is nothing new. The hard reality is that people have been highlighting and pointing out and attempting to make better some of these issues for decades but the younger generation is just into calling them “boomers” and thinking that their revelations are new if unique snd the world needs to bend to their will. I get why customers are pissed office, some have good reason to be pissed off. Hell, how difficult is it to do your job with integrity?? BP is loaded with threads on what doesn’t work, what’s wrong and how things “should be”. It’s a hard lesson to learn that the world works for the ultra wealthy, not the little guy, yes it’s been getting worse, thank the GOP (the party of fear, gaslighting and greed). You want to make a difference, then invest in the work its going to take instead of being a huge part of the problem. Whining and bitching without learning what it takes to change things, just dismissing a whole generation IS A HUGE PART OFTHE PROBLEM!!!
If the gop is so greedy why is it liberals spending all the money?
Load More Replies...Right? From misogyny to contradiction s, to plain old lack of critical though, what a waste of time.
Load More Replies...No it isn't. Most of us appreciate other cultures. They aren't the same thing.
Load More Replies...Unpopular opinion: almost none of these posts are unpopular opinions or controversial in any way
Yep, kinda signing off most of them. Basic common sense of human decency.
Load More Replies...Unpopular opinion: people are getting so trigger-happy about calling people Karens that it's making more docile people afraid to speak up, especially women. I've never heard the word 'entitled' get thrown around like it has until recently. It's getting to the point that people are saying someone is entitled just because they did something that was a slight inconvenience to them. If that's not entitled, I don't know what is.
I agree. Some people (men and women) act "like a Karen". But nowadays its used mostly to harass women everytime that they are assertive
Load More Replies...Nah I think a lot of these are pretty uncontroversial and some are really arbitrary. I think the person is targeting more conservative people, or just trolling (like the one about juice).
I have an unpopular opinion. I don't think anyone should be able to have pets or babies until they have passed significant psychological testing. I don't care about rich or poor. Some people should never be allowed to have responsibility for other living beings. If I ran the world, I'd be very unpopular, because I would be a terrible dictator and not tolerate most of the s**t that goes down in the world.
Well, we do license for driving but not parenting...
Load More Replies...Unpopular opinion: BoredPanda reposting Instagram that is reposting/stealing Reddit. How deep can we go?
I don't understand why these are considered unpopular opinions I agree with almost everyone
You want something unpopular? I love human much more than I like animals. And pets. It doesn't mean that I dont like animals, or that I will harm them. But if I have to chose between a human an an animal, human will always come first. And I'll strongly judge you if you don't do the same.
Well, the top part of the list were again not unpopular opinions. The extended list was pretty lame. Not sure why I read to the end.
Unopoular opinion: men and women being half naked/in tiny outfits and dancing “sexy” on TikTok shouldn’t be allowed. Want likes and maybe money for looking like that and doing sexy things? Fine. Make an OnlyFans account. TikTok is used by SO many kids and they should not be watching that. I’m so afraid of my bf’s 8 yearold niece seeing a - way too - skinny girl in a bikini dancing sexy and getting thousands of likes, and thinking “that’s what I need to look like. But I don’t, so I wont ever get that many likes and nobody will ever like me!” And the same for young boys, for that matter. Both the “girls should look like that or nothing will do!” or “I don’t have a six-pack like him, so no woman will ever like me!”
Calling out a brand, business or company on something they are doing that is fraud, like for example, randomly adding extra data and thus money onto your internet bill, gets people called as Karens all the time. And these scammers get off scot free. They don't cancel your plan, when they were the ones calling you every week when you weren't a subscriber. They don't cancel or change your plan back to what it was unless you call them five times.
People commend Poland for taking in so many Ukranian refugees - yet African, Indian and literally any non-white students in Ukraine were restrained at the border, some were even beaten and abused. Poland doesn't need to be glorified for doing what is expected of them as human decency.
So this time BP copied an instagram account that copied reddit instead of copying reddit directly
I’m smiling and shaking my head at the fact that the hockey puck post was upvoted the most (of all topics discussed). Does this means that’s it’s the least polarizing of all the polarizing posts? Maybe the one thing we can all stand united on is that if we witness someone catch a ball or hockey puck at a game, we celebrate their win and let them keep it, guilt-free? 😁
Ieva ... been a fan of Bored Panda for many years. This is one of the best posts I've ever read! Thanks for sharing. - Ed Kelb -
Unpopulair opinion: Bubble tea is a waste of space and only popular because people say it's popular.
This s**t is nothing new. The hard reality is that people have been highlighting and pointing out and attempting to make better some of these issues for decades but the younger generation is just into calling them “boomers” and thinking that their revelations are new if unique snd the world needs to bend to their will. I get why customers are pissed office, some have good reason to be pissed off. Hell, how difficult is it to do your job with integrity?? BP is loaded with threads on what doesn’t work, what’s wrong and how things “should be”. It’s a hard lesson to learn that the world works for the ultra wealthy, not the little guy, yes it’s been getting worse, thank the GOP (the party of fear, gaslighting and greed). You want to make a difference, then invest in the work its going to take instead of being a huge part of the problem. Whining and bitching without learning what it takes to change things, just dismissing a whole generation IS A HUGE PART OFTHE PROBLEM!!!
If the gop is so greedy why is it liberals spending all the money?
Load More Replies...Right? From misogyny to contradiction s, to plain old lack of critical though, what a waste of time.
Load More Replies...No it isn't. Most of us appreciate other cultures. They aren't the same thing.
Load More Replies...