hey guys
my office just transferred me to a branch on the west coast and i find the people and culture are very crude and off putting. if there are any expats on here are there any resources to meet people on medium term assigments?
I’ve been told people from the west coast are much friendlier than the east coast.
Um, yeah, if you find people on the West Coast to be off-putting…I’m not really sure what to say. They can be more superficial (in So. Cal.) and much, much more liberal in (Nor. Cal, Portland, and Seattle). But, they are pretty nice overall. The only way you’re going to get nicer folks is going to the Midwest.
canada might be a better place to be…
Where are you from? Not possible its from the NE US. NYC/Philly/DC/Boston people really just mind their own business and dont give a crap about you, some people consider it rude, others dont.
Avoid the midwest, you’ll have diabetes within a year. Stay on the West Coast.
OP - Where are you coming from?
Ha ha. Dude, there is no need to be PC here.
If by ‘crude’ you mean obscenely ignorant potty-mouthed people then I have news for you, it isn’t getting better. I’ll just give you a couple of tips:
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Don’t get into any political conversations - the amount of people who truly buy into American propganda and think that their government has done no wrong will give you a throbbing headache. Couple this with the fact that the American Left is probably the Far-Right wherever you are from then it is simply a waste of time going down this route.
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If you are West-European this does not apply but if you are not you will find out that the culture can be subtly xenophobic. If someone doesn’t give you the right vibe it is better to cut them dead rather than give them the benfit of doubt. PS : If you hang out with some American dudes and they start complaining about their women then sit back and soak it in. The delusional rants are good for a laugh when you head back.
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African American and Latin Americans are mostly excluded from all the above. Hang out with them as often as you can.
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Sign up for Internations and pay the full fee to get the albatross membership. It’s totally worth it and you’ll meet a ton of people in similar situations.
^^^ Lol talking about all the problems of other countries from India. Thats Rich.
Basically everyone agrees americas govt has done a ton wrong, but how come when something bad happens everyone turns to the US to deal with it. Biggest catch 22 in global politics.
I’ve always thought that the highly insincere “Have a nice day!” that you get from people in California is preferable to the very sincere “F- you!” that you tend to get here in New York.
Or “Bless your heart” in the south. God I wish I could say that all the time and it be cool
Where were you transferred to and where did you come from? People on the West Coast tend to be more casual than people from other places, but if that is off putting to you, I don’t think that is their problem.
i am from spain and now i am in los angeles and the friendliness is very artificial.
matt likes analysis
i agree but i do not have this luxury to choose canada
scatman
i have heard a lot about internations. many people recommend it, thank you for suggesting i should opt for the paid membership.
I’m not very fond of Southern California, aside from the weather. Los Angeles is a city that attracts people looking to make it big in film and entertainment, because - ultimately - that’s the primary industry of Los Angeles. That’s partly a stereotype, but the sterotype exists because there’s an element (a big element) of truth to it. It’s surprising that a city of several million people can be about one industry, but there it is.
What that means is that people are putting on an act. Actually, people put on an act pretty much everywhere, trying to be more than they appear, but the people in LA are *actors* putting on an act, so maybe they are able to do a better job at it.
But people aren’t really all that unfriendly, they’re just superficial, and they get excited about superficial stuff. If you’ve come from a place with deeper cultural roots, that shallowness can feel like you feel when you eat diet food… no flavor or real substance.
LA? Artificial? You hit the nail on the head…
Not exactly. Americans don’t really like to engage in political discussions even with other Americans. It’s up there with talking about religion and how much money you make. It’s considered rude. You are dead wrong that most Americans buy into whatever “propaganda” the government spits out. We’re revolutionaries at heart. Most people distrust the government at best, and to find it completely inept isn’t an unusual view. (And it’s not that hard to find (light) anarchists such as Turd and, to a lesser extent, myself.)
The problem you may be encountering is when you bring up American politics with a US citizen - we don’t like fuzzy little foreigners telling us how to run our country. You want to see the tea-partiers and Bernie Sanders lovers unite real fast? Have some dude from another country start talking about how anything is wrong with America.
It’s not the propaganda we buy into. It’s the fact we’re much better than you and you have no right to tell us how to run our shit. Or, put nicely, you should mind your own business. At least until you’re a superpower, then maybe we’ll talk.
StL drops the mic
I’m from Los Angeles.
But, at the moment, not far from it.
haha I love passive aggressive phrases
It’s just temporary, right? I think you’ll be able to manage – and there are certainly worse places to be than LA.
Also, given the Spanish economy, you should be thankful just to be gainfully employed.