The United States has plenty of pros and cons, just like any other country. However, you can’t deny America tends to have more of each and some of them are turned all the way up to 11 on the weirdness scale. Like having the police patrol your school, writing the date in a weird way (let’s not even talk about the Imperial measurement system), and having full-on smear ads against political opponents.
Welcome to the Wonderland that is the USA. And what better way to learn about the bizarre things that Americans think are completely normal than by asking non-Americans for their opinions? That’s exactly what one Reddit user (who told Bored Panda that they wish to remain anonymous because of all the attention they’re getting) did in a viral thread that got more than 50.9k upvotes and over a whopping 38.9k comments. Scroll down, have a read, check out our in-depth interview with the original poster, and upvote the weird things that happen in the US that left an impact on you, dear Pandas.
#1
Bankruptcy because you went to the hospital
Image source: canesfan09, David Syzdek
#2
Talking about their freedom as if they’re the only country in the world who has it…
Image source: zohan360, Denise Krebs
#3
Gratuitous violence in entertainment is normal. But show one boob and people lose their s**t.
Image source: danno49, miramax
#4
When you are 18 years old, you can be shipped to a foreign country to kill humans, but you are not allowed to drink alcohol.
Image source: K_51, Fort Rucker
#5
Ambulance rides costing money seems pretty absurd to people from other countries
Image source: Meemesfourdayz, Paul Townley
#6
Paying people less than minimum wage. How is it a minimum if it’s legal to pay less than that?
Image source: NZLion, 401(K) 2012
#7
Wondering if you’re sick enough to call that ambulance or if you should just risk ubering it.
Medical bankruptcy after you’re charged $200,000 for a week long hospital stay and now you’re homeless.
Being mentally ill and getting hospitalized by others for your own safety, but then getting a massive bill for it that you cant pay (which will totally help the suicidality right?)
Choosing between food and medicine.
Deciding that it’s less expensive to just go into palliative care and die instead of fighting a disease like cancer.
As you can see I really hate the american medical care system.
Image source: greffedufois, Tomás Del Coro
#8
Turning scientific information into a political discussion.
Image source: everythihghurts, U.S. Embassy Phnom Penh
#9
Archaic, unhelpful standard units of measurement.
Image source: JSanzi, franchise opportunities
#10
Putting a ton of sugar in products like bread.
Image source: TheThingsWeMake, Doug Waldron
#11
Gun ownership.
Image source: only7inches, Paul Sableman
#12
Having only two parties: Republicans and Democrats. I know there are some smaller parties, but the system is stacked against them.
Image source: level 1 K_51, Pom’
#13
Not putting the final price on the tag. I’m not sure whether it’s still like this, but a few years ago one never knew whether the $1.00 item in McDonald’s or Burger King is actually $1.00 or maybe $1.08.
Image source: TitanicBeta, JJBers
#14
Date Order (MM/DD/YYYY)
Image source: -Sinister-Shadow, InvestmentTotal.com
#15
Portion sizes.
Image source: pourmewhineoh, Jerry Huddleston
#16
The plot of Breaking Bad being about a science teacher getting cancer and worrying about leaving his family with massive medical debt when he dies.
Image source: FeFiFoShizzle, imbd
#17
My maternity leave was an unpaid 6 weeks, and I had to fight them on not shorting me because I went past my due date and didn’t keep working until the day I went into labor.
Image source: robot_cupcak3, sergio santos
#18
American flags everywhere. I traveled throughout Europe and the Caribbean and I usually only saw their flag on government builds and here and there. Where as here in the USA the flag is like Franks Red Hot. We put that s**t on everything. Magnets, churches, cars, condoms, every front porch, and street lamp. #murica
#19
Doing the pledge of allegiance in the morning at school
Image source: flavener, John Beagle
#20
Identifying as your heritage instead of your nationality. Americans will say that they’re Italian, German, polish, etc. when they don’t speak the language and have no real connection to those countries anymore.
In other parts of the world people just identify with the country they were born in or have lived in for a significant amount of time regardless of their ancestry.
Image source: bluegreentree, IrishFireside
#21
Had some American colleagues in Norway asking us how we celebrate 4th July
Image source: kevkippers, m01229
#22
Big glasses of water WITH ICE at restaurants. I live in Texas usually and I drink ice water like 24/7. It’s a good habit here, especially in Summer. When I was in Europe I would get the smallest glasses of luke warm water that I had to ask for more every ten seconds. I felt annoying! Aren’t y’all thirsty?! Or am I missing something?
Image source: bunnysnitch
#23
Toilet cubicles, where people not only can peek, but an adult person could crawl into your cubicle, there is so much space under the “door”.
Image source: TitanicBeta, Michael Coghlan
#24
Willingly putting yourself massively in debt for a college degree.
I come from a place with free university education (which has its own drawbacks of course), and the fact that you can make such a huge, life-altering decision at 17 is considered normal over there, that seems downright bizarre to me.
Image source: I_hate_traveling, barnyz
#25
The enabling customer service culture.
It’s created excessive portions in restaurants, created Karen, gives way to a disposable attitude towards products, and generally gives a sense of entitlement where most people start adding it to their list of rights.
Image source: srocan, UPC Media Relations
#26
When I was there during the last election I was shocked at how phrases like ‘well they have the black vote’ or the ‘Latino vote’ came up all the time on the radio. Obviously it’s not racist but it’s just something that would never come up in my country. Like, why would latino people all vote for the same person?
Image source: Adam-West, kgroovy
#27
Actively avoiding healthcare visits/checkups because if there’s something wrong and you don’t have the money to pay for treatment, then you’d rather just not know
Image source: KingAceNumber1, Yuya Tamai
#28
This one is more on the positive side, because I think we could learn some from it.
Talking and sharing your life with complete strangers. I have met quite a few americans so it seems the norm that you share and engage with strangers in public. The bus, train, parks etc. And then you go on your way.
In Denmark you’d be a “freak” if you did that.
Image source: WuuutWuuut, Ben Grey
#29
Asking everyone “what do you do?” when you first meet them. I live outside the US and realized there are some people I’ve known for years and I still don’t know their job. I think in the US jobs are a bigger part of a person’s identity than in some other places.
Image source: Ssffxx, Loren Kerns
#30
The one that always shocks me (I’ve an L1B so I spent quite a bit of time in the last couple of years living & working in the USA – although back home in U.K. right now) is the whole ‘thank you for your service’ military thing. The military is treated like some sort of god level being. It first struck me at Seaworld when they would make all service personnel stand up. In the U.K. the military guys (a) wouldn’t do it and (b) would be embarassed. In most cases they would be actively told not to do it so they don’t get identified – the fear the IRA stoked still runs deep in the processes in the military of the U.K.
Image source: bantamw
#31
Side effects on medication adverts.
Friggin hilarious to us Brits.
With James’ Hayfever meds, I can get through the day with ease!
Side effects may include:
Loss of sight
Loss of hearing
Loss of sense of smell
Coma
Headaches
Fever
Vomiting
Diarrhoea
Loss of consciousness
and death.
Image source: level 1 typicalcitrus, Jonathan Rolande
#32
American Corporations have convinced us our work culture is totally normal.
Image source: Nesyaj0, Jesús Corrius
#33
Attack ads against political opponents, ads for law firms or lawyers. These kinds of ads are illegal and considered unethical in our country. Also expecting a teenager to be out of the house by the time they’re 18. I live in Southeast Asia. There’s no stigma about living with one’s parents. Most of the time, there will be three generations living in one house.
Image source: HollowMist11
#34
not owning kettles and MICROWAVING their water for coffee/tea
Image source: gibbylewd, Chris Lawrence
#35
Non-necessary, non-religious circumcision.
Image source: GoodLordChokeAnABomb
#36
Having second mortgages on a house. Taking massive loans they can’t possibly pay off and buying stuff with it that decreases in value over time such as cars.
Image source: realultralord
#37
Shoes inside
Image source: SpohieAuz, Architectural Digest
#38
Extra large bottomless cups for cola or soft drinks…. you could bathe in those….
Image source: SlyDigits
#39
being able to vote before reaching the legal drinking age
Image source: level 1 dingdongimprblywrong, hjl
#40
A flag in every corner of a classroom, and Americans being very patriotic to the stars and stripes. Other countries barely give a poop about their flags
Image source: Legendary-Lynx
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