I think Buffy should be more careful in future what she says. I'll be sure to take more notice in future, too.
Sure, there are some really stupid things that come out of America and some Americans do some really stupid things. Dick Cheney, for example, has given a lot of people over here something to laugh about (whether it's really a laughing matter or not for his (former?) hunting partner) and Bush says a lot of really stupid things and pulls a lot of funny faces.
But America is not the only country to produce silly things. What about David Beckham, for example, or Wayne Rooney. If fact, professional footballers in general. And from Australia we get Neighbours.
Meanwhile, at the other end of the spectrum, what about the cathode ray tube? That was invented by an American and is an invention that has literally changed the world. From it we got television (admittedly a Scotsman also invented television at around the same time but his was a mechanical system that was bulky, produce a poor image and was prone to failure), radar (which, incidentally, helped defend Britain from the German bombers in WW2) and computer screens, among other things.
Just as importantly, the internet was invented in America. By stupid people? I don't think so.
Speaking of the internet, the 'world wide web' was invented by a British man, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, and as Douglas Adams commented, 'www' is probably the only abbreviation he knew of that actually took longer to say than what it is short for. Therefore while a useful invention, a rather stupid thing to call it.
Other useful American inventions include FM radio, the light bulb, the transistor and perhaps most usefully, the colt revolver (guns, according to something I saw on UKTV history, being responsible for many advances in surgical techniques).
I think it's fair to say that no matter where you're from, there will be some really clever people and some really dumb people. Even clever people can do some really dumb things sometimes (as I often prove).
Anyway, I don't know about this community being full.
I would like it to be as international as possible. However, it will probably be more UK orientated (oriented? - this spelling being in more common usage in the US, apparently
), as that's where I live and so that's where a lot of my information comes from. I don't know if the issues are the same elsewhere in the world. Let's see.
One problem I often have is in inviting friends to come to gigs. I'm currently 18 years of age, and therefore legally allowed to consume alcohol. Some of my friends, and usually the ones most willing to come out to gigs, are not yet and not only can they not buy alcohol, many venues don't even allow them in at all without proof of age. In fact, being refused entry was a problem I had right up until I was 18 because I look so young.
Is that issue familiar to people in other countries?
I'm not a drinker (if I ever consume alcohol it's only on special occasions, or if someone offers me a wee bit of Strongbow
) so being refused entry on the grounds that I might be consuming alcohol underage seems silly to me, but then the law is the law. So having to leave my friends outside or having to go elsewhere is something that happens and annoys me.
If anyone wants to look up the history of the 'straight edge movement,' do so. Just remember Ian MacKaye did not set out to start a movement of any kind, only to be allowed play music regardless of how old he and his band mates were at the time.
Actually, that's why Ian MacKaye is perhaps the one person I most respect in the world of music.
As a result of my experience, this will be one of the things I'll be trying to incorporate into the events system I'm currently working on.
Anyway, I think that's gone quite OT.