16 Things Europeans Say Americans ‘Aren’t Ready to Hear’ (But They’re Gonna Tell You Anyway)

It’s always interesting to hear other countries’ perspectives on American culture. So when I came across this Reddit thread where u/Mamutu7 asked: “Europeans, what is something we Americans are not ready to hear?“I was admittedly surprised to read many of these responses. Here are some.

1.“EpiPens cost $69 in the UK, compared to $600 in the US – and yes, the drug companies are making a profit.

—u/DevDudeZX81

2.“Tipping is stupid. Just pay your staff a decent wage!”

3.“Sugar doesn’t belong in everything, especially not in bread.”

—u/Wrestling Woman

4.“Europe is more than England and Paris.”

—u/SloRules

5.“You all spend too much time worrying about paying taxes and not enough time making sure your taxes go to the right programs.”

—u/Nova13

6.‘You are as loud as tourists. Speak at a normal volume, please.”

7.“An American accent is still an accent.”

—u/Orange_fan1

8.“Healthcare doesn’t cost that much. It’s all HUGELY bloated.”

—u/nurseofdeath

9.“If your great-great-grandparents moved from Norway to the US, started a family and generations later you were born, then you are NOT Norwegian. Your ancestors were and you have a little Nordic blood in you, but you are still 100 % American. Not Norwegian, 25% Irish, 10% Swedish, 3% Finnish, 17% Norwegian, 5% Danish.

10.“Different countries are really different from different states. We understand the differences between them perfectly, but Americans tend to think we don’t understand and try to make us believe that Denmark and Portugal make the same difference as Washington and Mississippi. No, it isn’t Real different. Having another language is something that changes everything. You are suddenly no longer able to read anything and communicate beyond basic words. The law is also completely different, there is a ‘European Constitution’ that applies everywhere in every local law. But thinking that moving from one European country to another is the same as moving from one state to another is completely wrong. It applies very well within the borders of a large enough country, but not beyond.”

—u/orange_meckanik

11.“Your car-dependent infrastructure is terrible. You shouldn’t be forced to own a car just to get somewhere.”

12.“You don’t have to play the national anthem every 15 minutes. At a certain point it just gets annoying and loses all its value.”

—u/StRodeNL

13.‘Before you visit a country, educate yourself about it geographyculture, language(s) and laws. And yes, a little political knowledge is also good.”

—u/FriendshipNo1440

14.“27 days of PTO is completely normal.”

—u/Whole-Bank9820

15.“Food that is usually consumed within a few days doesn’t really need all those food preservation chemicals.”

16.“Visiting European cities and telling us how different it is in America is not as good a conversation starter as you think. We know it is different.”

—u/MsB0x

Is there anything you can add to this list? If so, share it with me in the comments below!

Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.