People Are Sharing The Lies About Americans That They're Sick Of Hearing, And I Didn't Even Know Some Of These Were Things People Believed

Needless to say, the US is a country that is full of misconceptions to people who don't really know much about it or haven't visited. There are some stereotypes about Americans/the States that are fair or deservedly brought on. However, there are others that when you hear them as an American, you just think, Huh?

a map of the USA
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And recently, Reddit user PW6YLenen wanted to know about what misconceptions people have basically had enough of when they asked: "What is a lie about America that you're sick of hearing?"

The Statue of Liberty in front of the American flag
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The thread went viral, getting over 5.7K replies. Below are the top, best, and most often repeated things that people are tired of hearing about the US:

1."One of the stranger myths I see repeated about America by foreigners is about food. Usually, it's something like, 'American [beer/cheese/chocolate/bread/etc.] is all crappy and terrible.' No, you just picked the cheapest version from a chain grocery store and then acted like it's the only one we have. It's like if I went to the UK and shit-talked British food because all I ate was sausage rolls from Greggs."

Bread on display
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2."There are a lot more important ones, but I constantly hear that we all wear shoes in the house. No one I know hangs around the house in shoes."

Shoes lined up on a rug
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3."That we're all intellectually invalid, morbidly obese lard asses who binge reality TV all day while munching on butter sticks and guzzling Alfredo sauce."

Screenshot from "Fight Club"
20 Century Fox

4."This one seems silly. But, for some reason, people think we are the only country with those cheaply made public bathroom stall doors — the metal ones with the cracks that you can kind of see into, etc. I’ve used bathrooms that have these in three different countries just this year."

a bathroom stall door
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5."That we are ALL the screaming, loudmouth, 'Karen' tourists that visit other countries and yell, 'Why don't you speak English?' Believe me, we hate those people, too."

Screenshot from "Rush Hour"
New Line Cinema

6."How racist it is. I'm Egyptian, and you can tell I'm Arab just by my appearance. There's way more racism in my homeland AND in surrounding regions than the West in general, tbh. Apart from a comment here or there, mostly from some inebriated youths, I haven't had a racial experience. (I live in the South.) All are friendly and sweet and also soooo polite. They seem to take a genuine interest in where I am from, etc. The US actually has discriminatory and anti-racism laws."

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7."A lot of people in Eastern Europe think that Americans are all rich. Meanwhile, the Americans are trying to budget for toast and trim their own toenail infection to avoid going to the hospital."

Piles of cash
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8."That we have no concept of the Metric System. Look, we know it exists. We learn about it in school. And it’s used exclusively in medical and scientific applications. But it’s just not what we use in our day-to-day lives."

a conversion table for measurements
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9."Americans being ignorant about foreign languages and monolingual. It’s a true stereotype, but not about Americans. It’s true to native English speakers — as UK and Australia have similar rates of monolingualism."

"hello" in multiple languages
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10."Not from the US but have lived there. Mine would be that people are only surface nice but nothing beyond that and then become rude. Very untrue — my family was met with a lot of genuine kindness from the beginning, and a lot of people went above and beyond providing help and expected nothing in return. Just sweet, helpful, and nice people in their local community."

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11."Not so much a lie as a misconception. I've seen a few English bloggers remark about how hard it is to get vegetables in US grocery stores, and remarking that the only things available are pre-made salads and the like."

a woman shopping in the produce section of a grocery store
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12."'America has no history.' Blatantly untrue and offensive, to say the least."

A drawing of Native Americans
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13."That we have bad healthcare. We have bad health insurance options and access for some people."

A doctor looking at a brain scan
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14."I got so tired of hearing from foreign exchange students that America has no culture. Like bitch, you’ve visited one f'ing state, you can’t just decide the whole country is absent of culture."

Entrance to the Smithsonian
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15.And lastly, "That we're all dumb. I had several men in England come up to me and tell me that, and surprisingly, later expect me to go home with them."

Screenshot from "The Simpsons"
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You can read the original thread over on Reddit.

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