The Pitfalls of Marrying an American Woman.

Sure it would count as a racist hate crime if she was murdered because of her race. Sounds more like she was murdered because she had a sadistic scumbag for a boyfriend- apples and oranges. And that really sucks too-I hate violence against anyone: men, women, children-black, brown, white...whatever.
But if we're going to ever make gains in terms of alleviating some it, we need to be honest about the underlying attitudes and societal influences that cause it- and I don't think you can overlook history when you're looking for those causes.

And again, I sure as hell wouldn't want to be a black man on the periphery of a criminal investigations being looked at as a suspect or person of interest in terms of perpetrating murder in Texas...they just don't seem to ever fare very well down there-even the innocent ones.

Well this stopped being a light hearted thread a long time ago. Unfortunately everyone thinks they know which state has the most racists. It's not always the location, mostly it's the ignorance of individuals living all over our country.

No truer words spoken about racial bigotry.

I have known people who were ignorant by choice. They've travelled...the destination changed, but that didn't affect the driver. I've known people who hold academic degrees who have no desire to know beyond what they were initially taught.

Many people have not passed the first page of their life by limiting their exposure to this world that's been shrinking with air travel and instantaneous communication.

Funny...I always believed it impossible...now I know better.

If they've traveled the world but it did nothing to change them, they really didn't see or do anything worthwhile.

Travel should:
1. be educational
2. meet interesting people
3. see the sites that are world famous, and learn why they are famous - a) UNICEF World Heritage Sites, b) cultural home to learn about your ancestors, c) learn about other countries and cultures
4. experience meeting different peoples around the world *I have friends in many countries including Africa, Germany, UK, Malaysia, Canada, Singapore, Bhutan, Italy, Moscow, Cuba, Mexico, Cambodia, Vietnam, China, and all over the US.
5. eat and drink different foods
6. study the country's history * I used to hate history in grade school. Now, I love it!
7. share your experiences with others. I started a travel blog four years ago, and I now have over 36,000 hits from around the world. It's taking me years to get rid of my photo albums that I've accumulated before I started my blog at travelpod.com.
8. have traveled to over 200 countries and 89 unique ones.
9. four trips planned for this year. seven trips in both 2013 and 2012.
10. I sincerely believe it keeps me in good health because of all the walking.

I've never met an American who has traveled and lived in other cultures that doesn't excoriate xenophobia.
Geographically Americans aren't exposed to foreigners; not like the people of Europe who I met that speak 3 or 4 languages.
It's not Americans fault they live in a huge continent and settle for visiting the Grand Canyon or Disney world instead of spending time in another culture or country.
I was lucky. Being an immigrant and traveling the world in my 20's opened up a love of other cultures that I still feel today.

That's not all; many Americans believe all Muslims are terrorists, because that's what they hear on FOX News. They don't have the capacity to do any real research to learn the truth and facts. Their laziness reaches across all manners of political and economic issues.

From that laziness, the US is falling behind many other countries in our educational system and economic power. Even the top 5% can't see that their greed is destroying the very country that provided them with that wealth.

The GOP won't even allow congress to increase the minimum wage for our workers, then decry the fact that many are dependent on our government for food and shelter.

TNCFS; we are doomed to failure.

Panzade: Ok..let's not look at things In such resolute terms. Ask the average Englishman what he thinks of the French...Ask an a a average German what he thinks of Italians, Greek, or Spanish. I have lived in Europe and the Americas....also my parents are European. Let's not dismiss the truth.

I have no idea how that relates to Americans not having an opportunity to travel an hour or two and be in a different country.

What I mean is simply by living in Europe, doesn't make people more open to others simply due to close proximity. People's barriers are often in their minds. Yes, traveling can expose a person to others architecture, food, language, etc. I'm often impressed by what a melting pot the U.S. is. The distances and differences from coast to coast can be quite astounding. I was stunned by the surreal architecture of Santa Fe, it's indigenous people and art; San Francisco's strong Asian influence; Miami ....makes you wonder if you're still in the U.S. ( art, music, cuisine, language ); New Orleans which it's French Colonial vibe --rich in culture( Jazz, vudu , folklore); Alabama with cuisine of west African origin and such a tangled mix of cultures, Alaska, Hawaii, etc....the U.S. Is immensely rich in culture. I think it's impossible to grasp the concept of what the U.S. is by traveling to Disneyland, NYC, and Hollywood ( which are common tourist destinations). The U.S. Is a very complex country. I have travelled outside the U.S. extensively, yet this country still holds so much intrigue. I agree with what you're saying concerning distances/proximity but--- I've known people who speak several languages and have travelled extensively, who know little more than stereotypical info about other cultures. Funny anecdote( I'm not making this up)--I know a lady who has travelled all over the world and has resided in Britain for about 30 years. She won't eat Chinese food because she fears she may be served a cat or dog. .

Got ya

I think you are genuinely interested in cultures...not simply in taking a vacation in pursuit of hedonism. I like your take on things....I also love to travel.

What you say is very true. Not only those destinations you named, but the national park system is a whole mix of geography, nature, and WOW's. My wife and I did the National Parks and Canyons tour a few years ago, visiting Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse Monument, Deadwood (visited Kevin Kostner's casino and restaurant), Little Big Horn, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Jackson Hole, Salt Lake City, Bryce, Zion, Lake Powell (my wife and I flew to Monument Valley), and the Grand Canyon. We stayed in the park for two nights. When my nephew got married in North Carolina, my brother took me to Chimney Rock Park. It was awesome! We also did Gettysburg and Phily a few years ago. The diversity in this country is amazing, and I've not even been to all 50 states!

Yes...the grandiosity and natural diversity is phenomenal. The deserts, mountains..I've visited a couple of the national parks and left in awe of them....I still have so much exploring to do.

Lets get this back on track.

"Gwyneth Paltrow explains why water just doesn't like bad vibes" (from theguardian)
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/lostinshowbiz/2014/jun/05/gwyneth-paltrow-water-bad-vibes?CMP=fb_gu
This week, Gwyneth has mostly been thinking about hip New York restaurants, bold fashion prints and quantum mechanics – though her communiqué majors on the latter. "I am fascinated by the growing science behind the energy of consciousness and its effects on matter," it begins. "I have long had Dr Emoto's coffee table book on how negativity changes the structure of water."

I think you'll agree there's a lot to enjoy in that sentence – primarily the fact that this Dr Emoto publishes his research in a coffee-table book. It makes me realise what an impact The Origin of Species could have made had Charles Darwin only thought to present it in a photo-rich format that could take its place as a glorified coaster, alongside books with names such as Poverty Style: A Journey Through Third World Bohemia, and The World's 23 Most Important Infinity Pools.

Fortuitously, Gwyneth's quack-in-chief Dr Habib Sadeghi is on hand to explain this whole water science. The good doctor was last seen explaining "conscious uncoupling" to the world – but it turns out he's equally at home giving tutorials in quantum physics, which is encouraging. It makes me hope that one day the scientists at Cern will use their power for good, and turn their wasted opportunity of a collider into a supergreens juicer, or a machine to discover the elusive celebrity self-awareness particle.

According to Sadeghi, the lesson of quantum physics is that physical matter does not exist, and that "everything is just energy in different states of vibration". Thereafter, he wants to talk about the aforementioned Dr Masaru Emoto, who apparently did some experiments with water in the 1990s. Over to Sadeghi: "Emoto poured pure water into vials labelled with negative phrases like 'I hate you' or 'fear'," we learn. "After 24 hours, the water was frozen, and no longer crystallized under the microscope: it yielded gray, misshapen clumps instead of beautiful lace-like crystals. In contrast, Emoto placed labels that said things like 'I love you' or 'peace' on vials of polluted water, and after 24 hours, they produced gleaming, perfectly hexagonal crystals. Emoto's experiments proved that energy generated by positive or negative words can actually change the physical structure of an object."

Actually I prefer not to know anything about an actor other than their talent to perform. It's very difficult for me to read Paltrow, or Suzanne Sommer's and other high profile crackpots who believe every Svengali who appears with some machine, herbal brew, face cream that guarantees total happiness and everlasting youth, beauty, and world peace. It must be exhausting to dig thru all the clap trap to discover the ancient cure hidden in a monastery somewhere in the Alps.

Isn't Chimney Rock Park the one with the wooden swinging bridge? I remember walking over that bridge but I couldn't look down, holy crap it was deep. It took about 30 minutes to get up the nerve to walk back over. Not going to do that again.

Ask the average Andalucian what he thinks of the Basques, or vice versa. As for English people, I know that usually a xenophobic utterance is either forthcoming or has just been delivered when I hear the phrase "the French". That sort usually assumes that all other English people will share his contempt. I don't, as regular A2K visitors will probably have gathered.