Here are two of the pro arguments I’ve gotten. I don’t have much of a response to these, but thought I’d throw them up anyway to thank you guys for engaging on this topic.

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Here’s the second counter I’ve received to yesterday’s post.

Tell “Americans” to stop being such assholes when they travel the world and the problem will be fixed.

Read the full comment and my response after the cut.

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Not surprisingly, my most recent post got a lot of comments. Also not surprisingly, they came in two varieties. I wanted to respond to them promptly. Here’s the first counter.

“Sorry, but you kill that many innocents and basically give a unilateral finger to the world for that long people are gonna be pissed…”

Full comment and response after the cut.

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Stop being such assholes to Americans, it’s getting old. Serene and I are here in Sofia, a charming, lovely city full of wonderful people–except for the large number of people that have given us the stink-eye and cold shoulder when they find out we’re American (we hung out with a French girl for awhile, and she definitely got off easier). There have been a notable number of too-cool-for-school hipsters at some of the cafes and hostels who have been rude to us off the bat, sometimes even before we open our mouths. Cut it out.

It’s not just Sofia (although it seems more prevalent here) I get this all the time, regardless of where we are– Japan, Vietnam, Korea. Take Turkey, for instance, where anti-American protests are basically a daily fact of life. Amid the accusations that Americans are baby murderers and racist trolls is a complete disregard for the absolute atrocity that seems to occur in Turkey on a daily basis. The suppression of unpatriotic speech, racial oppression and the disappearance of political dissidents are only some of the country’s problems– but like everyone else, it’s much easier to blame a scapegoat than reflect on yourself.

The US is an easy scapegoat, and we’ve done a lot of stupid things in the world. But just so you know, when you judge me for being American, you’re send a much more powerful message about yourself and your own ignorance.