ADVERTISEMENT

It’s no secret—the rest of the world looks at how peculiar American culture can be and wonders if it’s even real.

‘Cause let’s face it—even if it looks fine for us, that doesn’t mean that having police patrol your school, paying for a ride to the hospital, and calling the toilet “restroom” when we all know very well there ain't nobody going there to have a rest shouldn’t raise a brow for others.

So this time, we are looking at what American things make our fellow non-American friends scratch their heads in simple, yet very spot-on questions below. Our dear American Pandas are also welcome to help separate what’s real, what’s rumors, and what only happens in movies in the comments! And after you're done with this post, check out our previous one with things Americans do that require an explanation for non-Americans.

#1

Questions-For-Americans

max_lus Report

Add photo comments
POST
Ceredwyn Ealanta
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

But taking off shoes and socks when you come in is nearly as good as taking off your bra.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#3

Questions-For-Americans

dreamdoie Report

Add photo comments
POST
GirlFriday
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

We have them. They are usually part of the cheerleader squad or dance squad. It is a sports thing. We take sports very seriously.

Cassie
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Not sure what Darko Pešić experienced here, but every high school here has multiple competitive sports teams and a mascot. Lots of kids get into college on a sports scholarship because sports gets even more competitive at the college level. I've seen brutal fights between people going into a store wearing opposing team gear. We're trained to be rabid fans from a young age. Even our junior high/middle schools have competitive teams and mascots and some elementary schools, too.

Load More Replies...
Danieletc
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes. And no one - absolutely NO ONE - is jealous of the one that dresses up as one.

Toasty
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm pretty sure most, of not all, schools have mascots. Our was a cowboy.

Tabitha L
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes. My nephew's high school had a male and female mascot.

b l a n c
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

a lot of the high school stuff i see on TV about proms and mascots i've never seen in any of my schools, so i always found it weird, but i'm pretty sure it's a common thing where i live too

Dilly Millandry
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm assuming there isn't as much bullying as TV and films portray in high school as well.... hopefully.

Load More Replies...
Louise Stange-Wahl
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

YUP! Just like Hogwarts! Some are very localized and some are strange even to Americans. Univ of Oregon. They are the only school with a Disney character, Donald Duck, through special permission from Disney. Here in the Southwest USA, we have the Lobos (Spanish for Wolves), Being a horse fanatic, I love the horsie mascots..like Traveler , the USC Andalusian mascot...GORGEOUS! Sports teams have them here as well..Denver Broncos has a drop-dead gorgeous Arabian...who are my favorite horses in 60 years with them.

Jimmy Wakeman
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Almost all have mascot logos some have actual mascots in costume but not many

Jill Pulcifer
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

All schools have a mascot, some high schools and lower dont make a big thing of it. Where I went to school it was the "Clare Pioneer" and every year someone was chosen to wear the head and play it at games.

Potter
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I feel like some have a "mascot" but there's no one that dresses up to be it. That's what it's like at our school

Koalamonster
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The high school I went to has Old Abe as the mascot. He was an eagle who was the mascot of the 8th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment during the Civil War. He went around with the group, and seriously, people were super in to him. In writings people mention more than once that during battles he'd sometimes spread his wings and scream. When they- the soldiers- were done with their tour they came back to Wisconsin, and unsurprisingly people were still super in to the bird who was in the Civil War. When they came back state officials classified him as a "War Relic" and created an "Eagle Department" in the Capitol building, which included a two-room "apartment," a custom bathtub for the eagle, and a caretaker. Years later a fire broke out in the basement, Old Abe made enough noise that they put the fire out, but he had taken in a good deal of smoke. They had a lot of doctors see if they could help, but no luck. He died in the arms of his caretaker about a month later.

Koalamonster
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's a very long way to say that yes we had a mascot but honestly I think ours was cooler than just a generic animal. A school near us is the crickets. School mascots are weird.

Load More Replies...
Ana Rodriguez
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My highschool's was a stupid bee. Not even black and yellow one. Gold and red were our colors. After my class graduated, they changed it to a cool black and yellow which makes more sense.

Damon Gates
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The Washington Redskins could have saved themselves a lot of trouble if they'd changed their mascot to a potato.

Dragonfruit'nrollerskates
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If you see a school mascot and pose for a picture, don't touch the costume. It gets very sweaty and gross cause the person has to run around the whole event in a fleece and fiberglass incubator with a tiny hole of mesh to breathe through. Also, it's hard to wash. Eww.

Cuddles
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The one at my school was very very creepy. In more than just a giant-costume-head on a skinny cheerleader body way. (It was based on a real guy who apparently donated money to the school back in the day and that made it incredibly creepy and most of us hated that they put the mascot on -everything-.)

lara
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

We have them and they are important to school kids and alumni.

Leslie Burleson
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yep, we do... and some of them are seriously lame . Mascots are supposed to be mighty and engender pride ... kind of hard to do if your school mascot is a sea horse

Katie Bell
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

In Greenland it was weirder I used to go to school and each day 20 ppl per class HAD to come in dressed up as something funny (it was a school for ppl with depression..... The 20 ppl just became more depressed so they went bankrupt and I missed a term cus no school allowed kids with depression so guess how I felt? DEPRESSED CUS NOBODY CARED I EXISTED.)

Orange Knight
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

absolutely. Unfortunately a bunch of them use a native american or figure from the civil war and they are butt hurt about changing the offensive imagery

Steve Onyx
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

One of my kids went to a bio-science high school. The mascot is a double helix. Feel free to google that. :D

Weishaar Jamie
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes. Aa lot of what you see on TV about US schools is at least "based on" fact. Proms, mascots, etc... all true

Walter Smith
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's a way of accepting students who are a little different. A kid who resembles an eagle would have a hard time at a school whose team is the Lions.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu

Even though Americans and Europeans share many things, like commitment to democratic principles, a strategic alliance, and some of the highest standards in the world, there are still some very notable differences between them.

A 2016 study done by Pew Research Center was very revealing in that respect. First of all, it showed that Americans are more likely to believe they control their own destiny.

The research showed that a staggering 57% of Americans disagreed with the statement “Success in life is pretty much determined by forces outside our control.” The percentage was higher than in any other European nations polled.

ADVERTISEMENT
#6

Questions-For-Americans

melo1ore Report

Add photo comments
POST
Brendan
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

An affective way to make the 'popular' kids feel even more popular.

View more commentsArrow down menu

The second interesting thing the Pew poll showed is that “Americans prioritize individual liberty, while Europeans tend to value the role of the state to ensure no one in society is in need.”

When it comes to religion, it turned out that over half in the US (53%) say religion is extremely important in their life, which is nearly double the share with the same view in Poland.

In France, for example, only 14% consider religion a very important aspect of their lives.

#8

Questions-For-Americans

thatsgayrichie Report

Add photo comments
POST
chi-wei shen
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

How else would you call them? Students wouldn't use the teachers first name.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
#9

Questions-For-Americans

whorevina Report

Add photo comments
POST
GirlFriday
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Some schools are more strict than others and require them. My schools didn't require them. We just excused ourselves and went to the restroom when needed.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#10

Questions-For-Americans

alfadamson Report

Add photo comments
POST
GirlFriday
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

No. They don't - at least the schools that I went to and my nieces and nephews don't (they are ages 4 - 17). In the past, students were made to recite the "pledge of allegiance" each morning, but I think this is something that has fallen by the wayside.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
#11

Questions-For-Americans

lovetrivialove Report

Add photo comments
POST
giraffescupcakesandlove
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Some schools don't allow it, but at the schools I went to we were allowed to. It was fun! You can put magnets, quotes, pictures of loved ones.

View more commentsArrow down menu
#12

Questions-For-Americans

kraken_seance Report

Add photo comments
POST
Potter
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes, and there are usually one or two questions where you have to read something and write a few pages for it.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#13

Questions-For-Americans

maydaybaerade Report

Add photo comments
POST
Kat Hoth
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes, and sometimes mail does get stolen even though it's a federal offense.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#18

Questions-For-Americans

shcbangsthedrum Report

Add photo comments
POST
chi-wei shen
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

What's so unusual with this? I'm Austrian and my children's friends never used my first name.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda
#22

Questions-For-Americans

TANGYRO Report

#24

Questions-For-Americans

Lissasies Report

Add photo comments
POST
chi-wei shen
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I think children all over the world have to feel "slightly suicidal" to do this.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#25

Questions-For-Americans

cmangles_ Report

Add photo comments
POST
80 Van
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

No, we call eye doctors “Optometrists,” and we call Opticians “Opticians.”

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda
#29

Questions-For-Americans

Kaylee_Crystal Report

Add photo comments
POST
Bill
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

most countries do because it has been a part of military training for centuries. They want inshape youth for military service.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
Continue reading with Bored Panda Premium
Unlimited content
Ad-free browsing
Dark mode
#31

Questions-For-Americans

sparklysaniya Report

Add photo comments
POST
GirlFriday
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The term "20/20" and similar fractions (such as 20/40, 20/60, etc.) are visual acuity measurements. They also are called Snellen fractions, named after Herman Snellen, the Dutch ophthalmologist who developed this measurement system in 1862.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#33

Questions-For-Americans

dietcoke____ Report

Add photo comments
POST
giovanna
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm Italian. Children eat pasta with butter and Parmigiano here. I also do when I want the comfort of a warm pasta hug.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#34

Questions-For-Americans

leapfroglesbian Report

Add photo comments
POST
spirit wolf
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I went to school in other countries aswell and boy did I write lines in detention. This is definitely not just an American thing. Yes, I was an exemplary student.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda