What’s America famous for?

I don’t often shy away from subjects with my students, who tend to be university students or young professionals. Alcohol, the stupidity of Western politics, why John Garang died, whose to blame for Darfur, the pros and cons of polygamy. We have great fun discussing all these subjects and more. Things don’t usually get too heated. Steering clear of teddy bears probably helps.

Today, I had a new bunch of elementary students, so I took them through my usual introductory lesson on nationalities and asking where people are from. I wrote a load of countries on the board and asked them to say what they were famous for.

Argentina - football

Brazil - coffee and football

Italy - pizza

Germany - cars

Japan - technology

“So,” I said at length. “I hesitate to ask this question, but what is America famous for?”

“Killing people,” said one young lad sitting at the back, without hesitation.

Come on, don’t hold back, tell me what you really think.

Tags: America, American foreign policy, sudan