People who say "irregardless". There's no such word. The proper terminology is "regardless". This may seem like it's no big deal, but people who say it have no idea how ignorant it sounds. The worst part is, most people who say it think they're sounding intelligent. Of course, the funniest thing is to hear people from Boston - they pronounce it "irregahdless". Then again, it did make for a pretty funny Saturday Night Live skit...

Complainers. Now in light of what I said in the introduction, this may sound hypocritical, but there's nothing worse than being with a person who just complains about EVERY LITTLE THING. In fact, that's one reason that I don't mind travelling by myself - most Americans I know usually spend most of the trip complaining about something. The food, the weather, the prices, the lines, blah, blah, blah...If you want to be happy in this life, you have to learn to be flexible and play with the hand life deals ya...

Parents who don't control their kids in public. Now, I'm not naive, I know that kids will act up, and sometimes there's not much you can do about it. But it's so annoying when you're in a public place and there's an unruly kid yelling, screaming, whatever, and his mom is just ignoring him. Either that, or mom just keeps saying "I'm not gonna tell you again, stop it...", then she tells him again every two minutes while he ignores her.  Along with this one is parents who take their kids with them into places where kids shouldn't be - like the movie theater. Hey parents, here's some advice; if you're in a movie theater and your kids starts crying, TAKE HIM OUTSIDE. Don't sit there and try to calm him down while everyone else is trying to watch the movie. It's rude.

People who don't take off their hats during the National Anthem. It's disrespectful. Take it off.

Americans stationed overseas that don't appreciate the opportunities they have. What is it about Americans? Is it the fact that the US is so geographically isolated that we can't accept other cultures? Is it lack of education? Is it ignorance? Apathy? Arrogance? Laziness? I've often pondered these questions and still have yet to come up with an answer. Personally, I think it's a combination of the aforementioned factors. It's sad how many people I've met in my 4+ years in Europe who don't travel. And when I say travel, I mean to say that they don't venture beyond the city they live in. I've actually met people here in Vicenza who have never even been to Venice. That's sad. And it's alot more widespread than you would think. Most people I've met over here will take one or two trips during their tour here and go home satisfied with that. Other people don't go anywhere except downtown (to places where Americans all hang out), then go home and talk about how much Europe sucked.

People who complain incessantly about, and don't respect, the local culture. Talk about ignorance. I hear some people talk and complain and I understand where the term "Ugly American" comes from. Do I like all the local customs of the Italians? Of course not. Do I sometimes wish things were done more like the US? Sometimes. But here's the thing - I realize that it's their country, not mine. It's the height of arrogance and ignorance to think that, just because I'm American, I should be able to go anywhere in the world and have everything the way I want it. Yet I meet so many Americans over here that have that very attitude. It just makes me sick. If you agree with what I'm talking about, you should check out Rick Steve's website - he has a whole section for people to submit their own "Ugly American" stories (check out the Favorite Links page for the link...).