Dislike of my own country

I feel sometimes like I dislike my country. Most of the people, the mentality, the social norms, the language, the way people look at things, even the way people look at you in the street. I don't know, it's all so boorish, blunt and hostile in a way. I feel like I am losing touch with it.

When I am in another country I can look at things and talk to people without the heavyness and level of hidden annoyance I have in my own country. And when I go to foreign countries and I encounter people from my own land I always cringe a little.

I know it's probably a feeling of "the grass is greener on the other side", and people in other countries probably feel the same way about their country. I have thought about moving to another country but I wonder if I am just fooling myself and should try to apreciate my own country more and see the good beyond the bad.

I don't want to be a misanthropic elitist who thinks he is above his own countrymen but I just find it really hard to love my country. Anyone else feel the same?

I guess having a bit of a social circle makes it easier to apreciate your country because you're able to relate to some people.

The Doors song "People are strange when you're a stranger" rings true. When you don't know many people, you start thinking in abstracts, and you only have shallow interactions with nobody to share with. You become estranged.

Good news!
The world is pretty big!

haha
Well... I don't think there's anything wrong with not being overly patriotic or, like... a nationalist or anything.
If you don't like where you are, you could always look into moving somewhere else.
If you find somewhere you like, you can apply to become a citizen.

I haven't been anywhere but Canada.
I like my country in general-- even if media perception warps people's minds and makes them think that the Kardashian wedding was more of a benchmark in history than WW2.
It does bother me, yeah-- but I just choose not to associate with people who are that shallow minded on a regular basis.
Be kind to everyone- even if they are unkind to eachother.
Be an example.
That's all you can do... apart from moving to some remote corner of the world and join a new civilization of people who are more like the way you aspire to be.

People are people- even if they are not that smart or kind or giving.
If you don't like where you are, there are always options to change things.
Some options cost less than others.

I've lived in Asia and know lots of people who emigrated from East Asia, the Middle East, South Asia. In my opinion people from developing or even tiger nations can be extremely competitive and materialistic. Their personalities can be tinged with a hardness and judgmentalness which a lot of British people don't have. As a result a lot of the interactions concern what job one does, how much one earns, what car one drives etc. I find it very interesting to converse with British people. There isn't exactly reserve - they laugh a lot, joke a lot, and are able to hold a decent conversation when topics like sport, barbecues and the weather are not concerned. The working class can be as interesting as the middle class. They will also stop what they do in their own lives to help me, and I feel very touched by this mentality. I live in Britain now and wouldn't want to move to anywhere else. I would prefer a Mediterranean climate, but British people.

I have felt strong dislike of my own country whilst living in Australia. Maybe the aggression and fascist mentality comes from robbing the local population of their land and culture. I have certainly felt hostility coming my way from every which way. There are just so many A holes there. The working class of Australia seem to resemble the Irish working class, which thankfully I don't see much of where I live now. It's as if the BNP mentality permeates the society. Whenever I meet a 'fellow' Australian, they ask me where I am from, where I was born, when I came to Australia, as if I had to justify my right to live there. They also talk about houses and cars a lot. When I talk with a Brit, it can be about silly little things, anecdotes, helpful advice, food, music, the topics are endless.

people are usually more outgoing when they are far away from home and don't know anyone, because they feel they have less to lose by a bad social encounter. this probably gives an impression that you could fit in better as a stranger in another land. maybe there is a bit of truth to it since emigration would force you out of your shell more often, especially if you are the type who is overly dependent on your family-- you would need to build up more social contacts merely to survive. on the other hand I think a very different culture would leave you isolated in other ways even if you became more outgoing. and if you settled down in another country you could redevelop the same anxieties that you had at home.

I dont dislike my country,I love my country,what ruins the country are *******s,violence and corruption,so I am kinda of wary of going back,dont know if I will too soon.

Ohh boy...my country,it's a love/hate relationship.I'm from Romania the country of paradoxes:communist ideology lives still lives in the hearts of old people will younger people embrace capitalism,we have very smart people and at the same time people more stupid than a bug,we got very rich people and at the same time some are incredible poor(barely have something to eat),we got honest hard working people and lazy bums/thieves/corrupt politicians(yeah I know this is a world wide problem but our politicians are the grandmasters of corruption).
So I don't know what to think about my country,sometimes I wish I could go to other countries but to be honest nowhere else feels like home more than my country( with it's good and bad things).

Edit:Almost forget one thing that I love about my compatriots,we a good sense of humor and sarcasm.We had a lot of bad times in our history but we always joke about our bad luck.

I live in a province that is like a mini-country inside a country. Our culture is totally different and that difference is becoming greater and greater with a Canada that is becoming more conservative every day. The decisions that are taken by our Federal government make us uncomfortable most of the time and we feel ashamed when the international community learns of these decisions and dislikes them, because that is really not how we would do things, but because we live in this country, we are automatically associated with those decisions in the eyes of foreigners. With that said, it's not like my province is perfect, especially not now. Like a lot of people, I'm hoping that the rising youth will change things one day and make all of this country better, but I'm not sure if it ever will.

I pretty much hate every country, more so the government than anything else..

hey gustav.

i was thinking like you, i hated were i lived, and after i leaved i could finally appreciate the country, but it was already too late, i was gone.

in my experience i hated the country i lived i because of my situation, the country is irrelevant to your mind, you can live in the worst place and still be happy, or live in the most beautiful country or city in the world, and still be depressed, hate the people, and the SA is still able to kill you etc.

gustavofring said:

When I am in another country I can look at things and talk to people without the heavyness and level of hidden annoyance I have in my own country. And when I go to foreign countries and I encounter people from my own land I always cringe a little.

I know it's probably a feeling of "the grass is greener on the other side", and people in other countries probably feel the same way about their country. I have thought about moving to another country but I wonder if I am just fooling myself and should try to apreciate my own country more and see the good beyond the bad.

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Maybe when you're in another country you are on holidays and you're only doing fun things. It's a lot easier to appreciate cultures and experience new things that way, unlike in your own country because you always live there.

If you moved to another country you will notice things you will dislike, I guarantee it.

Apparently Australia is the second-best country in the world to live in with only Norway being better. I look around and I just see what I would normally see in other countries, I guess. However, despite Australia's issues, I am lucky to be born here. I just wish we weren't so isolated from the rest of the world, though! ::

i traveled to alot of different countries - mostly in Asia, the Pacific, the Middle East, and South America. i saw alot of beautiful places, but i also saw alot of poverty and despair. that was 25-30 years ago, and i'm sure alot has changed since then. at the time, i was very happy to return to the quality of life we enjoy in the US.

america is so big and so diverse that it would be difficult to dislike the whole country just because of your experience living in one part of it. even in the city of chicago, alone, some of the worst neighborhoods in the country are only a couple of miles away from some of the most upscale areas - the people living on either side of town living a much different life than the other.

Tell me about it. I'd rather live on a planet in the Andromeda Galaxy

I don't really like my country either, not just because people are generally 'in it for themselves' and are generally shy and offstandish (although no one would ever admit that) but because we have this abundant Napoleon complex. We made the LOTR films 10 years ago and we are STILL going on about - I mean geez move on...its only a fricken movie...and a pretty boring one at that.... I can think of other examples. I always feel a twinge of embarrasment for my country "look at me! Take notice of us! we have something to contribute too!"

Also we have one of the highest suicide rates in the world, nearly a quarter of all children here are beneath the poverty line (starvation, third world diseases etc) - and we are one of many affluent countries where the gap between the poor and rich is at its widest. We also have an unfair tax system where well off are rewarded and the not so are reprimanded.

Yeah, not really a big fan of patriotism - I figure no one gets to choose where they live - so what makes one country better than the other...?

same thing. I'm not proud of being pinoy. The movies and tv shows are lame. The comedies, I really didn't laugh at it, I hated the pinoy celebrities. Annoying and no manners. I'm only proud of being pinoy because of its history and culture. The politics okay, Philippines having their own freedom from those dictatorship years. I love how Filipinos became strong for freedom but now everything's different. everything is so dramatic, including the media.

Kris Aquino, Boy Abunda and Ruffa Gutierrez on The Buzz P.O.V. (Bea Alonzo and KC Concepcion) part1 - YouTube
You probably won't understand the language but look how this chick acts with no manners.

I hope this dude gets kicked in the a$$, I feel ashame that he exists in my country.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnBEQLIc314

sillyrabbit231 said:

I hope this dude gets kicked in the a$$, I feel ashame that he exists in my country.

willie abuse a 6 years old child in willing willie - YouTube

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I'm not sure I understand. I'm assuming the child was humiliated for TV?

Australia has Vegemite. Instant hate! ::

sillyrabbit231 said:

I hope this dude gets kicked in the a$$, I feel ashame that he exists in my country.

willie abuse a 6 years old child in willing willie - YouTube

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I watched the video but I'm still unsure, what happened? I tried to find an english video to find out but couldn't.

well here's the story. This is what I hate about that show. Scantily clad dancers dancing in front of people, Willie is the name of that host. Willie would stupidly ask people if they have any talent. It could be singing or dancing. If they don't have one, he would force them to do it. Im not sure if the kid was forced or not but willie put a wrong track to do it for a six year old kid. Later on the authorities were shocked that they had to shut down the show and kicked him out of the studio. Unfortunately, he went to a new studio, and had a new show. It's the same thing he would do. Before the talents he would give people some trivia questions. I wish Philippines had a better education, so people will live smarter and better.

sillyrabbit231 said:

well here's the story. This is what I hate about that show. Scantily clad dancers dancing in front of people, Willie is the name of that host. Willie would stupidly ask people if they have any talent. It could be singing or dancing. If they don't have one, he would force them to do it. Im not sure if the kid was forced or not but willie put a wrong track to do it for a six year old kid. Later on the authorities were shocked that they had to shut down the show and kicked him out of the studio. Unfortunately, he went to a new studio, and had a new show. It's the same thing he would do. Before the talents he would give people some trivia questions.

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Ah, I see. That's a pretty bad thing to do to a 6-year-old. ::