Things that SHOCKED me about the US – Pt. 2 | Feli from Germany

many americans aren't aware of this but in  germany we follow a lot of american pop culture   and even politics pretty closely which is why  there really aren't a lot of huge surprises   for us when we travel to this country but  turns out we don't know everything because   when i first moved here there were still  things that i hadn't seen coming at all hallo servus and welcome back to my youtube  channel my name is feli i'm originally from munich   germany but i've been living here in cincinnati  ohio on and off since 2016 and this is part   two in my video series about things that shocked  me about the us if you haven't seen the first   part yet i'm gonna link that up here and in the  info box below and to those of you who have seen   it and maybe even commented on it i wanted to  say that i really appreciated that the comment   section was full of mature and well thought  out comments and discussions rather than things   like if you don't like it here go back home to  germany or other hateful comments despite the fact   that i did address some pretty heavy and intimate  topics in that video and was rather critical about   the us or at least about those three topics and  i would love it if we could keep it like that   for this video too because as i said last time  when i criticized certain aspects about the us   as a country or its culture it doesn't mean that  i hate the us or that i don't enjoy living here   it simply means that there are some aspects that i  don't love things that i disagree with and things   that i might think germany or other countries do  better but i don't love germany unconditionally   either the world isn't just black and white and  it's okay and important to criticize and discuss   things that seem problematic in order to improve  things and maintain a public dialogue which is a   crucial element in a democratic system by the way  with that being said here are the next two points   from my list of things that straight up shocked  me when i first came to the us because even though   i knew quite a lot about this country and its  culture and had been here as a tourist before   these were things that i simply wasn't aware of  and didn't expect to encounter here please keep   in mind that these are my personal experiences  and views on things based on my perspective   growing up in germany but everyone has different  experiences and i would love for you to share   yours in the comments below if you want to my  first point for today has to do with parenting now i'm not trying to tell anyone how to raise  their kids but in germany disciplining children   with corporal punishment so spanking for example  is not only outdated and very uncommon but even   illegal so to me coming from a culture where  i would probably call the authorities if i saw   someone spank or otherwise physically hurt their  child it was very shocking and almost disturbing   to find out that here in the us that is still  a pretty common and overall socially accepted   parenting method i first found out about this from  some of my american friends when they talked about   their childhood and things like being spanked  by their parents but later it even happened in   my environment or came up in conversations  with friends who are parents themselves   and looking at the numbers the difference  is pretty clear while in germany corporal   punishment has been illegal in schools since  the 1970s and 80s depending on the bundesland   and at home since the year 2000 it's legal in all  50 states of the us to this day when done at home   and 19 of 50 states even still allow it in  schools most of those states being in the   south of the country a survey from 2008 showed  that about 85 percent of americans have been   physically punished by their parents during  childhood or adolescence and numbers from 2012   show that about 70 of americans agree that quote  it's sometimes necessary to discipline a child   with a good heart spanking the prevalence and the  acceptance of corporal punishment vary throughout   american society and can be linked to factors  like religious beliefs regional differences   socioeconomic status and other factors according  to the reports the most common form of corporal   punishment is spanking on the butt with an open  hand but about 25 of parents also reported using   an object such as a wooden spoon when it comes  to my personal experience in germany i don't   remember ever witnessing or hearing a friend talk  about being spanked by their parents which doesn't   mean that it didn't happen of course but at least  in my social environment that was never really a   topic and from my personal experience i would also  say that corporal punishment is considered pretty   unacceptable in germany and has been for decades  even my parents didn't grow up with that they said   that in school getting hit on the fingers still  happened occasionally but spanking wasn't a common   thing neither in school nor at home when looking  at the german statistics i found a study from 2012   that says that about 40 of parents give their  children a "klaps auf den po" which could probably   be translated with just one spank or a pat on  the butt but only four percent of parents use   Hinternversohlen so spanking to discipline their  children about 10 percent slapped their children   now i'm not quite sure how those two categories  of klaps auf den po and hinternversohlen can   be compared to the american numbers but either  way it seems to be much less common in germany   what's interesting is that the pat on the butt  is less common in former east germany because   east germans didn't experience that as much in  their own childhood regarding the acceptance of   corporal punishment in germany the study showed  that all asked people condemn flogging stockhiebe   95 condemn spanking and 74 of parents that did  hit their kids so three quarters said that they   felt guilty about it afterwards 90 do agree with  the german law from the year 2000 that grants all   children the right to a non-violent upbringing  laws like these exist in many other european   countries as well by the way now as i said i'm  not trying to judge anyone here and since most   of my viewers are from the us i'm sure that many  of you were raised with corporal punishment too   and hopefully turned out fine and maybe even raise  your own children like this too but i personally   don't believe that violence solves anything like  ever so i would never use corporal punishment   on my own children i believe that trust is  the most important part of our relationship   especially between parents and children and  according to data from all around the world   corporal punishment actually leads to higher  levels of behavioral problems that carry on into   adulthood instead of reducing them this includes  aggression mental health and self-esteem problems   as well as academic problems in school a study  from 2018 using data from 88 countries also found   that youth are less violent in countries where  corporal punishment is banned so overall it's more   harmful than helpful another parenting method that  i had never heard about before i came to the us is   having your mouth washed out with soap that's also  something that seems to be fairly common in some   families here some of my american friends have  told me that growing up their parents would put   a little bit of soap in their mouth when they used  curse words for example we do use the expression   den mund mit seife auswaschen in german too but  i've never heard of anyone actually doing that   in germany or at least in my generation and i'm  pretty sure that would be considered child abuse   i'm gonna link a few articles and all of the  statistics that i've mentioned in the info box   below i also came across an article in the german  media about kelly clarkson from a few years ago   where apparently she said in a talk show that  she used corporal punishment on her children   and german media was very shocked by that so all  of that is going to be in the info box below but   of course i also want to know what are your  experiences with this topic where are you from   and did you grow up with corporal punishment and  do you use it with your own children and if you're   german have you had different experiences than  what i just described let me know in the comments   below before we get to the second point on my list  i wanted to talk about my everyday life here in   the us for a second because whenever i don't make  youtube videos about cultural differences i just   live a normal everyday life here that includes  things like taking care of the household going   to the store going on walks working out and one  of my most loyal companions through all of this   besides ben of course are these guys my everyday  earbuds from raycon you already know that i love   these because they're the first earbuds that  don't fall out of my small ears when i laugh   or move too much or fall asleep with them like i  did on my flight back from munich the other week   they're shaped so that they perfectly fit into  that curvature of your ear and on top of that   you can customize them with the different size gel  tips i usually go with the smallest ones they just   recently optimized those even more by the way to  guarantee that perfect in-ear fit and they don't   only fit great they also come with an amazing  sound quality and different sound profiles so   if you hold the left button down for three seconds  you can change between pure sound which is perfect   for audio books or podcasts which i listen to a  lot balance sound which is great when you listen   to music genres like jazz rock or pop because it  gives you that all-around performance warmth and   depth or you can pick the bass sound for all of  your bass heavy hip hop rnb or edm songs if you   hold the right button down for three seconds you  can turn it from noise isolation to awareness mode   which is a feature i use all the time because  it allows you to better hear your surroundings   so that's what i do when i'm out on a walk and  these earbuds are also super durable you can even   use them in the rain and if you accidentally  put them in the washer with your pants   they'll survive it which would never happen to  me of course the best thing about them is their   preisleistungsverhältnis as we say in german so  the value for money ratio because you get high   quality earbuds for only half the price of  other premium audio brands they have eight   hours of play time a 32-hour battery life which  lasts forever they're siri and alexa compatible   and they have over 49,000 5-star reviews and  you can even get an extra 15% off right now   if you buy them through my link in the infobox  below or go to buyraycon.com/felifromgermany my second point today has to do with privacy and  data protection or the lack thereof now you have   to know that germany as a country and society  places a whole lot of value on privacy and data   protection datenschutz in german we have countless  laws and regulations about which personal data can   be saved by the government and private businesses  how long it can be stored for and how it can be   used but i'm not gonna get into all the legal  details here that will be way too complicated and   pretty boring probably all you have to know  is that sharing personal data with strangers   or institutions is a pretty sensitive topic for  many germans probably also due to the fact that   our country has experienced firsthand what it's  like when personal data gets in the wrong hands   and is used to monitor persecute imprison and in  the worst case even murder people like it happened   in the third reich or in the gdr so growing up  with the internet and the rise of social media   german parents and teachers would always tell us  to be super careful about what you share on the   internet like don't share your address of course  don't ever use your full name and don't even tell   people when you're on vacation and i remember  that when getting any kind of advertisement in   the mail or as an email from a company that you  didn't share your data with it was normal to be   upset about your data being shared with a third  party you can even see our love for privacy when   you look at germany on google street view which  surprise started a huge data protection debate in   germany when it first came around you'll find that  countless houses are blurred on german street view   upon requests of the residents and since google  encountered so many obstacles with their service   in germany they haven't collected any new images  in over 10 years in most parts of the country so   knowing where i come from maybe you can understand  that i was pretty shocked about how carelessly   many americans share personal information on  social media and about the amount of spam that   i receive via email mail and phone every single  day spam calls aren't really a thing in germany if   anything you might get called by some call center  doing a survey every now and then and that's more   common on landlines than on cell phones but  here in the us it's normal to get spam calls   all the time for me it's pretty much every day by  companies that have some kind of information about   let's say your car insurance or warranty and  want to offer you a better deal than the one   you already have or scam places that are trying  to access your utility accounts or get your credit   card information all kinds of things really so  it's become normal to me that unless i'm expecting   a call i don't answer any calls by unknown numbers  because they're usually spam and i also get a lot   of spam mail physical mail such as credit card  offers insurance offers and as soon as i bought   the house i suddenly received nothing but coupons  and vouchers from furnishing places contractors   addressing me as a new homeowner and businesses  and institutions in the neighborhood introducing   themselves without me making that information  about the house purchase or even moving public   anywhere and i didn't approve of my data being  shared either a common way how companies here   collect your personal data is when you're looking  for offers and quotes for let's say some kind of   insurance or even things like an internet provider  or tv cable plan that's something that i find   super annoying here because in germany you can  usually just go ahead and compare different prices   and services online and get all the information  you need to decide which business you want to   go with but in the us it's common that they don't  make the prices available online but instead make   you fill out a form with your personal information  usually including your phone number and or email   address to then give you a personalized quote  let me tell you as soon as you fill that out   your phone starts ringing and you'll be bombarded  with text messages too and it's usually not just   the place that you actually gave your information  to but other businesses as well just to give you   an example i looked into american health insurance  plans about three years ago and still to this day   get text messages and calls from places i've  never been in touch with wanting to offer me   health insurance you can also see a pretty big  difference in how germans and americans approach   data protection when you look at how people in the  two countries use social media now this is going   to be somewhat of a generalization because of  course this varies from person to person and from   generation to generation but overall americans  are a lot more open when it comes to sharing   personal photos and information on the internet  when facebook first came around a lot of germans   were very hesitant to use their real first and  last name for example and would use some kind of   pseudonym instead while i don't remember seeing a  lot of americans doing that when i went on my high   school exchange in 2010 and even today i still  see a lot of american friends and often their   parents that's actually a very active generation  in that regard share all kinds of photos from   their daily life vacations and even their family  including children while many germans hardly share   any photos of their life at all and are especially  careful when it comes to the privacy of their   children it's common that people either don't show  any photos of their babies and kids at all or when   they do at least don't show their faces so people  will share pictures of the baby's foot for example   or only show their kids from behind or actively  censor their faces by putting some kind of emojis   on top of it which is something that i don't  remember ever seeing an american friend of mine do   and while the baby boomer generation in the  us seems to be very active on social media   especially facebook that's actually the generation  that in germany seems to be the most careful my   parents for example don't want to be shown  anywhere on social media even before i had   a bigger following i wasn't allowed to show  them in a post or even just in an instagram   story on my private profiles and when ben came  to germany with me for the first time last summer   and wanted to fly his drone at starnberger see  which is a beautiful lake just south of munich   it didn't take five minutes before someone came  up to us and told us that we couldn't fly the   drone there because we could be filming him and he  didn't give us his approval for that which legally   he does have that right because in germany it's  not allowed to take photos of a person without   their permission but all i was thinking in that  moment was just how typically german that was   and how uptight everyone is when it comes to  being filmed or photographed even though of   course we didn't want to fly the drone to film  him in particular or anyone else at the lake for   that matter we just wanted to film ourselves  and get a cool view from above the lake but   that's germans for you so to tie this back in  with the topic of being shocked coming from the   data protection environment in germany it  was pretty shocking to me to see how many   americans just shared all of their family photos  online and even their addresses and phone numbers   and how my personal data seemed to just be passed  around from company to company without my consent   now i did actually have a third point prepared  for this video because as i said last time i   have a pretty long list of things that shocked me  in the us but since this video has already gotten   pretty long and that third point is a pretty  sensitive topic that does require me to go into   detail a little i'm just gonna address that in  the next video on that note i actually posted a   poll in the community tab last night but maybe  you can just tell me here in the comments too   do you prefer list videos where i mentioned  several points in one video such as three   things that shocked me about the us or should  i just turn this into a mini series like i did   with my random differences series in 2020 or the  ask a german series last winter and dedicate one   shorter video to each of these points let me know  what you prefer in the comments below i would love   your input and of course also feel free to share  your experiences and opinions on the two topics i   addressed today i would love to read those if you  haven't seen it yet check out my last video about   the eight best german netflix productions that you  should check out and no you don't need to speak   german for that and we also did an update on ben's  german learning progress in that video and he did   the challenge that you guys chose for him which  was cooking a german meal based on a german recipe   so if you want to see how that turned out click  right here if you enjoyed this video make sure   to hit that subscribe button for free and if you  would like to support me and my channel beyond   that you can do so on patreonbymiacoffee.com or  by clicking the super things button underneath   the video thank you guys so much for watching  and i hope i'll see you next time tschüss

Channel: Feli from Germany

Views: 105,587

Keywords: America, Cincinnati, Cultural Differences, Culture Shock, Kulturelle Unterschiede, Deutschland, München, Amerika, Kulturschock, USA vs. Germany, Living abroad, Move to Germany, Life in Germany, Move to Europe, Life in USA, Unterschiede Deutschland Amerika, corporal punishment in america, spanking by parents, Körperstrafe in Deutschland, Hinternversohlen, washing mouth with soap punishment, data protection usa, google street view germany, Spam calls USA, Social media use German

Id: 7E8UqFZ9iGE

Length: 18min 27sec (1107 seconds)

Published: Mon May 23 2022