----The french think of the U.S. as being a vast state with lots of fast food and many wonderful things. They think of California and it's sunshine, they think of fast food restaurants, big cities, America being a dream-land. However, they think of American society as being racist and individualistic. Americans however think of the U.S. as being a land of liberty, opportunity, freedom and good education. They also think of it as being a power-house, but there are a few people who think of the U.S. as bullies. Kerone N. P

----It has been mentioned recently in the American press that France stands as one of two major nations (China being the other one) with a fundamental ideological opposition to the United States. Also, several of the American students made reference to ideals that are very fundamental to the existence of the United States, such as democracy, freedom, and capitalism, whereas there was a tendency among the french students to not be so political. So, my question for the french students is: Do you strongly believe in the French socialist system, or would you prefer to live in a capitalist state such as the United States?

----It has been mentioned recently in the American press that France stands as one of two major nations (China being the other one) with a fundamental ideological opposition to the United States. Also, several of the American students made reference to ideals that are very fundamental to the existence of the United States, such as democracy, freedom, and capitalism, whereas there was a tendency among the french students to not be so political. So, my question for the french students is: Do you strongly believe in the French socialist system, or would you prefer to live in a capitalist state such as the United States? -

----Je ne pense pas qu'il y a une telle opposition entre les systemes francais et americains. Fondamentalement, ils fonctionnent de maniere assez semblables. La sorte de rejet que fait resortir l'enquete mentionnee par chis Smith vient peut-etre du fait que l'on s'imagine souvent ici que les USA sont une image de ce que sera l'Europe et le France dans quelques annees. Or nous sommes attaches a certaines de nos traditions culturelles (le cinema par exemple), culimaire (les fast food passent mal aupres des personnes plus agees), aussi bien que social. C'est plutot dans ce sens qu'il faut prendre le resultat de cette enquete. Dans le fond, pour les systemes politiques et economiques, je ne pense pas qu'il y ait une telle opposition, comme cela doit etre le cas avec la Chine. ----Votre opinion ?

----The comments on the United States ranged from surfing (probably from television) to "injustice" and "decevant". I was wondering what all the sources of your information were. Does France have much news about the United States? (I know you have some american television shows)

----Also, I have often heard about regulations to prevent the mass influx of American culture -- bans on using the English language in certain circumstances, on playing American music, etc. On the survey, a lot of the words (Seinfeld, hamburger, etc.) are American culture-references that nobody in America would associate with the United States. How prominent is American "pop-culture" in France?

----Both the french and the americans cited each others' places as representative (Paris, NY, California, Tennessee). ----A french also mentioned the US as pretencious. ----No french mentioned the US as an ally, and one american did mention France.

----Interesting to see that the French responses point to a lot of modern cultural references from the U.S. (hamburger, racism, Seinfeld) that most Americans don't even think of as associated with the word United States. ----Both Americans and French cite lots of food references (cheese, wine, croissant, culture), which is not suprising.

----Contrairement aux francais, les americains n'ont pas parle de la restauration rapide , du reve americain, du racisme et de la pauvrete, mais ils ont plus insiste sur la liberte et la puissance de leur pays.

----It has not escaped our attention that the French students also failed to mention any negative aspects of French society, such as racism, poverty, xenophobia, and unemployment. How did you create such a Utopian society? Are Le Pen and Algeria simply fictions created by the naive, misguided American media? ----

----A French student listed "decevant". Why? As in what way(s) is (has) the US been deceitful (to the French)? ----In what ways do the French students see the US exhibiting "contradiction"? ----I have heard of racism in France, but it does not come to mind often. Do you think of specific incidents in the US, like the LA riots, or do you believe people here act in racist manners on a day to day basis? ----Someone used "hegemonie" in describing the US. This particularly caught my eye. Is this used in a positive, neutral, or negative manner. I generally think that periods of history without a strong superpower led to war. Do you believe the US to be a great bully? Do you think the US has any global interests in mind (cares about countries other than our own)? Do you think the world would be better off if most countries were on an equal footing? What makes US hegemon? You have nuclear weapons, too. Is it economic strength, political maneuvering, simple geography (low threat of land invansion)? If the US were to suddenly fall back into the dark ages, what would happen to the world economy? What would happen to the balance of powers? Would this be good or bad for France? Would you just rather be hegemon yourself?