Phillip Capper wrote:
> I am a New Zealander, so at least my first language is
> English, but here in NZ our cultural assumptions about what
> constitutes polite and inclusive language differs significantly from
> what is general in the US.
I am an American, now living in Canada. I had the reverse experience when I first
moved here. Even the accent difference is so subtle that I often forget that I am
actually living in a different culture. Every once in a while, it is brought to my
attention that I am just a tad too "in your face", although it happens less and less
often, now. I am learning to couch my words, to talk so people can read between the
lines (sorry about that mixed metaphor), and generally be softer around the edges.
Not that it lessens the impact or import of what I have to say, I have learned.
Like you say, it's just a different threshold.
Tane Akamatsu
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Tue Mar 07 2000 - 17:54:07 PST