Ask HN: When Americans say Canadians are polite, is that meant as a compliment?

2 points·amichail··12 comments

Or maybe politeness is not what Americans want since it might be enforced by bullying and they don't want to be bullied?

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It has a lot of potential meanings. There is often an implied “but” that follows after, depending on the context.

A common one is that Canadians are polite but not warm.

Another that comes up, especially in the context of Americans, is that Canadians are polite, but won’t push to win.

Canadian politeness is often just a cover for fear of conflict and fear of getting involved.

Yes, it can also be a euphemism for our risk aversion.

I think it's at least a bit of a compliment, since the majority of Americans (or so I think?) view politeness as a positive, even if they don't practice it much themselves.

But I think it's mostly just an observation: "Hey, that's really different!"

As a USian who frequently visits Canada, I definitely see it as praise. I don't find Canadians any less warm than USians either.

Being a Canadian means never having to say you’re sorey (s.i.c.)

Yes. Don’t read too much into it.

No.

Explain

Maybe Americans want the freedom to not be polite and not be punished for their impoliteness via bullying?

Nobody is free to not be punished for impoliteness. Deliberately or otherwise, if you say something offensive or rude then you'll usually suffer the consequences. They won't be legal consequences per-se, but it could definitely amount to social ostracization or bullying. That's their right, as free individuals.

Don't more polite societies have higher levels of bullying?

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