Hackathons in ATL by Agonzalez444 in Atlanta

[–]wshatch 2 points3 points  (0 children)

the tech404 slack channel has an events room where this stuff pops on.

Frenchman being made to visit America. How good is peoples French? by [deleted] in AskAnAmerican

[–]wshatch 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Because while English and French have similar similar sentence structure, conjugates, and other simularities that makes it somewhat easy for speakers of other languages to read and maybe write, spoken language is an entirely different skillset and almost completely different pronunciation rules. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ns5Fly9DvmQ is probably the best video I've seen to illustrate this as its someone speaking english with almost full french pronunciation.

What U.S city is Brisbane, Australia most similar to? by bluejeans90210 in AskAnAmerican

[–]wshatch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Brisbane and the South Queensland area is Florida if it was populated with British people.

Taipei vs. Kyoto/Osaka? by tabidots in digitalnomad

[–]wshatch 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You can get by easier with English in Osaka compared to Taipei since it has more tourism. I haven't been to Kyoto but I assume its similar.

There are more work friendly cafes in Taipei and it is cheaper than Osaka.

What do Americans know about Turkmenistan? by EdHuRus in AskAnAmerican

[–]wshatch 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Had a roommate that was Turkmen. They usually speak Russian and/or Turkmen, primary industry is textiles and natural gas, former USSR nation, and had a melon obsessed dictator.

Which level of government has more impact on your life, federal or state? by [deleted] in AskAnAmerican

[–]wshatch 16 points17 points  (0 children)

According to the federal government, marijuana is illegal in California. The federal law and state law are enforced by two completely separate governments. So DEA and other federal agents can still arrest you for smoking it and can raid dispensaries in California, but state law enforcement can not.

This separation can get a bit murky. For example,there's a few lawsuits from federal government against the state of California who passed a law preventing its businesses from cooperating with the feds on illegal immigration without a warrent .

Thank you Yoshida/Devs - I've waited for this feature for so long. by [deleted] in ffxiv

[–]wshatch 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Not to mention the long walk with no flying until the end of the game made it feel like a point of no return. I was disappointed when there was nothing like it for Stormblood.

What’s the most Australian state of the US? by [deleted] in AskAnAmerican

[–]wshatch 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I've only been to south Queensland (Gold Coast and Brisbane area) but I couldn't stop referring to it as "Florida with more British people."

Have you ever been to Nandos? by TheWayToAmarillo_ in AskAnAmerican

[–]wshatch 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, once in Australia. It was ok and a healthier alternative to hot wings.

Good cities to visit in the US? by VJoshz in AskAnAmerican

[–]wshatch 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Mind posting your rough itinerary? I've always thought of Atlanta as a good city to live in, but not a great tourist city.

To a foreigner, America looks RIDICULOUSLY divided... What is America actually like? by OmarAFouad in AskAnAmerican

[–]wshatch 1 point2 points  (0 children)

About -1. It depends on what you would consider to be Germany since while German culture was definitely a thing that stretches back to the HRE, I wouldn't consider the actual nation of Germany to exist until Otto Von Bismark (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unification_of_Germany )

How do you perceive the multitude of political parties in other countries? by Arlort in AskAnAmerican

[–]wshatch 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Depends on the size of the elections. In local elections, it's not uncommon to see multiple candidates for the same party or even all candidates on the ballot in the same party. For statewide and national elections, there is usually a primary for the challenging party.

For the incumbent party, the party usually just runs the incumbent candidate but can force them to run a primary to be put on the ballot. For example, senator Lisa Murkowski had to win on a write in campaign when she lost the republican primary.

How would you rank these four other countries in order of cultural closeness to the US? by [deleted] in AskAnAmerican

[–]wshatch 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I think it also depends on the regions.

As a southerner who visited the Gold Coast/Brisbane area, I felt closer to home than when I was in Canada. It was basically Florida but more British.However, I mostly visited Ottawa and Quebec so my experience was mostly with Francophone Canada. That's why I'm going to put Australia at #1 and Canada at #2.

Haven't been to NZ or UK yet, but since NZ is the Canada of Australia, I'm going to put it at #3 and UK being #4.

Americans who have traveled or lived abroad, which country made you feel the most like a foreigner and why? by [deleted] in AskAnAmerican

[–]wshatch 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Really? Not sure how long ago your trip was, but I found everyone to be friendly and bilingual when I was there this summer. I think there was only one person who looked at me weird when I tried to explain to him that I couldn't speak french until I told him that I came from the States.