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Dirty Foreigners

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aleph_0

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I'm just curious if there are (m)any Objectivists on these boards from non-Anglophone places. I know there is a Dutchman, Israeli (though that's almost an Anglophone country), and I think a fellow in South Africa. Anybody else? Anybody in Latin America or Asia?

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The last time I created a list like that was Jun 2006.

I just ran a query off the database, only looking at countries that members had declared in their profiles. Here's a summary, with country and the number of members from each:

Country Number of members
United States 1109
Canada 80
Great Britain (UK) 51
Australia 34
India 29
Sweden 16
Philippines 14
Germany 12
Netherlands 12
Israel 10
Norway 8
New Zealand (Aotearoa) 7
Romania 7
Ireland 6
Singapore 6
Thailand 6
France 5
Mexico 5
Turkey 5

  • Four members from each of: Belgium, Switzerland, China, Japan, Malaysia, Nigeria
  • Three members from each of: Czech Republic, Egypt, Russian Federation
  • Two members from each of: Albania, Argentina, Bulgaria, Brazil, Denmark, Spain, Finland, Fiji, Gabon, Greece, Indonesia, Iceland, United Kingdom, Mayotte, Zimbabwe
  • One members from each of: Algeria, American Samoa, Angola, Austria, Benin, Bolivia, British Indian Ocean Territory, Cayman Islands, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Croatia (Hrvatska), Estonia, Ethiopia, Greenland, Haiti, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Liberia, Maldives, Montserrat, Morocco, Myanmar, Niger, Pakistan, Panama, Peru, Reunion, S. Georgia and S. Sandwich Isl, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent & the Grenadines, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, South Africa, St. Pierre and Miquelon, Syria, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay, Vatican City State (Holy See), Venezuela, Viet Nam, Zambia

Of course, members sometimes lie about their country, so we may not actually have anyone from Cocos (Keeling) Islands or Tonga.

To find details of the members in any of the above countries, go to the Members panel and click the button that says "Toggle More ...". Then choose the country on which you wish to search. [i forgot to exclude banned members from my counts, so if fewer show up, that's why.]

Edited by softwareNerd
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Ah, D'kian. A Sphardi. Could explain why your experience with Jewish family life is different from mine.

Anyway, what do you think about Mexico City? I'm thinking of visiting there in the next couple months. Sounds like it'd be good to check out the arts, nightlife, and Aztec ruins.

And yeah, South Africa is Anglophone. I didn't think of that because the individual in question was not raised speaking English. In fact, he might not have been from South Africa at all, I can't remember distinctly.

SNerd, thank you for that. However, I find that people on these forums have unique and sometimes finer interests, and so I thought it would be interesting to hear what they have to say about the places where they live.

Edited by aleph_0
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Ah, D'kian. A Sphardi. Could explain why your experience with Jewish family life is different from mine.

Hardly. My grandparents came from Lithuania and Poland. I'm as gefilte fish as they come.

Anyway, what do you think about Mexico City?

It can be a nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there. In fact I don't, not exactly. I've resided all my life in Mexico state, which is part of Mexico City's metro area.

I'm thinking of visiting there in the next couple months. Sounds like it'd be good to check out the arts, nightlife, and Aztec ruins.

If you like Spanish colonial arts, there's plenty of that (and very little else). I'd advise you to look up the smaller, lesser known museums. There are some ruins, including the Sun and Moon pyramids about a half hour out of town. As for nightlife, I have no clue.

Now, this is important: if you do come, be very careful. Crime rates are high, particularly kidnapping. Don't ever go anywhere alone, and always stay where there are people.

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While I am a U.K. resident right now (for 6 or 12 more months to come ... depends on whether I am going to sign a certain contract within the next few days), I am actually from Hungary. I am the only really serious Objectivist in Hungary that I know of, although I've been getting some people interested in the philosophy.

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  • 2 months later...
I'm from Brazil, though I haven't "declared it" in my profile. This country is an intelectual hellhole, though it is not entirely bad in terms of material comfort. It is getting worse.

I hear that there are areas of Brazil that, if you travel to them, you will be kidnapped. Is this true?

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I hear that there are areas of Brazil that, if you travel to them, you will be kidnapped. Is this true?

From what my wife says there are many areas where the probability is high. Kidnapping a politician or businessman's kid is a most profitable endeavour, and the kidnappings can take place anywhere at any time. Tourists are also a popular target. Your worst chances are in the favelas, where the police rarely go (portrayed in the movie City of God). Matter of fact, I read an article claiming the state has begun to contract out the policing of these favelas to privately organized groups. Either way, traveling to either Rio or Sao Paolo is a great risk if you don't watch yourself and where you travel.

Edited by adrock3215
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Either way, traveling to either Rio or Sao Paolo is a great risk if you don't watch yourself and where you travel.

Very liekly. I know little about Brazil, but I live in a high crime city (Mexico City). Cities, particularly large ones, offer a lot of opportunities to criminals. An abundance of targets, for starters. But also lots of hiding places, people used to not paying attention to other people, escape routes by the dozens, etc.

Some advice applies to all places, too. Stay in areas where there are lots of people. As jaded as city resients may be, criminals prefer not to act in front of a large amount of witnesses. Wealthier areas tend to ahve better policing and better cops, in addition to private security; this is somethign to consider when picking a place to stay or visit. Tourist traps tend to be well protected, too, since they generate a lot of revenue and all of it in foreign exchange. Don't flag down cabs in the street, rather call a taxi service (particularly in airports and bus stations. The authorized cabs are very expensive in these palces, but they are safe). Don't stay out too late. Avoid ostentatious displays of wealth like flashy watches, jewlery, cash, etc

And most important, pay attention to what's going on around you.

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I'm curious if you think you think these people are going to agree with Rand, or if they show little interest in changing their fundamental preconceptions.

I suppose that was addressed to me? Well, it's been a number of people I've mentioned Objectivism to, and they're pretty different types of folks, so I cannot really make a general statement applying to all. They range all over the spectrum, really, from visibly uninterested at the one extreme to what Betsy Speicher would call "Good Objectivist Material" at the other.

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  • 3 years later...

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