--- "steven l. rubenstein" rubenste@ohiou.edu wrote:
As for "American," well, that is a funny thing. I work in Latin America and when in the US with Latin Americans and whenever they use the word "Americano" referring to us gringos, I reply "Todos somos Americanos" (all of us are Americans); they usually smile and shrug their shoulders. I once had a conversation with an old friend of mine who lives in Ecuador, and he complained about how we gringos call ourselves "Americans." I said to him, "Well, there is nothing stopping Ecuadorians from calling themselves "Americanos, why don't they" and he had no answer. Here is what I think: the real problem is not that the USA has appropriated for itself as a name "America." The problem is the USA economically and politically dominates Latin America in many ways. And that is what really pisses off my L. American friends.
It sounds to me more like YOU are the one trying to provoke anger and resentment by "correcting" an Ecuadorean who doesn't feel like he needs correcting.
RickK
Discover Yahoo! Use Yahoo! to plan a weekend, have fun online and more. Check it out! http://discover.yahoo.com/