BBC Sherlock Fan Forum - Serving Sherlockians since February 2012 » National Stereotypes

Davina · July 6, 2012 5:46 am

I don't think we think of Russians being lazy but the alcohol but is probably correct. We think of Russians as wearing furry hats with ear flaps (not deerstalkers!) and that the women wear flowery overalls and scarves on their heads. Also the Russian mafia.

Irene Adler · July 6, 2012 6:44 am

Davina wrote:
I don't think we think of Russians being lazy but the alcohol but is probably correct.

Yes. Here we think they drink a lot of vodka

Dramagod · July 6, 2012 9:32 am

Finlandia vodka.

hypergreenfrog · July 6, 2012 10:23 am

Dramagod wrote:
Finlandia vodka.

That really made me laugh...I think you will rather see a Viennese person drink Starbucks coffee than a Russian drink Finlandia

Dramagod · July 6, 2012 10:31 am

221 B Baker Street, am I wrong there? You guys don't drink Finlandia vodka over there?

http://www.examiner.com/article/what-is-russia-s-most-popular-premium-imported-vodka

Last edited by Dramagod (July 6, 2012 10:33 am)

221B Baker Street · July 6, 2012 11:20 am

Well, my assumption regarding Russians as alcoholics was right. I'm greatly upset by the reputation of the Russians((.Surely there are lots of alcoholics, but there are lots in many other countries I suppose.

Davina, I just imagined people wearing furry hats today at the temperature of 28 above zero and almost 100% humidity . Some people really wear furry hats in winter, but usually they are old people who just used to them. As for the scarves on the heads, women wear them only when visiting church . The Russian mafia is not worse than Sicilian one .

Finlandia... The article is about the most popular imported vodka , and we have many brands of Russian vodka . It goes without saying that the most popular is Russian vodka .

Dramagod · July 6, 2012 11:35 am

Yes, but my point was that they do drink Finlandia in Russia as well. And apparently it is (or was at some point) the most popular of the imported brands.

Last edited by Dramagod (July 6, 2012 11:36 am)

Irene Adler · July 6, 2012 11:38 am

221B, you have no idea how many alcoholics are in Spain. Probably the percentage in population is higher than the one in Russia, as we are a smaller country

Dramagod · July 6, 2012 11:43 am

I call you on that. I'd say the percentage of our population is even higher. And we're even smaller country than yours, Irene.

Irene Adler · July 6, 2012 11:50 am

Dramagod wrote:
I call you on that. I'd say the percentage of our population is even higher. And we're even smaller country than yours, Irene.

You may be right, Drama
Anyway, here people drinks a lot. Not me, I really don't like alcohol. Well, I like rum. And beer. But in small doses

Dramagod · July 6, 2012 11:56 am

Here many start drinking when they're teenagers. And Finns drink a lot. Myself included tonight.

Smoggy_London_Air · July 6, 2012 2:11 pm

Per capita, Moldova (any Moldovese here? Ha ha.) is apparently the first in alcohol consumption. Russia is fourth. The US is wayyyyy down there.

The laws here are very stringent regarding alcohol consumption by minors. Under 21, drinking alcohol, and you get caught? It's bad news.

Another Finlandian stereotype: everyone skis.

Davina · July 6, 2012 2:24 pm

Another Stereotype about Finns...they are all really good at driving.

Dramagod · July 6, 2012 2:59 pm

Many like to ski at winter, yes. I'm not one of those people. I got enough of that in the army. About the driving, well, don't know about that as I don't know how good drivers are in other countries. I do know women tend to cause hassle in the traffic all the time. If someone cuts in front of me or almost hits me, 90% of the time it's a female driver. No offence. Just an observation I've made. And there's these "mopedcars" here now everywhere. The kind that has two seats, go 60km/h and pretty much every teen has one. They look like half-the lenght cars basically. And I hate those things.

One thing that's true, is (based to many polls made) that we have the top school education and health-care.

KeepersPrice · July 6, 2012 6:39 pm

Good grief - I can't seem to get away from this National Stereotype thread - and it was the one I was least interested in when I first saw it. . Just not sure where to put this thought. I was thinking about the upcoming Olympic games in London. At the opening ceremonies the host country often presents and celebrates many iconic symbols of the country. Does anyone know what they might be planning to do at the London opening? Do you think maybe they will sneak in some sort of Sherlock reference? He is after all one of the world's most beloved characters and very strongly tied to London. Pipe dream probably and obviously I have way too much Sherlock on the brain, but I'm going to be watching anyway. I do enjoy the Olympics - although maybe not so much now without the "amateur" status, but I guess that was a joke anyway. Anyway I wish London the best and hope all will go smoothly with no security problems.

SusiGo · July 6, 2012 6:47 pm

How about Ben and Martin carrying the Olympic fire into the stadium? That would be nice. And they could make deduction a new discipline, together with roof jumping, dog chasing, Quavers eating, window falling, pig harpooning … there are so many possibilities. But I guess I'll be watching it even without Sherlock although it would be much more fun. My hope's on the German field hockey teams.

221B Baker Street · July 7, 2012 6:13 am

Dramagod wrote:
Yes, but my point was that they do drink Finlandia in Russia as well. And apparently it is (or was at some point) the most popular of the imported brands.

Yes, if to think of imported brands, Finlandia is quite popular, really.

Irene Adler wrote:
221B, you have no idea how many alcoholics are in Spain. Probably the percentage in population is higher than the one in Russia, as we are a smaller country

That' a pity that lots of people just don't know where to stop while drinking alcohol.
I would never have thought that other countries meet the same problems as Russia does.

Um....what about smoking in your countries? I know there is a law restricting smoking in public in many European countries. Still there's no such law in Russia, but it has been discussed by Government and I think it'll come into force in the nearest future. According to the statistics 65% men and 30% women are smokers in Russia. And most are around 20-35 years old.

Davina · July 7, 2012 11:34 am

We have a BIG problem here with young people, very young people, drinking to excess. Binge drinking is a cultural thing here. The hospitals are seeing a large increase in the number of under 25 year olds with serious liver damage from excessive alcohol consumption. Scotland has just imposed a minimum price for a unit of alcohol as many supermarkets have alcohol as 'loss leaders' which encourages drinking. You have to be 18 to legally purchase alcohol here and most supermarkets etc. ask for people to be over 25. They have to ask for ID for proof of age. I actually prefer the idea such as in Canada where alcohol can only be bought from the liquor store.

Smoking cigarettes is banned inside all public places, at work and in cars used for work in the whole of the UK. Sometimes smoking outside a building e.g. a hospital is also banned by the management. Since this law was introduced and expanded the number of people successfully giving up smoking has increased a lot. Sadly smoking cigarettes is still popular with the young here and in particular young women/girls who will often use it to keep their weight down. Legally you have to be 16 to buy and smoke cigarettes but lots of under 16s smoke. I notice when I go to Canada that far fewer people smoke cigarettes and when I come back to the UK the number of people who smoke always stands out to me.

veecee · July 7, 2012 6:57 pm

Our last trip to London was so much nicer with the smoking eliminated indoors.
In the US, the smoking laws vary from state to state, and I think sometimes from city to city. Indoor smoking in public places has been disappearing for some time, and recently the disappearance has accelerated rapidly. In fact, the entire huge University of Michigan campus in my city is smoke-free, indoors and out.

Smoggy_London_Air · July 8, 2012 3:48 am

All I know about the Olympics is that they're keeping the medals "safe" in the Tower of London.

We all know why that's a bad idea.

(Oh, and I'm also hoping that somehow David Tennant lights the torch. The internet will probably implode if that were to happen.)