"We" and "Our" as it relates to civil government and the military

[barnhart]

As an American citizen technically, he is "our" president, but I prefer to say that Trump is "the" president.

I agree. He is the president we have selected.

He is the president the voters of this country chose.

Also true. This is one reason I don't vote, but from the outside perspective, say to the average Iranian, Americans collectively chose this.

[Ernie]

I agree. He is the president we have selected.

He is the president the voters of this country chose.

Also true. This is one reason I don't vote, but from the outside perspective, say to the average Iranian, Americans collectively chose this.

I interact with internationals constantly. I like when they start realizing that I am not "American" in the way that they thought of Americans in a collective way before this without me every drawing a comparison. "You don't think and act like the Americans we read about!"
On other occasions I am glad to point out the ways that I and the church have never been "American" in the way they have viewed Americans. This always makes for interesting conversations. They are glad that I and we as a church have not participated in things that disturb them.

[barnhart]

He is the president the voters of this country chose.

Also true. This is one reason I don't vote, but from the outside perspective, say to the average Iranian, Americans collectively chose this.

I interact with internationals constantly. I like when they start realizing that I am not "American" in the way that they thought of Americans in a collective way before this without me every drawing a comparison. "You don't think and act like the Americans we read about!"
On other occasions I am glad to point out the ways that I and the church have never been "American" in the way they have viewed Americans. This always makes for interesting conversations. They are glad that I and we as a church have not participated in things that disturb them.

Perhaps there is some sort of balance, part of the reason your friends marvel at your differentness is you have been embedded in American culture for generations and that gives you a platform as an insider of sorts. It's not interesting to them to discover non- Americans who have values diverging from the main stream.

[JohnH]

I interact with internationals constantly. I like when they start realizing that I am not "American" in the way that they thought of Americans in a collective way before this without me every drawing a comparison. "You don't think and act like the Americans we read about!"
On other occasions I am glad to point out the ways that I and the church have never been "American" in the way they have viewed Americans. This always makes for interesting conversations. They are glad that I and we as a church have not participated in things that disturb them.

Would they expect to be treated as a monolith where they were identical to everyone else from the same country they came from?

[Ernie]

I interact with internationals constantly. I like when they start realizing that I am not "American" in the way that they thought of Americans in a collective way before this without me every drawing a comparison. "You don't think and act like the Americans we read about!"
On other occasions I am glad to point out the ways that I and the church have never been "American" in the way they have viewed Americans. This always makes for interesting conversations. They are glad that I and we as a church have not participated in things that disturb them.

Would they expect to be treated as a monolith where they were identical to everyone else from the same country they came from?

Probably. If they buy into the general values of that country/culture.

[Judas Maccabeus]

He is the president the voters of this country chose.

Also true. This is one reason I don't vote, but from the outside perspective, say to the average Iranian, Americans collectively chose this.

I interact with internationals constantly. I like when they start realizing that I am not "American" in the way that they thought of Americans in a collective way before this without me every drawing a comparison. "You don't think and act like the Americans we read about!"
On other occasions I am glad to point out the ways that I and the church have never been "American" in the way they have viewed Americans. This always makes for interesting conversations. They are glad that I and we as a church have not participated in things that disturb them.

When we lived overseas we were almost never thought to be Americans, Normally German, and that quite consistently. Not loud enough to be American, did not dress like Americans and knew the local language.