Are high levels of stress a Northern European trait?

I don't think they're as laid back as some other cultures. White men have pretty much created the modern world...inventions, science, medicine, rather than just accepting things.

Well r1, now we know who to blame.

R2 white men are only 8% of the world's population. They are a small minority but have had a huge impact.

It's a Lutheran thing: no matter how hard you work, it's never enough. The southern Europeans seems to be more relaxed about it.

R1 gets it. Compare 2 people: Jonas Salk on one hand, racing against time to invent a vaccine for polio. On the other hand, a subsaharan African, lying in a hut after eating a high-carb meal of boiled millet. One of these is more stressed than the other. I wonder which.

I see pics of dark-skinned countries and there's music and food and smiles and I'm thinking wow that's sure not my (white) family.

East Asia's switch to capitalism has rewired their culture to be very stress prone.

R5 why would you compare an inventor to someone living in a hut, rather than these black inventors? That's like someone comparing Obama, a president of the United States, to you, a trailer dwelling nobody.

R3 they had a lot of help. Not all of it willingly.

And a lot of that impact was detrimental.

R8 They studied under whites and worked in a white culture.

So if a white man had black teachers and lived in Africa, his invention would be credited to blacks? No. Wake up r11.

That's a big "if" R12. Not going to happen. The people at R8 are a product of Western education and method.

Hypothetical, but the point still stands r13. Those blacks are responsible for their lives, actions, and inventions. They are comparable to a white inventor, yet you have no qualms about comparing a white inventor to a tribesman who lives in a hut, odd that you would make that comparison. Is it that necessary to set the bar so low for white inventors that they must be compared to someone living in a hut rather than other inventors?

R14 They are a product of their environment.

That's not an answer r15.

My ancestry is mainly southern European with Italian, Sardinian, Iberian etc. I just don't give fuck.

My response in R5 was not specifically about race. I know how much DL loves to scream racist. It was about culture and place as R8 and R11 said. And there is definitely a difference between traditional white (Northern Euro and Northern Asian) culture and traditional black (African) cultures. There are no black-dominant societies with a high level of socioeconomic attainment.

I'm content with Black people doing good; but in the present time, they're doing it under the auspices of a Northern European socioeconomic and political system, still largely managed by whites. And a Black person will be the first to talk about the peculiarity of being a high-achieving Black person in western society. It's still regarded by many, whether factually accurate or not, as an oddity.

R18 Good post but let's give Southern Europe it's credit too: tiny Italy has given the world some of it's greatest inventors, scientists, explorers, artists, composers and architects.

Asians have more stress

I'm of mainly southern European and Mediterranean ancestry and I don't feel that I can ever truly understand wasp /northern Europeans. It's not so much that they have higher levels of stress, it's just that the stuff they stress over seems odd. I'm convinced the psyche /dna of Mediterranean and northern Europeans are just fundamentally different. Even if I dislike a Mediterranean person (or a Jewish one), I usually can understand where they are coming from. I just don't "get" wasps. I know this is all terribly un PC.

Nobody gets WASPs r21, except other Wasps. The genius of the WASP is convincing the world of their superiority by intimating that nobody, except for the four people they associate with, is good enough for them. The constant, relentless, bone-deep disapproval of everyone who is not exactly like them and therefore, inferior. They jump half a foot in the air when confronted about it. Try it sometime.

Well, I love the Mediterranean but nothing fucking works there.

WASP rejects are always hating on the WASPS. Why?

Southern Europeans win when it comes to cuisine, family ties, and romance/affection but everything else WASPS are better at

R18 I'm not buying it. You're probably the type to cry about people "blaming the white man." We aren't responsible for everything good in the modern world, but if you want to claim responsibility for all the good, then claim responsibility for all the bad as well.

I am a WASP who can't relax. Its like some internal mechanism in me that makes me feel I must always have goals. When I have accomplished things its on to the next goal. Its an incessant inner voice that never shuts up. I do think its in the genes, instinct. Probably comes from having to prepare for winter for many many generations over time.

That's bullshit r26. I'm Scandinavian and we had winters to prepare for too, we aren't like that.

Of Scandinavian ancestry, I should clarify.

[quote]Well, I love the Mediterranean but nothing fucking works there.

I think we all know the Greeks and Romans did jack shit for western civilization!

>>cuisine, family ties, and romance/affection

Pretty crucial stuff, seriously. What good is life without decent food and feeling loved? Not worth living, I'd say. Would love to have Southern European ancestry, culture and attitude.

If you ever worked with a wide range of people you would see that not handling stress well is not limited to one race or color.

[quote]I think we all know the Greeks and Romans did jack shit for western civilization!

Except for: Roman Numerals, Paved Roads, Modern Plumbing, Arches for Buildings, Water Aqueduct, Surgical Tools, Bound Books and invention of Concrete. Not to mention all the naked men in marble.

The white guy is stressed so he gets a gun and kills innocent people and beats his wife. White guys do have an oversized impact on the world because they have no self-control.

This is mostly because of environment not genetics. The colder the climate, the more likely people are going to stay inside. That forces you to plan long term before a winter for example. Then find things to do day in and day out with your thoughts. It also isolates a lot so social skills translate to more hands off icy cold behavior with strangers. It's sink or swim, every man for himself. High stress.

Places where its really hot force people outside. Tropical places usually have an abundance of food sources. Being out side they socialize a lot more with each other creating a culture around social interaction instead of physical products to survive. They rely more on each other as a village instead of an island. Tend to be nicer people. Its less stressful when you know a whole group of people are there for you if you fall.

Bungo r34.

BINGO*

I suspect that those of us with strong Nordic ancestry but living elsewhere are far more highly strung than people currently living in Nordic countries. The people living there now seem to have evolved and created far more tolerant, liberal societies. If not for the snow, I'd seriously look at applying for residency.

This is one of the dumber OPs in a long time.

I think it’s true. R34 has good points. And agree with R26 it’s likely genetic. I’ve read being in smaller cramped spaces in winter encouraged extra sensitivity to others.

I’m Northern European and have spent my life dealing with stress - where other American kids never seemed bothered. As has everyone of my extended family. There is a comfort in being around so many sensitive, stressed, depressed people because we all know how sensitive we are to stress - so we treat each other carefully. It probably also helped excel in school because I was more stressed about grades and behavior than the easygoing American kids - especially Italian and Hispanic (the main “minorities” in my school). It also feeds ambition and getting ahead because I stres about doing well in everything.

My husband is Mexican and is totally unstressed by most things. After many years, I realize it’s just how he’s wired - probably exacerbated by cultural and familial dynamics. But if we were raised in the same house, I would almost guarantee I would be close to the same ball of stress I am and he would be the laid-back easygoing person he is.