Americans...

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Replies

  • mfp_1
    mfp_1 Posts: 516 Member
    firesoforion wrote:
    Converting to the metric system as a society would be a *massively* expensive proposition.

    Metric-only food labels are illegal. That government-imposed ban costs us money.
  • Ironman2be
    Ironman2be Posts: 140 Member
    I remember my 5th grade teacher (29 years ago) telling us the rest of the world was in the process of converting to our system....yes Mr. Mason you were wrong!
  • andreanicole686
    andreanicole686 Posts: 406 Member
    We are special. Stubborn. Snowflakes.

    haha so true!!
  • SuffolkSally
    SuffolkSally Posts: 964 Member
    At least the rest of the world and the U.S. don't have an identity crisis. As other have said, in Canada we regularly mix metric and imperial. Milk, Juice, Pop, Water, Beer - Metric, Hard liquor, people usually talk about buying a 40 or 26, as in oz. Buying meat, metric. Cooking and recipes, that's all over the place mixing both. Driving and distances, metric. Well unless you live in rural Canada where all of the country roads are mile roads. People talk gas mileage in miles per gallon, which is ironic since we drive in KMs and buy gas in litres. Running, the majority of runners I've ever encountered (quite a number), run in miles and talk about their pace 8 min. miles, or 10 min min mile pace. For height and weight, if I went up to the majority of Canadians and asked them if they knew their own height and weight in metric I'd be surprised if 10% could get it right without having to think about it and even then most people wouldn't have a clue. Needless to say, the mass majority of people talk about their height and weight in feet and pounds. We've been teaching the metric system in school since I was in kindergarten 35 years ago, but yet certain measurements of the imperial system are still used regularly.

    The UK is much the same in terms of confusion!
  • angryguy77
    angryguy77 Posts: 836 Member
    we'll start using the metric system when the world stops coming to us to solve their problems.
  • renku
    renku Posts: 182 Member
    Hi I'm a Canadian, born in the 70s

    I weigh myself in pounds and my food in grams
    I ride my bike in kmph but miles are still the distance that my mind comprehends better
    My height is in feet and inches, I also build with lumber in 2X4" wood and 4X8' plywood
    The only real tempature system I understand is Celcius

    Metric does make more sense to me.. But I grew up in an era that we were only converting from Imperial.

    (An odd side note to my American friends, your Imperial weights and measures are legally defined federally in metric, technically the USA was on the metric system before Canada adopted it, yours is just a strange decimal version of it.)
  • Sockimobi
    Sockimobi Posts: 541
    At least the rest of the world and the U.S. don't have an identity crisis. As other have said, in Canada we regularly mix metric and imperial. Milk, Juice, Pop, Water, Beer - Metric, Hard liquor, people usually talk about buying a 40 or 26, as in oz. Buying meat, metric. Cooking and recipes, that's all over the place mixing both. Driving and distances, metric. Well unless you live in rural Canada where all of the country roads are mile roads. People talk gas mileage in miles per gallon, which is ironic since we drive in KMs and buy gas in litres. Running, the majority of runners I've ever encountered (quite a number), run in miles and talk about their pace 8 min. miles, or 10 min min mile pace. For height and weight, if I went up to the majority of Canadians and asked them if they knew their own height and weight in metric I'd be surprised if 10% could get it right without having to think about it and even then most people wouldn't have a clue. Needless to say, the mass majority of people talk about their height and weight in feet and pounds. We've been teaching the metric system in school since I was in kindergarten 35 years ago, but yet certain measurements of the imperial system are still used regularly.

    The UK is much the same in terms of confusion!

    I was going to say this!

    UK uses lbs and stones for human weight, litres for soft drinks, pints for beer, ml / cl for spirits, grams for food weight, miles for long distance and speed, metres for shorter distance and erm also feet and yards.
  • GasMasterFlash
    GasMasterFlash Posts: 2,206 Member
    Metric-only food labels are illegal. That government-imposed ban costs us money.
    How so?
  • k8blujay2
    k8blujay2 Posts: 4,941 Member
    we'll start using the metric system when the world stops coming to us to solve their problems.
    :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
  • Sockimobi
    Sockimobi Posts: 541
    we'll start using the metric system when the world stops coming to us to solve their problems.

    :noway:
  • GasMasterFlash
    GasMasterFlash Posts: 2,206 Member
    we'll start using the metric system when the world stops coming to us to solve their problems.
    (high five)
  • mtaylor33557
    mtaylor33557 Posts: 542 Member
    I was watching "Big Bang Theory" last night and Sheldon was complaing about this very same thing.

    He blamed it on Jimmy Carter setting the country on a track to convert, but never following through. He went on to add that it was no wonder he was a "1 term president".

    :)
  • mfp_1
    mfp_1 Posts: 516 Member
    GasMasterFlas wrote:
    Metric-only food labels are illegal. That government-imposed ban costs us money.
    How so?

    The Fair Packaging and Labeling Act makes it a federal offence to have metric-only labels on most packaged food.
  • GasMasterFlash
    GasMasterFlash Posts: 2,206 Member
    Metric-only food labels are illegal. That government-imposed ban costs us money.
    How so?
    The Fair Packaging and Labeling Act makes it a federal offence to have metric-only labels on most packaged food.
    I understand that. How does that cost anyone money? Manufacturers can avoid the fine by using standard or standard and metric.
  • yogsvr4
    yogsvr4 Posts: 149 Member
    If the people paying the bills want it changed, it'll change. Not before.
  • deftanker
    deftanker Posts: 105 Member
    Seriously America, can't we get with the picture and use the metric system like the rest of the world?

    I'm sick of having to convert weights and distances and food conversions.

    Okay, rant over.

    ummmmmmm



    No
  • dizzydi1968
    dizzydi1968 Posts: 564
    The metric system makes perfect sense. Except maybe the 'stone' nonsense. But kg, m, L, cm, g, km, that's where it's at.

    My country is foolish in a lot of ways.

    Stone is not metric, it's British weirdness.

    Its not british weirdness, historically we had pounds (14 of which make up a stone) long before the usa had a measuring system.

    I'm not that fussed about the metric system either but it is forced upon us by our european neighbours.
  • Diary_Queen
    Diary_Queen Posts: 1,314 Member
    We are special. Stubborn. Snowflakes.
    I personally am the flakiest!
  • ActiveGuy81
    ActiveGuy81 Posts: 705 Member
    Well my weight would look better in kilograms, just saying.
  • stacygayle
    stacygayle Posts: 349 Member
    I work in the medical field and I only use the metric system. Throws my kids and husband off but I just tell them, you learned it school just like I did so get used to it :laugh:

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