My brother-in-law, MD, is a consultant, a global traveler, and one of the most culturally sensitive guys I know.
When MD travels to another country, he plans for his trip like a research assistant who attends a highly prestigious and competitive graduate program. MD performs his due diligence to ensure that his behaviors, his words, and his attire are appropriately tailored to his audience. During a trip to Thailand, last year, MD ate a tremendous amount of local cuisine (including bugs) and wore a pink tie to honor the king.
I think the pink tie is clever and awesome. Products & services are important in the business world, but I wholeheartedly support ‘cultural sensitivity’ as a means of breaking barriers and opening up new business opportunities. Let’s face it: no one wants to do business with an asshole. It’s the little things — recognizing a holiday, appreciating local cuisine — that demonstrate your humanity and decency to a prospective client or business partner.
In the spirit of global sensitivity, I am sharing a link to the nine most devastating insults from around the world (as featured on Digg). These insults are things you don’t want to say — unless you are a jerk and you want to further embarrass America and its citizens.
Some of my favorite insults from the article are not on the top nine, but they leave a lasting impression.
- You’re as thick as manure and only half as useful. – Ireland
- You’re as ugly as a salad. – Bulgaria
- You’re a girl who drives a truck. – Iceland
- It’s not pretty watching a jackass try to eat a pomegranate. – Armenia
- May your house be live on CNN. – Serbia
The Top Nine list on a Digg is a little more bawdy and direct, but it’s worth a look.
Consider this your punk rock HR training session: you don’t want to accidentally call someone an unclef**ker in Iceland, yo.
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Now that cheered me up. But, I was kind of disappointed that there was nothing from Poland. I’m Polish. But you know, our insults would probably be lame like calling you a Slovak. Or saying that your mom can’t cook. Or insulting your bowling style.
It
It is yellow for the king. (Inside info: The notorious pink tie was to honor MD’s lovely bride 24 years ago.)
@GenX Don’t go there because my momz can cook!
@Diana I snorted when I read, “May your house be live on CNN.” For some reason, that just cracks my shit up. Maybe I watch too much cable news?
@DRF Yellow, pink, whatevs. He still looked handsome, right? (I still can’t believe you have been married for 24 years. Awesomeness. He’s a lucky guy!)
My fave is the last one: “I dream about farting on you”
The penis ones make me giggle like a little girl.
DRF beat me to it.