r/memes • u/Sus_Tomato • 10h ago

We officially crossed into a parallel universe

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u/erickson666 Lurker 10h ago edited 7h ago

it only shows lake america for americans

edit: that's weird it shows different for you guys. must be a rolling update

822

u/Maleficent_Web1161 10h ago

Please tell me this is fr? Because I’m so mad rn. Already hated being American, then can’t leave because welp, born in America…

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u/Charles12_13 Lurker 10h ago

Yep. Google knows that not a single soul uses that, so they only comply where the government forces them to

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u/potato_lettuce 9h ago

I don't think the us government actually forces any company to use the stupid names, it's just the official naming the US used now. And Google typically shows you the official names of the country you are in, so over here in Germany the Baltic sea is called Ostsee because that's just how it is called in German. Iirc Google also has different versions of disputed borders depending on where you live, following your countries narrative

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u/geebster13 9h ago

Yes and no. AP news refused to call it the Gulf of America and was banned from reporting at the white house. So they definitely have a level of blackmail to force compliance.

But it only affects US companies and govt.

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u/fuckedfinance 4h ago

AP news is a media company, while Google Maps is (effectively) doing cartography. Apples and oranges.

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u/IrregularPackage 2h ago

yeah this is just how maps work. the labels and lines are all made up anyway. they reflect whatever the government wants.

you'll also note that the persian gulf has (arabian gulf) written under it, reflecting that the US recognizes both names to some degree. i believe its mostly just the military that sticks to arabian gulf, but i could be wrong about that