A loud burp in one setting can be a high compliment, but in others it will be considered enormously offensive. Confronting law enforcement figures over perceived transgressions of their authority is a highly prized tradition in the West, but these confrontations are actively avoided in the East. Likewise, standing for women entering a room is de rigueur in Western cultures, but such practices would be viewed as incongruent with the cultures of many Eastern countries. Then there is the matter of which hand to use and when, because these issues are significant in the East where the right hand is used for contact with others and the left hand reserved for other purposes, but such considerations never enter the minds of people in the West because this practice is not followed.
Despite these fundamental differences in religion, language, worldviews and cultural practices, it is possible to...
For example, people all over the world respect cordiality, politeness and kindness and will likely reciprocate in kind when confronted with honesty and a smile. Everyone wants enough to eat and a better life for their children, and everyone wants a safe place to live and the right to worship as they please. If these basic commonalities are taken into account when encountering people from other cultures, the other potential hazards can be mitigated and perhaps avoided altogether in favor of a mutual recognition that people are just people and can get along if they try hard enough.
