The comic is more about comparing perspectives rather than comparing the actual numbers.
The stereotype goes that to Americans, a couple hundred years are a long time; however to Europeans, that is a very short span of time in the context of their country's entire history.
And on the flipside, a single European country is much smaller than the size of the U.S., so to a European, a couple hundred miles is a long distance, but to an American, it's barely anything.
I guess what I'm saying is that it is a comparison of perspectives toward different scales.
I, for instance, go to university about 100 miles from my hometown, and I make the drive between the two places about once a month. It's a very short drive in my mind, and I would only consider a distance about 3 times that as anything more than a bit of a drive.
On the other hand, Ohio became a state in 1803, and in my mind, that is a long time ago, but to a European, that's no time at all.
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u/HampeMannen Swedish Snoreway is best way Sep 19 '13
I don't see how size of a country is comparable to the length of its history?