IPad int'l time & date problems

Question

I was at the Apple Store today asking questions about the iPad and it's ability to handle international times and dates.
On my MPB and MBAir I have time on the computer, iCal, etc set for the 24 hour clock. As well as the calendar set as, day | date | month | year; Thursday, 06 January 2011. I use this format for everything that goes into the computer no matter which language.
However, when I was working with the iPad there doesn't seem to be a way to set time and date the same way. I could use the system preferences to change the time zones and go to the 24 hour clock. But, there is no way to change the date to the order I need.
Besides not being able to set things the way I need there is now a bigger question that no one in the Apple Store could answer.
1. Since everything on both my laptops is set for the time and date a specific way. What happens when that information is pushed on to the iPad? Does it stay the same or does the iPad rearrange things? From what I saw in the Apple Store the iPad we used didn't even understand the settings coming from the laptops and showed up blank or totally missing.
2. If you make entries in the iPad especially using iCal what happens to those entries when they then go back to the main laptop?
Maybe I'm not being clear, but even the employees at the Apple Store didn't have a clue and told me that maybe the iPad wasn't able to handle my needs.
My main concern is if the MBP & MBAir are set one way and the iPad is set another ... what happens with all that information syncing back and forth a 100 times a day. Or will it all become so jumbled that it makes both unusable?
Thanks for any help.

Answer 1

Michael,
Thanks for the reply.
Because I travel internationally everything in my MBP and MBAir whether it's documents, iCal or even the Address book is written in 24 hour time and with the date: day of the week|date|month|year. Things that go back years and things that go forward up to a year. iCal alone has thousands of entries per month.
I want to upgrade to both the iPad and iPhone4 to lessen my travel load.
However, no one not even at the Genius bar can tell me what is going to happen if and when I attempt to sync new devices.
Both my MBP & MBAir are set for 24 hour time, UK or Australian keyboards and or language. This helps keep things common to the rest of the world as most of the world outside the US is different with times and dates.
I will be lost if some how when I sync an iPad or iPhone4 my entire life gets jumbled. To say nothing of the confusion. If I'm unable to enter a date as: Wednesday, 12 January 2011 and add 14:00 will it appear the same way with the iPhone and iPad? It's one thing for that to turn into: Wednesday, January 12, 2011 @ 14:00 or 2:00 PM. It's quite another if it turns out thinking instead of 12/1/2011 I get 1/12/2011.
When you add in that I use French, German or Japanese .... what am I going to get back?
For all of Apple's need to be world wide .... they really aren't.
Wish I could get answers before I plunge and end up losing everything.