A Brit friend on the website I run posted this. I found it amusing, and awfully on point. Humorous satire, of course, but nonetheless.. The rest of th..."/>

REAL WORLD EVENT DISCUSSIONS

England's view of us

POSTED BY: NIKI2
UPDATED: Monday, January 25, 2010 08:04
SHORT URL:
VIEWED: 1332
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Saturday, January 23, 2010 1:09 PM

NIKI2

Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...


A Brit friend on the website I run posted this. I found it amusing, and awfully on point. Humorous satire, of course, but nonetheless.. The rest of the Western world must think we're nuts...and rightly so!
Quote:

What is it about Yanks and their trucks?
America leaves me completely baffled. It might just as well be Azerbaijan or Peru.

Hugo Rifkind

I don’t understand the first thing about America. I often think I do, but then I read something or, worse, I go there, and I remember that I don’t, at all. Take the Republican victory in Massachusetts. I mean, fine. Whatever. Don’t have free healthcare, then. I still can’t quite grasp why they think it might kill people, or turn the country into Cuba, but never mind that. Instead, let’s talk about the new senator. Lets talk about his victory speech. “I’m Scott Brown. I’m from Wrentham. I drive a truck. And I’m nobody’s senator but yours.”

Here’s a quiz for all you American readers. Can you spot the bit which I find odd? Nope, wrong, we also have people called Scott. Yes, second time lucky. It’s the truck bit.

My general point, I suppose, is . . . wuh? We have trucks, too. We just don’t talk about them much. Is that weird? Are we weird? “When I spoke to the President,” Brown also said in his victory speech, “the first thing I said was ‘Would you like me to drive the truck down to Washington so you can see it?’. ”

Why does he think Obama wants to see his truck? Does Obama want to see his truck? Oh, look, I’m just not going to get it. Don’t even bother. I understand the point of Sarah Palin more than I understand Scott Brown’s truck.


We have a show over here called Newsnight. It’s a news programme, although you guys probably wouldn’t recognise it as one because it sometimes reports on stuff and doesn’t just involve loud men with fake tans competitively stating their hilariously polarised views. They had a feature the other night on the Tea Party movement, anyway, that huge reactive conservative groundswell you’ve got going on over there. The politics of that I could understand just fine. But the people? I didn’t even understand the way they parted their hair.

I didn’t understand their over-sized floral furniture, or their bow-ties. I certainly don’t understand their trucks. I’m not trying to be rude here. I’m just saying. It might as well be Peru to me, or Ghana, or Azerbaijan. Where do you guys get this stuff from? Over here, we base our look on your film stars, your TV stars and your pop stars. Probably our hopes and our dreams, too. On what do you base yours?






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Saturday, January 23, 2010 3:25 PM

GINOBIFFARONI


and if the Western world is thinking this,

imagine the view from Japan... or China... or more on point Iraq



Either you Are with the terrorists, or ... you Are with the terrorists

Life is like a jar of Jalapeño peppers.
What you do today, might Burn Your Ass Tomorrow"

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Saturday, January 23, 2010 3:44 PM

FREMDFIRMA



Yeah, we seem to be pretty wacky like that, case in point...
http://www.marketingshift.com/2004/9/biggest-suv-navistar-internationa
l.cfm

Seriously, that's friggin insane, innit ?

Me, I wanted a Smartcar, but they're crap, overpriced crap with shitty gas mileage and bad performance specs because mandatory "safety" equipment keeps pushing the weight up till they can't friggin compete, and to where some cars are unsafe with bad handling BECAUSE of the weight.

The IDEA is not to have an accident in the first place, otherwise just buy a goddamn tank!

But no, as usual, someone put the dimwits in charge who couldn't grok the idea that knowing how to drive + light, maneuverable car = less accidents...

And it doesn't help from a psychological aspect when you're IN one of the few puny cars remaining, like a CRX, surrounded by huge chunks of steel you're almost afraid will run you flat over by accident cause they can't even SEE your puny little car from up here, and let's not even get into not being able to see road signs through the huge bastards, all of which is a substantial discouragement against buying a tiny car.

It's like a friggin arms race out there, mines bigger than yours, I can see over yours, yadda freakin yadda - fer cryin out loud just leave me alone over in the right lane and get ON with whatever you need to do oh-so-very-badly that it requires doing 80mph in a chunk of metal you have ZERO hope of controlling if anything does go wrong, much less actually stopping.

And don't even get me started on morons who think implied "off-road" (with stock 2WD and a pathetic ground clearance?!) capability gives them some kind of magical road attachment when it snows, as if the laws of physics don't apply to a vehicle that weighs SEVEN THOUSAND POUNDS ?

Of course, when they're flopped over sideways in a ditch like usual I just cruise on by in my (relatively) puny little car and roll my eyes as they scream on the phone to a AAA rep who's prolly doin the exact same thing.

Meh.

-F

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Saturday, January 23, 2010 4:26 PM

KPO

Sometimes you own the libs. Sometimes, the libs own you.


Quote:

I understand the point of Sarah Palin more than I understand Scott Brown’s truck.


I think I understand it - a symbol of american manhood right? It strikes me as a very simple statement that will resonate well with the U.S old fashioned, rugged, masculine self-identity/style...

It would sound strange in any other country perhaps, but I'm not going to play the game of knocking American culture.

Fair play to the guy though, I'd say he's a natural.

And nice article btw.

Heads should roll

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Saturday, January 23, 2010 4:37 PM

PIRATENEWS

John Lee, conspiracy therapist at Hollywood award-winner History Channel-mocked SNL-spoofed PirateNew.org wooHOO!!!!!!


How do you spot the infiltraitor at a Tea Party?

He's wearing a bow tie.

Scott BRown voted for "free" mandatory healthcare in Mass, where you go to jail if you can't afford the "free" healthcare bailout tax. He probably wears a bowtie.

As for trucks, it's hard to put a bale of hay in the back seat of your Chevy Cavalier.

At least the Brits have better taste:




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Saturday, January 23, 2010 6:54 PM

FREMDFIRMA



Ha, were they still kickin, I'd dare ya to make THAT insinuation to Doc Holiday or Wyatt Earp, both of whom looked pretty badass with a bow tie.

-F

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Saturday, January 23, 2010 7:07 PM

KWICKO

"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." -- William Casey, Reagan's presidential campaign manager & CIA Director (from first staff meeting in 1981)


Quote:


And it doesn't help from a psychological aspect when you're IN one of the few puny cars remaining, like a CRX, surrounded by huge chunks of steel you're almost afraid will run you flat over by accident cause they can't even SEE your puny little car from up here, and let's not even get into not being able to see road signs through the huge bastards, all of which is a substantial discouragement against buying a tiny car.



Thanks for the CRX shout-out! :)

And no, I'm not discouraged from buying another tiny car. I've got my eye on this:



That's the 2011 Honda CR-Z, the spiritual successor to the CRX. It's about the same size, but now clocks in at around 2600 lbs, versus the heaviest CRX sold, my '91 Si model, which punched the scales at 2230 lbs.

CR-Z goes on sale in Japan next month, and here in the U.S. around July.

Oh, and it's a hybrid, which I'm not too crazy about, because it doesn't really get much better EPA ratings than my 20-year-old CRXs do. But the best thing about a hybrid is that it gets better city mileage than highway mileage, meaning that for the vast majority of us, it gets better mileage doing the driving that most of us do most of the time.

Mike

Work is the curse of the Drinking Class.
- Oscar Wilde

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Saturday, January 23, 2010 7:08 PM

KWICKO

"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." -- William Casey, Reagan's presidential campaign manager & CIA Director (from first staff meeting in 1981)


Wouldn't pretty much anyone wearing ANY tie at a tea party be an infiltrator? Well, maybe a bolo tie might be acceptable...

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Sunday, January 24, 2010 4:49 AM

GEEZER

Keep the Shiny side up


I dunno. I bought my truck (SUV actually) so I could tow my CRX to the racetrack.

"Keep the Shiny side up"

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Sunday, January 24, 2010 7:33 AM

NIKI2

Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...


Uh, Spotted Dick is a perfectly real and sensible dish...Jo adored it, and since she could get it here, ate it occasionally. I couldn't look at the stuff; it's the consistency of hot cereal, can't remember what you call it--Cream of Wheat or something, only the bland, creamy kind (which I could never stand), with raisins no less. The name made me laugh, too, but it's not about anything, is age-old, and was named long before homophobia was popular.

Ditto the other dish, I would bet, "faggot" has had many meanings in England other than the one we have given it. I'll have to ask her if that one is for real, too, but I'll bet it is.

As to the rest, has nobody heard of social satire? Shees. I thought it was funny because it held up some of our most ridiculous stereotypes and poked fun at what's going on in our politics right now from an outsider's viewpoint; didn't take it seriously or take it the way some have.
Quote:

It's like a friggin arms race out there, mines bigger than yours, I can see over yours, yadda freakin yadda - fer cryin out loud just leave me alone over in the right lane and get ON with whatever you need to do oh-so-very-badly that it requires doing 80mph in a chunk of metal you have ZERO hope of controlling if anything does go wrong, much less actually stopping.
Right on, Frem; there's sometimes also a threat component, not just "mine's bigger than yours", but "I could run you over and think I hit a speed bump, so fear me!"

And yes, KPO, that's why I call the ones around here 'penis enhancements'. Nobody needs a big piece of trash with tires that mean it takes a ladder to get in, nor 4WD. I have nothing against trucks on farms, in snow country, or anywhere they're USED as trucks; here, they're penis enhancements exactly the way you described them and Frem did:
Quote:

I think I understand it - a symbol of american manhood right?
Got news for you...the need of such symbols can easily be part of an insecurity complex, something we Americans sometimes harbor with respect to the rest of the world, belied by our boastfulness and chest pounding.

Thanx for the compliment on the article, KPO, I'll pass that on too. This girl is the only teenager we've got on the site--we had another Brit teen, but she's not a teenager anymore, she's been with us so long. Both have exhibited a lot of maturity, thoughtfulness, knowledge of politics and keen curiosity about everything. I've been impressed by both of them. When posting it, she also asked "How do you guys see US?"--if anyone would like to respond (NOT just nastily), I'll pass it on.



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Sunday, January 24, 2010 10:14 AM

BLUESUNCOMPANYMAN


After reading his bafflement of the tea party movement I really have only this to say:

It doesn't suprise me that a brit can't understand liberty activism.

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Sunday, January 24, 2010 11:04 AM

LWAVES


Quote:

Originally posted by Niki2:
Uh, Spotted Dick is a perfectly real and sensible dish.

Ditto the other dish, I would bet, "faggot" has had many meanings in England other than the one we have given it. I'll have to ask her if that one is for real, too, but I'll bet it is.



As an Englishman I can state that faggots are a genuine and mighty tasty dish when done right. The terms 'Faggots', 'Brains' and 'Spotted Dick' still cause a snigger over here among the younger generations.

We also have dishes called Bangers & Mash, Bubble & Squeak and Toad-In-The-Hole.



"I don't believe in suicide, but if you'd like to try it it might cheer me up to watch."

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Sunday, January 24, 2010 11:25 AM

GINOBIFFARONI


Quote:

Originally posted by lwaves:
Quote:

Originally posted by Niki2:
Uh, Spotted Dick is a perfectly real and sensible dish.

Ditto the other dish, I would bet, "faggot" has had many meanings in England other than the one we have given it. I'll have to ask her if that one is for real, too, but I'll bet it is.



As an Englishman I can state that faggots are a genuine and mighty tasty dish when done right. The terms 'Faggots', 'Brains' and 'Spotted Dick' still cause a snigger over here among the younger generations.

We also have dishes called Bangers & Mash, Bubble & Squeak and Toad-In-The-Hole.



"I don't believe in suicide, but if you'd like to try it it might cheer me up to watch."



What are they, kind of a pork meatball in brown gravy?

or is there something in the center ?





Either you Are with the terrorists, or ... you Are with the terrorists

Life is like a jar of Jalapeño peppers.
What you do today, might Burn Your Ass Tomorrow"

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Sunday, January 24, 2010 1:28 PM

NIKI2

Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...


Thanx, LWaves, I figured it was for real; we have Toad-In-The-Hole and Bangers at our Renaissance Faires, so I'm familiar with them. Bubble & Squeak is a new one on me, tho'!



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Sunday, January 24, 2010 6:21 PM

KWICKO

"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." -- William Casey, Reagan's presidential campaign manager & CIA Director (from first staff meeting in 1981)


Quote:

Originally posted by bluesuncompanyman:
After reading his bafflement of the tea party movement I really have only this to say:

It doesn't suprise me that a brit can't understand liberty activism.



Kinda funny that they call them "tea parties" then, given that it was "brits" who threw the first one.

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Sunday, January 24, 2010 7:11 PM

PEACEKEEPER

Keeping order in every verse


Quote:

Originally posted by Niki2:
Thanx, LWaves, I figured it was for real; we have Toad-In-The-Hole and Bangers at our Renaissance Faires, so I'm familiar with them. Bubble & Squeak is a new one on me, tho'!



Faggots are tender minced meat rolled into balls and boiled to death, usually served with onions and gravy. Bubble n Squeak is basically any meal made with leftovers,usually mixed together in a pan and served as a stew.Traditional in times of poverty and rationing.

Peacekeeper---keeping order in every verse!!!

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Monday, January 25, 2010 6:10 AM

WULFENSTAR

http://youtu.be/VUnGTXRxGHg


"Kinda funny that they call them "tea parties" then, given that it was "brits" who threw the first one."

Not really.

At that point they were in the process of becoming Americans. Casting off the oppressive, tyranny.

Growing up, so to speak.

Btw, why do we care what the Brits think of us?

They have plenty of problems to deal with. WE have plenty of our own.

Let them go their own way, and so long as they don't mess with us... its cool.

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Monday, January 25, 2010 8:02 AM

NIKI2

Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...


You have no sense of humor at all, eh Wulf? That was SOCIAL SATIRE, probably a columnist, like the myriad columnists we have here who write columns about the idiocy of Brits and everyone else, including us. It's "humorous"...not that I've seen much of a sense of humor from you, so maybe you can't recognize it.

Typical that you'd take something innocuous and amusing and turn it into a "fuck them!" attitude. It's not a serious put-down of Americans, and if we can't laugh at ourselves, we're truly dead as a species! I'm sorry for you.

Bluesun:
Quote:

It doesn't suprise me that a brit can't understand liberty activism.
That is so funny I almost fell off my chair. Where do you think the people who broke off from England GOT the idea of activism? British history is loaded with it...!

Quote:

Remember remember the fifth of November
Gunpowder, treason and plot.
I see no reason why gunpowder, treason
Should ever be forgot...



They still celebrate it. Just for one tiny reminder. I'm sure others can come up with tons of others.



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Monday, January 25, 2010 8:04 AM

KWICKO

"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." -- William Casey, Reagan's presidential campaign manager & CIA Director (from first staff meeting in 1981)


Quote:

Originally posted by Wulfenstar:
"Kinda funny that they call them "tea parties" then, given that it was "brits" who threw the first one."

Not really.

At that point they were in the process of becoming Americans. Casting off the oppressive, tyranny.

Growing up, so to speak.

Btw, why do we care what the Brits think of us?

They have plenty of problems to deal with. WE have plenty of our own.

Let them go their own way, and so long as they don't mess with us... its cool.



Wrong. They were British subjects, ergo "brits". They remained so up until the war's end.

As to why we should care what they think of us, I'd say it's about as relevant as why THEY should care what we think of them. I don't know about YOU, but *I* certainly never started any of the "Britain Sucks" threads. You do seem to have an awful lot to say about how they behave; odd that you don't want to afford them the same freedom of speech.

Mike

Work is the curse of the Drinking Class.
- Oscar Wilde

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