h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I'm beginning to concur about Castro. Recently Canada lost a former Prime Minister, Pierre Elliot Trudeau. Castro attended his funeral and we saw him on TV chatting with Jimmy Carter, and he talked to Trudeau's young daughter and kissed the top of her head. It was a lovely gesture. In an interview they did with him for TV he seemed a genuinly nice person, trying to do his best.

A couple of years back, there was a discussion in the Delphi.non-technical forum about the sorry state of American education. In it, there was a suggestion on how to improve the geography skills of our students. I'm reposting what Bernie said...

[Actually, it would vastly (simplify) geography for us folks in the USA if the United States of America could be renamed "HERE" and all other geographical locations outside of the USA be referred to simply as "THERE" (or "OVER THERE in cases where the location in question is on the opposite side of the ocean or on an entirely different planet). This plan allows my fellow countrymen to maintain their inward-looking self-centered view of the universe and makes memorization of all theose difficult-to-pronounce placenames completely unnecessary. Of course, it might be a bit confusing at first for people actually living in those countries (especially when rival nations come to the realization that they are all "THERE") but then we all have to make sacrifices you know! Of course, by "we all" I mean "you all" in the sense of "all you people who don't live in the United States". Don't worry, you'll get used to it ]

That sounds a bit like the way the English used to refer to the whole of the rest of the globe as "overseas". You were either home (UK) or overseas (everywhere else).
I'm not convinced "everywhere else" did get used to it .

They still do. I can't remember the terminology but I (living in Germany) used to work for an English company and they had terms for things which obviously meant that they still thought the UK was the centre of the Universe.

I get cheesed off about British insularity and arrogance and ignorance a lot, but it's no different than the American kind. Although they do tend to be more apologetic and ask pertinent questions and try to understand. But the basic attitude is impossible to remove.

I'm insular because I don't want to be part of a Federal Europe?Is that it?I'm insular because I don't want to lose my coinage and culture.I'm sure we are not the only people who are arrogant in
Europe and if you ask around many wouldn't want to lose their heritage either.I don't mind being part of Europe as an economic community but not a large federal state of europe.I'm sorry about our lager louts and football hooligans but we are not the only ones with such problems.I also think that much of what seems arrogant and insular is just a preoccupation with ones own problems and that many countries are guilty of that the world over.However I'm sure we can be friends as individuals which is the only way we can keep the arrogance to a minimum.At least the internet allows us to do that.

O yes, I agree entirely. Otherwise I wouldn't be living outside England, would I? I just get to see it more objectively, living so far away. I have a problem with that sort of thing. I agree with all arguments I hear, whether they agree with each other or not. Every point has something going for it, and in the end the decisions are based on individual experience and gut feelings. Which can lead to people contradicting themselves. Which is only walking on thin ice if you profess to be a politician.

On the one hand it gets my back up when my husband goes on about "We're all Europeans" and on the other hand, it is practically no more than laughable for me when my 80-year-old dad starts saying it's about time they got on with some ethnic cleansing in GB and sod the frogs and anything else not British. Except the Germans, for whom he has some sort of respect, but he sees them through rose coloured specs, because if he lived here he would find out they're just the same as anyone else.

Sorry if that's a bit confusing and loaded - it's thoughts I'd never put into words before.

Sorry, I missed the point a bit. What I agree with is that no one wants to lose their heritage or culture. a: it would be impossible to stamp them out and b: people need something to relate to. Or we'd all end up with a world full of paranoids or schizos or some other kind of maniacs, lost without an identity and not knowing who they were.

But there must be some argument for an economic cooperation instead of lots of little ineffectual economies jostling for position. The USA got that one right right from the start. I don't understand a lot about it, but it seems to make more sense on the face of it.

Humans will always form little groups and local dialects and local history museums and societies and people arguing about their different pronunciations of the same word etc etc will all keep us sane. The family is the main small group we fall back on. But, as families break apart, society is crumbling with them.

The USA only wants economic cooperation provided it goes in their favour.Witness all the complaints against Japan and their heavyhanded tactics over the banana trade.In their efforts to protect their own trade they have a tendency to do down the little guy forgetting that if they swing things their own way somone OVER THERE will suffer because the people OVER THERE have just lost their mainstay trade and everyone is now out of a job.

One thing I want to know about Americans..........

Why do they constantly say to each other " Have a nice day!"

'G'

I realy loughed as my brother started saying "Cheers mate" when he went back to England 8 years ago. I always thought (having lived outside of England for 20 years to that point of time) English said "Hallo" or " How-do-you-do!".

It´s like all the young says "Hi" in Germany, the southgermans say "Grüß Gott" and the Friesen and Hamburg people say "Moin Moin". Thats tradition for you

it seems that all american or not who trvel have one flaw, money.

does this trveling elite of the world really reflect the lands they come from?
i would hope not. remain open in mind, for the sampling of us citazens or nay abroad seem to relect very little of were they came from.
the term ugly american is a old one, all legends have there basis in fact.its nice to be nice.

as i like to say we are all bozo's on this bus lol



bill, the sierras of california, i love a good story

This post has been removed.

When the first message of this coverstaion was written no would have susspected ift would set off such a huge patriosm debate. I fail to see how one can love ones country so much.
beepdll

we did wine and dine,summertimes done come and gone my oh my,(U.S.blues) have a nice day!

humans!!!!!!!

intresting outloOk, i find it very german, what to talk? with an american with no money lol.

MSN USERNAME WARCRATE
AOL " "
[email protected]

HUMANS!!!!!!!

Hä?

The problem with Americans is that there are no Americans.

We are English, Russian, Japanese, Italian, Alabamian, Californian, Illinoisian, Atlantian, Bostonian, New Yorkian, San Diegoan, Walt Disnian, crackers, yanks, showmes, etc., and I won't even start on popular culture. Within the States there are thousands of subcultures each with their dialects and customs. One American may never even run into more than a few in a lifetime, but we hear about most of them.

The States are so vast and varied, it actually is like a mirror of Europe. The North and South still snip at each other, the way some European countries do. We have states which are self-ruled instead of countries, and they answer to a centralized federal government, which Europe does not yet have.

What I think Europe sees the most of is the moneyed, and I haven't a clue about their culture, but evidently they are rude and demanding. They are, however, a minority.

For my part, (as an Australian) I'd like to say what annoys me the most is American refusal to have a proper debate about gun control or the death penalty. they spend the whole time telling you how your pissy little country doesn't matter anyway, because they are RIGHT because they are the SUPERPOWER around here and don't you forget it!

just because someone does happen to live in the US, it doesn't mean that that one individual is any more right or poweful than an individual from another country.

OKOKOKOKOK but have you read the forum. That's just what some Americans are doing. So you can't lump them all together.

Please Americans, say what/who you are when you post your opinions so that we can see that there is still individuality and a smattering of sensible people in the US of A. And show this Aussie that we have already done away with generalisations. He is right, of course, in one sense, but "they spend the whole time telling you how your pissy little
country doesn't matter anyway, because they are RIGHT because they are the SUPERPOWER around here
and don't you forget it!" is going decidedly too far.

*Stands back and waits for the panpacific blows to start flying*