On January 21 2012 22:42 All.In wrote: I am American and I bash France all the time. It probably isn't justified. It stems from different stories I have heard from people that have visited the country and some French people I have met as well. The biggest thing that probably made me dislike them as a country which probably I admit isn't fair since it generalizes a whole country was a story my father told me. He is retired Navy and they were doing their 6 month tour and when they went to France him and 6 other sailors were jumped by 40+ French guys. They were jumped purely for being Navy.
Their obviously could be more to the story or something. Im sure some people will say thats what they get for the US sticking their nose in other countries etc etc. The way I look at it though is my dad was just providing for his family and was in the Navy as a means to do it. Most US military people you see over seas are not there because they want to be they are their because they were ordered to. The fact that they were jumped for being American makes me not like the country although that is a terrible generalization on my behalf probably. Secondly it goes into the the whole cowardice perception Americans have about France for the fact they jumped 7 men with 40.
Oddly enough I have some French in me. It would come out to around 15% French in my blood. I do hate my self as well though.
Policemen / black / white / asian / christians / atheists / muslim people also get jumped in every country in the world, doesn't mean that we have to generalize.
Hating yourself because you are x% french is dumb though.
On January 21 2012 22:41 Monsen wrote: I think there are some stereotypes that still get used in comedy sometimes ( french cowardice, american ignorance, german love for authority etc.) but outside of the bs that they cooked up after France refused to participate in the Irak war I don't really think it happens outside of drunken bar conversations. It's still there somewhere deep (same as racism and chauvinism) because it feels good to belittle others and "be superior", but if you were to ask anybody honestly, they'd acknowledge that there is nothing to it. The only thing I can relate to is online behavior, in which both French (because, fuck you redcoats we have our own language) and Russians/east Europeans (because wtf is english) refuse to speak a language everybody understands, which I find simply impolite and annoying.
Good point.
I'm not really sure we "refuse" to learn another language. But it defenitly looks like.
We are very very bad in foreign languages. And i don't understand why. I mean...i learned german from 12 to 18 yo, english from 14 to 20, from 20 to now (i'm 32 yo) i traveled, i read english website, i work in computing so i spend my life reading and writing english and (as you can read it on TL ^^) i'm stay very very bad
I don't know, bad teaching, bad students, wrong english learning methode. It's a mistery to me. We're just bad...and you nver read my german, it's worth !
I was just at Jimmy Johns, a midwestern sandwich store that recently expanded to my town on the east coast. They have a sign that says "bread so french, it must be liberated".
Hmm im German and I've never heard an American bashing France. In Germany, the only thing everyone jokes about is this: When you visit France and try communicate in English, everybody will answer in French and be rude. On the other hand, if you know one phrase in French, everyone will switch to English or (in our case) German and be nice^^
On January 21 2012 22:57 kekstier wrote: Hmm im German and I've never heard an American bashing France. In Germany, the only thing everyone jokes about is this: When you visit France and try communicate in English, everybody will answer in French and be rude.
On January 21 2012 22:54 Nightshake wrote: Another thing that is funny is that a study by National Geographic showed that France is the country with the best win/lost battle ratio (~150/50, thanks to the French Army centuries ago, Napoleon and Middle Age mostly) :p
Yeah, this. 162:62:10 (how do you have a tie in war..?).
On January 21 2012 21:35 Euronyme wrote: There are also some irritation left as the French practically didn't fight in WW2, even though they practically caused it.
one: this is a lie. French participated in this war and lost thousands of cassulties. They fucked up with the phoney war, but its too easy to judge them now, long after the fact. two: they started the war with Germans in defence of other people, not themselves. The same cannot be said about Americans. three: Swedes are not in possition to say something like this.
France had half the military losses (~200K) than the US during WW2, most of it over a couple of weeks during German's invasion. But people always forget stuff if Hollywood doesn't make a good action movie on the topic.
It is even more "funny" for the Vietnam. Nobody gives a fuck about that war in France but military losses were higher than the US lol.
Don't get me wrong here but I'll use Wikipedia to give the numbers of casualties in the Battle of France:
France: According to the Defence Historical Service, 85,310 killed (including 5,400 Maghrebis), 12,000 missing, 120,000 wounded and 1,540,000 captured (including 67,400 Maghrebis).
And the overall casualties for the Battle of France only, Allies: 2.2 millions, Axis: 165k.
You can pretty much assume that it was probably better to put a stop to this pretty fast.
On January 21 2012 21:35 Euronyme wrote: Americans envy the French in every way possible, the English have them as rivals. There are also some irritation left as the French practically didn't fight in WW2, even though they practically caused it.
Open a history book, maybe?
What do you disagree with?
French causing WW2 maybe? I mean, it's wrong on so many levels I feel someone is trying to tell me the earth was square.
Sure, France lost, plainly and simply, the war. But how is that the cause of the war itself? What kind of odd twisted logic is this?
Edit: I mean, shall I remind you that Swede was neutral during the conflict and collaborated with the Wehrmach in many occasions?
Peace of versailles. The massive debt put on Germany after WW1 was illadviced, and caused a massive meltdown of the German economy that lasted until WW2 basically. That combined with the French pillage made Hitler's promise of revenge popular enough to rise to power. The lust for revenge was central in Hitler's ideology, and is mainly what made it so popular.
I dont think any french would disagree with its gov.
I think half the french disagree with their gov.
IS THERE ANY FRENCH WHO DISAGREES WITH ITS GOV ABOUT THE NEW ARMENIAN LAW? pm me or post here
btw what is shoah?
you're serious ?
Is my education in english, or am I french? wtf do you expect ! soa doesnt have a meaning in my language.
I think he was referring to your rather ignorant question (in all caps). It's not obvious to you, if you just read the replies of French people in this thread that a quite substantial amount of French people disagree with their current government?
Everyone likes to feel like their country is superior. A lot of the time we do that by setting arbitrary standards and ignore everything else.
- Russia beats USA at pretty much every "first" in regards to the space program -> landing on moon is what counts. - France has a thousand-year history of bloody wars after bloody wars -> WWII is the only one that counts. - USA produces many of today's greatest scientists -> some redneck at wal-mart doesn't know the name of the continents (that's what counts)
It's best not to take it too seriously. It's like high school, everyone's insecure and takes potshots out of each other to feel better. As long as it doesn't escalate in violence, it's easy to ignore.
On January 21 2012 23:02 Back wrote: - USA produces many of today's greatest scientists -> some redneck at wal-mart doesn't know the name of the continents (that's what counts)
It doesnt. Nearly all of the great scientists at American universities are foreign born and educated.
On January 21 2012 23:02 Back wrote: - USA produces many of today's greatest scientists -> some redneck at wal-mart doesn't know the name of the continents (that's what counts)
It doesnt. Nearly all of the great scientists at American universities are foreign born and educated.
On January 21 2012 21:35 Euronyme wrote: Americans envy the French in every way possible, the English have them as rivals. There are also some irritation left as the French practically didn't fight in WW2, even though they practically caused it.
On January 21 2012 21:35 Euronyme wrote: Americans envy the French in every way possible, the English have them as rivals. There are also some irritation left as the French practically didn't fight in WW2, even though they practically caused it.
Open a history book, maybe?
What do you disagree with?
French causing WW2 maybe? I mean, it's wrong on so many levels I feel someone is trying to tell me the earth was square.
Sure, France lost, plainly and simply, the war. But how is that the cause of the war itself? What kind of odd twisted logic is this?
Edit: I mean, shall I remind you that Swede was neutral during the conflict and collaborated with the Wehrmach in many occasions?
Peace of versailles. The massive debt put on Germany after WW1 was illadviced, and caused a massive meltdown of the German economy that lasted until WW2 basically. That combined with the French pillage made Hitler's promise of revenge popular enough to rise to power. The lust for revenge was central in Hitler's ideology, and is mainly what made it so popular.
EPT
