Things That Make Me Go . . . Hummm

[Sgt. Pepper]

22 minutes ago, Pinch said:

Hamburgers, Gibsons and rock and roll. I figured the least I could do was learn English.

I took 2 years of French in high school. Used it exactly zero times outside of class.

[dc3c46]

56 minutes ago, kidblast said:

Some of the reputation is deserved I think, but we're not all created equal.  

I went to Finland back in 2012, I was surprised and impressed with the way the conduct themselves in day to day living.

For example, If you walk into a conference room, or sit down at lunch with them, they will immediately start talking in English so that you can understand them and know the conversation.

"it would be rude to continue talking when you could not understand"   They all speak perfect English too.  Some accents are bit harder to get thru, but they know the language.  They have to be fluent in English, Swiss and Finish to graduate high school.  Contrast that to here, and how some people conduct themselves in pubilc.

Another oddity.. We were walking back to the hotel in Helsinki one night after some bar hoping.  When we reached the intersection where the traffic lights were, the "don't walk" sign was lit.

There wasn't a car in site,  we waited for the "Walk" sign before anyone crossed the road.  It was February, and about -20 that night.

That was another thing I noticed, these guys were impervious to the weather.  There were out side bars running year round it seemed,  people were just hanging around in the dead of winter, having pints and whooping it up.

 

Fluent in Swiss?! Does not make sense.

[jdgm]

58 minutes ago, Pinch said:

Hamburgers, Gibsons and rock and roll. I figured the least I could do was learn English.

Sounds like the beginning of either a Dashiell Hammett or Philip K. D1ck novel.

I finished my drink, turned up the collar of my raincoat and slipped out into the raw, hungry neon night....etc.

Edited February 13, 2022 by jdgm

[SteveFord]

...and ate her burger in a dark alley way.

The End.

[tlwwalker]

I was raised as an American ex-pat in South America, the Carribean and Central America. I lived there for my first 18 years, visiting the USA for one month per year. I did not live in the USA until I went to college. I have a different view of the world as a result.

People in the countries where I lived both envied the American life and resented the presence of Americans in their nations. They wanted to partake of the American culture and hated the affluence they witnessed the Americans posessing.  Make no mistake: the American involvement in those countries was one of exploitation, an that cuts through everything that Americans do in those places. I am grateful and proud  of being a citizen of the USA, but I have no trouble understanding the contempt foreigners have for Americans. Our behavior overseas is at times atrotious. Even as I refer to citizens of the USA as Americans, I remember that America includes both North & South. Yet we reserve the term for ourselves..... how arrogant. 

 

[Sgt. Pepper]

6 minutes ago, tlwwalker said:

I was raised as an American ex-pat in South America, the Carribean and Central America. I lived there for my first 18 years, visiting the USA for one month per year. I did not live in the USA until I went to college. I have a different view of the world as a result.

People in the countries where I lived both envied the American life and resented the presence of Americans in their nations. They wanted to partake of the American culture and hated the affluence they witnessed the Americans posessing.  Make no mistake: the American involvement in those countries was one of exploitation, an that cuts through everything that Americans do in those places. I am grateful and proud  of being a citizen of the USA, but I have no trouble understanding the contempt foreigners have for Americans. Our behavior overseas is at times atrotious. Even as I refer to citizens of the USA as Americans, I remember that America includes both North & South. Yet we reserve the term for ourselves..... how arrogant. 

 

Is it the Americans who visit other countries or the F-tards in Government exploiting other countries? It’s like over here being and being fed BS that Muslims are terrorist. I acted a fool in other’s countries in my early military days no doubt. But I never killed, tortured, shot or exploded  anyone.

[tlwwalker]

We (USA collectively) did and continue to do horrendous things in those countries where I lived, and others. Economic exploitation of resources & populations has produced mixed results. One can point to both positive and negative results and outcomes.  But be not deceived: We (USA collectively) have committed great sins, atrocities, war crimes and worse both privately and via government sanctioned behavior. I had classmates that were children of MilGroup & CIA in those countries. I had local friends who were the children of local high ranking military officers. We knew who was doing what. Just because WE pulled the strings and others did the work with plausible deniability does not absolve US of responsibility. Green Berets, School of the Americas , etc.  Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap. Our collective hands are quite bloody.

My point: It's not hard for me to understand the rancor foreigners hold against the USA.

[Sgt. Pepper]

12 minutes ago, tlwwalker said:

We (USA collectively) did and continue to do horrendous things in those countries where I lived, and others. Economic exploitation of resources & populations has produced mixed results. One can point to both positive and negative results and outcomes.  But be not deceived: We (USA collectively) have committed great sins, atrocities, war crimes and worse both privately and via government sanctioned behavior. I had classmates that were children of MilGroup & CIA in those countries. I had local friends who were the children of local high ranking military officers. We knew who was doing what. Just because WE pulled the strings and others did the work with plausible deniability does not absolve US of responsibility. Green Berets, School of the Americas , etc.  Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap. Our collective hands are quite bloody.

My point: It's not hard for me to understand the rancor foreigners hold against the USA.

Yep  USA  bad, every other country good.

[tlwwalker]

I spoke not of other countries.

[Retired]

One thing that made me go Hmmm? Way back when I played my friend chess games and lost over 33 games in a row. He was a Expert player with that rating.  (Then I studied and studied, playing my best computer till I found a glitch in it. ) Then I got out some Russian chess books and improved more. Then we played another game and he lost. He refused to believe that one so insisted on another game. He lost the next one too. Then he refused to play me again Lol. 

[kidblast]

13 hours ago, dc3c46 said:

Fluent in Swiss?! Does not make sense.

When I asked that question the answer was since Switzerland borders Finland, there's a long history of a lot of intermingling and cross migration in the two cultures.

 

[Sgt. Pepper]

2 hours ago, kidblast said:

When I asked that question the answer was since Switzerland borders Finland, there's a long history of a lot of intermingling and cross migration in the two cultures.

 

Since when does Switzerland border Finland? Italy, France, Germany and Austria is what I rememberer, unless they moved somehow. I remember the Swiss speaking German when I was there, except when we were down in Montreaux they spoke French.

Edited February 14, 2022 by Sgt. Pepper

[kidblast]

27 minutes ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

Since when does Switzerland border Finland? Italy, France, Germany and Austria is what I rememberer, unless they moved somehow. I remember the Swiss speaking German when I was there, except when we were down in Montreaux they spoke French.

LOL!  Dam  yer right  

[kidblast]

5 minutes ago, kidblast said:

LOL!  Dam  yer right  

I know I said Switzerlan,  but I think I meant Sweden........  WUPS.  Carry on.

which was the other language.

Thank fully this was not a test..  

Edited February 14, 2022 by kidblast

[Sgt. Pepper]

15 minutes ago, kidblast said:

I know I said Switzerlan,  but I think I meant Sweden........  WUPS.  Carry on.

which was the other language.

Thank fully this was not a test..  

Oh.

Here I am in Montreaux. Its by that casino that burned when this band was playing, and then another band made a song about it. "Some stupid with a flare gun burn the place to the ground".

I think I was in Zurich train station and this poster made me laugh.

 

Edited February 14, 2022 by Sgt. Pepper

[kidblast]

yep  THAT place!!!

cool pics..

[Larsongs]

On 2/13/2022 at 6:56 AM, Sgt. Pepper said:

So over here in The USA we are country of Capitalist's Dogs. When us Americans travel outside the USA we are the loud, ugly Americans. Many counties would love to see us wiped off the planet, yet many, not all, want to come here, and visit or take up residence here and be American citizens.  Wait, I though your country was so great, and ours is s-hit? And then when they get here, and become citizens they want to talk s-hit about it.

Let's try not to get political. As I tried to make it as non-political as I could.

After that last sentence you don’t think this will get Political??? The first paragraph is the Trigger! LOL!

Edited February 15, 2022 by Larsongs

[IanHenry]

I've met some charming Americans on my travels and in the U.S, some of whom I still keep in contact with.

I recall one interesting conversation I had with a pair of young ladies at a hotel bar in New Orleans.  When I was at the bar, they heard my accent and asked me where I was from to which I replied England, but they didn't know where England was, so I said the U.K, Great Britain, Europe, thankfully they knew where Europe was.  They told me they were from Alabama, I've never been to Alabama, is it nice there?

Once they found out that I was from England they wanted to know all about it, they also were quite charming.

There are good people everywhere, it's just a sad fact that the unpleasant ones tend to stay in your memories for longer.   

[saturn]

What bothers me is when certain groups immigrate here from their theocratic homeland and use our legal system and freedoms to their advantage when it suits them. But they end up creating insular communities where they eventually own entire neighborhoods and make little attempt to assimilate. Some believe they can implement their own legal system in those places and disregard the State or Federal laws. I don't understand why you want to move here only to attempt to recreate the system you left. But maybe I do understand it.  

[kidblast]

3 hours ago, IanHenry said:

I've met some charming Americans on my travels and in the U.S, some of whom I still keep in contact with.

I recall one interesting conversation I had with a pair of young ladies at a hotel bar in New Orleans.  When I was at the bar, they heard my accent and asked me where I was from to which I replied England, but they didn't know where England was, so I said the U.K, Great Britain, Europe, thankfully they knew where Europe was.  They told me they were from Alabama, I've never been to Alabama, is it nice there?

Once they found out that I was from England they wanted to know all about it, they also were quite charming.

There are good people everywhere, it's just a sad fact that the unpleasant ones tend to stay in your memories for longer.   

Hmm,  don't know where England, or the United Kingdom is.  That is almost as bad as me mixing up Switzerland and Sweeden.   !LOL!

[MissouriPicker]

And all the all the people born here who claim to hate it, all they do is talk.  They don’t leave.

Edited February 15, 2022 by MissouriPicker

[zigzag]

On 2/13/2022 at 8:09 PM, tlwwalker said:

I was raised as an American ex-pat in South America, the Carribean and Central America. I lived there for my first 18 years, visiting the USA for one month per year. I did not live in the USA until I went to college. I have a different view of the world as a result.

 

Finally, someone on this board with an unvarnished knowledge of history. (Chile and Nicaragua, anyone?... Bueller?...)

Edited February 15, 2022 by zigzag

[Sgt. Pepper]

14 minutes ago, zigzag said:

Finally, someone on this board with an unvarnished knowledge of history. (Chile and Nicaragua, anyone?... Bueller?...)

I hear Iran is a nice place to live. 

[Sgt. Pepper]

19 minutes ago, MissouriPicker said:

And all the all the people born here who claim to hate it, all they do is talk.  They don’t leave.

Its not as easy as you think. Look up what you have to do to denounce your American Citizenship. 

[Sgt. Pepper]

9 hours ago, Larsongs said:

After that last sentence you don’t think this will get Political??? The first paragraph is the Trigger! LOL!

I think I did say try not to get political. On this forum we can't even talk about guitar strings without it going political.