Is this too mellow?
 

Iain Churches wrote:
"Arny Krueger" wrote in message
...
"Iain Churches" wrote in message

"Arny Krueger" wrote in message
...
"Iain Churches" wrote in message


It is hard for people here to comprehend
that your own city of Detroit, Arny
has an illiteracy rate according to a United Nations
report of 46%.
I suspect that Scandinavians with adequate backgrounds
in sociology can understand the cause of the problem.

Everyone can understand the cause of problem.
What they cannot understand is why nothing
has been done about it.
A great deal has been "done about it", its just that much of it created
the problem and/or made it worse.

Social engineering is not an exact science yet, I fear.

It seems to be low priority for Detroit.
Meanwhile, the illteracy rate is higher in Detroit
than third-world Angola !!!

We used to see a large number of American tourists here.
Something about the value of the dollar making Europe a cheap thrill.

The USD started off at parity the the Euro, and has
been slipping ever since. It is at Euro 1.38 this morning.
Europe, particularly Scandinavia, is not cheap for Americans.
They are a bit taken aback by the rich culture, especially
those who have the courage to cross into Russia and
spend a day or two in St Peterburg:-)


The people of other nations seem to travel normally, but
now, due to the recession, the weakness of the USD
and fear of terrorist attacks on aircraft American
tourists have all but disappeared.
Maybe they found out that Europe wasn't what it was cracked up to be.

Most Americans seeem to be just doing
"Europe in Ten Days" and don't have a clue
what day it is:-)
It does get a little old watching people quake in their boots and bow to
Islam.

The American tourists are clearly very afraid.
They are a hundred times safer here than at home.
But it is probably flying on an American airline outside
the US that bothers them.

You could always pick them out, he in his Rupert The Bear
trousers, and she with her blue rinse.
Not long ago, a
couple stopped me outside their Helsinki hotel. The lady
looked at me over her pince nez and said, "We want to get
to the Palace" I replied, "The Palace Hotel? It is on the
harbour about 1km from here" She said: "No, the palace
where the royals live" Either she did not know that
Finland is a republic, or she thought she was in
Stockholm, Copenhagen or Oslo:-)
Last time I looked there was no intelligence test required to get a
passport or buy a plane ticket.

But one would think even Americans would know
what country they were in,

If it's Tuesday this must be Belgium..whatever that is. :)

--
Bill Coombes

Is this too mellow?
 

"Iain Churches" wrote in message

"Arny Krueger" wrote in message
...
"Iain Churches" wrote in message

"Arny Krueger" wrote in message
...
"Iain Churches" wrote in message


It is hard for people here to comprehend
that your own city of Detroit, Arny
has an illiteracy rate according to a United Nations
report of 46%.

I suspect that Scandinavians with adequate backgrounds
in sociology can understand the cause of the problem.


Everyone can understand the cause of problem.
What they cannot understand is why nothing
has been done about it.

A great deal has been "done about it", its just that
much of it created the problem and/or made it worse.

Social engineering is not an exact science yet, I fear.

It seems to be low priority for Detroit.

Not so. Billions have been spent, and some very well-educated, hard-working,
and bright individuals have put their lives into it.

Meanwhile, the illteracy rate is higher in Detroit
than third-world Angola !!!

In the suburbs, we call Detroit a third world city.

We used to see a large number of American tourists here.

Something about the value of the dollar making Europe a
cheap thrill.

The USD started off at parity the the Euro, and has
been slipping ever since.

Given the history of the $US which goes back to 1690, and the history of the
Euro (only legal tender in a few countries and only since 1995) it would
appear that you have your priorities reversed. If I recall, the Euro is
really the child of the DM, which was 4 to the dollar the first time I was
in Europe.

It is at Euro 1.38 this morning.

Good for it!

Europe, particularly Scandinavia, is not cheap
for Americans. They are a bit taken aback by the rich
culture, especially those who have the courage to cross
into Russia and spend a day or two in St Peterburg:-)

This week.

The people of other nations seem to travel normally, but
now, due to the recession, the weakness of the USD
and fear of terrorist attacks on aircraft American
tourists have all but disappeared.

Maybe they found out that Europe wasn't what it was
cracked up to be.

Most Americans seeem to be just doing
"Europe in Ten Days" and don't have a clue
what day it is:-)

I did Europe for a year, and loved it.

It does get a little old watching people quake in their
boots and bow to Islam.

The American tourists are clearly very afraid.

The European governments and citizens seem to be very afraid, and for a long
time.


They are a hundred times safer here than at home.

As always it depends on where home is. One of the ironies of the US is that
the crime rate varies hugely from place to place.

But it is probably flying on an American airline outside
the US that bothers them.

Eurpoean airlines seem to be far more prone to being hijacked, if you take a
long look at history. Ther US was susceptible to 9/11 simply because flying
here had been so safe, so long.

You could always pick them out, he in his Rupert The
Bear trousers, and she with her blue rinse.

Not long ago, a
couple stopped me outside their Helsinki hotel. The lady
looked at me over her pince nez and said, "We want to
get to the Palace" I replied, "The Palace Hotel? It is
on the harbour about 1km from here" She said: "No, the
palace where the royals live" Either she did not know
that Finland is a republic, or she thought she was in
Stockholm, Copenhagen or Oslo:-)

Last time I looked there was no intelligence test
required to get a passport or buy a plane ticket.

But one would think even Americans would know
what country they were in,

We're too used to living in the US where its pretty much all one country.
There have been no gated border crossings inside the US for centuries.

and take the trouble to
do a little research into its history and culture.

Given how ignorant some europeans are about the US - ignorance seems to know
no borders. The US has 50 states, a goodly number of which are larger than
any country in Europe, whether people, or land, or resources. Just keeping
track of them seems like chore enough for the average person.

Doesn't English grammar play any part in US education?
How can a single individual be "good people" ???

It's part of the high price of being a stuffed shirt, it
appears.

No, correct speech is a part of a good education.

Iain, the education that you speak of ended over 40 years ago. A living
language is a dynamic thing.

Do you deliberately want to give the impression
you are poorly educated?

I'm far more interested in communicating in such a way that the people who
are most important to me understand what I'm trying to say.

I can see your problem Iain, the English language is simply too dynamic for
a person with your limited adaptability to follow. Eemerging dementia may
have something to do with it. As is your preference, you blame others for
your self-induced difficulties.

Is this too mellow?
 

"Arny Krueger" wrote in message
...
"Iain Churches" wrote in message

"Arny Krueger" wrote in message
...
"Iain Churches" wrote in message

"Arny Krueger" wrote in message
...
"Iain Churches" wrote in message


It is hard for people here to comprehend
that your own city of Detroit, Arny
has an illiteracy rate according to a United Nations
report of 46%.

I suspect that Scandinavians with adequate backgrounds
in sociology can understand the cause of the problem.


Everyone can understand the cause of problem.
What they cannot understand is why nothing
has been done about it.

A great deal has been "done about it", its just that
much of it created the problem and/or made it worse.

Social engineering is not an exact science yet, I fear.

It seems to be low priority for Detroit.

Not so. Billions have been spent, and some very well-educated,
hard-working, and bright individuals have put their lives into it.

Meanwhile, the illteracy rate is higher in Detroit
than third-world Angola !!!

In the suburbs, we call Detroit a third world city.

We used to see a large number of American tourists here.

Something about the value of the dollar making Europe a
cheap thrill.

The USD started off at parity the the Euro, and has
been slipping ever since.

Given the history of the $US which goes back to 1690, and the history of
the Euro (only legal tender in a few countries and only since 1995) it
would appear that you have your priorities reversed. If I recall, the Euro
is really the child of the DM, which was 4 to the dollar the first time I
was in Europe.

It is at Euro 1.38 this morning.

Good for it!

Europe, particularly Scandinavia, is not cheap
for Americans. They are a bit taken aback by the rich
culture, especially those who have the courage to cross
into Russia and spend a day or two in St Peterburg:-)

This week.

The people of other nations seem to travel normally, but
now, due to the recession, the weakness of the USD
and fear of terrorist attacks on aircraft American
tourists have all but disappeared.

Maybe they found out that Europe wasn't what it was
cracked up to be.

Most Americans seeem to be just doing
"Europe in Ten Days" and don't have a clue
what day it is:-)

I did Europe for a year, and loved it.

It does get a little old watching people quake in their
boots and bow to Islam.

The American tourists are clearly very afraid.

The European governments and citizens seem to be very afraid, and for a
long time.


They are a hundred times safer here than at home.

As always it depends on where home is. One of the ironies of the US is
that the crime rate varies hugely from place to place.

But it is probably flying on an American airline outside
the US that bothers them.

Eurpoean airlines seem to be far more prone to being hijacked, if you take
a long look at history. Ther US was susceptible to 9/11 simply because
flying here had been so safe, so long.

You could always pick them out, he in his Rupert The
Bear trousers, and she with her blue rinse.

Not long ago, a
couple stopped me outside their Helsinki hotel. The lady
looked at me over her pince nez and said, "We want to
get to the Palace" I replied, "The Palace Hotel? It is
on the harbour about 1km from here" She said: "No, the
palace where the royals live" Either she did not know
that Finland is a republic, or she thought she was in
Stockholm, Copenhagen or Oslo:-)

Last time I looked there was no intelligence test
required to get a passport or buy a plane ticket.

But one would think even Americans would know
what country they were in,

We're too used to living in the US where its pretty much all one country.
There have been no gated border crossings inside the US for centuries.

and take the trouble to
do a little research into its history and culture.

Given how ignorant some europeans are about the US - ignorance seems to
know no borders. The US has 50 states, a goodly number of which are larger
than any country in Europe, whether people, or land, or resources. Just
keeping track of them seems like chore enough for the average person.

Doesn't English grammar play any part in US education?
How can a single individual be "good people" ???

It's part of the high price of being a stuffed shirt, it
appears.

No, correct speech is a part of a good education.

Iain, the education that you speak of ended over 40 years ago. A living
language is a dynamic thing.

Do you deliberately want to give the impression
you are poorly educated?

I'm far more interested in communicating in such a way that the people who
are most important to me understand what I'm trying to say.

I can see your problem Iain, the English language is simply too dynamic
for a person with your limited adaptability to follow. Eemerging dementia
may have something to do with it. As is your preference, you blame others
for your self-induced difficulties.


How does furthering OT discussion like this sit with your frequent (but
irrelevant) bleating about such posting, Amy?