Teaching the English about how to use *our* language...
 

"Arny Krueger" wrote

One difference between the UK and the US is that we were able to assemble
the common continent-wide political, industrial, agricultural, and
residential organization that Europe can still only dream of close to 200
years ago. Well 200 years would be controversial, but surely 100 years
ago. We did it without modern transportation or communication.

The USA was made up of ex-European colonies most without significant
histories of their own. Some weren't even that, just tracts of land
inhabited merely by a handful of settlers and the native Americans who's
opinions were neither sought nor considered. Pulling that lot together as a
nation is a piece of cake compared to welding together many disparate
nations each with it's own 1000+ year history and culture and which had a
history of being rivals with each other.

It was an act of vision, will, self-sacrifice, and intelligence.

No, it was an act of necessity. The only way the American states were going
to be able to survive was by pooling their resources.

Many of our states are larger, wealthier, and more populous than even many
of your larger, wealthier countries.

So?

The only truely impressive European country is Germany.


And how many have you heard of?, not many judging by that daft comment.

There are what 4 times more states in the US than there are countries in
Europe?

Er.. No. Showing your ignorance again?

The moral equivalent of the news and government of the UK in the US might
be called California or Texas.

Does that sentence have a meaning?

We have all that and 48 more! (50 more
if you realize that Mexico and Canada are effectively quasi-states of the
US.)

Go to Canada or Mexico and say that, and see how long you last before you
get lynched. Are you not aware just how little the US is respected in
either country?


It has become a culture in which ignorance is lauded.

Prove it. We have more effective institutions of learning almost by
accident then the UK has on purpose.

The proof is that it is a land with an "education centre" that teaches that
the planet is only 6000 odd years old, and that humans and dinosuars
co-existed within that period. There's all the proof you need that it is a
land in which ignorance is lauded.

David.

Teaching the English about how to use *our* language...
 

In article ,
Arny Krueger wrote:
Let me know when you all do very basic things that we initated and
largely perfected over 300 years ago like all speaking the same
language...

Except you don't. Hence this thread. Oh - have you managed to wipe out all
the native american languages?

--
*(over a sketch of the titanic) "The boat sank - get over it

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

Teaching the English about how to use *our* language...
 

"Dave Plowman (News)" wrote in
message
In article
, Arny
Krueger wrote:

Let me know when you all do very basic things that we
initated and largely perfected over 300 years ago like
all speaking the same language...

Except you don't.

If you want to split hairs on that level, no two Londoners speak exactly the
same language. ;-)

Hence this thread. Oh - have you
managed to wipe out all the native american languages?

Virtually all native Americans speak American English, usually as their
first languge. Far more native Americans have been totally assimilated than
not.

Teaching the English about how to use *our* language...
 

"Dave Plowman (News)" wrote in message
...
In article ,
Arny Krueger wrote:
Let me know when you all do very basic things that we initated and
largely perfected over 300 years ago like all speaking the same
language...

Except you don't. Hence this thread. Oh - have you managed to wipe out all
the native american languages?

Spanish as well, apparently!

David.

Teaching the English about how to use *our* language...
 

"Arny Krueger" wrote

Virtually all native Americans speak American English, usually as their
first languge. Far more native Americans have been totally assimilated
than not.

What a thoughtless comment. Are you not aware that there is a revival of
interest in native cultures and languages? That the way these cultures and
languages were oppressed, indeed outlawed, during most of the history of the
US is deeply resented by native Americans?

David.

Teaching the English about how to use *our* language...
 

On Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:51:42 -0500, "Arny Krueger"
wrote:

There are what 4 times more states in the US than there are countries in
Europe?


No, about the same. Half are members of the EU.

Do you just make this stuff up, Arny?

Teaching the English about how to use *our* language...
 

"David Looser" wrote in
message
"Arny Krueger" wrote

One difference between the UK and the US is that we were
able to assemble the common continent-wide political,
industrial, agricultural, and residential organization
that Europe can still only dream of close to 200 years
ago. Well 200 years would be controversial, but surely
100 years ago. We did it without modern transportation
or communication.

The USA was made up of ex-European colonies most without
significant histories of their own.

Many inherited the histories of the countries that the respective groups of
colonists came from.

Some weren't even
that, just tracts of land inhabited merely by a handful
of settlers and the native Americans who's opinions were
neither sought nor considered.

Says who?

Pulling that lot together
as a nation is a piece of cake compared to welding
together many disparate nations each with it's own 1000+
year history and culture and which had a history of being
rivals with each other.

More to the point, almost everybody who was in the US because they didn't
want to be in Europe, with exactly the problems that you have kindly listed.
High on their list of things to do was to not be as unwise as those who
stubbornly remained behind.

It was an act of vision, will, self-sacrifice, and
intelligence.

No, it was an act of necessity. The only way the American
states were going to be able to survive was by pooling
their resources.

Absolutely no proof of that at all. In those days colonies were very
self-sufficient.

Many of our states are larger, wealthier, and more
populous than even many of your larger, wealthier
countries.

So?

The only truely impressive European country is Germany.

And how many have you heard of?

All of them, unless the lot of you can't keep up your maps.

not many judging by that daft comment.

Typical old country way of dealing with disagreement. I don't take it
personally, I know from experience that you just as mean and nasty with each
other.

There are what 4 times more states in the US than there
are countries in Europe?

Er.. No. Showing your ignorance again?

Since you can't give a proper numerical answer, you obviously have plenty of
that of your own.

The moral equivalent of the news and government of the
UK in the US might be called California or Texas.

Does that sentence have a meaning?

None are so deaf as those who don't want to hear.

We have all that and 48 more! (50 more
if you realize that Mexico and Canada are effectively
quasi-states of the US.)

Go to Canada or Mexico and say that, and see how long you
last before you get lynched.

Shows what little you know - they themselves admit that they are very close
to being stepchild-states.

Are you not aware just how
little the US is respected in either country?

Do you even know where I live with respect to Canada? I've probably spent at
least 10 times as much time in each country as you have. So what can you
tell me about them that I have not already experienced?

One unimpeachable measure of Canadian and Mexican respect of the US is how
many Mexicans and Canadians have come here to stay, and how many dream of
coming here. For example the estimated number of Canadian-Americans is
over 75% of the number of Canadians that remain in Canada. This number
includes me, my wife, and one of my daughters-in-law.

Then there is the slight matter of the free-trade agreements between the two
countries. Then there are the legal hoops that Americans have to go through
to visit either country (essentially none - but the inverse is not true at
all).

It has become a culture in which ignorance is lauded.

Prove it. We have more effective institutions of
learning almost by accident then the UK has on purpose.

The proof is that it is a land with an "education centre"
that teaches that the planet is only 6000 odd years old,
and that humans and dinosuars co-existed within that
period.

That is just another example of a very strange ignorance of the very concept
of freedom of speech. Well, we tried to show you how, and it took you a long
time to even have a poor approximation of what we've enjoyed since the
beginning.

There's all the proof you need that it is a land
in which ignorance is lauded.

You have no idea how much or how little respect the creationists get outside
their own little shells.

It appears to me that you need to find more reliable sources of information
about the US. Your own propagandists seem to be leading you around by the
nose.

Teaching the English about how to use *our* language...
 

On Fri, 12 Mar 2010 18:32:40 -0000, "David Looser"
wrote:

Virtually all native Americans speak American English, usually as their
first languge. Far more native Americans have been totally assimilated
than not.

What a thoughtless comment. Are you not aware that there is a revival of
interest in native cultures and languages? That the way these cultures and
languages were oppressed, indeed outlawed, during most of the history of the
US is deeply resented by native Americans?

It may be realistic though :-) A revival of interest doesn't
necessarily mean a revival in usage.

Teaching the English about how to use *our* language...
 

On Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:47:57 -0500, "Arny Krueger"
wrote:

And how many have you heard of?

All of them, unless the lot of you can't keep up your maps.

So you just can't count?

Start wriggling, Arny. This will be a tricky one to get out of.

Teaching the English about how to use *our* language...
 

"David Looser" wrote in
message

"Arny Krueger" wrote

Virtually all native Americans speak American English,
usually as their first languge. Far more native
Americans have been totally assimilated than not.

What a thoughtless comment.

Just the facts, ma-am!

I no doubt know far more people of native american descent than you ever
will. One of those things that comes naturally if you actually live here!

BTW, I seem to recall that this includes one of my daughters-in-law. Native
american heritage is taken that lightly by most, around here.

Are you not aware that there
is a revival of interest in native cultures and
languages?

That probably has as much to do with the financial benefits related to the
rise of casinos that are owned by NA tribes as anything.

That the way these cultures and languages were
oppressed, indeed outlawed, during most of the history of
the US is deeply resented by native Americans?

Of course. Well, that's one reason why so many of them speak English. We
tried hard to stomp out their cultures for a while.

BTW, that doesn't keep them from speaking English.