What Europeans think of each other
This is a basic backgrounder for Americans, primarily, who might think Europeans do nothing all day but bitch about Americans. Don’t get me wrong—they do love bitching about Americans. But they also like bitching about each other, as well. Bordering countries, especially, have complex caricatures of each other, even when an outsider might think they’re more or less the same. The following is based on my numerous interactions with Europeans, having lived there for 4 years. Here’s a run down:
The French — Disliked by some Spanish (particularly the Catalonians), for being arrogant. One woman from Barcelona told me, “Come on, who really likes the French? Nobody!” The Swiss don’t like the fact that they have contempt for authority and are lazy. The Brits, of course, have the most mixed feelings about the French, though. One half the country hates them, the other half loves them. Those that hate the French tend to like the Americans, and vice versa. In the UK, they’re considered stinky, rude (they never line/queue up like decent people), and a bit yellow, based on their tendency to not fend off invaders like the Nazis.The French, in turn, dislike the British, look down on Belgians for being stupid, and don’t have much to say, in my experience, about Spaniards or Germans (oddly).
The Italians — Most of the stereotypes are positive, but mostly because of the food. Northern Europeans consider them lazy and flaky, and maybe incapable of managing anything right (mostly because of the 50+ governments they’ve had since WW2). One Dutch professor I had dismissed another Italian one, saying, “All the Italians care about are pasta and mamma.”Italians, in turn, don’t have strong feelings about other Europeans, but within Italy, the north-south divide is pretty strong. Northern Italians continuously complain that Southerners are lazy and unproductive, while Southerners complain that Northerners are devoid of culture or joie de vivre.
The Germans — Germans are considered industrious but uptight and humorless, by just about all the other Europeans. They know WW2 is a sore spot for them, so other Europeans will often mercilessly tease them about it. As much as Germany is considered an economic powerhouse, the vast majority of Europeans don’t really want to learn German or study there (or send their kids there to study). The food is considered uninspired, too, and only Berlin has some cachet among younger Europeans for its vibrant underground club scene. The most anti-German sentiments are among the Dutch and Danish, who just hate them from invading their countries too often. When German ask for directions in Holland, they’re usually given directions to the shortest way out of the country, or told “Give us back our bikes!”, a reference to the fact that Germans confiscated Dutch bicycles during WW2.Danes hate it when you pronounce their capital as “ko-pen-HAH-gen”, because this is the German pronunciation. Either pronounce it the English way (with “HAY” instead), or the Danish way, which is literally impossible to put down here.Germans tend to like their Western neighbors far more than they are liked by them, but they look down on their Eastern neighbors, particularly Poles. They, oddly, have some mixed respect for the Czechs, who have resisted German aggression.
The Scandinavians — Widely respected by most other Europeans, because of their high standard of living …and blond hair and blue eyes. However, within Scandinavia there are some persistent stereotypes. The Norwegians, Danes and Finns all think the Swedes are stupid and uptight. Norwegians are considered racist. Danes are considered more blunt than the others, maybe a bit more cranky, and the Finns are oddly introverted, even by Scandinavian standards. Except for the Danes really disliking Germans, and Finns really disliking Russians, they don’t really have anything against other Europeans.
The Belgians — Considered idiots by both the Dutch and the French. Belgians, in turn, consider the Dutch to be a bunch of cranky assholes, and French stuck-up.
The Dutch — The Dutch, like the Scandinavians, have an enviable economy and social order that’s admired by southern European countries. However, they do have a reputation of being self-righteous “know-it-alls” and very similar to their German cousins in terms of their rigidity. But they do not like any comparisons to Germans, and if you remind them that the Dutch national anthem makes a reference to the Dutch being “van Duitse bloed” (from German blood), you might quickly get the silent treatment. The Dutch are also disliked for being the biggest misers in Europe, and because of this they incur the wrath of the tourist industry wherever they travel. The Dutch have been known to stock up on water before they take their campers down to the south of France.The Dutch, in turn, kind of look down on just about everyone. Yes, there’s a bit of a reason for the “know-it-all” smart-ass reputation they have.
The Swiss — Considered extremely rigid, even by the Germans. Blunt to the point of being rude, the Swiss probably have the least likely reputation for being characterized as “friendly” or “warm”. Note that there is a big cultural divide between French-speaking Swiss, and the German-speaking Swiss. The former are almost exactly like the French, except having a blander cuisine and more respect for authority, the latter being more like the Germans except even more stiff, rigid and cranky. However, everyone knows Switzerland “works” so the fact that foreigners comprise 20% of the population (mostly from EU member states) should make this clear.Note that the German-speaking Swiss also speak their own variant of German, which sounds very strange if you’ve only been exposed to standard “hoch-Deutsch”.
The Spaniards — Honestly, very little antagonism against the Spanish or by the Spanish. No one really seems to dislike them, and they don’t seem to really dislike anyone else. (Yes, some Spaniards near the border to France don’t like the French very much) Not entirely sure why. However, God forbid you speak Spanish with a Latin American accent — there is still a lot of snobbery among Spaniards towards Latin Americans. Spaniards consider themselves white and European, and would be deeply insulted if you suggested they were Latin American of any kind.
The Greeks — Only nominally considered European by other Europeans, but the Greeks fiercely identify as European. Naturally, this is a huge irritant to Greeks.
The Poles — Not much seems to register about Poland and the Poles except that they’re quiet. They are a relatively big country (40 million people) so the supposed scare of being overrun by Eastern Europeans when a bunch of Eastern European countries joined the EU in 2005 focused in on the Poles. The Germans really don’t like Poles, and among Germany’s 9 neighbors, are disliked the most. Poland is considered a country of car thieves by the Germans. Really, the relationship between Germany and Poland is similar to that of the United States and Mexico, and often for many of the same reasons (differences in income, history of war, different languages, etc.).Poles really shore up their hatred for their eastern & southern neighbors, primarily Russia and Ukraine, although they don’t like Czechs, Slovaks or Lithuanians either. Oddly, they don’t really mind the Germans, and probably still fear them a bit — you never, ever hear jokes about Germans in Poland.
The Czechs — Considered a relatively bright spot of Eastern Europe by Western Europeans, but I think primarily because Prague is such a gorgeous city and a popular tourist destination. Czechs are a bit like Germans, though — a bit rude, blunt, and cold. Poles don’t have much good to say about them.
The Austrians — Considered a mix of the best & worst aspects of Germany and the Balkans, Austrians are considered laid-back but very nationalistic and racist. They’re said to be the birthplace of Hitler, but never came around to being fully apologetic about the Holocaust (unlike Germany). Neutral feelings from most ofWestern Europe, negative feelings from Germans (who consider them backwards, and not always the representing the best image of German-speaking people) and admired by Eastern Europeans (a throwback to the Hapsburgs).
The British – About half of the British would be really angry at being called European, so that should provide an apt starting point. The main beef with the Brits is that they’re considered the lapdog of the U.S., and are anti-European because the U.S. tells them to be so. They are considered polite, but maybe a bit two-faced (hence “Janus Britain”) and snobby. The Scots and Welsh are tolerated and liked, inasmuch as that no one really knows too much about them outside the UK, but the English are those that bear the brunt of negative sentiments among other Europeans. After all, London is in England.
The English also have a poor reputation in tourist traps, such as Amsterdam and Ibiza, for being loud-mouthed, obnoxious drunks.
The English, in turn, really seem to hate everyone. This is because it’s pretty hard to find an Englishman that has even, at best, neutral opinions about other Europeans (or Americans, or other nationalities). Europe is full of English expats, and the longer they live abroad, the more they seem to hate their host country. And yet they never seem to want to move home.
The Irish — A very small country, despite its exaggerated importance in Americans’ minds (just over 4.6 million in the Republic of Ireland) but considered polite and humble. They nominally dislike the English, but I have yet to meet an Irishman who really loathes the English. The sentiments towards the Irish and by the Irish seem to be positive, overall.
I personally don’t know much about how the Portuguese, Hungarians, Romanians, Bulgarians, and others are perceived, or how they perceive others, but if you have something to add, please do so in the comments below.
I’ll leave you with this poster I saw in an Italian office years ago, that helps sum it up in some ways:
In Heaven…
- the mechanics are German
- the chefs are French
- the police are British
- the lovers are Italian
- and everything is organized by the Swiss.
In Hell…
- the mechanics are French
- the police are German
- the chefs are British
- the lovers are Swiss
- and everything is organized by the Italians.
Update: Here’s my follow-up after this post got an avalanche of traffic and comments.
Another update: Here’s a related post on what Americans think about Europeans.
And another: 20 ways to slice up Europe.
- Excited
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[…] Daily Candor » What Europeans think of each other – “This is a basic backgrounder for Americans, primarily, who might think Europeans do nothing all day but bitch about Americans. Don?t get me wrong?they do love bitching about Americans. But they also like bitching about each other, as well.” […]
Pingback by Mea Culpa » Bookmarks for February 20th — February 21, 2008 @ 1:42 am
I truly love this sort of insight to places that I’ve never been. Thank you for the post.
Comment by Mac — February 21, 2008 @ 4:26 am
About Romanians: they hate the Russians deeply and nominally love France the most. But no longer learn French, only English. Historically pro-French in politics and pro-German in every other matter. In the recent years Romanians are migrating by the tens of thousands in Spain and Italy – related peoples and languages. Around: complicated relation with the Hungarians (dislike only when disliked), look down (don’t know why) upon Bulgarians, sympathize (without reason) the Serbians.
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Pingback by links for 2008-02-21 — February 21, 2008 @ 5:32 am
“Spaniards consider themselves white and European, and would be deeply insulted if you suggested they were Latin American of any kind”
Hey and I kno why. Because we spaniards are european!You know, Spain being in Europe and that. And some of us are white too! 🙂
Comment by El Hematocritico — February 21, 2008 @ 6:54 am
first sorry for my bad english, theres another joke similar to the first one
its the nice sunny day and the brit plane approaching the berlin airport, after a few unsuccessful approaches control tower cant believe that the brit pilot still cant land
control tower: you missed third approach, what kind of pilot you are, did you ever fly to the Berlin before
pilot: yes sir, I was 40 years ago, but it was the night and we didnt land
:o)
Best regards from Sarajevo
Comment by d2 — February 21, 2008 @ 7:08 am
I’m European and didn’t know there were so much countries inside my big country 🙂 Most of people I meet in europe are humans with blood, happiness, fears, diseases, joy, fun, needs, culture, thought… Most of people I know have to work to earn money and have to speak to communicate. They have to have sex to make babies. Damn it looks like it’s like everywhere else in the world 🙂 We are all brothers… “We are the world, we are the children”. That’s my dream !
There are still some old fashioned people living with clichés. By example the WW2 is still present in our minds. Is it for the best (not to do it again) or for the worst (annoying young Germans who are still paying for their grand parent’s mistakes) ? And no Italian and Spaniards aren’t starting their work day at 4pm anymore. And yes Brit’s can cook. And no Pols plumbers won’t rob our jobs 🙂 It’s as true as all US people aren’t as dumbass as son Bush.
I’m a french guy (sorry :-p) living in north of the country and I feel very friendly with Brit’s, Belgium and German people. Probably because we have common frontiers and surely because we meet each others in ours everyday’s life (Belgium Night clubs rock !!!). South France people are more inspired by Italians or Spanish for the same reasons. Life is more complicated than clichés.
Fun post anyway. I didn’t know bout easter countries :-p
Comment by Pleinpopossum — February 21, 2008 @ 7:50 am
Poles have many jokes about German :)))
Comment by Ehman — February 21, 2008 @ 7:59 am
I’ve heard some Irish being a bit negative towards Spanish, thanks to hoards of Spanish students coming to learn English in the past few years. Also with the recent influx of immigrants I think Irish are a bit confused as to how to deal with this – Ireland historically hasn’t seen much of the immigration into the country, but the majority seem to be tolerant and friendly enough or like to appear so.
Comment by Stas — February 21, 2008 @ 8:32 am
Ireland has about 6 million people, not 3.
Comment by O' Toole — February 21, 2008 @ 8:54 am
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Hapsburg is written with a b! Habsburg. Another Eglish teacher. From the former Habsburg empire.
Comment by Lily — February 21, 2008 @ 10:37 am
Your Scandihoovians could use some touching up:
Danes: Considered by Scandinavians (and their unfortunate immigrant population) to be racists. Have a writing system which, like Chinese, contains no information about the word’s pronunciation.
Swedes: Disliked by all their neighbors. Furthermore, Finns consider all Swedish men to be homosexual.
Norwegians: The Beverly Hillbillies of Northern Europe.
Finns: Alcoholic, knife-wielding sociopaths, both at home and abroad. The word “considered” has no place in that description.
Comment by Adam — February 21, 2008 @ 11:21 am
The Irish humble? Come on…
Comment by DavidS — February 21, 2008 @ 11:30 am
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I lived in Prague for a short time, and I noticed that as a people the Czechs tend to be extremely quiet and reserved, though they a strong tendency towards self-deprecation. And they hate hate hate Russians. A lot of Czechs who were around during Soviet occupation speak Russian of course, but they’ll never admit it now.
(Great post, by the way.)
Comment by Ian — February 21, 2008 @ 12:56 pm
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Having lived in Ireland for 2.5 years i must say that you could add some details to the Irish….. First of all it’s over 4 million Irish not 3. The view on the Britts from the Irish when on holiday there or having britts visiting there country: They’re sluts! Both men and women. the Irish are internationally perceived as red haired lephracorns that love a joke and a party. Perceived as almost overly friendly and wiliing to help as well. In order to find this, you’re best off going out of Dublin. ow and half the northern Irish hate them, the other half wants to join them. It’s the same for the Irish themselves. The rest of europe is often referred to as Mainland Europe and pretty much any Irish I spoke to has been to Amsterdam for the crack as they say (meaning to have some fun)
regarding the Dutch attitude towards Germans! yeah it’s true we don’t really like them and i do have a friend who directs Germans to the highway home if they ask for directions. It’s mainly the arrogant attitude and unwilliingness to speak another languag and presuming that everybody speaks German. If a German doesn’t politely ask if the Dutch person speaks German, the answer will usually be NEIN regardless if they do or not.
Cheers!
cheers!
Comment by Bas — February 21, 2008 @ 1:42 pm
This should probably be entitled “What Americans think Europeans think of each other.”
With that little amendment it’s quite good, very entertaining.
Comment by fp — February 21, 2008 @ 1:57 pm
lol!
your description seems to be a little antiquated…
😉
greeetz from cologne!
Comment by daweed — February 21, 2008 @ 2:24 pm
“Spaniards consider themselves white and European, and would be deeply insulted if you suggested they were Latin American of any kind”
thats because theyre not american you knob end
Comment by devils ad — February 21, 2008 @ 3:02 pm
There’s some hostility to Germans in Norway too, actually. Not surprising when you consider the occupation during the Second World War. Apparently some German veterans like to take their motor-homes to Norway, to revisit places they served in during the occupation! (No idea if that’s actually true…)
Comment by Stephen Mackenzie — February 21, 2008 @ 3:14 pm
I spent two summers in Sweden and have Swedish relatives and can say that they LOVE slagging off Finns. They said that amongst the Scandinavian countries Finland is the biggest target due largely to the fact that their language is so different from all of the others, which have a lot more in common than the weird ‘alien Star Trek’ Finnish.
Conversely I have a friend who is half Finnish who says that the Finns hate the Swedes, though I don’t remember the reasons he gave. I wouldn’t be surprised if they had to do with the above.
Comment by allison nonmerci — February 21, 2008 @ 3:37 pm
Small point, Ireland has a population of 4.1 million, Northern Ireland 1.7 million, so in total just under double the figure you gave.
Comment by Mossie — February 21, 2008 @ 3:54 pm
As an American married to a Dutchman, I can confirm every word of what is said here as it pertains to the Netherlands – good stuff!
Comment by Cheryl — February 21, 2008 @ 4:31 pm
Finland is not considered part of Scandinavia.
Comment by Sour Grapes — February 21, 2008 @ 5:45 pm
the danes are the racists, not the norwegians.
/swede
Comment by marcus — February 21, 2008 @ 8:43 pm
As a Brit (and an Englishman) I’d say that is pretty accurate. I would add that the Czech’s loathe the Germans. On a visit to Prague my friends and myself were bought several rounds of drinks based purely on the fact that the English football (soccer) team had just beaten Germany 5-1. They’re not best fond of the Russians either.
The English antagonism to Europe goes way back, as the English national character from the 18th century on can be pretty much described as a rejection of perceived characteristics of other European nations: We’re not uptight like the Germans: we’re not foppish like the French; we’re not lazy like the Spaniards etc.
Comment by Duncan — February 21, 2008 @ 9:45 pm
The Greeks, hate everyone around them! Apparently they believe they invented Europe so everyone should respect them. “Their father were philosophers when the rest of Europe was apes and rapes” (just their mentalitiy).
One of the oldest countries in Europe are the Albanians. Formerly known as the Illyrians they covered most of the Balkan, being limited only by the Thracians (Romania), the Macedonians and the Greeks.
The Albanians today behave like the Italians (lazy and joyfull), dislike Greeks and hate Serbians. (Of course, the reason is the slaughtery medieval war of the Serbs agains the Albanians).
Europe’s history is full of wars. No matter what he think of neutrality, our identities are always influenced by our history.
Comment by AB — February 22, 2008 @ 12:08 am
looks like ireland just lost a million people. and you really have to mention the fact that germans love the british, but love the irish even more. and the british either love the irish and feel slightly guilty, or resent us as a symbol of lost power. all of them.
nice read though.
Comment by er — February 22, 2008 @ 12:37 am
thats not even a third of the countries in europe
Comment by t(-_-t) — February 22, 2008 @ 1:05 am
As a Dutch myself I love the following one about being miser;
Do you know how a Dutch cook book starts?
Borrow an egg !!!
Comment by Florentina Mehta — February 22, 2008 @ 1:45 am
As someone who has spent a great deal of time In Europe, I can say that the above is fairly accurate. And hilarious. I have one thing to add regarding Scandinavians. The Swedes, Norwegians and Danes all seem to regard the Finns as unpleasant people prone to drinking problems (funny coming from the other Scandinavians) and bad tempers.
Comment by MF — February 22, 2008 @ 2:22 am
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I like this post and agree with most of the views. I’m English.
I would like to add the word stodgy, though to the description of Austrians.
The English ex-pats disliking their host country are not just confined to European countries. The ex-pats in Kuwait certainly complained about that country too.
Actually English people living in England are no different.They complain about England as a matter of course.
So the conclusion might be that the English are a negative bunch which is certainly a contrast to the Americans who have a more positive and supportive view of their own country.
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Very nice post! I’m Dutch and I was a bit surprised that we are seen as “know-it-alls”. Also, “van Duitse bloed” in our national anthem, does not mean “from German blood” at all! The old Dutch word “Duitsch” is why you call us “Dutch”. We would call a German “Germaansch”. Unfortunately I’m also aware the Dutch and German have their roots in common and we are very alike. Heck, I even work for a German company.
Comment by John Willemse — February 22, 2008 @ 3:23 pm
I love what you wrote there because it all seems true to me but as a German I’ll might have to add that we crack jokes on the Polish for stealing our cars but despite that we really like the Polish. It’s the Dutch we don’t like and probably every German would tell you that they’re bad drivers, by the way “Cheesehead” is a very popular cuss word foer them ( Kaeskoeppe). The English are disliked as well especially for always owning the best pool spots down in Ibiza and Mallorca. The British are called “Inselaffen” which means that they are “Monkeys from the isle”.
Thanks for reading and never underestimate the Germans we’re not that sensitive about WW2 😉
Comment by punta — February 22, 2008 @ 4:55 pm
Well, I’m a Hungarian, and here’s what we think about other Europeans and vice versa.
We do bear a grudge on every nation ever occupying Hungary (except for the Turks for some reason – they were considered noble enemies at the time, and highly cultured): Russia, Romania, Austria. Make no mistake, the Austro-Hungarian empire’s just a name, we were occupied, robbed and set up against all ethnic groups in the neighbourhood by the Habsburgs. We still can’t make our peace with the Treaty of Trianon cutting off two thirds of the country and distributing it among our neighbours, and it’s a pet peeve among the nationalistic youth. There is a major Hungarian minority in Romania, Slovenia, Ukraine and Serbia, which states treat these people like dirt – so we do hate them in turn. We tend to look down on those we don’t like, too.
Not that we can stand each other either: there’s a great rift between urban and country people and between leftists and nationalists.
We are a pretty hysteric bunch of people and are duly perceived as such, and our adaptability is usually interpreted as being sneaky, double-faced and opportunistic. Our only saving grace is the food and the wine…. Also, we’ve got a reputation of hospitability, but how that happened I can’t imagine – it’s not in the least sincere, at least towards tourists of every nation, but most of all the Germans.
And let’s just not begin about the gypsies (sorry, Romany people, otherwise I might get a knife in my back)…
Comment by Agnes — February 22, 2008 @ 5:06 pm
Oops, sorry, a typo. Slovenia’s quite ok, I’ve meant Slovakia…
The Slovenians are relaxed, friendly and fun 🙂
Comment by Agnes — February 22, 2008 @ 5:10 pm
Very entertaining.
A couple of observations. I don’t know much about them, but the Belgians are French and Walloon and very different.
I also think you slightly missed a trick with the Scandinavians. They’re not qute as chummy as you make out. The most brilliant illustration of this is dinner on the cruise ship scene from The Corrections. But our own experience of slagging off the Swedes to the Norwegians was interesting – we (me and my brother Americans and my Brit husband said) “they’re stuck up, rude and just hate fun”. The Norwegian thought this was funny, and then said “yes, but you know who’s really weird – the Finns!”
Only my husband thought that was funny – as he explained to the Norwegian that my brother and I are of Finnish heritage.
Comment by Vol Abroad — February 22, 2008 @ 10:22 pm
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Unfortunately, this will all be quaint memories in 20 years when everybody in Europe who is under 20 is named Muhammad.
Comment by John Bradford — February 23, 2008 @ 12:09 am
Being a Swede myself, I can tell you what we really think of our neighbours. The Danes are a bunch of fat, arrogant racists, not the Norwegians. Finland is a nation of alcoholics, suffering from mutism when they occasionally happen to be sober. Norwegians are just peasants and somewhat a little behind. On the other hand: the Danes are also relaxed and more continental than we will ever be, the Finns have lots and lots of stamina and the Norwegians are stinking rich because of their oil from the Northern Sea. Sad, isn´t it…
Comment by Bruno — February 23, 2008 @ 12:17 am
I lived in Turkey for a year. The Greeks and the Turks absolutely despise each other. I have lived all over the world and never seen this kind of animosity.
Comment by Alex — February 23, 2008 @ 6:40 am
Hate to be a pain but I am a Canadian living in Sweden for a number of years, and I have some things to add to your section on Scandinavians.
Swedes think that Norwegians are the lesser of all evils around them, then the Danes. It’s no mystery why Ikea only names carpets and flooring after Danish cities.
If you are only talking about within Scandinavia, Swedes hate the Danes. I guess 600 years of war will do that. Every Swede has a story about how the Danes came up and massacred all the royalty of Sweden, killed a bunch of people in their own town, etc.
Also, a great many Swedes LOVE Germany. It’s not just a small appreciation. I think worship would be more appropriate in terms of linguistics.
They think that Finish is a weird language, lots of ä’s everywhere for what seems like no reason. Fins hate the Swedish language because they were all forced to learn it in school until recently. Also, Finland has a bit of resentment for the fact that they were owned by Sweden for over 500 years.
The Norwegians also have some resentment about being controlled by Sweden recently, until around 1910. They pretend to hate the Swedes but I know a Norwegian who said that secretly all Norwegians feel shamed into talking Swedish when they are with a Swede because its just a nicer language, and seems more intelligent as well. But that was just one girls opinion.
Ok hope my observations and the evidence I have seen around me and from friends helps you out!
Comment by Alexis — February 23, 2008 @ 7:24 am
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Comment by Payday Loan — February 23, 2008 @ 8:34 am
isabella snow, “bloody” in “you lost the bloody war…” means blood and is not something to laugh about.
If you are American, then you do not know about the horrors of the WWII. After all, all your country does is make wars (and lots of them) in remote lands only.
Now the USA has supported disintegration of Serbia, started lots of separatists movements. You can be proud of the government which wants to make sure that the EU falls apart within the next 15 years
Comment by AD — February 23, 2008 @ 3:42 pm
In the 60s an American pilot flying an airliner into Berlin was given very confusing instructions on landing. He asked for clarification and the German in the tower was rude and asked “Have you never flown into Berlin before?”. Replied the American pilot, “Oh, I’ve flown over Berlin lots of times, I just never landed…” Turns out he was a WWII vet who flew B-17s.
Comment by Memphis — February 23, 2008 @ 4:02 pm