Germany - and what you think you know about it.

a reply to: verschickter

Thanks for sharing this.

a reply to: verschickter

I lived in wurzburg, Bayern in 2003-4 and loved it! I had the best time, met wonderful people, and lived off doners and colaweissen. Good times!

a reply to: verschickter

I know some truth about Germany.

It's a beautiful place: Castles, historic walled towns, rivers, bratwurst, beer. There's a lot to love.

But speaking as an American, I must admit it's not an easy place to understand.

I admire the precision n which you make things---solar panels, watches, cars. But this precision is an extension of the German mind. It's a glorious thing--this mind--- but it also keeps the average German from being creatively kind. Having been there several times, I must say I'm often put off by the German propensity for gruffness. The Australians and the folks from the US are known for their friendliness.

Germans, quite famously, are not known for their friendliness.

Also, the wars are a bit of a problem as far as reputation goes. The concentration camps are a bit off-putting to the squeamish types.

I can forgive the wars. I mean, look at my government in the US! God knows what our secrets are. And god only knows all the things we're guilty of.

But what I can't forgive is your leader's tireless efforts to create a New World Order. Oh, yes, Markel is just relentless about creating this new order. She and Obama had a ball opening up the borders like floodgates, weakening the United States, following UN Agends 20/20 and 20/30 as if those resolutions were the Bible!

I'm not a fan of socialism, fascism, loss of liberty, naziism, oligarchies, totalitarianism. I'm a huge fan of democracy and therefore, Germany and I must remain distant friends.

But I sure do like the way you all stack your firewood!

Dang! Nicest looking firewood stacks I've ever seen. Perfectly aligned, beautifully centered in every yard.

Impressive.

a reply to: MRuss

Germans, quite famously, are not known for their friendliness.

You've obviously never been to the Netherlands.

Aye aye aye...

I'm a huge fan of democracy and therefore, Germany and I must remain distant friends.

You got that right.

I don't know whether you can access BBC iPlayer from outside of the UK, but here's the son of Hans Frank (a convicted Nazi war criminal).

He says that if Germany fell on hard times it would return to autocracy. That is the German character. This is worrying now that Germany will be the leader of the EU now that the Brits are leaving.

"As long as our economy is great, and as long as we make money everything is very democratic," said Niklas Frank, but "if we have five to 10 years heavy economic problems the swamp is a lake, and is a sea and will swallow again, everything," he added.

www.bbc.co.uk...

a reply to: paraphi

I totally disagree with this man. Not in the next 200 years.

a reply to: MRuss
First of all, thank you for partaking in this thread and sharing your opinion.

But:

But what I can't forgive is your leader's tireless efforts to create a New World Order.
...
Also, the wars are a bit of a problem as far as reputation goes. The concentration camps are a bit off-putting to the squeamish types.
...
I'm not a fan of socialism, fascism, loss of liberty, naziism, oligarchies, totalitarianism. I'm a huge fan of democracy and therefore, Germany and I must remain distant friends.

How ignorant of you to say something like that, seriously.

en.wikipedia.org...
en.wikipedia.org...

Slavery,
Guantanamo,
The war on the indians,
The Atolls in the Pacific

and all the other countless atrocities that has been done by your own government. Germany is more democratic than the USA, just saying. I think your view of the world is a bit distorted.

a reply to: verschickter

I agree.
It still shocks me that people lamely go on holding grudges regarding the two world wars these days, # me it's been 72 years since the last one. How many people who were involved in the fighting are even alive today?

I've said it before but I don't care if your grandfather was say a war criminal SS officer, you didn't do it, # all to do with you, no shame on your shoulders, it's other peoples history now.

People move on, take Vietnam, completely screwed over by the US yet the people of Vietnam welcome US travellers to their country. Heck many victims of US atrocities are still alive today, they've moved on.
I'm a Brit, and even I'm sick of hearing the tired old "You started two world wars" bull#.
Move the # on people.

Germany, The Netherlands and the EU are now babbling about the possibility of institutionalizing private corporations as independent "Fluid States" that would be able to coin their own currency and extend across various parts of the world without a "specific border"
For this to be feasible though, the corporations would necessarily have to be separated, different, operate different currencies and most importantly, they would have to be confined one from the other in terms other than territorial terms. This also means no aggregation is possible.

Attempts at full congregation would not result in "Fluid States", but rather in old-style Napoleonic failed imperialism.

a reply to: Flanker86

That sounds awkward, can you provide any sources? Never heard of that.

a reply to: grainofsand

MRuss

I'm not a fan of socialism, fascism, loss of liberty, naziism, oligarchies, totalitarianism. I'm a huge fan of democracy and therefore, Germany and I must remain distant friends. (emphasis added)

Whats your thought on that.

a reply to: stormson

I hope you got the chance to eat a Weisswurst there, preferably outside at sunday morning with a chilled Hefeweizen, sweet mustard and Brezeln

a reply to: verschickter

Actually, I have traveled a great deal of the world in my work. For several decades, I have spent many months away in various countries of the world. Too many to list. And I'm not in these places in Africa and Europe and South and Central America and Southeast Asia for a few days. I'm there for many weeks.

I have been through uprisings in Turkey, witnessed death in Morocco, cast a few weary eyes in Mexico, have loved places, feared places---wanted to never leave some.

I think Germany is magical.

The problem with all this travel is that I see first hand how the successful attempt to create a New World Order is changing the world. Germany is a big player in these plans---and so is the United States. If you reread my post, you'll see I was also quick to criticize the US. But I criticize the elite, the government, the liberals, the corporations and the bankers only. That's because they are trying to destroy the beautiful principles and tenets American was founded upon. Us regular folks are slowly watching our country being destroyed by the 1% that owns much of the world's wealth.

As for your friendliness? Take no offense. There's more to a country's people than pulling up a stool and having a beer with other folks. I think I named some of your citizen's outstanding attributes so I won't do it again.

I'm not a fan of Merkel.

She's totally on board with the New World Order plan and being a lover of freedom, I just can't abide by her willingness to enslave the regular and ignorant masses of the world.

a reply to: grainofsand

No one---particularly me---blames today's Germans for World War 1 & 11.

At least, I'm not interested in pointing fingers at the new generation. But make no mistake---a country's past----its history----is ever present in its collective consciousness of today. You can't separate the past from the present. It lives in a country's self-esteem, its architecture, its people, its government, and in its blood.

That's just the way it all works in real life.

You, too, are a culmination of every moment you've ever lived.

In the Netherlands the Germans are famous for their friendliness, and I know more European countries think of them like this.
They are a bit reserved, but not at all unfriendly folks

a reply to: CJCrawley

We are friendly also

originally posted by: verschickter
a reply to: grainofsand

MRuss

I'm not a fan of socialism, fascism, loss of liberty, naziism, oligarchies, totalitarianism. I'm a huge fan of democracy and therefore, Germany and I must remain distant friends. (emphasis added)

Whats your thought on that.

I absolutely support communal tax funded services for citizens in a caring society (socialism), and think Germany has fantastic systems in place. fascism, loss of liberty, naziism, oligarchies, totalitarianism is not something I recognise as descriptive terms for modern day Germany.

I'm a huge fan of democracy and therefore, Germany and I must remain distant friends.

Germany is a strong example of a democratic nation so I don't really understand why the member feels he/she needs to be 'distant friends'.

originally posted by: MRuss
a reply to: grainofsand

No one---particularly me---blames today's Germans for World War 1 & 11.

Good to read that

At least, I'm not interested in pointing fingers at the new generation. But make no mistake---a country's past----its history----is ever present in its collective consciousness of today. You can't separate the past from the present. It lives in a country's self-esteem, its architecture, its people, its government, and in its blood.

Every country has it's shameful past, at least Germany's is over 72 years ago.
Vietnam much? Gitmo, Iraq, Libya? All pretty recent.

That's just the way it all works in real life.

You, too, are a culmination of every moment you've ever lived.

Yes, every moment I've ever lived, anything prior to that has # all to do with me, and the same can be said about the average German.

I respect Germany.

Though, I have to ask and to be honest I haven't read this whole thread to check if someone's already asked but........do many of the women there let their armpit hair grow and also don't shave their legs? I like threads that smash down stereo-types but is this part true?