The ultimate troll?

[nffc]

>French Canadians

In fairness...

[JasonD]

LMAO NFFC. You win with the ultimate troll.

In only two words too

[ergophobe]

>French Canadians

In fairness...

:-)

[martinibuster]

It isn't easy being different when you're a kid. Mexicans didn't care for me because I was born here and my parents were from central America. Whites/blacks didn't care for me either but it's not like I didn't have friends. I had friends with other marginalized kids like a Jewish kid named David and a Filipino kid named Eric. I have forgotten the names of most every kid I've ever known but those two I've remembered.

Anyway, I have a loathing for any system that holds that their race/religion is better than others, including the system of royalty. ESPECIALLY the system of royalty which at its heart is affirms that some people are better than others based on birth, not merit.

[ergophobe]

God save the queen
The fascist regime
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8fLOJswWtk

On the other hand... compared to the United States, the monarchies of Europe (and other Western European states)
- have greater social mobility than the US (more likely for a poor person to become middle class)
- more equal distribution of wealth
- superior protections for workers
- and less hate-group violence... the example of Denmark notwithstanding

Though personally, I do find heriditary monarchy quite odd.

[littleman]

Jason, thanks for posting those stories, it helps me know you better.

Martinibuster, you are in the Bay Area right?  What town did you grow up in?  I was raised in East San Jose.  The neighborhood I was in was 90% Mexican.

I generally hate the idea of royalty too, but the English royalty are basically a tourist attraction these days.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhyYgnhhKFw

[Rupert]

Jesus Jason.. interesting history. I am going to dine out on that doorstep story.

Mind you, I thing you are right, those who went through the war have a different understanding. They had a more exciting life too, living on the edge. When there were strikes in the UK in the 70/80's and everyone was up in arms about how awful it was, I heard of one old chap who said:  "This is bad?  Naw, I have seen much worse".  That sentiment would have run through many heads.

Monarchy? I love it. They have no power.  That power they theoretically have; they could never use. I have an attorney friend who has a thing about the Duchy of Cornwall and its powers, (Prince Charles) and I get worried when I talk to him, but really it is nothing.  Big business holds real power imho.

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=john+kirkhope&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&gws_rd=cr&ei=3lCbVqLsD4a5UY7Jq_gP

This is him if you are interested.  Fascinating chap to talk to. Not many people taken Royalty to Court. He says "If I just disappear one day...."

But your right, Royalty brings in Money for the UK. A lot of people focus on cost, and miss the big picture.

And it is I think partly a tribal centre to follow. We Brits love to hate it, but the world falls apart  if one dies, or there is joy when one is born.
Presidents come and go. As do heads of Churches, Prime ministers. Queeny has been there forever. A Benign head of state. Foreign presidents revere her.


Great thread. Can we cover sex in it too? 

[JasonD]

Just adding this as I saw it on FB. A picture of Hornchurch airfield during the war.

[Rumbas]

Just had to time to read this thread now Jason. Wow, interesting!

I had some similar experiences cleaning my old grandfathers houses after they died. I had two pass away in 07/08. Both were deeply tied into the resistance in WW2.

One of them was a Mason and I found a lot of stuff from his Lodge. Nothing spectacular, but interesting nonetheless. Lots of letters and notes from him to his buddies and nerve racking stories to his friends wifes describing how the Germans shot many of them point blank on the streets and how sorry he felt for not being able to do something in the situation. Chills running down my spine just writing it. What a horrific situation to be in!

The other one was a lot more interesting as I found quite a bit of weapons - a leaded police night stick, a baronet from a German riffle, lots of ammo and.. a mint condition German MP40 submachine gun, lots of clips and ammo.

An uncle in my family is a local cop and hunter so I called him as I didn't dare putting the gun in my car and drive with it (we just had some new "weapon legislation" not allowing anything but a butter knife). He came to pick it up and left it in his gun cabinet at home "if I ever needed it"..

The old guys really kept a lot of things and to this day I'm still depressed about not taking the time to sit with these old timers and have them tell their life stories. I tried a couple of times, but they were both very very difficult to get to talk about WW2. My guess is that they both experienced some horrific and life changing things that they simply tried to forget.

[JasonD]

> The old guys really kept a lot of things and to this day I'm still depressed about not taking the time to sit with these old timers and have them tell their life stories.
> I tried a couple of times, but they were both very very difficult to get to talk about WW2. My guess is that they both experienced some horrific and life changing things that they
>  simply tried to forget.

I agree, I had the exact same thing with my grandfather.

We're all indebted to them more than we could ever know!

[buckworks]

>> both very very difficult to get to talk about WW2

That is a common pattern. My husband is padre of the local branch of the Royal Canadian Legion (a veteran's organization) and he sometimes gets to hear stories that someone is telling for the first time.

I know of one fellow who still has nightmares that wake him up screaming ... seventy years after the battle.